Tag: Tarot

17- The Star

This article is part of a series of posts that will compare each card in the Tarot across different decks in order to study and explore each archetype and concept more deeply. This is not necessarily meant to be a teaching tool for others, but if you like to study the Tarot as much as I do, I hope you find it interesting. Enjoy!

For more on the decks referenced here please see this page in my blog: Tools of the Locksmith https://wordpress.com/page/theramblinglocksmith.com/163

A major reference for this study was “Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom” by Rachel Pollack.

The Star

As we move along the road of the major arcana we now come to the Star after the Tower. The Star is the calm after the storm. It represents hope and maybe a little emptiness as you take the next steps after a big upheaval or loss from the Tower. Its a little bit like Temperance coming after Death, where you have undergone a major change and are now dealing with what you have left, only The Star is on another level.

In the Star a major structure in your life has fallen away, and you are no longer experimenting with what your medicine and you path are as with the Temperance card. In the Star you have clarity and connection with the path and important truths discovered by the Tower falling. At this point you are taking a brief pause to sit with this peace and this clarity before continuing.

Standard images from Rider-Waite in the card include:

  • Naked and relaxed figure representing freedom and relief
  • Two vessels of water being poured
    • One is being poured back into a body of water representing the faith that any contribution of your energy will always be supplied with new energy
    • one is being poured on the land representing the energy freed from the Tower flowing outwards as well as inwards
  • A pool of water even if small with the figure stepping into it – representing easy access to the subconscious. The figure still has one foot on the land representing the connection between the two
  • An ibis – symbol of the Egyptian God Thoth – an inventor of all arts.
  • Eight-pointed stars – reference back to the number 8 in the strength card now raised to a higher level. Also there is one main star, but its surrounded by 7 others.

The Way Home Tarot shows only the path and the 8 pointed star. In this way you can envision yourself in this scene instead of trying to relate to a figure already present in the picture. It also doesn’t show you the source or resolution of the path, just the path itself in the clarity that comes with the dawn after a long dark night of the soul.

What does clarity look like for you? Have you found it or are you still searching for peace? Are there more towers that still need to fall and choices that need to be made before you can see yourself in this card? What are they? Would it help if you try to only see the path itself?

The Artist Decoded Tarot visually highlights the Star itself and its proximity to the figure. It feels like the figure is connected or being pulled by the Star in a strong way. It gives the impression of an unmistakable sense of purpose that can no longer be detached from the self. Its so materialized and clear its almost heavy.

Have you ever felt this way about your own purpose? Do you feel this way now? If so sit with this feeling of being grounded and having extreme clarity at the same time. Let your muscle memory absorb it. You may need to remember it further down the line.

In the Sufi Tarot the start is prominent and patterned, and the figure contributes her own emotional and spiritual energy to the path leading to it. The two themes that seem to emerge here are weather the patterns in the star are newly formed and how much the person drawing the Star card is contributing to their own path.

Have you made a major change to your process or beliefs, so much so that you are able to see a new pattern emerge for yourself? Did you contribute to that change and are you still doing so? Is it a pattern you have fully embraced, or are you still getting used to this change? If so take the time to settle into it so it can stick, but embrace it. You did the work and you continue to do the work. Its your path, you built it with your own blood, sweat and tears.

The Brady Tarot embraces the Ibis as the central figure of the Star. And why not? All the other aspects of the card are almost identical to the Ride Waite Smith card except that the landscape is brought out in the block print artistry of Emi Brady representing the Everglades, where the separation between land and water is unclear.

If the Ibis is the inventor of all arts this card focuses on a renewed sense of creativity that is connected to your life’s purpose, maybe even a move toward a more creative path in your life. Would you like to be in more creative control of your life, or be allowed to use your creative side in a much stronger way? What are some ways you can see clearly and what are the steps you can take to get there? You are the writer of your own path, pick up the pen and draw where you want to be next.

The figure in the Star of the Santa Muerta Tarot has been here before. This person has been through so many iterations of this path that they are fully submerged in it and its work. They keep being reborn into it in fact. In this version of the life they keep repeating they are finally fully immersed in their environment and full of hope. They are not treading water, they are so deep and grounded they stand on the foundation of the emotional waters themself, and they can now move the water in subtle and important ways.

What iteration of your path and purpose are you on? Are you able to be fully submerged, and make your own waves, or are you still tiptoeing in the shallows and wondering if this is your true purpose? Stop wondering! Dive in! Be who you were born to be.

The Voyager Tarot Uses the figure of Kuan Yin as the prominent image in the Star. She is the water bearer of the universe and a Buddhist boddhisatva of compassion who pours out life giving waters and nourishes the universe. This card represents the law of luminosity in this particular deck where you recognize that you are the light that can lead others forward toward their own hope and their own path. You are the guiding light.

How do you relate to Kuan Yin? Are you looking for a version of her in your own life to help you find your way forward? Or have you realized that you posses your own light, and that you more than anyone else can show you the way? Or are you on a path that allows you to light the way for others? Reflect on how you relate here and above all recognize your own inner light in the process.

In the Osho Zen Tarot the moon is the star and the third eye of the figure floating through the universe. Its not on land, its not in the sea, it just is. The inner peace of the figure is fully met with the that of the Universe. The only resonance that is sought here is peace.

Are you in a peaceful place? If not what would it take to get there? Your minds eye needs silence in order to light the way for your intuition and show you your path. Surround yourself with environments and other people that have found a way to resonate with silence, and you will find your Star.

16- The Tower

This article is part of a series of posts that will compare each card in the Tarot across different decks in order to study and explore each archetype and concept more deeply. This is not necessarily meant to be a teaching tool for others, but if you like to study the Tarot as much as I do, I hope you find it interesting. Enjoy!

For more on the decks referenced here please see this page in my blog: Tools of the Locksmith https://wordpress.com/page/theramblinglocksmith.com/163

A major reference for this study was “Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom” by Rachel Pollack.

The Tower

The tower card features a bolt of lightning that will cause an existing belief structure in our life to explode and come crumbling down. This happens not because we are being punished, but because it has to and because we are ready for it. This tower is not serving a purpose anymore, if it ever did, and its time for it to fall to make way for truth, clarity, and a more solid foundation. The card prior to the Tower is the Devil in which we are trapped by the illusions of the material world, and in the Tower these illusions are blown away and removed in dramatic fashion, like the lightning that struck the Buddha under the Bo tree and brought forth enlightenment.

The Tower in many ways is a more difficult card than any other. The Death card and Devil cards are triggering because of the images put forth by society in connection with them, but the tower card has the largest amount of sudden change associated with it. Though the change is inevitable and unstoppable, it might come with some personal wounds and the need to grieve. Its hard to come away from a big explosion of truth unscathed.

Lets explore all of the different types of towers and the ways that they fall.

Standard images from Rider-Waite in the card include:

  • Lightning as an arrow representing a stroke of divine insight or revelation with a the tower as a prime target
  • The tower as a structure that gives us a false sense of security
  • Fire seen throughout the tower as a destructive but cleansing force
  • Two figures of the conscious and unconscious free- falling as the veil between them is destroyed
  • An unstable foundation at the base of the tower showing it was never going to last
  • Smoke surrounding the tower obscuring what lies ahead

The Lua Tarot shows the tower as a volcano exploding and showering all the surrounding land and water with ash and rock. In the words of the Lua Tarot author – the volcano “awakens in the night”. Its the break through that needed to happen to allow a new idea or landscape to surface and grow.

New ideas can’t be built on something that is old, crumbling or shaky. What shaky structure are you trying to build on? What will allow you to see that it doesn’t work? What are you willing to let explode and fall away so you can see what does work for you? What will it take for that volcano to awaken for you?

The Ancestral Path Tarot shows a tower made of several ancient structures. There are ancient stone temples upon which idols to Egyptian gods are built, and on top of that columns from ancient Greece and Rome , and on top of that a tall church reaching high to the sky but made mostly of stained glass. The lightning sees through all of the layers back down to the root, and it is going to clear the way back to that root.

In this case its more than one old structure that needs to fall clear back to the root structure, even back down the the essential elements of matter. This card shows how complicated things have gotten for us as a society, and also for each of us as people when we can no longer see or feel the ground beneath us.

Sometimes it takes a catastrophic event to break things down to simpler forms that can be understood and actioned. Is there something this complicated in your life that could be better seen and understood by breaking it apart?

The Brady Tarot shows the tower as a tree that is home to a number of pileated woodpeckers. The tree was already on fire and now a bolt of lightning has struck its base and it is falling.

In this card the emphasis is less on what the tower represents but more on the individual woodpecker’s response to this falling tower. Some have already left in anticipation, for some it took the lightning to leave and not just the fire, but they are in the process of moving on, and some are still in denial and cannot admit that the tree will fall.

What tower is falling in your life, and what is your response to this? What is the response to those around you? If you are in denial, what will it take for you to see things as they are? If you have clarity, who can you help to bring clarity to so they move on?

The Tarot of Mystic Moments shows a particularly heartbreaking image of the Tower. In this case the woman cannot move on to grieve the loss of this cherished home or institution. She continues to embrace and try to hold together something that is about to be blown up, and allows herself to become part of the destruction.

Sometimes grief is too strong an emotion to allow ourselves to feel, so we convince ourselves that the thing we need to grieve hasn’t left us. But it has. And not moving on doesn’t bring it back. And it prevents us from healing and participating in the present moment.

Is there trauma in your life that you never allowed yourself to feel deeply? Is there a loss that is too great to move on from? In this case you will need help moving on. You should not try to do this on your own. You aren’t really here experiencing life, you are in the past and hurting instead of healing. No one should live this way. Reach out to a therapist, spiritual advisor, trusted friend or family member. Its time to start the healing process from this incredible loss.

In the Santa Muerte Tarot there is a twisting and turning maze inside the tower that never leads anywhere. In this case the only way to escape the maze is to blow up the tower and leave it. Any energy or wisdom that might exist is stuck in this maze and is unable to be accessed. The tower is internally confused because the balance has somehow been altered in preparation for this impending explosion.

Is there an area of your life where leaving the existing structure feels like going against the current? Have you felt a shift in the energy that is hitting your intuition and telling you its time to go? Listen to this instinct. You may need to go against the current because the current is confused and following it will not lead anywhere good for you. Destroy old structures without fear to liberate the energy that is stuck in this maze.

In the Osho Zen Tarot this card is called Thunderbolt instead of Tower. It focuses on the Lightning that is coming to the tower instead of the emotions and meaning of losing the tower itself. The Lightning is a form of light and energy that is bringing new awareness and new knowledge. The meditating being is able to experience it with detachment. Instead of seeing destruction they just see a change and they don’t attach any emotion to that change. Its more about observing and feeling the flow of energy pour through them.

This is easier said that done for sure, but what would happen if you decided to step back from any large change or shift that either has happened recently, is happening, or seems like it is about to happen. How would you experience that change differently, and how would your perspective change? Would it change permanently because of this shift in awareness? What can you do to try this out even if in a small way?

The Patakis of the Orisha Tarot the scene shows the aftermath of the tower falling. There is one new sprig growing up out of the fallen tree representing new growth, the sun is out representing hope, and the axes are shown representing Shango, the Yoruba God of Lightning and Thunder, who will fight for those in these situations. There is a hook representing irrational action of trying to catch what is no longer there due to the grief of things falling apart.

Which are you able to focus on in the aftermath. Can you see the sunlight? Can you see the support of those like Shango who are here to help you? Can you see any new growth occurring? Or are you trying to use a hook to catch something that isn’t there?

15- The Devil

This article is part of a series of posts that will compare each card in the Tarot across different decks in order to study and explore each archetype and concept more deeply. This is not necessarily meant to be a teaching tool for others, but if you like to study the Tarot as much as I do, I hope you find it interesting. Enjoy!

For more on the decks referenced here please see this page in my blog: Tools of the Locksmith https://wordpress.com/page/theramblinglocksmith.com/163

A major reference for this study was “Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom” by Rachel Pollack.

The Devil

The Devil card might be one of the most triggering to come across in the tarot. It calls out our fear of evil and darkenss. But it asks us to look at where the source of evil really lies, which in many cases is illusion and unhelpful contructs and ideologies that keep us “in the dark”.

The core Rider-Waite meaning of the card symbolizes incomplete knowledge that results in misery due to the illusion that the material world is all there is to life. We know that this picture is incomplete, but its so tempting to focus on a material life and having material pursuits over all others, that we forget what we know, and go to a darker place. The energy of the devil archetype denies any spiritual power and only sees materialistic realms of life such as career, politics, money, and sensual desires. Its the denial that anything other than these goals exist in life which ultimately leads to an incomplete and unhappy life.

Other ways that this incomplete knowledge gets manifested in our lives are in having responses to unhealed trauma that focus on numbing ourselves to the point of addiction, or allowing the pursuit of power and possession to overcome compassion for others which can devolve into violence and other inhumanities. Its the representation of the dark side of the collective unconscious.

The last way to experience this card is to see it as a doorway to a deeper more spiritual self by facing our own dark sides and shadow selves. If we don’t embrace and understand all aspects of ourself including the dark sides of ourselves or the parts of ourself we were taught to be ashamed of, we don’t see things as they truly are. We need to understand those parts of ourself that seem unlikeable or unpresentable and allow them to see the light of understanding and acceptance.

Standard images from Rider-Waite in the card include:

  • The figure in the Devil sits on a “half-cube” rectangle which symbolizes the incomplete knowledge of materialism
  • The torch points to the earth only and not to the sky to also designate the inability to see beyond the material world
  • An open palm indicates that nothing exists beyond the obvious, stop and look no further (or nothing to see here)
  • The chains of the bound figures are loose and can be taken off at anytime, they are an illusion
  • There is a reversed pentacle on the figure’s forehead which symbolizes letting your desires overpower your judgement
  • The torch enflames the tail of one of the bound figures to depict the experience of being destroyed by physical needs
  • The black background symbolizes black magic and the inability to see the truth as well as depression, the darkness of addiction, and the shadow self

The two elements that come through the strongest in the Sufi Tarot are the chains linked to the shadow self, and the window to the light that seems out of reach. Everything in the devil card depicts an illusion and the card is asking us to see where we are creating illusion in our own life, either that we are chained down to a darker self, or that this window of light is unreachable. What thought patterns like this shadow chain hold you back? What illusions can you break by changing them? For some of us this takes the form of a preoccupation with a need for revenge, or excessive emphasis on success and physical pleasure. What is the construct in your mind that you are giving so much power to its in danger of consuming you? How can you stop feeding it?

The Light Seers Tarot shows two different beings, one is the ego that has become larger than life and seems to have all the power over us, and the other is our true core self cowering in its shadow being controlled by this immense puppeteer. What part of yourself is running the show in a way that is pulling you further and further away from your true nature and your ability to be a complete and free being? This control that you are giving to that part of yourself is an illusion and you can get up and take back that power anytime you want to.

The Santa Muerta Tarot shows another version with two mariachi players being made to sing and dance by a shadow self that they have made their king. The flame of this devil king is powerful and attractive, and it comes through in the song and dance of the performers. What is the song and dance that you are performing that keeps you from moving forward? Are you afraid to stop performing and let people see the real you? Its what you have to do to move toward a more spiritual path and away from a circular one.

The Osho Tarot uses an image from an old Zen story about a lion who was brought up by sheep and so believed himself to be a sheep as well. One day an old lion captured him and forced him to look at his reflection in a pond so that he could see that he was in fact a lion. What have you been conditioned to believe about yourself that you need to confront in order to see the real you? What social constructs when if dropped allow you to be less of a follower and more free to be an individual?

New Era Elements shows a jarring image of one version of modern evil. It warns of the danger of societal ideologies that turn you against the person next to you and inspire fear and hate. Within the last 100 years we can find several examples in the world where social, cultural, and political ideologies were used to justify horrible acts of violence and persecution. We can also see where greed has caused others to suffer and even caused starvation. This card asks you to examine if you are a victim or a perpetrator of one of these ideologies even if on a smaller scale, and if you are potentially the cause of your or others’ suffering because of a flawed ideology that you cannot see past.

Patakis of the Orisha Tarot invokes some symbols of negativity that society has placed on working with the Orishas through traditional practices. Some see it as black magic, or think it can be used to harm others, remove curses, get rich take revenge or reclaim a lost love. In order to combat the falsehoods that others place on you the solutions given are to speak the truth, let go of indoctrination that no longer serves you, make peace with your ancestors, and go to therapy. This is the advice of the creator of this deck to which I would add maintain whatever practice allows you to see past illusion and be in the present moment as your true self.

14- Temperance

This article is part of a series of posts that will compare each card in the Tarot across different decks in order to study and explore each archetype and concept more deeply. This is not necessarily meant to be a teaching tool for others, but if you like to study the Tarot as much as I do, I hope you find it interesting. Enjoy!

For more on the decks referenced here please see this page in my blog: Tools of the Locksmith https://wordpress.com/page/theramblinglocksmith.com/163

A major reference for this study was “Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom” by Rachel Pollack.

Temperance

The word temperance at its Latin root means to mix or combine. In the tarot temperance is referring to the ability to mix elements of life, personality, inner and outer elements so that there is flow. We all have a tendency to fragment our worlds into parts, but each part individually does not make up our true authentic self. When we reach Temperance we are asked to consider how it would look to integrate these parts instead and experience living inside your true whole self.

If we are able to mix these worlds and elements we are able to use each part as we need to in moderation depending on what situation arises. This produces a sense of harmony and peace which is the true goal of the card. How do you mix different elements of your life – both internal and external worlds – to create that sense of harmony, and to also enable you to manage obstacles and problem solve in creative ways?

The elements of Rider-Waite have keys to what unlocks our own ability to live our life with the flow of temperance below, but the cards from the decks that follow dive even deeper and have beautifully varied concepts of this. I hope you enjoy this walk through all the threads around Temperance with me.

Standard images from Rider-Waite in the card include:

  • One cup of water flowing into another cup of water representing all the elements of life flowing together. The lower cup is not directly below the upper cup showing a magical flow between the two cups that defies gravity
  • An angel standing with one foot on land and one foot in water representing the ability to stand in the unconscious and the “real world” at the same time and the ability to link the two realms.
  • Sunshine in the background and the halo of light around the angels head represent finding this “medicine” after coming through the Death card which precedes this one and releasing the “ego” through that fearful experience.
  • There is a rainbow that stands for a sign of peace after a storm, reminding us that this new understanding has come after some hard work or potential hardships

The Tarot of the Divine chooses to use the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara is the Bodhisattva of Compassion whose goal is to liberate all creatures from suffering. Avelokiteshvara was able to move between genders, ages, and shapes in order to provide the perfect combination of forms for each situation.

When you look at this card, does it allow you to reflect on all of the different forms you are maintaining, and weather they flow together, or if you maintain separate faces throughout the day? How can you blend elements of your authentic self with each one to be more present?

In the Sufi Tarot the card for temperance is given the Arabic word “sabr” which translates more or less to patience and even more so total surrender to the present moment. Its a form of acceptance that connects us directly to our own spirit. Practicing sabr teaches us to blend dualities and bring together that which may seem disparate. There is a Sufi saying that “God is to be found where opposites meet.”

What about yourself do you need to accept in order to be more present and for the parts of yourself to become less separate? What would it mean to surrender to this version of yourself and what prevents you from doing so?

The Brady Tarot calls out Temperance as medicine by showing two snakes entwined around a tree forming the caduceus symbol where one snake is touching its tail to land, and one to water. The two energies are being combined to create new growth for the tree. The Raven (dark unconscious life energy) and the Eagle (light and higher consciousness) are also in balance above the willow tree.

What energies or aspects of yourself that you currently keep separate would create new growth for you if you were able to use them at the same time or balance them?

The Voyager Tarot has one of my favorite words for Temperance – Art! Art is medicine, and the creation of medicine is art. In it we see many versions of different processes being used to dissolve old forms and recombining them into something else.

One of my favorite ways to envision this is through cooking especially for family. Individual components are cut up and changed through heat into new delicious forms.

What can you combine to form new artistic medicine? What creative opportunities can you see if you could take two separate pieces of yourself and combine them?

The Afro Brazilian Tarot uses the Orixa of the rainbow – Oxumare. Its the medicine you learn when you come through a major cycle or ending that brings a new strength to your life because you were able to learn something important about integration during that cycle.

What cycle have you recently been through that forced you or allowed you to shed a separation and surrender or learn how to be more whole? How can you use that intentionally as a new strength?

The New Era Elements Tarot portrays Temperance by showing a young Indian man offering water to the sun as part of his morning bathing ritual. Its a morning rite practiced by Hindus for thousands of years which focuses on the elemental marriage between fire and water allowing the devotee to start the day with a profound sense of equilibrium.

Is there a daily ritual that you practice that can help you find equilibrium on a regular basis?

13- Death

This article is part of a series of posts that will compare each card in the Tarot across different decks in order to study and explore each archetype and concept more deeply. This is not necessarily meant to be a teaching tool for others, but if you like to study the Tarot as much as I do, I hope you find it interesting. Enjoy!

For more on the decks referenced here please see this page in my blog: Tools of the Locksmith https://wordpress.com/page/theramblinglocksmith.com/163

A major reference for this study was “Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom” by Rachel Pollack.

Death

Death is also one of the most triggering and misunderstood cards in the tarot. We fear death in any form, even in the form of our losing all or some of our ego. This card refers to a confrontation with our own mask, and if we can give up this mask then a transformation that we were able to envision in the Hanged Man card can occur, if not then we continue to fear looking at who we can be without the mask of the ego.

What also scares us is change. Transformation is deep and often scary and painful change. Often we see that idea of transformation with very rose colored glasses: indigenous flute music playing in Sedona as we meditate calmly and become enlightened writing poetry and moonbeams and all of that. But actual transformation and ending cycles of any kind, particularly cycles of trauma can be very painful. Walking away from a mask that we used to protect ourselves our whole lives is painful and hard, and for that reason especially important and worth doing.

Lets explore all of the different ways to consider these major life changes and how to step away from our own mask.

Standard images from Rider-Waite in the card include:

  • Four people responding to the skeleton on the horse (Death)
    • The King shows the rigid ego being struck down, potentially the ego collapsing when life comes at us with alot of power
    • The priest faces death with the support of his robes and hat – value of a code of belief
    • The maiden in partial innocence has a malleable but unaware ego and turns away, unwilling to surrender
    • The child in complete innocence faces death and offers flowers
    • Also the idea that Death strikes everyone – kings and commoners alike
  • The black armour of death absorbs all light and color
  • The white horse repels all colors – both symbolize every thingness and nothingness
  • Sun rising between two pillars – the ego belongs to the duality of the pillars, but the power of Life symbolized by the sun only knows itself
  • A skeleton – representing death – the eternity of our own bones overcoming the transitory nature of the flesh

In the Ancestral Path Tarot we have an image that is as close as I could find to the Rider-Waite-Smith images in any of my decks. What is similar is we are seeing different stages of life all in one card but not necessarily different reactions as mentioned above.

In this case the old being cleared away to make room for the new – both with the old life sailing away behind the new life of the child exploring all they see with innocence, and the white trees in the back moving away to make room for new trees and plants. We also see some mushrooms that are helping to clear away what is decaying in a step of renewal. And above all of this is a wise owl witnessing the transformation for itself.

The question from this card is if you can see this change in you or around you? Can you take the owl’s perspective and see how it all fits into the same picture? Or are you only seeing or resisting parts of the picture?

The Light Seers Tarot puts the mask of the ego front and center. Is this mask reflecting what you could be a part of if you removed it, or is it showing what is truly inside of you if you can let the light and life penetrate the mask?

If you are getting this card its a sign that you are ready to lift the veil. You don’t need this mask anymore, remove it and be ready for the new you that emerges.

The Tarot of the Divine uses a part of the White Bear King of Valemon, a Norwegian fairy tale, to illustrate another version of lifting the veil to see what truly lies behind it. In this case the youngest daughter is illuminating what’s behind the curtain to see if this King is really a bear or a man. By doing this she changes the entire focus of the story. No more castles in the sky, and no more childhood fairy tale, but a chance to start a new story and grow up.

Starting a new story is difficult, as is leaving behind the story of our childhood. Not just difficult, scary, like death. But its necessary and part of living life. What is the new story that may be starting for you and which story needs to end so you can live in the present?

The Brady Tarot shows a long transformation through many different lives and species to remind us how eternal change and transformation truly is. A the skull of a Smilodon (sabretooth tiger) is being eaten by a the remains of a dinosaur. The human skull is being devoured by a new plant staring new roots that will eventually reach far enough to touch the dinosaur skull below. The only thing left alive other than the plant is the cockroach on the right.

In this card we are not just seeing transformation, we are seeing centuries long evolution. What resonates in your live when you focus on the concept of evolution? What are you evolving either within or outside of yourself? How can you connect this to a bigger picture so that it makes more sense?

In the Osho Zen Tarot would like us to understand a different kind of transformation entirely. Its not moving from one storyline to another, or removing one mask, or seeing beyond our own evolution. Its understanding how to drop the act of the teacher and to begin living the lesson. That’s all.

The teacher is talking all about the path and sharing the knowledge of the path but is not walking the path. They are technically still asleep even though they are talking and sharing wisdom in their sleep.

What lesson have you been teaching yourself and not living? Go live it, be a participant in your own story. Take that safe base metal and turn it to gold. You’ve got this.

The Sufi Tarot might be my favorite of all the Death cards. It’s so simple yet hard to do. Turn your back on the shadow and change the vibration of your own energy to move forward. Face the direction you know you need to face to start a new path. You know the way, you just need to change your direction and start walking away from something in the past that has never been healthy for you.

Turning your back on the version of yourself that you no longer are, or a relationship that you know is toxic is hard. It hurts in a very deep way. And we have to feel that fear and that pain in order to grow and move in the direction we know is right. And the way that we know that its the right direction is that it doesn’t feel the way the toxic one did.

Its real deep grown up stuff, but dive in, you are ready.

12- The Hanged Man

This article is part of a series of posts that will compare each card in the Tarot across different decks in order to study and explore each archetype and concept more deeply. This is not necessarily meant to be a teaching tool for others, but if you like to study the Tarot as much as I do, I hope you find it interesting. Enjoy!

For more on the decks referenced here please see this page in my blog: Tools of the Locksmith https://wordpress.com/page/theramblinglocksmith.com/163

A major reference for this study was “Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom” by Rachel Pollack.

The Hanged Man

This archetype of the majors might be the most misunderstood in the entire Major Arcana of the Tarot along with the Death card. It has been interpreted in movies and other arenas to mean that someone is about to die. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Hanged Man does lose something – but all he loses is an old and tired perspective that no longer serves him. He has released the emotions that have been locked up for years which is an act of surrender.

What he gains is so much more important. Its the ability to see the truth with clarity because of gaining a new perspective after the experiencing true Justice. Because, after you see the truth, you can’t possibly go back to unseeing it, and therefore you have a new perspective. And that new perspective may not bring you peace and enlightenment, but the next step on the path toward it.

Its not just a matter of swinging your head in a new direction, or a trick of the light. Its a true change in perspective in the most meaningful way that allows you to choose differently in the present moment. That’s not to say that everyone else will be able to share your new found vision, they may even think that you are the one who is backwards. Its one of the most beautiful concepts in the Tarot, and I look forward to exploring all of its varied nuances in the following examples.

Standard images in the card include:

  • Hangs from a tree shaped like the letter T – in some camps representing the Hebrew letter Tau – the letter that represents the world, and this means that at position 12 you are halfway to the world at the end of the path in the Major Arcana.
  • The Hanged Man is upside down, and can be the same figure as the world dancer in position 21 when the card itself is turned upside down.
  • His or her arms are crossed behind their back which is a position of arriving at this perspective based on withdrawing from society vs the world dancer at the end of the Tarot who can hold this perspective while participating in society and every day life.
  • The crossed legs represent the number 4 upside down – which means to take the four directions of the world and turn them on their head.
  • The arms and head form a downward pointing triangle to show that the direction toward enlightenment is through the subconscious.

The Tarot of the Divine uses the fairytale of Sleeping Beauty who ceases forward momentum to avoid disaster. Her options were sleep or death, so she waits for a more favorable option to present itself. She also holds her hands in a heart shape which for me says that the way to enlightenment is also through the heart and surrendering to compassion vs fear and anger.

In the fairytale, the forceful action of removing all spindles didn’t result in the desired outcome. The only thing that would was peaceful surrender.

Waiting does not feel like an action or a decision, but sometimes it is the act of inaction that creates the most favorable outcome and possibility for transformation.

What are you trying to force? Will waiting potentially give you more options?

What stages of surrendering to the power and perspective of compassion are you in?

In the Tarot of Mystic Moments a women hangs upside down in a graceful stance. She is not afraid but at peace. Her weight opens up a zipper which reveals a new landscape beyond the wall of leaves. She also knows that a new opportunity will come if she waits in a state of grace and peaceful surrender.

This card is very similar to the card in the Tarot of Divine, but the difference is that even though the woman is waiting, she understands the weight she carries in order to open up that new possibility, and she also understands the weight of the situation.

Its not if but when this new landscape will be revealed.

Do you understand and feel your own weight? Do you understand what you are waiting for? What do you think is behind the zipper? Do you trust your own weight to pull the zipper when its time?

In the Light Seers Tarot the Hanged “man” is taking a more active role in this new perspective, because for her its not just a new perspective, its a new posture, stance, and even spell that she is prepared to cast when the moment is right.

This woman has realigned her flow and her heart intentionally with her purpose, surrendered to that purpose, and now the only waiting she needs to do is understand the moment to cast her spell of intentionality.

She is graceful and unbothered, but she holds joy in her heart and her hands which she will use to create the next beautiful thing in her life.

What would it take for you to surrender to this state of being unbothered? What is the new posture that you are prepared to learn and hold with grace? What are the elements to that spell you are waiting to cast? Chances are you have plenty of time to learn them.

In the Brady Tarot this amazing possum is not only attracted to the joy and light of the fireflies, but they are attracted to him. He hangs in a pose that surrenders to the rooted tree behind him which can easily withstand the raging rapids of the river below him.

This incredible being shows you the power of your own intentionality if you can just get out of your own way, and the power of what you can do if you are strongly rooted and grounded.

All to often our first step is to attract the light, and we skip the step of being rooted and grounded which is the most important step on the path.

What can you do to be more rooted and grounded so this new perspective reveals itself?

In the Ancestral Path Tarot uses a very different example of the Hanged One. This unborn child has no choice but to wait until the time is right . And even so the circumstances of its future are inevitable and the change and transformation it experiences through birth will be dramatic. But for now it is in transition, in a period of rest between significant events and action is inadvisable.

I guess the only problem with this is what to tell yourself? Like so many other times it can all come back to your breath. Feel it expand and contract. Get really good at that because it will help you when you transition to the next phase of your life.

11 – Justice

This article is part of a series of posts that will compare each card in the Tarot across different decks in order to study and explore each archetype and concept more deeply. This is not necessarily meant to be a teaching tool for others, but if you like to study the Tarot as much as I do, I hope you find it interesting. Enjoy!

For more on the decks referenced here please see this page in my blog: Tools of the Locksmith https://wordpress.com/page/theramblinglocksmith.com/163

A major reference for this study was “Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom” by Rachel Pollack.

Justice can mean many things to many people, but all point to some version of a greater understanding of our own truth, and finding equilibrium between action and understanding.

A quick note on the number and position of this card. The Justice card position is one of the few controversial things in the structures of different Tarot deck architectures. In the Rider-Waite-Smith its number is 11 as reaching an understanding of Justice bisects the Major Arcana. In some other systems its number is 8 and the Strength card is number 11 for the idea that 8 turned on its side as an infinity symbol is the ultimate representation of balance. I personally like the Justice card at position 11 but have included examples of both here. I also think that what we learn from the journey of the Chariot is Strength first, and that we need to understand a few more things before we can understand Justice at 11.

Up to this point the archetypes have either been inward, and reflective, or outward and action oriented – the Hight Priestess vs the Magician for example. In the Justice archetype we are asked to be both in a balanced manner. How can we do this? By holding an understanding of our truth in any given situation and understanding what action is required for that given truth.

In this card we are also asked to balance dualities instead of becoming aware of or choosing between them. Those scales are heavy, but because we already have strength from the Strength card and free will from the Chariot, we are able to do it or if we aren’t this is what we are asked to contemplate and understand by reflecting on these concepts.

Another quick note on free will from Rachel Pollacks book referenced above. If we have free will why do we need a tool like the tarot? Isn’t everything just going to happen the way it needs to and we will act accordingly? Well yes and no. Everything is going to happen the way it needs to, but we can execute this in a more present way if we understand ourselves and can move out of the past and into the present. If we don’t understand ourselves how can we be making a free choice, and also if you don’t understand the choices, how can you be making a choice in the first place.

Standard images in the card include:

  • Sitting on a bench looking forward, and though sitting being poised to stand
  • A sword pointed up to represent action and also readiness to pierce through illusion to find the inner meaning due to achieving wisdom.
  • Scales balanced between the past and the future

The Lua Tarot chooses to use the goddess Athena to represent Lady Justice. Some key differences here are the addition of the owl to emphasis the importance of wisdom in order to exact Justice and understand balance. Athena is also presiding over the city from beyond the veil and does not sit but rule from above.

For some this is a comforting ides – the idea that an all knowing/all wise karmic force is presiding over us and so we can trust that Justice will be served, but if you are not taking responsibility yourself for knowing your own truth and taking action when action is necessary instead of leaving things up to “fate” I feel we have missed the point of this Major.

Maybe this card works if you can see Athena as yourself presiding over and taking responsibility for your own life, and understanding what actions you have and haven’t taken to get where you are in the present, but I also would caution to see the owl as all the wisdom you will ever need to stay in balance. Wisdom is dynamic, and while we can understand much at one point in our lives, in other time points we can understand very little.

Check in to see if you understand what you are presiding over, if you are taking responsibility, and if you know what you have left to learn.

In the Ancestral Path Tarot the Justice card is number 8. In this card we have blind justice being bound to the “bench” until an outcome or decision is reached.

On one hand laying the tools of the sword, scales, tomes of knowledge aside and just using your intuition to measure the balance of one thing versus another could be quite freeing, and free of bureaucratic tools that ultimately prevent justice and truth from being found.

On the other hand unless you are some kind of jedi, you might need some more information, and some additional tools to get that information.

In any case with this version of the Justice card you can ask you self if you are keeping yourself from moving on due to the ability to find this balance, or if you can continue to learn more balance over time and maybe you don’t need to be stuck here until you understand everything.

Awareness of what you do and do not know is in and of itself and understanding of truth. Lift the veil and see where you are, weigh things out and act accordingly.

In the Brady Tarot we have all of the tools represented in the scales themselves. The arrow of the mind is used to asses the weight of the spirit against the egg or seed of the physical world. There are no horns to represent the emotions which means in order to see the situation clearly we must be detached from our emotions.

This turkey vulture isn’t trying to understand its own truth, its a turkey vulture and it knows that. It is confronting an argument by using mental capacity to balance the two sides or positions.

What are the two sides you are balancing? Are you only confronting one or are you weighing both? Are you weighing and confronting them yourself or are you trying to subcontract that out to the universe? The universe might know the answer, but it wants you get in there and do the work yourself.

The Tarot of the Divine illustrates the concept of Justice through the Korean Legend of Amhaeng-eosa – the secret royal inspectors who were employed to spy on the local officials in each province. The Amaehg-eosa would report back to the royal government and at that point consequences would be exacted. In some cases the consequences were a reward for serving the people in a just manner, in some cases there was a punishment for corruption. In either case the inspector presented all the facts.

From this card some key differences we can use are the idea that all exacting of truth is not a punishment, in many cases being able to weigh things justly is a reward all by itself.

A second new idea here is that responsibility is not only required for understanding what the truth is on your own, but also the consequences of it. What are you more afraid of? Understanding more fully where you really came from and moving into the present, or the consequences of what that will change for you?

Be brave Amhaeng-eosa, in any case you will be freed from the past and able to move on to your next mission.

In The Way Home Tarot the concept of justice is put in very black and white terms, and the sword has become the balance. It would be great to think that any situation that has caused us to ask for a reading is this black and white, but if it was you probably wouldn’t need the tarot as a tool in the first place.

Maybe the best way to look at this card is to ask yourself if you are viewing the situation with too much simplicity, it may not be black and white, and you may need more than just your mental capacity to weigh and understand the truth of the matter, and what actions to take?

The Voyager Tarot also incorporates a Sword and Crystal into the Justice Card which it calls Balance. All suits are being considered in this card which is different than all of the above. A hummingbird is balancing a cup while the dancer is balancing a world, and both are being balanced on a wand on top of a crystal.

The message of this card is slightly different in that it asks us to consider that we are always rebalncing after each new change. In this way we can consider Balance as a verb and not a solid state that is achieved and then stays that way once achieved only once. The text of the book even calls this a “dance” of rebalancing.

What has happened in your life recently that has changed the balance or equilibrium, and is an adjustment or new “step” needed? How many times can you be aware of adjusting and readjusting? Are you comfortable with the dance?

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The Osho Zen Tarot takes a very large step outside of the traditional meaning of this card. So much so that it was hard for me to relate back to the concept of Justice when writing this article but here goes.

This meaning is very close to the meaning of Judgement, but where this is in the souls path of the major arcana means it is a breakthrough that allows you to make transformation within or within your own life, where as later with the Judgement position we are talking about a breakthrough or decision that allows you connect with everything, the world, humanity, the universe, etc – an even bigger “breakthrough”.

We all reach points in our life where we have had enough, and we want to make a huge change. This might be why we are looking for “justice” “Balance” “A decision” in the first place, because something has come to a point where change must happen.

In this case, the change is internal, and “breakthrough” from within. You are ready to take action and make major changes which will change your life in a big way, and therefore require you to rebalance things once the change occurs.

What have you had enough of? How big of a change can you see yourself making to balance this “injustice” in your life.?