4/22/2019 4: Hastur, the Emperor

4: Hastur;
the Emperor.

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Here is a very specific and powerful Card

of the Tarot, and in writing this definition
for the discussion of the HP Lovecraft
Tarot, a number of strange things have
happened to me in a personal sense
(although I feel it best not to discuss such
issues here). This is the Card of the Tarot
that represents hierarchy; not only that
hierarchy between ourselves and others,
but also hierarchy within our mortal plane
of existence, and the Gods of our system
of worship. It is probably because of this
aspect, with this particular God, that The
Necronomicon directly states that to
verbally utter His name is to bring certain
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disaster on oneself. Whilst in actual

practice this is not always the case, it does
stand as an actual rule, and is a good rule
to go by.
In terms of graphical representation,
Hastur’s Card is probably one of the least
graphical in this Deck. In keeping my
notes on the Deck I have thought that this
may be suggestive of the message of this
Card as portraying the message of an
issue withheld. “Hastur is the Divine
Ancestor of the King Who will Return; the
King in Yellow”, says the Lovecraft Tarot.
In saying this it makes a statement that
He Who Should Not be Named (as is the
proper way to refer to Hastur), is a tribal
God. In this Card the face of Hastur is
depicted as primitive and tribal. Our
religious interpretation is that this
definition is accurate as we believe that
He is worshipped by many global tribe
cultures under different names. The Tarot
elaborates on this slightly by saying that
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“there are those who believe that it will be

a human descendent of Hastur who will
reign under the Great Old Ones”. In this
we can interpret religions from primitive
tribal societies, to the ethics behind the
Church of Christ.
The Lovecraft Tarot tells us that “the
important message of this card is that we
are all descended from the Gods”, and the
Biblical Book of Genesis can come into
play now. The face of He Who Should Not
be Named is portrayed to us here as the
face of a human like Daemon, so should
we assume by this that if we are made in
the image of God, then it is in the image of
that God of human hierarchy? In this
statement then, if Hastur would be the
god of the Mythos of hierarchy on
whatever level, that He is represented as
such, then are the other Gods somewhat
more weird? “The most important aspect
of this sovrenity”, the Lovecraft Tarot tells
us, “is our personal responsibility for all
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conditional aspects of our lives.” Again,

should we here consider Christianity with
their teachings of human free will?
Considered in more esoteric terms,
the Unspeakable One represents
hierarchy as an aspect of higher spheres of
consciousness, and represents a
mediation with which humanity can
communicate with the Great Old Ones. It
also represents boundaries, and areas in
which hierarchy amongst people can run
into problems. And the Tarot itself goes
some lengths towards defining this as it
represents mediation between people,
ourselves and the Gods.
But it also represents our
responsibility for our own actions as it
states “The self is a rebellious kingdom,
[and] therefore the first axiom of the
ancient mysteries has always been ‘Know
Thyself!’” With this, Card Four is
depictive of our own actions as we relate
to others, being the only Card of the
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Major Arcana that is directly representing

the involvement in our own lives, of the
Necronomicon Mythos Gods as forces
which can work for us if they are properly
understood.
And further to this, if we understand
its relation to humanity and our means of
hierarchy, it can easily be understood that
the Card that pertains to Hastur is the
strongest Card of the Deck that can be
drawn. It can be seen as representing a
leadership principal or responsibility
where a social position is upheld. As
Hastur is the hierarchy God of mankind,
everything positive about organization
amongst people is apparent. Faith in
issues, both personal and religious, and
peoples faith – both personal and esoteric
– are signified in this name of He Who
Should Not be Named.

POSITIVE READING: As we progress

through the Tarot, now Card Four (the
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fifth Card) is representative of the social

standing which characterizes human
society, and assumed positions of power.
This is the first statement that we have
that humanity is above all other terrestrial
races.
At this point I would like to put a
personal point of view. He Who Should
Not be Named is, with this Card,
representative of the organization of the
human race, specifically in terms of
authority and social standing. It is the
view of the author that authority is always
wrong and that humanity would be better
without it. But a position of authority may
be a good thing as represented by this
Card, and this is in terms of benefit to the
individual, even if this can be argued to be
unsound. The point should be made,
though, that authority is symptomatic of
society, and Card Four, in this context,
says that this is an eternal part of the
Cosmos.
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Yet with all systems of the Tarot,

meanings further than what is first
obvious can be defined. So where the
Lovecraft system speaks of “Leadership,
Authority; [and] Dominion”, then it could
just as well be speaking about
circumstances within our personal lives
(or with the person who the reading is
for), where we will find ourselves in
control. Readings beyond what is obvious
must be uncovered.
Further to reading this statement as
regards our own situation, the Tarot
speaks to the individual more directly
now. “Healthy Self-Image; Independence,
self sustaining confidence & faith” are all
statements that concern the individual,
and this follows on directly from the
above.
But this Card is very much one of the
ego. Whilst a ‘balanced karma’ may be
suggested from the above, Card Four
carries on with defining it as positive that
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“Paternity, inheritance, heritage [and]

ancestry” are likely to come into the
picture, possibly in the form of an
inheritance from a relative? Again, what
this means in a personal sense is great,
but all of this has to be within the context
of a system that could be argued to be
unjust.
But a definite positive situation is
finally given to us, as the Positive Reading
defined in the Lovecraft Tarot forecasts a
situation of “Earned respect & / or
position.” This statement is not about
authority assumed, but is in terms of gain
where it is deserved. It would seem to me
that the history of our race and religion
revolves around the standards as they are
defined here.

NEGATIVE READING: The Negative

interpretation of the Card here, is still
very much about social position and
power. It is representative of hierarchy; of
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the chain of authority from one person

being “above” another in situations where
power can come into play for any reason.
The start of this definition in the
Lovecraft Tarot speaks of the mentality of
power in a personal sense; of “Delusions
of granduer, paranoia”, and of a
“Napoleon Complex”. If this Card is
drawn, then maybe we should look within
ourselves to ask if we are displaying the
symptoms that these statements would
indicate? It could, however, also speak of
these symptoms in others, and if these
aspects are becoming part of our lives,
then they are in the immediate sense
something that should be ‘nipped in the
bud’ – to be prevented before they start.
Further to that, these symptoms might be
the result of taking Mythos worship too
lightly. It could be the result of ‘dabbling’
with the occult, or of entering into acts of
magick before being properly prepared.
This context can be continued in
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exactly the same way when the Tarot

defines this Card with the statement:
“Domineering personality [and a] need to
control others”. Again the question is
whether we display these symptoms
ourselves, or whether they are symptoms
displayed in others? Either way these are
definite issues that need to be
immediately addressed. The Tarot
continues with the definition that
“dependence on external validation for
security” is an issue in question. This
does, on first impressions, sound like a
human symptom which, as with the rest
of this definition, also needs to be
immediately addressed. But in discussing
the HP Lovecraft Tarot and the
interpretation of the Cards, this can be
seen to have a further meaning. This
statement can also be referring to a
dependence on the Gods for such
‘validation and security’, and such a
dependence on these Gods of Chaos for
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security may be a direct route into

madness.
So as we have here defined authority
from above and a number of negative
issues as defined, the Tarot often speaks
of such negative issues in the same
statement, with an opposite definition in
the same aspect. So whilst authority from
above is indicated in this respect, this
Deck continues directly in defining its
meaning as, the “Orphan, illegitimacy
[and the] Nouveau Riche”. Whilst power
can be misused, and this is warned of,
now we see the danger implied in actions
begun without any form of higher resort.
It warns us of taking action without
authority to accept responsibility should
those actions be wrong.
In ending its definition with a
Negative Reading with this Card,
authority in the wrong hands or without
responsibility is defined with a warning.
“Power aquired through fear” is forecast;
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as is “manipulation, and / or aggression.”

This Card, therefore, predicts issues
whereby authority is misused, where
lifestyle issues may need to be addressed,
or where rebellion may be justified,
whether that be in terms of magick, or
through means of looking within
ourselves to see what can be changed.

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