15 The Devil

Keywords: addiction; vice; weakness; self-inflicted adversity; gross materialism; unhealthy obsessions and compulsions

Archetypes: Satan; addicts– alcohol, drugs, sex; Michael Myers; the boogeyman;

Correspondences:

Number/8

Planet/Saturn

Element/Earth

Astrological Sun Sign/Capricorn

Upright Interpretation: This card is a bitch. It’s sly and sneaky; it has no conscience; and it lives to deceive. How many times has this card come up and I knew that the person sitting across from me was an alcoholic, or a drug addict? Lots! But I’ve never come right out and actually revealed this. How can you look someone in the eye and name their private demons out loud? That’s why this card is a bitch. At the other end of it all is the victim of someone else’s addictions sitting across from you, and you aren’t going to tell them anything they don’t already know. It sucks. You tend to pick up your skirts and try to gingerly dance around this card, when in truth, you should lay it all out on the table– the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Reversed Interpretation: It’s all in the past; whatever the demon was. They’ve beat it, or they’re trying to, maybe still clawing their way out of the pit, with the cold skeletal hand of their vice gripping their foot. Give it a kick! Come on, you can do it! Encourage, rejoice, celebrate, support, and monitor these people. They often win the battle, but discover that the war is a life-long endeavor. Anyone coming out of this will be stronger for it, tempered by the trials and tribulations. But never forget– he will still be there, The Devil, standing behind them, breathing down their neck.

Study Questions:

1. What is your first impression of this card?

2. What does this card mean to You?

3. Are there details on this card that especially stand out for you? If so, write them down and explain.

4. How does this card define relationships?

5. How does this card define financial circumstances?

6. How is this card relevant to health issues?

Affirmations for Meditation:

1. I will recognize my demons.

2. I will fight my demons.

3. I will have victory over my demons.

4. I will forever watch my demons, always on guard for their return.

5. I will have dominion over the weakest part of myself.

A Tarot Reading for The Devil:
The Devil ~ 6/pentacles ®; The Magician ®; The Emperor ®

Tricky, tricky, you are, a Master of our addictions and faults.  You take away our material wealth, our earthly, physical strength.  You take away our personal power.  You steal all hope and break our spirit.  You hold false authority over us; and we don’t realize, sometimes for a very long time, sometimes not until it’s too late, that we have the ability to take it all back.

You rob us of the means to care properly for ourselves and others.  You rob us of the ability to think clearly and responsibly.  You are a thief that steals talent, ability, self-confidence, and motivation.  You play on our human faults and frailties.  You dig deep within the blackness of our soul, those edges and small nooks that should not be touched, and you resurrect our worst nightmares, our most destructive tendencies.  Then you feed them.

Eventually, Devil, black demon of our worst fears and most secret desires, some of us find strength and courage to stand up to you, to face you and look deep within your empty black eyes.  We stand close enough to smell your foul breath, and from some miraculous part of our soul comes the strength to break the chains that bind us to you.  The thing is, we have to be wise enough to realize that, although free of you for the moment, you have not left us.  You will always be hovering around the parameters of our world, waiting for one weak moment, waiting to snatch us up once more and bind us to the darkness of our souls.

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©2015 Amythyst Raine