the origin stories

In the courts of yesteryear, the jesters performed skits and imitations to get people to lighten up, to laugh at themselves and perhaps, for the wisest jesters, to communicate a message to the ruling elite through humor that no one else could. The Jester archetype today is played by comic news hosts such as Bill Maher, Samantha Bee and Trevor Noah. They have the stage and they can say whatever they wish to the powers that be.

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There are wisdom traditions which include the concept of zero, or nothing, as part of the all. That which is not, is included in that which is. For example, in ancient Chinese Feng Shui, when writing out your affirmations for what you want, make eight of them and then make the ninth irrelevant and empty. Also, in the Bagua, which is the eight-sided figure used as a template on physical spaces for Feng Shui, the center place is supposed to remain empty, both in the diagram and in the physical space, to invoke a sense of peace.

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The printed version of the Joker came about during the Civil War in the United States as the result of a need for a higher Bower card (other than the trump cards of the two Jacks) in the card game, Euchre. This Joker therefore, can also be interpreted as the ‘Jack of all Jacks’ taking on some of the characteristics of a typical Jack card. Creative, youthful, independent but still a part of the royal fam, they don’t liked to be bossed around and they tend to have a sense of pride and strength. Like all Jacks, the Joker can also turn this creative energy into deceptive, shady business.