Know Thyself

These were the words, it is said, that were carved above the doors of the temples of ancient wisdom. Whether they were or not the fact remains that virtually nothing can be achieved in the realm of spiritual development until you attain a grasp of who you are and what you are for.

But this is not just about personality or character analysis. This is about realising how you – particularly and uniquely you – are likely to screw things up.

Things go wrong in life all the time, and every time they do there is something to learn. But learning is very difficult for many human beings. A strange statement, you may think, in a society that seems increasingly to revolve around education. But learning is not just about the collection of information, it is about change.

In the Tarot, the appearance of a Major Arcana card shows the need to learn a lesson, to adapt and change your approach.. Obstacles are not indicators that we should stop, but that we should learn and change, and problems are not things to simply endure with gritted teeth, but opportunities to learn and change.

The refusal to learn (and change) is at the root of all significant problems in life. In some cases, the refusal to learn – when the Universe is doing everything it possibly can to teach you – will result in illness, and in extreme cases even death, as the persons life becomes more and more unbalanced and their karma implodes. I am not intending to be deliberately scary here, I am simply saying how it works.

Arthur said, “you are the negatives of your numbers, everything else is the Guidance”. The numbers he was referring to were the Four Roads, so make sure you have your Four Roads numbers to hand and read the following potential negative traits of each, along with some suggestions as to what to do about them. If, when you read these, your response is “well I’m not like that” then think again and check yourself, before you wreck yourself. I have never known a case whereby the negatives of the numbers are not apparent, in some way. The issue is to what extent are they being worked on? No one expects a single human being to exhibit the perfect character, the issue is are we working on self-improvement, through the control of the negatives, or are we doing everything we can to deflect, avoid and ignore them?

One

Here there is likely to be an over-emphasis on yourself and your own needs, and probably little concern for others. Selfishness and narrow-mindedness are also likely, as is impatience. Sometimes the negative can go the other way and be shown as timidity, where the person is afraid to stand on their own two feet.

Action: Slow down. Think of others., Do not refer everything to yourself. It’s not all about you. Expand your mind. Learn to be accepted and feel comfortable in group situations. The solution is maybe not what you think it is, consider other options and other people’s points of view.

Two

A negative 2 is likely to be a meddling busybody, who adds confusion rather than harmony to situations. They are probably over-sensitive, easily triggered and offended by the smallest of things. They may be run entirely by fear. This stems from them being too much in their feelings. They may also experience difficulty in finding a fulfilling place in a group. They may have little patience with details or with people. All this may make them withdrawn, shy and retiring, though many negative 2’s have been known to be angry and confrontational in an attempt to run away from their true nature. 2’s have to be careful not to be too compliant though, as they are easily swayed by other, more dominant numbers.

Action: the person must work to learn systems and organisation, to break tasks down and proceed through life by evolution not revolution. Above all they must develop the mind, and use it to balance, control and direct their feelings. This way their natural intuition will have a chance to shine, and fear will be overcome.

Three

Negative 3’s can be frivolous with little sense of purpose. They scatter their energies and are often more talk than action. They can be vain and superficial, seeking a drama where they can be centre of attention. They can be lazy and find it difficult to express themselves in appropriate ways. They may hide their feelings and emotions from themselves and others. They could feel uncomfortable in even light social situations and in extreme cases are likely to be shy and withdrawn.

Action: the person must work to accept responsibility. They have to learn what is involved in being a friend. They should try to channel their ability with words and natural creativity into practical fields where they can earn a living.

Four

A negative 4 often feels limited, tied down and frustrated. This is because they have very rigid attitudes, are stubborn and obstinate. Obsessed with system and order, they easily lose sight of the forest because of their interest in the trees. Sometimes it goes the other way and a negative 4 can be very disorganised, refusing to be accountable to anyone. They often have no sense of time or commitment, so their actions are often irresponsible. They are rigid, inflexible and unwilling to change.

Action: the person must work to develop executive ability. They have to develop the capability of seeing things realistically, with a practical approach. They need structure and order and either should develop self-discipline or get involved in work where discipline and rules are imposed upon them.

Five

Here, too much freedom is used carelessly. There is an emphasis on gaining freedom for its own sake, rather than constructively using that freedom. There may be an excessive pull toward food, drink, drugs, sex – sensory satisfactions with little thought of the consequences. Negative 5’s are easily distracted and often scatter their energy, which brings few concrete results and much frustration. Sometimes there is a fear of freedom and fear of taking risks which produces a stagnant situation with much frustration. There can be an inability to recognise their own talents, and hence they miss out on potential rewards.

Action: the individual must work to be aware of their uniqueness, to achieve independence and to attain some specific goals. They must try to finish what they start, or at least not start too much at once. They must resist the temptation to go off in all directions at once.

Six

This number is easily overwhelmed with responsibility. They may find it difficult to recognise their own needs, or to care for themselves because of the extreme and constant needs of others (parents, friends, children, partner, society). They may even be reduced to a near slave if they accept too much responsibility. In some cases an inability to accept any responsibility and to express real friendship or love makes it difficult for them to have any close relationships. Sometimes a difficulty in handling even the simplest everyday responsibilities produces a frightened individual.

Action: the individual must work on self-expression and learn to see the lighter side of things, expressing the joy of living. They must learn to regulate the amount of responsibility they take on, and to always fulfil their obligations without running away. Deviousness and deceit must be tempered as these make peace of mind very hard to achieve.

Seven

Negative 7’s can be selfish and inflexible. Their ‘different’ point of view may appear to others as inappropriate or just plain crazy. They can be difficult to get to know and purposely put others off because it is more comfortable to keep real connections at a distance. In some cases the person will be timid, shy and retiring. They may be dependent on others and resentful of that dependency. They can be too much in their mind, over-think everything and become absorbed by impractical theories and abstract concepts. This can lead to a disconnection from reality.

Action: the individual should work on self-expression, finding a way to communicate their ideas clearly. To do this they should be prepared to say nothing until they have worked out their ideas fully. They will however benefit from a partner or friend to whom they can unburden their half-formed thoughts, ideas and feelings without being judged.

Eight

Overly materialistic and obsessed with goals and achievements, a negative 8 can be extremely rigid, stubborn and obstinate. Often they are controlling and dictatorial, and this can make them cold and aloof. In some cases, no matter their level of achievement they still feel tied down, limited and frustrated. There can be a hunger within them which can be hard to satisfy. Sometimes it goes the other way and a lack of concern for material things produces an unrealistic, impractical, unworkable way of life with many problems. The killer here is stubbornness, for when they dig into positions they are often simultaneously limiting their potential.

Action: the individual must realise that the spiritual will win over the material every single time. So they have to learn to study and meditate on the inner satisfactions as well as the material ones. No amount of money, status or success will make the 8 happy unless they also possess a spiritual dimension to their life.

Nine

When in the negative this person is easily overwhelmed with giving and finds it difficult to recognise personal needs because all efforts are directed toward others. Very often they will feel disconnected and trapped. Others may become tired of hearing of their woes or constant sacrifices. Sometimes this person may become very selfish, concerned primarily with getting rather than giving. They may land up insensitive to others needs, self-centred and unusually inflexible.

Action: the individual must work to win and preserve personal independence. They have to strive for material freedom at the same time as pursuing something humanitarian. They must help others wherever they can, but should also work on boundaries, so that others do not bleed them dry. Nines must help others but not be naïve about human nature.

Eleven

Here we have, in the negative, a lost dreamer, where their idealistic motivations are overwhelmed by impractical schemes. Aiming toward spirituality they get into trouble because they have no grasp of material realities. Al this produces much nervous tension. Extreme views are easily adopted. Sometimes this is a bit darker and their ambitions are masked in idealistic, even inspirational words, but the hidden motivations are those of personal power, material success and the satisfaction of selfish needs.

Action: the person must lower their sights and work toward achieving more practical, realistic goals. Only then, once they have built a foundation can then try to use their enormous potential to help others.

The negatives of 2 also apply here.

Twenty-Two

Easily overwhelmed by extreme forces, including nervous tension, the negative 22 finds it difficult to direct the potential they feel within themselves toward practical ends. They are likely to be the cause of much confusion and may have difficulty in organising themselves in positive ways. This number can produce an extremely destructive character who sees themselves as unaccountable to anyone. They are easily moved by uncontrollable whims and urges and as they fight a war with themselves they create havoc for everyone else.

Action: the person must lower their sights. They should take small, consistent steps, over time, to build material freedom and give up on grand schemes until they have built the foundations. They must learn to distinguish between innate knowings (which will be accurate, worthwhile and enrich their life immeasurably) and wild impulses (which will be wholly destructive). The difference between these things may not be immediately apparent to them.

The negatives of 4 also apply here.

This cannot be an exhaustive list but should serve as a template for the ongoing and essential work of self-examination, self-discovery and improvement. In all cases the remedy is the same – a balanced life will be more productive and sustainable than one lived at the extremes.

In my own case (Four Roads of 3, 1, 11, 5) when writing this article I have to work hard to consider every viewpoint, not just my own (1), resist the temptation to turn this into a 100,000 word thesis and make sure I practice what I preach (3), switch off my phone and email while I do this so as not to get distracted (5) and ensure that what I say is realistically actionable in daily life, not just a pie-in-the-sky theory that no-one could ever understand, let alone implement (11). If I manage to do this with some degree of success then my words will have a positive effect, but if I do not quite manage to get this balance right then my words are likely to fall flat. Obviously, there are other factors here, like the situation/mindset/attitude of the reader, but I can do nothing about that so I focus on what I can do, which is to avoid the negatives of my Four Roads.

At the end of the day all this connects us back to the non-Arthur statement “nothing changes until you do”, that all the information and knowledge in the world is useless unless we are prepared to use it to change and improve. Maybe, at first, this involves some regret and sadness when we realise the mistakes we’ve been making, but we must not get bogged down in that. To live is to change and to grow, or at least it should be. It is true that our vices and virtues together make us who we are, but its our vices that cause all the trouble, so it’s a good idea to try to do something about them, as detailed here. Your greatest enemy is not your mother, or your ex, or that kid at school who bullied you, or even the Illuminati. Your greatest enemy is yourself. To realise this is to take an enormous step forward.