Originally offered at the Tarot Readers Academy in 2016 for the Tarot Summer School

Course Description:

This is a FREE ONLINE video-led course taught through concise installments that endeavor to de-mystify the Opening of the Key (OOTK) divinatory technique as detailed by Paul Foster Case, MacGregor Mathers, and Aleister Crowley, augmented with commentary from contemporary masters like Chic & Tabatha Cicero and Paul Hughes-Barlow.

Much like how the Celtic Cross spread has become a golden standard, we will learn how to integrate the OOTK into personal practice. Along with deconstructing the five operations of the OOTK, we will learn about elemental dignities, Kabbalistic basics, traditional card counting, Western astrology basics, and what all of these studies combined with tarot divination can teach us about the cornerstone principle in Western occultism–“as above, so below.”

An easy-to-follow workbook in plain English will be provided, which you will be expected to work through while taking the course. Supplemental study guides will be provided to teach elemental dignities, Kabbalistic basics, reference charts for card counting, guides on the twelve houses and twelve signs in astrology, references for the ten sephiroth of the Tree of Life, and a Sepher Yetzirah trumps correspondence table to help explain card counting.

Even if after the course you opt never to use the OOTK in its traditional form, the various techniques and metaphysical principles you will learn in this course will deepen your understanding of tarot, of divination in general, and of Western occultism.

My OOTK course is not just about learning the OOTK. This course is an invaluable lecture with supplemental texts on how to process and think through esoteric practices and studies. This course is about how to calibrate your own mental state and vibrational frequency to ready yourself for communion with higher consciousness (or Divinity). The lessons I strive to teach in this course transcend a tarot technique tutorial. I hope to share with you how to be a more powerful metaphysician.

Prerequisites:

An intermediate level proficiency with tarot is a prerequisite for the course. This is not for tarot beginners.

However, it is okay if you are not familiar with Western astrology or the Kabbalah/Qabalah. All the references you need for the basics in the various esoteric studies will be taught through this course. You do not need to come in to this class with a background in astrology or the Kabbalah.

Course Outline:

1. Introduction to the Opening of the Key
2. First Operation: The Four Worlds
3. Second Operation: The Twelve Houses
4. Third Operation: The Twelve Signs
5. Fourth Operation: The Thirty-Six Decans
6. Fifth Operation: The Tree of Life
7. Concluding Remarks

Recommended Supplies:

I say “recommended” here only because there is no feasible way for me to force it. However, I strongly recommend that you print out a copy of the OOTK workbook, at the very least, to help you navigate the OOTK exercises and video lectures. If you have a 1-inch 3-ring binder, then I recommend that you print out all relevant course materials provided, use 5-tab binder dividers to section off your binder as recommended, and compile the course materials so you have your very own OOTK textbook.

Oh. Do I need to mention that you need a tarot deck?

I also recommend that you set aside an entire day for going through this course, the course materials, and practicing the OOTK alongside the video lectures. Even though actual run-time of videos is 105 minutes, this course is likely to occupy an entire day.

Important Notes:

Given the subject matter of the course, there will be religious references, specifically to Abrahamic faiths. While such references are always in an academic tone, the way the content is framed is definitely not secular (or even exoteric).

Lectures and oral instruction consists of 10 videos, total run time 105 minutes.

Download All Document Files

Begin by downloading all document files you will need.

The below link will take you to a compressed zip file of all documents for this course. Each document is provided in two versions, DOCX and PDF.

One-Click Download of All Docs

ZIP File download

Table of Contents Overview

What’s in that zip file? Here’s an overview of all digital files and content in this OOTK course pack download:

Table of Contents

PDF download

Direct Link to the Workbook PDF

Click below for direct online access to the complete workbook PDF:

The OOTK Workbook

PDF download

Introduction to the Opening of the Key

3-Minute OOTK Run-Through Demo

First Operation: Opening of the Four Worlds

Supplemental References:

Card Counting: Numerical Assignments in the Major Arcana

PDF download

Numerological Correspondences

PDF download

First Operation Optional Procedures

Second Operation: The Twelve Houses

Supplemental References:

Understanding the Twelve Astrological Houses

PDF download

Third Operation: The Twelve Signs

Supplemental References:

Understanding the Twelve Zodiac Signs

PDF download

Fourth Operation: The Thirty-Six Decans

Supplemental References:

Understanding the Thirty-Six Decans

PDF download

Fifth Operation: The Tree of Life

Supplemental References:

Basic Principles of the Ten Sephiroth and Tree of Life (Per Golden Dawn Interpretations)

PDF download

Fifth Operation Commentary

Concluding Remarks

Office Hours FAQs

During the 2016 course, participants had the opportunity to ask questions, which I then responded to and added the answers in additional media called Office Hours FAQs. A portion of the questions were answered by text, in the below PDF, and a portion answered by video response, in the below video link.

• Office Hours FAQs I (PDF)
• Office Hours FAQs II (YouTube video)

YouTube Playlist (All Videos)

Playlist of Video Course

External Link (YouTube)