Review: 36 Secrets, by T. Susan Chang
In which I enthuse about decans, tarot, and Chang's infectious laughter.
36 Secrets: A Decanic Journey through the Minor Arcana of the Tarot is a 281-page book that deals with the decans and their correspondences with the minor arcana of the Tarot.
The minor arcana of the tarot have an astrological secret: 36 of them, in fact. In the early 20th century, members of the British secret society of the Golden Dawn created what would become the world's best-known tarot deck: the Rider Waite Smith tarot. They also created an infrastructure of esoteric correspondences around the deck, assigning each minor card numbered 2 through 10 in each of the four suits, to a decan — a 10° section of the zodiac, and by extension a 10-day section of the calendar year. For magical practitioners, these decans have a deep and lasting relevance; their mythic history, their imagery, and their use in talismanic work date back millennia. In our time, the yearlong "decan walk" has become a means of honoring that occult legacy, a way of experiencing firsthand the qualities reflected in each of these cosmic windows. 36 Secrets is the chronicle of one such walk, taken by T. Susan Chang in the period from March 2019 to March 2020. It explores the ways tarot and decan imagery overlap and depart from one another, and the metaphorical language they share. Beyond that, it is a deep excavation of the meaning to be found in the minor arcana, or "Lesser Secrets," and one practitioner's heartfelt contribution to the lore and mythic legacy of the cards.
The correspondences between decans and Tarot cards have been of interest to me for a while now, and I’ve written on the topic previously in French.
One of my go-to books regarding the decans is of course 36 Faces: The History, Astrology and Magic of the Decans by Austin Coppock. Unfortunately, as I’m writing this, 36 Faces is no longer available for sale (unless you are willing and able to spend a small fortune on eBay). Austin Coppock is reworking the text for an upcoming second edition, which a large part of the astrological community is awaiting impatiently.
T. Susan Chang is one of the people who have in their possession The Precious (a copy of 36 Faces), and regularly refers to it in 36 Secrets. The fascinating discussions between Coppock and Chang on their respective podcasts (Eavesdropping at Midnight and Fortune’s Wheelhouse) persuaded me to get 36 Secrets to deepen my knowledge of tarot and the decans specifically.
Chang's prose is particularly pleasant. 36 Secrets is dense in references, but I found that it was always approached in the most accessible and educational way possible without impoverishing the subject; this should not be a surprise because after all, T. Susan Chang is also a teacher alongside her activity as an author, diviner and seamstress! However, not all teachers have a similar quality of expression and transmission.
36 Secrets is a real treasure for nerds interested in astrology and tarot. You’ll find stats, linguistics, history, poetry, but also personal anecdotes which anchor this knowledge in everyday life. Each minor arcana is the subject of a detailed and structured chapter, which allows you to quickly refer to it if you are looking for example which planet rules which decan, or which major arcana is associated with it.
It was a great pleasure to make 36 Secrets my breakfast reading for several weeks, and I’m glad to being able to refer to it for tarot readings, astrological chart readings and research.
You can check out T. Susan Chang’s work on her website : https://www.tsusanchang.com/
I highly recommend the Fortune’s Wheelhouse podcast, which is packed with info about tarot, astrology and esotericism, recitation of Orphic hymns in ancient Greek (!!!) and Chang’s enchanting laughter.