Lunatic Deck & Tuesday's Song - Theory, Usage, and Tips

With the sudden resurgence of interest and availability of the Lunatic Deck, as well as the imminent release of Tuesday's Song, I thought it might be helpful to share my thoughts on this work. Understand that I am not the authority on the subject. No one is, but more on that in a minute. I can only offer my insights in the hopes that it can begin your journey of understanding.

The inception of the Lunatic Fringe goes back to the earliest days of the Temple with the observance of the Lunatic Feast. As this practice collided with the Zia Tarot (don't bother asking) the Lunatic Fringe adopted a highly detailed system of understanding the lunar cycle, the forces it drives, and the forces that drive it. This system was first expressed as a form of astrology (again, don't bother), then as the Lunatic Deck, and now as Tuesday's Song. There were many strange concurrences that lead to this, but those stories are better told in person. This has been a ride.

The Lunatic Deck and Tuesday's Song are, more than anything else, an aleph, or a window through which all things can be seen. This particular window is through the gateway of the moon, so it is more accurate to say, 'all things under the moon.' The colors are washed away in the moonlight. What was clear and defined joins the dream world. Reason subsides and possibilities open.

There was never much thought into how the cards or book would be used. The intention was to capture the truth and beauty we saw. It is also important to know that confusion is a major part of understanding these things. It is perhaps the most important part. This is not the domain of logic. They are Lunatics, after all. So, to my previous comment about who the expert is: You are. This work is built on ancient wisdom and archetypes. You already know how to proceed. All you need to do is forget and learn again.

The cards of the deck clearly show the days of the lunar month, the Lunatics that dance throughout, and the lunar months of the year. Although it would be easy to draw straight line conclusions from this basic idea the reality is much more complex. For example, each of the days shows their attendant Lunatics but only a little over half of the total Lunatics are mentioned. Here's a hint: The moon has a dark side and there are two high tides in a day.

The text handles a single day of the week (Tuesday) and uses that as a template to show the weeks, months, seasons, and even years. It does not deal with the days of the week. This is handled in the cards. The text also illuminates the time of day, but I have already said too much. The point is that between the cards and the text every moment of each day and each day of the year (and beyond) are clearly described.

Since the temptation to use an aleph as a scrying method is both obvious and rewarding it is worth giving at least some guidance on the matter. The most important thing to remember is that You are the authority. We do not recommend doing readings for other people except with the greatest care. This is because you will always distort the message. These symbols and archetypes should and will resonate differently with different people. That is not to say it is impossible, just very delicate.

As Tuesday's Song clearly establishes, the basic form of a reading is three sets of two cards each. I take these to mean the situation, the details, and the results. In general, I will consider lunar days to mean just that, the particular day of the lunar cycle we are in (or will soon enter). Any Lunatics present I will reference against the daily Lunatics of any day cards present. The month cards I don't generally look at as calendar events but instead as sort of uber-lunatics. This is because the calendar aspect of the monthly archetypes is much more complex than it might seem. So they become controlling forces, with the particular Lunatics dancing to those forces and the days setting the tempo.

I don't actually follow any of that.

Okay, I sort of do. The cards are self-referential and will usually guide my thinking into new and surprising ways of seeing and understanding them. It is so important to really look at and understand what you are seeing. Honestly, few things irk me like a tarot reading that is quoted from a book (more about the book below). Look at the symbols. Understand what it is showing you. Let the cards, and your mind, do their job.

Much like the lunar months and their archetypes, the complexity of Tuesday's Song prohibits a straight line description of how to connect the deck. In practical use, I would recommend the old Zii-catcherist practice of the Monkey Bible. Flip the book open to a random page. There is your reading.

For those of you with a more academic interest, here are a few more hints: Each quarter of the book describes one week, with a cow controlling the first two weeks, an owl controlling the third week, and a demon controlling the last. I am a monkey. You are a pig. He is a cow. 1, 13, 25, 37, 5, 17, 29, 41, 9, 21, 33, 45, 2, 14, 26, 38, 6, 18, 30, 42, 10, 22, 34, 46, 3, 15, 27, 39, 7, 19, 31, 43, 11, 23, 35, 47, 4, 16, 28, 40, 8, 20, 32, 44, 12, 24, 36, 48.

There are many, many levels of meaning and all that I have written here only touches on maybe half of the content, and doesn't well explain the half it touches. Everything is connected. Always doubt.

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