This webmanga is laced with occult symbolism.
By occult I don't mean works of the devil, ghosts, demons, and vampires. I mean mythology and ancient practices that today have been coined psuedosciences. This symbolism is present in both the artwork and plot. On this page of the site I will explain major influences that affect this webmanga and historical /philosophical details you may have missed. I will also attempt to explain to the best of my ability certain practices and systems. And please, by all means, correct me if any of my information in faulty. I'm not wiccan or practicer anything mentioned, I am merely an artist with a love of history and culture. Feel free to contact me and discuss.
The main symbols contained in this webmanga revolve around the standard playing card deck you can find in any American household. A standard poker deck with 52 cards, a joker or two, and two blank cards. You probably know this already from just the title of the webmanga and character names. The modern playing deck is based off of the much older tarot card deck.
TAROT
A set of cards that have been used for centuries for both fortune telling and card games. Supposedly, the cards originate from Egypt, India, or China. Their true origin is unknown. Tarot as we know it appeared first in homes of the nobility in the late 15th century in Italy and France.
The first decks consist of the Minor Arcana which are what modern playing cards are based off of. This portion was brought to Europe through Asian trade and as it became increasingly popular the foreign decks were altered and combined with the European decks.
The Minor Arcana generally consists of cards numbered 1-10 of the suits Cups, Wands/Batons, Pentacles/Coins, and Swords/Shields plus the courts cards. The court cards have a King, sometimes a Queen, Knight, and Page.
Later on the Major Arcana were added to the Minor Arcana along with the Fool, who's orgination is from the game Trumps. Some common known Major Arcana are: The Magician, The Wheel of Fortune, The Devil, The Hierophant, The High Priestess, Death, and The Tower.
The Waite-Rider Tarot deck was created in 1902 and considered the standard tarot deck of the western world. Arthur Waite, the chief creator of the deck, instructed artist Pamela Coleman-Smith on the illustrations of this deck. Pamela drew the base imagery from the French Mersailles deck. Between the Waiter-Rider and Mersaille deck there are noticeable image similarities. However, Arthur Waite's deck is not merely a redrawn Mersaille deck; Waite used esoteric symbols and referances to the Hermetic Sciences -- the Qabalah, Alchemy, Astrology, and numerous other divisions.
Look fimilar? Like a certain Chapter One title page perhaps?
More info coming soon