Does any card scare you when you first see it

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 23 Jun 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

katie_here	23 Jun 2004
I always feel apprehensive if the 10 of swords appears. Just the sight of the picture of a woman holding her dead/unconscious child fills me with dread. I don't like to see the Tower either, fearing that everything is going to fall down about ones ears. But If I'm reading for anyone I try to say the cards always have a positive message to tell.

Diana	23 Jun 2004
What an awful depiction of the 10 of Swords. What kind of deck are you using? Who authored this deck?

eastarot	23 Jun 2004
Even after all this time, the Tower gives me the creeps. I also dont like the seeing 5 of Swords in relationship readings.

katie_here	23 Jun 2004
By Zerner and Farber. Here's what it says about the card. The worst seems to have happened, a devastating loss. Lightning has struck and an unconscious child lies in the arms of her heartbroken mother. This jagged bolt from the blue has, in a moment, rent the fabric of life, and life itself seems to have spun out of control. But above and beyond stretches the starry universe. The eternal silvery silence of the galaxies looks down and forces the acceptance of fate. Some things are beyond control. At a time of devastation and abandonment there must be endurance: living continues beyond personal destruction and the suffering is lessened. The hopes and dreams of the past are no more. The tears, grief and sorrow, and ruin may be the result of Karma but, difficult as it may seem, the woman can gain the strength to endure from the fact that there is always new birth after loss. No words can truly comfort here, only time and the new perspective it brings. The Awakening: When you are terribly afraid that things will not work out; that ruin and despair will beset you, you must "let go and let God" Accept that the struggle must end and blessed release will come at its finish. Healing a wound this deep may require outside, professional help. Do not attempt it alone. I can't find an image of the card.

Little Baron	23 Jun 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Diana What an awful depiction of the 10 of Swords. What kind of deck are you using? Who authored this deck? Was thinking exactly the same thing Diana! I am not surprised this card makes you feel uncomfortable. Yaboot

Rep	23 Jun 2004
For me it would have be the death card...

northsea	23 Jun 2004
One card I had an initial response of scare is the Hallowquest 13-Washer of the Fjords

Little Baron	23 Jun 2004
Thanks for the info on the card Katie. Will have to try and take a look at that one. Havn't seen it before. Off hand, I cannot think of a visual card that scares me .. oh, hang on .. yes I can ... well it doesn't scare me but if makes me uncomfortable. I havn't got the deck to hand but I think it is the Hanged Man in the Fantastical Tarot. It is not the fact that he is hanging from a noose, if I remember correctly, it is the fact that his skin is hanging from his body. Theres a bit too much blood in the Morgan Greer 10 of Swords for me as well. Usually, like others, it is the Tower that sets me on edge. That card appeared and re-appeared many times before a difficult time in my life. When I see it now, it does make me worry for that reason. I wonder what may be round the corner for me. The only depiction I am kind of okay with is the one in the Phantasmagoric because it is lighter and helps me see the positive side of the card. In the book 'Dancing with the Juggler', the author calls the Tower the 'oh s**t' card and I can deffinitely understand why. Best wishes Yaboot

Little Baron	23 Jun 2004
Does anyone have a link to the Zerner Faber card. Quite intreaged to see it. Y

hedgecub	23 Jun 2004
I have to add my vote for the Tower. Every time it comes up in a reading, I know I'm going to hit reality, and hit it hard. I know that ultimately it's better to face the truth than to live in a dream world, but the impact always makes my butt hurt. :P

Chronata	23 Jun 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Yaboot001 Does anyone have a link to the Zerner Faber card. Quite intreaged to see it. Y Not the Enchanted...but the Zerner Faber (which is really the same thing) You can see the 10 of swords here: http://www.tarot.com/about-tarot/decks/browsedecks.php?newdeck=37 This one doesn'rt make me cringe as much as the 10 of swords in the Buckland Romani. You thought the Morgan Greer was bloody?

dolphinprincess	23 Jun 2004
Lots of cards scare me.... (but I'm working on it...) ;) I hate seeing the 3 of swords and the 10 of swords. I also get freaked when Death and the Tower show up... The 5 of cups in a relationship reading doesn't make me too happy either. But.. if I had to pick one.. the 3 of swords gets me every time! I think I'd rather take 10 swords in the back than 3 in the heart...

Livia	23 Jun 2004
I was thinking about this recently, and I think it is pertanent here (sorry if that is spelled wrong)....I think that the cards that seem like they are terrible, may in fact make me feel better when they come up...Like the 1 of swords, the worst may be over, or you have already seen the worst. The card might be hard to look at but the meaning is almost a releif. Also, it can cooberate with what is going on like yeh you are having a hard time, it is o.k. to admit it. Some of the more positive cards sometimes scare me....I rarely have a good time without disaster around the corner anyway. Justice always gives me a start. It seems like such a struggle to keep a balance, and when I was in law school my mentor used to call it the "J" word...one man's justice is another's trash. It has always seemed a 'heavy' card to me...just my thought

katie_here	24 Jun 2004
for finding that link. I was looking last night, but I didn't find one that displayed all of the cards. Can you see what I mean by the card, A woman kneeling by her child who looks either unconscious or dead and all those swords around, as if some unknown assailant has just stabbed her to death!!! I know the description says she's unconscious and it was lightening, but it just doesn't look like that to me.

Little Baron	24 Jun 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Chronata This one doesn'rt make me cringe as much as the 10 of swords in the Buckland Romani. You thought the Morgan Greer was bloody? I have that deck, and know what you mean! Y

Diana	24 Jun 2004
Original contents of this post have been deleted. This must be the silliest interpretation I've ever read. What was it, some kind of Poetry contest? Buy yourself another deck. And use that one as a door-stopper.

katie_here	24 Jun 2004
I was just about to post a reply and say, noooo!! I like this deck. then I opened an email and there was this thought for the day The best theories are poetic creations. Stephen Hawking Fate? I know what you mean about the interpretations though, thats why I read as many as I can, to learn all that I can and use my initial thoughts as well.

The Does any card scare you when you first see it thread was originally posted on 23 Jun 2004 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.