Das Lied der Rohrigen - 10 swords

Ten of Swords -- Ruin

Thank you Namaste for starting this thread, and I will be the first to post.

After shuffling and cutting the deck, I drew Ten of Swords.

I know it is not one of the most optimistic or favorite card in the deck , but it will be a warning against negative thinking, or obsession with dark thoughts, that can lead to either (fear of) madness, schizophrania, or violence, due to repressed anger.

The card as you can see depicts a 3 eyed face that seems to look in the distance or rather in no particular direction. Ten swords are arranged in half a circle on top, and a bare breast - which may stand for an obsession with the female body. An image of the brain may say that it is all in the mind.

Re: Ten of Swords -- Ruin

Thank you, Feebie, for being the first.

Maybe a coincidence (or not) that this morning when I was replacing the card that I had drawn from this deck, I realized that the only reversed cards I had in the whole pack was this ten of swords and the eight of swords....

The RTB says about Ruin something to the effect that it announces violence, an ending, even collapse. That it portends negative thoughts and fear of insanity.

I find it suggest self-destruction: the red eyes, the vacant stare (of a drug addict?), the thin lips set in despondency and hopeless resignation. The breast, yes, and a somewhat lascivious one at that, a warning about the kind of lust or overindulgence that leads to the emptiness of the soul.

My intuition tells me, when I look at the card, that the ruin we see here may be partially self-inflicted: wrong decisions, together with the disastrous consequences of a once innocent gesture, made with the best of intentions, but with disastrous consequences nonetheless.

I think the card also suggests pain, not only emotional, but also physical because of the orange of agony (like the pain of infection) in the bottom right hand corner of the card.

The labarynthian elements in the art make me think of the intestines, that which is hidden and tortuous, perhaps even convoluted. A ruin that happens without us knowing why it has occcurred. Also, when we are nervous and have suffered some calamity, isn't our digestive system the first organ or set of organs that come under attack? Those who are extremely health conscious, and who have turned to the nutrional teachings of Prof. Ehret, for example, recognize the critical importance of the intestines to our health, and therefore vital in the prevention of our ruin; at least our physical ruin. (Just something to consider )

Anyway, the combination of darkness with the magenta - sister colour to purple, the colour of spirituality - speaks to me of the darkness of the soul, to which, of course, insanity belongs.

Is there any hope in this card? I think the hope lies in the warning. You do not have to be ruined. Stay alert, and you can change the course of possiblity. If not, at least you can assuage its nefarious effects.

I look forward to reading what others have to say.

Re: Ten of Swords -- Ruin

Feebie said:

After shuffling and cutting the deck, I drew Ten of Swords.

Click to expand...

That's a great site for the card images. Can we see all of the Rohrig deck there? If so, can you leave the main url for us here, with whatever link we have to follow, since it's all in Russian?

Thanks, Feebie!

Re: Re: Ten of Swords -- Ruin

Both of you have made very insightful comments I think I agree with. I actually have a couple of questions about this card and I wonder what others think.

One: What do you make of the letters and numbers printed on the card: the "HJKL" printed sideways in roughly the center of the card and the "1234" below and to the right of the breast? I haven't been able to figure out what they might represent.

Two: What do you make of the design above and around the rightmost eye? They remind me of some sort of Nortwest coastal Native American-style design, but I don't know what it's meant to represent either.

Namaste said:

Is there any hope in this card? I think the hope lies in the warning. You do not have to be ruined. Stay alert, and you can change the course of possiblity. If not, at least you can assuage its nefarious effects.

I look forward to reading what others have to say. [/B]

Click to expand...

That's why I don't like reversed readings. To me, there's hope and caution in every card and a reading should not be to heavily weighted toward one or the other (especially a reading for someone else).

Re: Re: Ten of Swords -- Ruin

Namaste said:

That's a great site for the card images. Can we see all of the Rohrig deck there? If so, can you leave the main url for us here, with whatever link we have to follow, since it's all in Russian?

Thanks, Feebie!

Click to expand...

Yes Namaste this site shows the whole Rohrig deck images is in Russian. But there should be no problem at all.

Re: Re: Re: Ten of Swords -- Ruin

OakDragon said:

One: What do you make of the letters and numbers printed on the card: the "HJKL" printed sideways in roughly the center of the card and the "1234" below and to the right of the breast? I haven't been able to figure out what they might represent.

Click to expand...

As you can see, the pattern of numbers and letters is broken, perhaps this suggests that the rational workings of the mind become caught up in all the chaos and confusion that insanity can bring.

I think the card says (in the bottom right hand corner) 'fear of the destructive energies of accumulated anger', a warning that if you let anger rule your life you can become irrational?

I do think this card is about how your own mind processes those destructive things that happen to us. The secret is to keep thoughts logical and not let a situation screw up our minds. There is light though at the top of the card, the light at the end of the tunnel?

J

Re: Re: Re: Re: Ten of Swords -- Ruin

Jewel-ry said:

As you can see, the pattern of numbers and letters is broken, perhaps this suggests that the rational workings of the mind become caught up in all the chaos and confusion that insanity can bring.

I think the card says (in the bottom right hand corner) 'fear of the destructive energies of accumulated anger', a warning that if you let anger rule your life you can become irrational?

I do think this card is about how your own mind processes those destructive things that happen to us. The secret is to keep thoughts logical and not let a situation screw up our minds. There is light though at the top of the card, the light at the end of the tunnel?

J

Click to expand...

I loved your insight, Jewel-ry. Thank you. It is obvious that you have probably had more experience with the cards than I have. I really appreciate having you with us.

I agree. The light breaking through could be a) to keep your wits about you, and b) that if you keep a clear head, there will be a light and the end of the tunnel. The truncated letter and numbers do seem to point to the importance of staying as rational as possible in the face of calamity. Easier said than done, no doubt.

Re: Re: Re: Ten of Swords -- Ruin

Feebie said:

Yes Namaste this site shows the whole Rohrig deck images is in Russian. But there should be no problem at all.

Click to expand...

Thank you so much for the link, Feebie, and, again, for initial insight.

What do think about the discontinued letters and numbers?

Re: Re: Re: Ten of Swords -- Ruin

OakDragon said:

Two: What do you make of the design above and around the rightmost eye? They remind me of some sort of Nortwest coastal Native American-style design, but I don't know what it's meant to represent either.


That's why I don't like reversed readings. To me, there's hope and caution in every card and a reading should not be to heavily weighted toward one or the other (especially a reading for someone else).

Click to expand...

It's possible that Rohrig was influenced by the Native American style, but as a German (I believe), I think this pattern is sister to the one that looks like twisted entrails; a patttern that is used to point out how muddled our thinking becomes when we are in the grips of strong negativity.

I, too, dislike reversed readings. I know this issues is a very contentious one, since there are at least two different schools of thought on their merit, or lack thereof.

Perhaps, when I become better re-acquainted with the tarot and have spent a whole lot longer in the tarot-verse, it might be something to explore for greater depth of understanding.

For now, upright will do fine.

Ten of Swords

I've enjoyed all the insights into this card. While agreeing with all that has been said, I also see that this card could represent a lack of, or breakdown of an overriding philosophy or crisis of faith. We are constantly bombarded with messages which are contradictory, or just apples and oranges, so to speak, and need to have a solid inner sense of orientation in order to process these messages successfully. If this inner sense of who we are, what we believe, what to reject and what to act on, etc. breaks down then there is no point (the sword tip points have faded away) to incoming information; it becomes chaotic. He seems to be "all eyes", taking in too much at once, thus bloodshot. Yet the brain is outside the skull, the neurons seem to be synapsing off in space beneath his chin and the red and white striped roadblock that would function to keep out more information while what has already been taken in is being dealt with is down. The fading letters/numbers make me think that the inner dialogue, like language/math, the capacity to organize thought into structures understandable to ourselves and others, is being lost. I think the breast could be a desire to return to an infantile state of not needing to make decisions, to discriminte, to know himself, or perhaps a sudden jolt or crisis has rendered him so vulnerable as to simply want to be taken care of and nurtured until his ego can reestablish itself (it says Broken Heart beneath the breast). Ruin and madness could be the disintegration of the I, to last until he can recreate his identity.

BTW, thanks for starting this group