THE
DEVIL—
THE CARD
OF PENDING EVIL, Part 1 of 2
This
article completes the “Deer in the Headlights” trilogy,
The Devil, Key #XV. Of the previous cards,
I feel that this one may be the most ominous
of all. The image of the Devil or Satan
has been a prominent representation of
evil in religion, mythology, literature
and has been held over the heads of children
and adults as a threat of punishment for
their sins for hundreds of years. Devils
and demons have been the ambiguous figures
who are the harbingers of plague, illness,
death, destruction, and all manner of horrific
acts; so, why wouldn't this card immediately
elicit fear? With a better understanding
of its black and white (negative and positive)
aspects, I shall attempt to change the
way you may look at this card in the future.
As a reminder, “There are no bad
cards, only negative-thinking readers.” This
card may be the most difficult of all to
find any positive aspects since we are
dealing with an image which enters our
psyche as the childhood bogeyman and becomes
further ingrained as the representative
of insidious evil as we learn, read and
mature.
Remember
that the Major Arcana cards guide us
along spiritual paths
and help as we strive to discover our place
in God's plan for our evolution as a species
as well as to understand our individual
soul's agenda. Therefore, as we address
the Devil Card, we shall shy away from
the obvious symbols and its guises from
mythology (Satan, Demon kind, Old Patch,
Pan, etc.) which been used to create FEAR
in so many ways. Too often we refer to
anyone or anything that is evil or harmful
as a “DEVIL”. This reference
is used all too liberally in statements
such as, “I am be-deviled by....” -
or - “demon-drink” - or the
more light-hearted -- “The Devil
made me do it.” Demons can be anything
at all and are especially frightening when
referenced as addictions such as alcohol
or drugs. Thus our challenge here is to
find the positive side of this dark image
and make this card work FOR rather than
AGAINST us.
Some
deck's portray this card in very intriguing
and less threatening
ways than the Rider-Waite, which I am using
for this article. This deck has a prominent
image of the Devil squatting upon a three-dimensional
square (representing the earth, material
manifestations, measurement, foundations
and order) – but half is missing
or unseen. He is expressed as a mutation
of the images on the Wheel of Fortune (The
cycle of cosmic expression/evolution) – The
face, hands and arms of a man, feet of
a bird, head and horns of a goat, ears
of a donkey, and the wings of a bat. The
lower torso is covered in fur representing
bestiality and a raw sexual nature. He
appears as if he has stepped right out
of an early wood carving or old prints
from the times of the Inquisition, but
is more likely to be a depiction of the
Pagan god, Pan. Pan was not a goat god
of evil and destruction but one of mirth
as a male fertility symbol. In animal lore,
the goat represents pure lust and procreation.
It was the fear of these basic instinctive
actions which explain why the church chose
this figure upon which to base their image
of Satan. Thereby, this symbol became one
of control through fear of retribution.
His
right hand is raised and extended which
is the reverse of the
pontifical blessing of the Heirophant,
for the Devil gives the sign of Black Magic.
His left hand directs a burning torch (symbol
of power and influence) downward toward
the human figures beneath his cloven hooves.
His countenance is that of Baphomet (a
misunderstood occult image used in Satanic
worship) with an inverted pentacle on his
forehead. Although, this symbol that has
been used to represent evil and Satanic
practices, it is actually representative
of spirit manifested onto the Earth plane.
It is often used by witches to signify
the second degree initiation. In its negative
(evil) aspect, this manifestation symbol
indicates that one is using selfish means,
lustful extremes, and emotional manipulation.
However, in its positive aspect, one has
integrated spirit (god) into their everyday
life and the mundane world. In other words,
this individual has learned to take full
responsibility for their own actions. I
do not claim that this is an easy step
for anyone, but hardly one that cannot
be achieved with a healthy intent and determined
self-examination. Each step along our spiritual
evolution (initiation) requires that we
address this shadow side – known
as “the dark night of the soul.” Much
is written on this subject, but I leave
that for the reader to research further
if it is an unfamiliar term.
The two human figures
have horns and tails, indicative of their
base natures, and seem to be prisoners
of the Devil as they are chained to the
world of material need and gain. They are
naked, representing vulnerability and innocence.
The female's tail resembles a bunch of
grapes (symbol of abundance and pleasure)
which is being misused. The male's tail
resembles a trefoil, signifying the misuse
of the Zodiac or the cycle of existence.
Overall,
this card appears to represent Black
Magic, evil, and all
that is destructive to “good”.
However, understand that magic itself is
pure energy -- neither black nor white;
good nor evil. It is not the wands and
flamboyant displays of Harry Potter movie
magic but rather it is INTENT – pure
and simple. More harm and sickness in this
world is caused from everyday ill intent,
greed, and jealousy than is ever created
through spell work. The words of one's
intentions go out as a prayer which can
just as easily be sent as harmful, angry
wishes toward one's enemies as it can be
for healing. Magic and prayer are the same
and it is the practitioner that sets the
definition from within their own heart.
Although
this card represents the misconception
that man is bound by
his material condition and is a slave to
fate, the Baphomet/Pan figure suggests
bestiality and all manner of over-indulgences.
Arthur Edward Waite1 describes this figure
as, “The Dweller in the Threshold
Without the Mystical Garden...” This
suggests other images from ancient mythology
such as the familiar Oracle at Delphi.
These Oracles would stand mute until a
seeker approached. Then a riddle was spoken
and if the correct answer given, they would
allow the seeker to safely pass beyond
toward the source of enlightenment or the
successful completion of their quest. In
this case, the Oracle is the Devil, himself.
What would the Devil's riddle be? Most
likely, it would be a twisted demand or
a temptation which would lead one off course
or into some type of entrapment. I would
not expect that it would actually assist
your growth, but then most riddles are
seldom direct or easily solved if they
are worthwhile. How would YOU answer the
riddle of the Devil Card? Are you ready
to face your shadow side or will this prospect
drive you back and prevent attainment of
your desired goal within the Garden of
Eden? Therein lies the positive and negative
sides of this card. Would you release yourself
from these self-imposed chains or embrace
them as a security blanket?
When the Devil Card appears
in a reading, it indicates that the querant
or someone close to them is caught in a
web of self-indulgence, selfishness, temptation,
greediness, and perhaps, has been taking
short-cuts which usually mean walking over
others to obtain their goals. Depending
on the situation, this card can be a red
flag to change one's course. If it refers
to another in the querant's life, the querant
may have become an enabler or be in danger
from this individual either directly or
indirectly. All too often, this card signals
the possible existence of an addiction
or at the least, an addictive nature. Neither
of which should be taken lightly and the
querant should be directed to seek professional
help.
In
Charles Dickens's Christmas Carol, Old
Marley's Ghost, scared the literal
pants off Scrooge when he rattled into
the room on Christmas Eve, demanding that
Scrooge heed his warning. “These
are the chains I forged in life...”,
he wails. So we need not bemoan the chains
we forge for, like Scrooge, we may yet
find hope. Facing the three Ghosts of Christmas,
Scrooge is forced to face his shadow side
as a foolish, bitter, selfish, miserly
individual. By heeding this warning, his
future was then to be chain-free. First,
he had to look at how his cruel choices
had affected all those in his life. The
Devil Card gives us a chance to hear our
own ghosts as they waft about us. Do they
scream out as self-esteem issues, limitations,
over-indulgence, foolishness, mental illness
and all forms of attachments or do they
enforce our efforts? We don't get theatric
ghosts to point out our mistakes, but the
Devil Card can do just as well.
Click
Here to continue to Part 2 of THE
DEVIL - THE CARD OF PENDING EVIL
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