The Letter J

THE HORN OF PLENTY, A HOOK Value: 1, 5

J is the Last. As the Last, it is also the First. for the First and the Last are One on the Wheel. Its Shape denotes a turning of a corner, and contains in it, like the Crescent, a portion of the Circle. This letter was Born from the Union of G acting upon the male I⁹ and phonetically equates to the softened G and this action upon the I produces an “arching” of its lower Parts to transform into the J. The projectile which once pierced, now drags, pulls and suspends, and becomes a Hook to Gore the Flesh, a Plough to till the Earth, and a Rake to Reap.¹⁰ It is the fruits of the Labor of this Hook, this Plough, this Rake that fills the Horn of Plenty.

Notes

The Letter J is the last of the letters to be included in the modern English Alphabet (V comes just before). It is also one of only of two affricates in the collection of English Language sounds (the other is Ch as in Chain, but not hard as in Chaos.)

It is in the 17th Century that J makes its first appearance in the English Language. It took 150 years after that, before it was accepted. Until then, J was viewed not as a letter in itself but as a mere variant of I. In fact, J succeeds I in order of the English Alphabet because it was essentially born of it. The same holds for the letter V which was born of the U, and so was inserted after it. Consonants are typically inserted after their mother (or father) vowels.