author
Arthur Edward Waite
1857–1942
Best known for helping create the world’s most famous tarot deck, this prolific writer spent decades exploring mysticism, symbolism, and the hidden traditions of the West. His books helped turn occult history into something readers could study, debate, and return to again and again.
2 Audiobooks
Devil-Worship in France; or, The Question of Lucifer
by Arthur Edward Waite
Lives of alchemystical philosophers To which is added a bibliography of alchemy and hermetic philosophy
by Arthur Edward Waite, Francis Barrett
About the author
Born in Brooklyn in 1857 and raised in England, Arthur Edward Waite became a poet, editor, and deeply read student of mysticism. He wrote widely on alchemy, ceremonial magic, the Kabbalah, Rosicrucianism, and Freemasonry, and he was known for treating these subjects as serious spiritual and historical traditions rather than mere curiosities.
He is remembered most today as the co-creator of the Rider–Waite tarot deck, developed with artist Pamela Colman Smith and published in the early 20th century. The deck’s rich imagery helped shape how many modern readers picture tarot, and Waite also wrote companion works that explained his symbolic approach.
Beyond tarot, Waite produced a large body of books and translations that made esoteric literature more accessible to English-speaking readers. He died in London in 1942, but his influence still reaches readers interested in symbolism, occult history, and the spiritual imagination.