XIII.
Death:
Summary: *Reserved*
Symbolism:
"The Death card commonly depicts a skeleton riding a horse. Surrounding it are dead and dying people from all classes, including kings, bishops and commoners. The skeleton carries a black standard emblazoned with a white flower. Some decks depict the Crashing Towers from The Moon with The Sun rising behind them in the background. Some decks, such as the Tarot of Marseilles, omit the name from the card.
The king is trampled by a reaping skeleton horseman, as the Pictorial Key to the Tarot describes him, which appears to be a personification of death. The fall of the king may represent the importance and magnitude of the critical event of this card, or that death takes us all equally.
The reaper carries a black banner emblazoned with the Mystic Rose, which according to Waite symbolises life or rebirth.
As in other cards, the gray background may indicate uncertainty surrounding this event.
The bishop may represent faith in the face of death, faith in the divine plan, and faith that "God works in mysterious ways".
The maiden seeming distraught by the fall of the king represents the sorrow and great pain that often accompanies death.
The child, seemingly entranced by the occurrence, may represent bewilderment or curiosity.
In the darkness behind, according to Waite's PKT, lies the whole world of ascent in the spirit.
Although some believe the New Jerusalem appears as a silhouette across the Sun,[1] it does not appear clearly enough to be certain and may instead be the tops of The Moon's mountains."(From wikipedia)
Keywords: Transformation, making way for the new, unexpected change, loss, failure, illness or death, bad luck
Reversed: Stagnation, immobility, slow changes, a narrow escape, cheating death
(From themysticeye.com)
Description:
"Perhaps the most common question asked about Tarot Cards is, "Can the Death card mean a real death?"
Yes, it can. The Death card is about endings, and that includes the ending of a life. What everyone seems to forget, however, is that the Death card is not exclusively about the end of a human life. In fact, it's far more likely that the card is telling you that a goldfish or a houseplant will die. Death can mean the "end" of anything: The end of an era, the end of a trip, the closing of a restaurant, the breaking up of a band, the conclusion of a very rough week. Any and all of these as well as a million more possible interpretations can be applied to the Death card. So it is foolish to fear it for the fact that, once in a great while, it will let you know that some sick, elderly relative might not be long for this world.
Even more important to remember: the Death card is less about something dying then about how a person deals with endings.
We might be delighted that something is finally over and done with, like a terrible job we hated. Or we might be heartbroken, like over the loss of that poor goldfish. Either way, we require time to come to terms with the fact that something we were used to is no longer a part of our lives.
With Scorpio as its sign, the Death card is as much about transformation as about loss. Scorpio has three forms: scorpion, serpent, eagle. The Death card indicates this transition from lower to higher to highest. In addition, Scorpio is also about sex. So even as something is taken from us, something new is created.
That new thing will not be the same as what was lost, but it will step into that empty space and give us reason to carry on"(From Aeclectic Tarot)
Fool's Journey:
"Having left the tree from where he hung, the Fool moves carefully through a fallow field, head still clearing from visions. The air is cold and wintry, the trees bare. He knows he has started on his spiritual journey in earnest, but feels strangely empty and profoundly sad, as if he has lost something.
Before him he sees, rising with the sun, a skeleton in black armor mounted on a white horse. He recognizes it as Death. As it stops before him, he humbly asks, "Have I died?" And the Skeleton answers, "Yes, in a way. You sacrificed your old world, your old self. Both are gone, dead."
The Fool cannot keep from weeping. "Forgive me," he says, embarrassed by his tears.
"There is nothing to forgive," Death replies. "Mourning is natural and you must deal with your loss before you can accept anything new. Keep in mind, however, that old leaves must wither and fly away from a tree's branches, leaving them bare, before new green leaves can appear."
As Death rides away, the Fool sees the truth in those words. He, too, feels like a skeleton, all that he was stripped away. This, he understands, is how all great transformations start, by removing everything down to bare bone or soil so that something new has room to grow." (from Aeclectic Tarot)
Feel free to post additional insights into the card, questions, & ideas for the artists to consider!
