Wendywu
Death in this card is a shaman; a healer and guide. This is a great way to look upon death, which is after all, a quick stop off at the station before the next train (so to speak). There is a quotation from a work by Dion Fortune which reads:
“Once you have had some memory glimpse, however dim, of your own past, you are certain of your future; therefore you cease to fear life. Supposing I make a mess of an experiment today, I clear up the mess, go to bed, sleep and then in the morning when I am rested I start again. You do the same with your lives once you are sure of reincarnation. It is only the man who does not realise as a personal fact the immortality of the soul who talks of a ruined life and opportunities gone never to return”
And this, I think puts this card in perspective. The shaman is the guide for the unquiet spirit of that definitely dead body rising out of its grave. I see not all of the earth has been filled in the grave so the spirit is voicing its objections and fears early on. The guide has a kindly half smile on his face – he has seen this reluctance to go forward many times. It must be overcome if the soul is to take its next step on the journey.
Death himself an angel of God – he has the most beautiful spectral wings spread wide behind him. His wings have faint but truly lovely outlines. I do think he presents himself to the dead and dying in whatever guise would be most acceptable to them, and by which they would recognise him instantly.
Lying on the ground, that same cracked red ground we see so often – is one of a pair of antlers. This is for me a symbol of paganism and of re-birth. Each year the stag grows and sheds his antlers and just so shall we shuck off our outworn bodies, rest and then be re-born to try and learn the required lessons.
Life is a hard school and in some respects those who have a cushioned, peaceful life without problems or difficulties are not at all to be envied. This deck says plainly that it is through our troubles, and more specifically our responses to troubles – that our spirits grow and learn. Thus a whole life where one need learn nothing – just drift on through – seems an awful waste of a life! Like sitting through the class staring out of the window instead of participating in the lesson.
The kindest gentlest people I have ever met have been those who have come through the most appalling problems without becoming bitter, twisted and disappointed in their lives. I’ve met people who have undergone literally years of pain, and surgery and who know as well as the rest of us that they have little time left. Yet they don’t mourn the futures they won’t have – they are happy, and take joy in the moment. I learned a lot from those men and women and am actually grateful now that I had cause to be in the same situation from the pointy end. I learned from them that even if life is short you don’t have to go without experiences and happiness. That cancer ward was one of the happiest, warmest and most friendly places I have ever stayed in through my whole life and I wouldn’t have missed it. And I don’t think any visitor really understood, although we did, and so did the nurses.
And I learned that the Angel of Death is the kindly, benevolent bringer of surcease from pain, hunger, suffering – you name it. And if the ones left behind suffer and grieve – that is terribly sad but not the concern of Death himself, nor of the newly dead. And this card is likewise not concerned with those who grieve; it focuses on our deaths and thus our opportunities for a new beginning.
There are figures either side of Death. It is hard to see exactly what they are – they appear almost as people with their chakras lit up like traffic lights. Energy bursts from the tops of their heads like fountains of joy. Could they be the Guardians of the gateway? Or are they assistants for the shaman – helping pour energy into the scene so that the spirit of the newly dead is encouraged to rise up, be unafraid and go forward. An even greater explosion of energy surrounds the shaman’s head, but in this case I think it pours down into him rather than bursting from him. Multicoloured, it rains down forming a halo – augmenting his own aura as he calls down the energy to enable his work. Behind him there is a latticework of fine branches, stretching from one of the chakra figures to the other. This is the Veil, which is to be drawn back so that the spirit can pass through.
In his left hand the Shaman has a skull – possibly not that of the dead man. This skull has a strange halo of its own. I think this emphasises the virtue of though, and the fact that it is a skull says I am not to be afraid of thinking my own thoughts and working things out for myself. This holds more virtue than simply accepting dogma that is fed to me without questioning it, and without trying to see the truth (or lack) of it for myself. The skull’s halo is indeed very strange – part of it looks to be comprised of swords piercing the skull lightly, and then pure energy running through them all and joining them one to another. At the same time something that could be either spears coming out from the skull, or burning torches facing out from the skull are placed in between the swords. Are we to consider the swords as traditional tarot swords? Logic, reasoning, mental work? And are the torches flares of inspiration, of light shared? Or is there another explanation.
Or could it be that the skull is that of the dead man and the shaman sings to it, calling forth clear evidence of the actions of the “owner” through his lifetime. The hurts given, the light shared? Although the shaman looks down at the spirit rising, he holds the skull with tender care and it is active in the scene. I do wonder now whether it truly is the skull of the deceased.
Changes must be seen as opportunities for growth. I think of my pot plants – from time to time I need to re-pot them in new larger pots that are filled with fresh rich soil. I don’t doubt for a second that this is a difficult time for the plants, despite the fact that growth and expansion of the plant will result. Equally the changes that this card indicates may well be tremendously difficult to come to terms with. At first it may be almost impossible to see such changes as new opportunities for personal growth, but remember the pot plants (and for me, my plants are very definitely people too
) and their fine new growth, and the shedding of the old dead leaves.
And so we can see that although in certain circumstances the card may well mean the literal death of the body, it never means an absolute ending. It is the chance for change, for fresh starts, for clean breaks – something that from time to time every one of us has prayed for. Except that our wishing to start over usually concerns homework, relationships, that quarrel, the project that didn’t work. And so this card relates to those things too – endings and fresh starts in all aspects and parts of our lives, not just our actual life itself. This time, with this card, here’s our chance to think about making that longed for change. Or to take advantage of an unexpected change that comes upon us.
In a reading I would see this card as usually representative of major change. Placement and the surrounding cards should indicate in what direction and hopefully give an idea of timing and circumstance. It is seldom that the card would indicate actual death and then obviously what the reader does with such an insight is entirely a private matter.
All in all, this is a very comforting card. Death, when it comes, is kindly in its intentions and full of promise for the future.
“Once you have had some memory glimpse, however dim, of your own past, you are certain of your future; therefore you cease to fear life. Supposing I make a mess of an experiment today, I clear up the mess, go to bed, sleep and then in the morning when I am rested I start again. You do the same with your lives once you are sure of reincarnation. It is only the man who does not realise as a personal fact the immortality of the soul who talks of a ruined life and opportunities gone never to return”
And this, I think puts this card in perspective. The shaman is the guide for the unquiet spirit of that definitely dead body rising out of its grave. I see not all of the earth has been filled in the grave so the spirit is voicing its objections and fears early on. The guide has a kindly half smile on his face – he has seen this reluctance to go forward many times. It must be overcome if the soul is to take its next step on the journey.
Death himself an angel of God – he has the most beautiful spectral wings spread wide behind him. His wings have faint but truly lovely outlines. I do think he presents himself to the dead and dying in whatever guise would be most acceptable to them, and by which they would recognise him instantly.
Lying on the ground, that same cracked red ground we see so often – is one of a pair of antlers. This is for me a symbol of paganism and of re-birth. Each year the stag grows and sheds his antlers and just so shall we shuck off our outworn bodies, rest and then be re-born to try and learn the required lessons.
Life is a hard school and in some respects those who have a cushioned, peaceful life without problems or difficulties are not at all to be envied. This deck says plainly that it is through our troubles, and more specifically our responses to troubles – that our spirits grow and learn. Thus a whole life where one need learn nothing – just drift on through – seems an awful waste of a life! Like sitting through the class staring out of the window instead of participating in the lesson.
The kindest gentlest people I have ever met have been those who have come through the most appalling problems without becoming bitter, twisted and disappointed in their lives. I’ve met people who have undergone literally years of pain, and surgery and who know as well as the rest of us that they have little time left. Yet they don’t mourn the futures they won’t have – they are happy, and take joy in the moment. I learned a lot from those men and women and am actually grateful now that I had cause to be in the same situation from the pointy end. I learned from them that even if life is short you don’t have to go without experiences and happiness. That cancer ward was one of the happiest, warmest and most friendly places I have ever stayed in through my whole life and I wouldn’t have missed it. And I don’t think any visitor really understood, although we did, and so did the nurses.
And I learned that the Angel of Death is the kindly, benevolent bringer of surcease from pain, hunger, suffering – you name it. And if the ones left behind suffer and grieve – that is terribly sad but not the concern of Death himself, nor of the newly dead. And this card is likewise not concerned with those who grieve; it focuses on our deaths and thus our opportunities for a new beginning.
There are figures either side of Death. It is hard to see exactly what they are – they appear almost as people with their chakras lit up like traffic lights. Energy bursts from the tops of their heads like fountains of joy. Could they be the Guardians of the gateway? Or are they assistants for the shaman – helping pour energy into the scene so that the spirit of the newly dead is encouraged to rise up, be unafraid and go forward. An even greater explosion of energy surrounds the shaman’s head, but in this case I think it pours down into him rather than bursting from him. Multicoloured, it rains down forming a halo – augmenting his own aura as he calls down the energy to enable his work. Behind him there is a latticework of fine branches, stretching from one of the chakra figures to the other. This is the Veil, which is to be drawn back so that the spirit can pass through.
In his left hand the Shaman has a skull – possibly not that of the dead man. This skull has a strange halo of its own. I think this emphasises the virtue of though, and the fact that it is a skull says I am not to be afraid of thinking my own thoughts and working things out for myself. This holds more virtue than simply accepting dogma that is fed to me without questioning it, and without trying to see the truth (or lack) of it for myself. The skull’s halo is indeed very strange – part of it looks to be comprised of swords piercing the skull lightly, and then pure energy running through them all and joining them one to another. At the same time something that could be either spears coming out from the skull, or burning torches facing out from the skull are placed in between the swords. Are we to consider the swords as traditional tarot swords? Logic, reasoning, mental work? And are the torches flares of inspiration, of light shared? Or is there another explanation.
Or could it be that the skull is that of the dead man and the shaman sings to it, calling forth clear evidence of the actions of the “owner” through his lifetime. The hurts given, the light shared? Although the shaman looks down at the spirit rising, he holds the skull with tender care and it is active in the scene. I do wonder now whether it truly is the skull of the deceased.
Changes must be seen as opportunities for growth. I think of my pot plants – from time to time I need to re-pot them in new larger pots that are filled with fresh rich soil. I don’t doubt for a second that this is a difficult time for the plants, despite the fact that growth and expansion of the plant will result. Equally the changes that this card indicates may well be tremendously difficult to come to terms with. At first it may be almost impossible to see such changes as new opportunities for personal growth, but remember the pot plants (and for me, my plants are very definitely people too
) and their fine new growth, and the shedding of the old dead leaves.And so we can see that although in certain circumstances the card may well mean the literal death of the body, it never means an absolute ending. It is the chance for change, for fresh starts, for clean breaks – something that from time to time every one of us has prayed for. Except that our wishing to start over usually concerns homework, relationships, that quarrel, the project that didn’t work. And so this card relates to those things too – endings and fresh starts in all aspects and parts of our lives, not just our actual life itself. This time, with this card, here’s our chance to think about making that longed for change. Or to take advantage of an unexpected change that comes upon us.
In a reading I would see this card as usually representative of major change. Placement and the surrounding cards should indicate in what direction and hopefully give an idea of timing and circumstance. It is seldom that the card would indicate actual death and then obviously what the reader does with such an insight is entirely a private matter.
All in all, this is a very comforting card. Death, when it comes, is kindly in its intentions and full of promise for the future.
