For an overview of and foundation for this series, see HERE

The final row represents the quest for spiritual awareness that begins with a decent into darkness and ends with the return of the light. Or what I call The Descent into Darkness and Utter Destruction.

We begin this row, as with all the others, with a description of the basic issue. After feeling all satisfied with ourselves because of our courageous ego death and serene state of Temperance, we begin with the Devil and the Tower.

Again, these are opposite sides of the same issue and that issue is being trapped. The Devil is how we trap ourselves with behaviors and beliefs that may have started out okay but have become compulsive obsessions that now control us. The Devil represents habits or practices and is more person or internal as compared to the Tower which represents philosophies or worldviews that have been carefully constructed over time and have more to do with how we live and structure our lives. The habits that become our Devils and the worldviews that become our Tower could very well have started out as positive things but are now outmoded. They no longer serve your higher purpose and no longer reflect your true self.

Click here for the next entry in the series.

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Written by Barbara Moore
The tarot has been a part of Barbara Moore’s personal and professional lives for over a decade. In college, the tarot intrigued her with its marvelous blending of mythology, psychology, art, and history. Later, she served as the tarot specialist for Llewellyn Publications. Over the years, she has ...