Playing around with google books, I have found a rather amusing passage in “De' Ritratti Critici Abbozzati e Contornati”, by Francesco Fulvio Frugoni (Venice, 1669).
The author compares life with a great number of games, including Tarot (I transcribe and translate only the Tarot passage).
p.145
Tra tutti i simboli sotto i quali pennelleggiata si ombreggia l'Humana Vita, quello, a mio credere, del Giuoco è il più dottrinale. Ella è un Giuoco di Scacchi, per chi non ha ingegno e attenzione ben faticoso, e forse anche più per chi ha ingegno e non ha fortuna.
...
p.152
Ella è un gioco di Tarocchi, dove tutto il Mondo leggiero, e dipinto non ha sol che apparenza, nel quale il Bue prevale al Lione, la Giustitia va dietro a' Nudi, la Morte prende i Magnati, il Diavolo è scoperto poco, il Matto è coperto sempre, il fuoco è grande quando si alza: in cui non contano i Tarocchi minori. Chi ha la Stella verticale propitia guadagna. Chi tien in mano l'argentea Luna non l'ha in testa scema. Chi ha i raggi d'un aureo Sole non è colto dalla freddura spogliato; ma finalmente il Giuoco va a monte, e con una Tromba finito intima la raccolta, e la ritirata.
In my opinion, gaming is the most instructive of all the symbols used to paint and represent human life. [Life] is a game of chess, very tiring for who is lacking in intelligence and attention, and maybe even more so for who is intelligent but has no fortune.
...
[Life] is a game of Tarot, in which the whole World is lightly portrayed and is only appearance, in which the Ox wins the Lion, Justice follows the Naked, Death takes the Magnates, the Devil is seldom uncovered and the Fool is always covered, Fire is great when it rises, in which the minor Trumps do not count. Whoever has a vertical propitious Star wins. Whoever holds the silver Moon has no waning moon on his head. Whoever has the rays of the golden Sun is not taken undressed by the cold. But in the end the game goes awry, ending with a Trumpet that sounds the gathering and the retreat.
Re: Gaming, tarot and human life (XVII century quotes)
2Another interesting passage from google books:
“Discorsi morali sopra i sette salmi penitentiali”, Innocenzio Cibo Ghisi, 1609.
Who is not surprised that God loved so much his vilest creature? The vilest thing he created is the earth. The love of God is different from ours, because ours comes from the goodness or the beauty of its object. On the contrary, the love of God is the cause of goodness and beauty in the object. So we love things more when they are more noble and deserving. On the contrary God loved mud, because being so vile it was more in need and begging for goodness and beauty. If it were not inappropriate to mix the actions of God with human actions, that sometimes are vicious, I would mention that passage from the Book of Proverbs: “I was daily his delight, always playing before him”; and I would say that, when creating the world, the wisdom of God almost played a game of triumphs [un giuoco di trionfi], because, as in the game the last card played, however small, trumps all the others, so mud and earth, however vile, being lastly shaped in the figure of man, triumphed on all other creatures.
“Discorsi morali sopra i sette salmi penitentiali”, Innocenzio Cibo Ghisi, 1609.
Who is not surprised that God loved so much his vilest creature? The vilest thing he created is the earth. The love of God is different from ours, because ours comes from the goodness or the beauty of its object. On the contrary, the love of God is the cause of goodness and beauty in the object. So we love things more when they are more noble and deserving. On the contrary God loved mud, because being so vile it was more in need and begging for goodness and beauty. If it were not inappropriate to mix the actions of God with human actions, that sometimes are vicious, I would mention that passage from the Book of Proverbs: “I was daily his delight, always playing before him”; and I would say that, when creating the world, the wisdom of God almost played a game of triumphs [un giuoco di trionfi], because, as in the game the last card played, however small, trumps all the others, so mud and earth, however vile, being lastly shaped in the figure of man, triumphed on all other creatures.
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Re: Gaming, tarot and human life (XVII century quotes)
3I slightly expanded my translation of Frugoni, to include the game of the goose and game of cards.
In my opinion, gaming is the most instructive of all the symbols used to paint and represent human life. [Life] is a game of chess, very tiring for who is lacking in intelligence and attention, and maybe even more so for who is intelligent but has no fortune.
...
[Life] is a Game of the Goose, in which you must win money from your fellows, in which whoever reaches sixty-three often goes to Death; in which you are entrapped in inextricable labyrinths; in which there are bridges that cannot be passed without danger and without paying, wells that contain no water but are full of insidious snakes, tenacious mud and noxious nettles; inns from which you cannot come out until you are robbed by the innkeepers, who mostly kill you sweetly on the road, selling drunkenness for a high price and placing on the table all kinds of salted food.
[Life] is a Game of Tarot, in which the whole World is lightly portrayed and is only appearance, in which the Ox wins the Lion, Justice follows the Naked, Death takes the Magnates, the Devil is seldom uncovered and the Fool is always covered, Fire is great when it rises, in which the minor Trumps do not count. Whoever has a vertical propitious Star wins. Whoever holds the silver Moon has no waning moon on his head. Whoever has the rays of the golden Sun is not taken undressed by the cold. But in the end the game goes awry, ending with a Trumpet that sounds the gathering and the retreat.
...
[Life] is a Game of Cards, whose figures are but transitory, because “the figures of this World pass over”. In which there are swords piercing hearts; numerous spades, accumulated coins, poisoned cups, short-lived flowers, violent staffs. In which you cut with the Bassetta, and an Ace counts more than a Page, a Knight wins a Page; the Woman is a painted forgery; Kings are deposed and Queens are torn apart. In this game, a Flux surpasses who has a Primiera; you pass with sixty-five and you often must discard or deceive your family, cheaters are careful, cards are double, numbers are fake, you win with Picchetto and take away the cloak, Quaranta makes lose whoever counts double. Therefore Socrates, who was the oracle of philosophers and the philosopher of oracles, used to say, as quoted by the commentator of Alciato, “gambling is like life: in any case you always have to allot a few tokens”.
I like the Sola-Busca like image of “swords piercing hearts” [spade che trafiggono cuori]
In my opinion, gaming is the most instructive of all the symbols used to paint and represent human life. [Life] is a game of chess, very tiring for who is lacking in intelligence and attention, and maybe even more so for who is intelligent but has no fortune.
...
[Life] is a Game of the Goose, in which you must win money from your fellows, in which whoever reaches sixty-three often goes to Death; in which you are entrapped in inextricable labyrinths; in which there are bridges that cannot be passed without danger and without paying, wells that contain no water but are full of insidious snakes, tenacious mud and noxious nettles; inns from which you cannot come out until you are robbed by the innkeepers, who mostly kill you sweetly on the road, selling drunkenness for a high price and placing on the table all kinds of salted food.
[Life] is a Game of Tarot, in which the whole World is lightly portrayed and is only appearance, in which the Ox wins the Lion, Justice follows the Naked, Death takes the Magnates, the Devil is seldom uncovered and the Fool is always covered, Fire is great when it rises, in which the minor Trumps do not count. Whoever has a vertical propitious Star wins. Whoever holds the silver Moon has no waning moon on his head. Whoever has the rays of the golden Sun is not taken undressed by the cold. But in the end the game goes awry, ending with a Trumpet that sounds the gathering and the retreat.
...
[Life] is a Game of Cards, whose figures are but transitory, because “the figures of this World pass over”. In which there are swords piercing hearts; numerous spades, accumulated coins, poisoned cups, short-lived flowers, violent staffs. In which you cut with the Bassetta, and an Ace counts more than a Page, a Knight wins a Page; the Woman is a painted forgery; Kings are deposed and Queens are torn apart. In this game, a Flux surpasses who has a Primiera; you pass with sixty-five and you often must discard or deceive your family, cheaters are careful, cards are double, numbers are fake, you win with Picchetto and take away the cloak, Quaranta makes lose whoever counts double. Therefore Socrates, who was the oracle of philosophers and the philosopher of oracles, used to say, as quoted by the commentator of Alciato, “gambling is like life: in any case you always have to allot a few tokens”.
I like the Sola-Busca like image of “swords piercing hearts” [spade che trafiggono cuori]