The Tarot Minor Arcana

A Bean Sprout, Numbers, and the Minor Arcana


What does a bean sprout have in common with a Tarot deck? — Time!
We can think of the Minor Arcana cards as the time-keepers of our lives. They can be aligned with the four changing seasons of earth’s yearly cycle around the sun, and we can apply the implications of their meaning to our daily lives. How do we associate that with the Tarot? First, we see there are four suits: Wands (Fire), Cups (Water), Swords (Air) and Pentacles (Earth) which represent earth’s seasonal changes in general. Each suit consists of 10 numbered cards, plus four court cards: Page, Knight, Queen and King. The numbered cards are not about quantitative functions, but instead, have metaphysical meaning in Tarot. Various interpretations describe the cards as representing processes of change and growth in situations that can be correlated with a person’s life. My teacher, Gail Fairfield, views the Minor Arcana in developmental cycles: “Within the fourteen cards of each suit, there are four cycles of three… a conceptual level 1,2,3; actualized level 4,5,6; expanded level 7,8,9; a transitional level 10; and a fulfilled level P, K, Q, K.” (Choice Centered Tarot, Ramp Creek Publishing, 1990, p. 30)

For a quick overview for finding meaning in the cards, I’ll use a bean sprout as a metaphor for the states and stages of life-processes that are implied in the Tarot. A study of the Tarot Minor Arcana can reveal the underlying universal laws and patterns manifest in our earthly existence. I like how the author, Arthur Young, discusses the process of fourfold development in his book, The Geometry of Meaning (Delacorte Press, 1976). He says, “Spring is the time of physical acceleration…Summer is the time of physical change…Autumn…is the time of mental stimulus” and “…Winter the time when growth has ceased” (p. 118).

In SPRING, the ground is prepared, but empty, (Zero 0, the number of the Fool). [Think of TV’s Mr. Bean] No thing is happening, yet it is full of unbelievable possibilities. One (1) the seed planted in the ground represents a beginning. It is motivated to start the miraculous life-building process—it germinates. (Aces) For us, it’s beginning to conceive an idea; to create something new; a time to start a new endeavor. Two (2) by mirroring some mysterious life-DNA-blueprint within the seed, it begins to establish itself as a new life and becomes something—a “bean sprout.” It sprouts 2 leaves, which are initially nourished by the seed. This action resembles the same process for us as we begin to establish our own unique identity (number 2 cards). Three (3) the bean plant flourishes in stage three with more leaves and its sweet flowers bloom. It is an expression of creative powers and unification of purpose. We synthesize our growth, plan our strategies, and are learning to adapt to a changing world by working together (number 3 cards).

Four (4) in SUMMER, the growth of the plant increases; it matures, and pollination takes place. We explore how to manifest our dreams, ambitions, and plans. We find stability and learn to structure our lives by stepping out of the box (number 4 cards). Five (5) in mid-summer, bugs and disease attempt to attack the plant and, its resilience is tested. It persists in fulfilling its mission. Now, we face our own challenges and confrontations. We take our chances in learning how to deal with opposition, arguments and the unexpected (number 5 cards). Six (6) the plant reaches the apex of perfection and beauty, producing an abundance of graceful bean pods. We strive to find balance and harmony in our lives, and count our blessings, and savor our successes (number 6 cards).

FALL, Seven (7) an entire cycle is complete and the harvest is on. The bean plant is ripe and fulfilling its creative function by continuing to replenish its kind. We bask in a sense of victory and accomplishment in having achieved our aspirations. We have subdued the opposing forces (number 7 cards). Eight (8) from the stems of the plant, the bean pods snap open releasing the seeds within, which drop and fall where they may. We have an opportunity to begin again at a new level; to re-invent ourselves and go in a new direction; a send off to new events and new possibilities (number 8 cards). Nine (9) the new bean seeds make their way back into the earth and wait for the moment to begin the cycle again. We have integrated all our lessons and are learning a new way of thinking and being. We take on a new attitude of well being (number 9 cards).

WINTER, Ten (10) the bean plant enters a transitory state of dormancy, even torpidity. Its function has been fulfilled and accomplished, which was to live and grow and replenish its form. It is the end of a cycle and everything is complete, yet there is a promise of renewal again in the spring. We are in a state of transition into the unknown. We have accomplished our goals and can now rest at the end of a cycle and reminisce on rich memories of the events in our lives (number 10 cards). [The next segment will continue with the court cards.]

The Universe

 The future —Paradise and Utopia

When you receive The Universe (The World) Tarot card in a reading this could be the beginning of a “reality check” concerning how you envision the future. What do you want the future to look like? Do you wonder about it or do you just live day to day? What do you see for yourself in the future? For some of us, we imagine a heavenly Paradise or Utopian society: “And they lived happily ever after!” Some are seeking Nirvana, or hope to go to Heaven; to find Shangri-La; to get rich quick; to find the love of one’s life; or to just live in an ideal society—“The American Dream.” There’s a sense that if you pass all the tests life has to offer, then you are rewarded with happiness, peace, contentment and fulfillment. Is this true or is life just a “crapshoot?”

First, we let’s look at the past and see how others have imagined a future. Plenty of philosophers, poets, artists, and religionists have written about, and painted how they thought “Paradise” and “Utopia” should look. Plato envisioned the ideal perfect and just utopian city in “The Republic.” He proposed four classes of society: a merchant class, a working class, and a military class all ruled by a philosopher-king elite class of educated men (how did women fit into this and what has this classicism done for the world?)

There is an interesting similarity in the Waite deck depiction of “The World” card, and ancient Roman Mithraicism sculptures of Phanes, a god-like figure (Sun-god) enclosed in an oval ring made up of images from the Zodiac. The four seasons fill the corners just as in the Waite card. The interior figures are somewhat similar. Mithras was a “cosmocrator,” the cosmic ruler of the universe and, the dancer has achieved a place in the universe. Obviously, there is some hidden influence here.

One of the most famous paintings of an artificial paradise is the “Garden of Earthly Delights” Triptych by Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516) in the Prado Museum in Madrid. The central panel, “Paradise,” is a bizarre, fictional painting complete with parades of lovers entwined with plants and animals, enjoying picnics of strawberries and cherries while frolicking among phantasmagoric fountains and strange plant-like buildings. “Themes are invariably passion and restraint, nature and civilization, freedom and coercion, and how love is to be perceived between these extremes.” (Hieronymous Bosch: The Complete Paintings and Drawings catalogue from Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, 2001, p. 102)

In the Marseilles Tarot pack of the 18th century, the nude dancer on The World card carries a wand in the left hand and a “philter” in the right (a form of perfume bottle containing a love-potion). Some think this is a hint of an “athanor,” the digesting furnace of alchemy.

In contemporary times, futurist Buckminster Fuller concluded that since, “…there was no operating manual for spaceship earth,” — he wrote one. Talk about imagining a future! He said, “We will now tackle our present world problems with the family of powerful thought tools: topology, geodesics, synergetics, general systems theory, and the computer’s operational ‘bitting’” (Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth,” Simon & Schuster, 1969).

Seattle artist, Deborah Lawrence, has produced a series of Utopian Collages based on the answers she received from over 200 people on what their vision of Utopia would be. She has created several collaged “trays” depicting the different types of Utopia they envisioned such as “Nonconformutopia,” with no class system, no dress code, and no stifled creativity. There is a “Paving the American Dream Tray” with the words “Privatizing the National Parks”; and there’s The “Shock and Awe Souvenir Tray,” depicting all sorts of weapons of war. Art Critic, Susan Noyes Platt, writes in Lawrence’s book: “Dee Dee Does Utopia” (Marquand Books, 2008) “She speaks to our disrupted and despotic world, offering possibilities for another future.”

The media blasts us today with all the contrasting viewpoints between the “optimists” and “doomsayers;” the socialist states, the fascist police states, and democracy. On the one hand, we are entering a new frontier imagined by Sci-Fi futurists in space-exploration, more technological breakthroughs in finding new power sources, and establishing environmental protections; while on the other, some see a violent future of wars and destruction threatened by the now ongoing devastating turmoil and governmental upheaval in the Middle East.

What are the indications in The Universe card of Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness? If you get this card in a reading it means we are shaping our future by the crucial decisions we make now. We need strength, courage, and compassion in facing the “big unknown.” The Universe card represents a more spiritual concept in that we will reap the rewards when we acknowledge our own oneness with the Universe. This is symbolized by the prismatic figure embraced in the “womb” of the Universe. It is an uplifting sign of HOPE for achieving happiness and success, gained by our efforts and perseverance as we work on mastery of self and express unconditional love, especially in cooperation with others.

Richard Roberts writes that: “From the atomic point of view, a divine dance is taking places within all particles, similar to the allegory of risen anima mundi in Key 21, the spirit of the world. Thus out of the Zero, the No-thing, comes the One…” (Joseph Campbell and Richard Roberts, Tarot Revelations, Part II (Vernal Equinox Press, 1982) p. 95.

It’s time to enjoy the fruits of our labors!

Judgment

Remembering a life

   Who judges who—and for what? Did you pass the test? Did you break the law? What happens when we leave this earthly plane? Several traditional Tarot decks depict people rising from their coffins with an angel blowing a trumpet. This is obviously a Christian theme of being judged worthy of eternal life or being condemned to an eternal hell. According to the New Testament, where to go depends upon what is written about the person in the “book of life.” (See Rev. 20:12, hmm! 2012, and the Judgment card is number 20; more to be paranoid about.) This implies a final divine judgment based on an examination of one’s life and it comes with blessings or punishment. It denotes both redemption and resurrection in heaven, or a trip to hell. In this context, God or the Messiah, redeems the righteous and punishes the wicked. For a lot of people those concepts don’t work anymore. Some are making their own heaven or hell right here and now. In contemporary thought, most of us reflect on our lives through a process of self-examination and self-monitoring. Robert Nozick says, “The understanding gained in examining a life itself comes to permeate that life and direct its course. To live an examined life is to make a self-portrait.” (The Examined Life, Simon and Schuster, 1989, p. 12)

     One must come to a point sometime in life (usually when we are much older) when we contemplate fragments of memories of our past experiences. We look at old albums of faded photographs, travel itineraries, souvenirs and trinkets, tokens gathered along the way. We reminisce on fun adventures and try to forget the bad encounters, mistakes and blunders. We are always working on transcending the errors and limitations of our past, and in so doing, sometimes we are our own worst critic, but eventually there is recompense.

     Some of the world’s greatest paintings are of the “Last judgment” depicting people in heaven or hell, painted during the Renaissance in the cathedrals of Europe. We think of Michelangelo’s fresco of enormous figures on the end wall of the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican (1541). A powerful Christ waves his right hand upward summoning the blessed to immortality and, with the left hand, sends the damned down to hell. An early innovative painter, Giotto, filled the Arena Chapel in Padua, Italy, with realistic Biblical scenes including an end wall of the “Last Judgment,” (1305) complete with a scary, monstrous blue devil devouring the sinners. The blessed are on one side, the damned on the other. Rubens painted two “Last Judgment” scenes, both of which are in the Alte Pinakothek Museum in Munich. His painting, “Fall of the Damned,” (1620) is filled with bloated bodies tumbling into the torment of hell and being beaten by demons. Jesus and Mary are shown at the top beckoning the blessed to come into the light of heaven. We also see similar themes in the art of earlier cultures.

      Moustafa Gadalla in his book “Egyptian Cosmology,” (Bastet Publishing, 1997, p.141) says, “Ancient Egyptians expressed their metaphysical beliefs in story form.” Their religion was based on the correct way to transcend this earthly existence. Hieroglyphs of an afterlife were like a mystery play where complex rituals for judging the dead were portrayed in temple carvings and written in the Book of the Dead, actually called “Coming Forth by Day: The great Awakening.” Their writings and bas relief’s expressed the belief in an afterlife where their transfigured spirits traveled to the stars. “…this, the purified one shall come forth by day after his burial.” (Wallis Budge, Dover Publications Reprint, from1895, p. 177) In the journey, a person’s soul was sent to the Hall of Judgment of Maat where the heart against was weighed against a feather. If the heart weighed more than the feather this meant the deceased was weighed down by guilt. If it balanced, the soul became a star for eternity. The person would then be judged by 42 judges. (42? In Douglas Adams “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy,” the computer’s answer was 42, “The Answer to Life, the Universe and Everything”!)

     In the pyramid at Saqqara, archeologists discovered the sculpture of the Pharaoh, Zoser, in a cubicle placed at a 17º angle aimed at the circumpolar stars – perhaps this was a repository for his earthly life while his Ba (spirit) shot out of the pyramid toward the stars. In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, I have painted a pyramid with a little pentagonal window from which symbolic “souls” are escaping—celestial travelers on their way to the stars or a spiritual plane. The main theme of the Judgment card is resurrection and transformation where salvation and the belief of eternal life allay fears of doubt and despair.

     So what does this mean in a Tarot reading? This implies judgment of one’s conscience and is a warning to get busy preventing any impending doom. It’s a time for repentance or confession in asking for forgiveness for misdeeds, crimes, and mistreatment of others. Think of how you can make amends and express your remorse in order to bring about healing of difficult situations. Remind yourself as Vickie Noble says, that when “…people begin speaking and acting from their hearts to protest world destruction and work toward peace, Judgment is being felt.” (MotherPeace,” HarperCollins, 1983, p. 140). This means getting down (underworld) to the deeper meaning of life and working on the rehabilitation of inappropriate behavior, and finding the best way to express love and compassion for others and all earthly things. Then it can be an uplifting card of promise for a bright future.

THE SUN:

 Light and hope, a new day

     Each day with the sunrise, we are bathed in the sun’s radiant life-giving energy as its light vitalizes our planet. Green plants flourish in the warmth and energy of sunlight and grow to meet the new day. We soak up the sun’s rays outdoors on beaches and in our gardens, and power our complex multimedia devices with solar energy. The sun makes life as we know it possible on earth. When sunlight passes through a prism it is broken up into seven colors, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. Our eyes perceive color, shapes, and form because of the light.

     Naturally, there is a Tarot card representing “the Sun.” Traditional decks show children playing in joy and delight under a huge golden sun with extended rays. We interpret the card as meaning success, achievement, joy, and the fulfillment of love and happiness. It represents basking in the light of optimism and hope. Receiving this card is the impetus to wake up and seek the Light and enlightenment of spiritual bliss.

     In the ancient Egyptian mystery stories, the Sun-god creator, Amun-Ra, was worshipped at the temples of Heliopolis and Karnack. In a daily transformation, Amun-Ra caused the sun to be born every morning and to travel in a sacred barque across the sky, only to be swallowed by the sky-goddess Nut in the darkness of night, and after passing through the dark Underworld, was reborn again in the morning. The Sun card of Tarot commemorates the observance of that daily rebirth for all the children of earth.

    

     “At dawn he was a new-born child, by midday he was a hero in the prime of life, and at sunset he became an old man tottering with feeble steps into the western horizon.” (Alan W. Shorter, The Egyptian Gods, Newcastle Publishing, 1937, p.5)    

    

     On a different note, this brings up the subject of solar cycle predictions and other disaster scenarios discussed today in the media. According to NASA scientists, we are approaching the maximum in the Sunspot Cycle in the spring of 2013, having experienced several large solar flares already. The worst that could happen might be power outages, and satellites afflicted by heightened geomagnetic activity.  But before that date, supposedly, the doomsday soothsayers predict the sun will be in alignment with the earth and the galactic center of our galaxy December 21, 2012, which will bring about some destructive force as we enter the Dark Rift of the Milky Way. Oh hum – more of “repent for the end is near.” How many “near ends” have we had over the centuries? (Pun intended) But after all that chatter, we’re still here aren’t we? Astronomers at NASA, and elsewhere, say this prediction is nonsense. E.C.Krupp, director of Griffith Observatory, says, “Others on the web…have declared that the Sun is now plummeting to the Milky Way’s center and dragging earth with it. The predicted result? Earth’s polar axis will shift. Most of what’s claimed for 2012 relies on wishful thinking, wild pseudoscientific folly, ignorance of astronomy, and a level of paranoia worthy of the Night of the Living Dead.” (E.C. Krupp, “The Great Doomsday Scare,” Sky and Telescope Magazine) Yes, changes are coming, but notice that they come again and again with each new day.

     In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, the illustration of The Sun is a great energetic ball of yellow and orange depicting its warmth, fire, and light. This means it is forever a steady lasting influence as it casts its light on orbiting planets seen against the darkness of space at the bottom of the picture. How should we interpret The Sun card in a reading?  We can sing with joy and bask in the Light of spiritual illumination. Every day brings a new beginning. Recharge yourself, and as the Sun continues to shine, let your light shine.

The Moon: Tides of Change

“The Moon, like a silver bow

New-bent in heaven”

A Midsummer-nights Dream

     The cyclic motion of the moon rules the night. When we interpret the symbolism of The Moon in Tarot it’s about the fluidity of inner change in our emotional lives. We may not be aware of it but we are always in flux, waxing and waning like the moon; alternating between light and dimly illumined shadows. The gravitational pull of earth’s mass on the moon, and vice versa, draws the oceans and, even the crust of the earth up and down every day. Their relationship creates a rhythm of perpetual motion. We can’t be sure how this affects each one of us literally, but we view it symbolically in Tarot as mood swings of our own emotional world.

     In a Tarot reading, The Moon card symbolizes our internal dialogue in a hazy realm of feelings, instincts, imagination, and dreams. The meaning emphasizes the need to release repressed anger, frustrations, fears, and uncertainty about past grievances and mistakes. It’s a time to forgive and forget and to allow yourself to experience how you really feel about things and then live with your feelings for awhile in order to understand yourself better. “The feelings are psychological expressions of biological instincts, which in truth, are waves and eddies in the tidal flow of the lunar forces acting upon the ‘moisture’ in man’s body and psyche.” (Dane Rudhyar, The Practice of Astrology, Penguin Books, 1968.)

     While visiting friends in northern New Mexico, I watched a huge full moonrise as it illuminates the cold, barren landscape; a sight I will never forget. Because the moon dominates the night there, it made sense that at Pueblo Bonito in Chaco Canyon, the early Publicans gauged its alignment and construction to the time-frame of the moon and sun’s rising and setting along the horizon. In 1977, a spiral carving was first discovered by artist Anna Sofaer that measures both the movement of the sun and the moon at Fajada Butte nearby. Landmarks and further building alignments have been intensely studied ever since by her group known as the Solstice Project. In addition to that, every 18.6 years, the moon rises at its most northern declination between the 2 towers of Chimney Rock. It’s apparent that it could be seen by “…watchers near the Chimney Rock Pueblo…” as astronomer, J. McKim Malville has concluded: “…the moon is intermediary between sun and earth…much of Puebloan lore revolves around women and children.” (See Malville and Putnam, Prehistoric Astronomy in the Southwest, Johnson books, 1993.)

     In early classical mythology, the moon was personified by Artemis (Diana) Goddess of the Moon ruling the tides, and feminine cycles of maternity. Overall, in astrology, the interpretation of the moon’s phases is that, with the New Moon, a new cycle begins. The waxing moon and Full Moon signify reaching fulfillment. During the waning moon, it’s an opportunity to recognize and shed erroneous blunders, evil influences, lunacy, folly, and disastrous illusions.

     The Moon card prompts you to listen to your inner voice and get in touch with your feelings. Work on understanding your nebulous unconscious imaginings. It’s time to examine your anxieties, fears, anger or resentment and illusions, and especially, pay attention to your intuition. 

The Star

Look to the stars

When you look up to the stars on a dark night what do you wonder about the universe? Twinkling lights cover the entire heavens. Planets orbit in gigantic galaxies of whirling gas clouds among masses of stars. Black holes suck up matter. Obviously, we are looking at a vast cosmos far surpassing our comprehension. This brings up a cosmic question: Why is there a Star card in the Tarot? It must be there to motivate us to think beyond our own small world; to contemplate the origin of life and the source of our becoming.

The Star card of Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness signifies the experience of the flow of Cosmic Energy in the healing waters of cleansing and purification from a never-ending Cosmic Source. In the painting, this Life-force is symbolized by a prismatic seven-pointed star from which a red river flows. It is pouring forth incandescent gold sparks of Cosmic Energy, a sign of rejuvenation in our lives and a promise of progress toward spiritual insight and rebirth. Gold dots in the red river appear to flow in an orderly pattern comparable to “Prana” in Eastern yogic practices. In Chinese Medicine, it is “Chi.” An acupuncture treatment stimulates the meridians of Chi in order to bring healing to our cells. The “Mother” (wife of Sri Aurobindo) claims to have somehow seen the sparks or dots in her mind’s eye as, “…a powdering of warm gold. I can’t say bright or dark; it wasn’t luminous either; a multitude of tiny gold dots…” Her statement was recorded in “The Mind of the Cells” by her assistant, Satprem, (Institute of Evolutionary Research, 1982, p. 89)

In Arthur E. Waite’s “The Pictorial Key to the Tarot” (University Books, 1910, 1959 p. 136) the artist Pamela Colman Smith, has depicted a woman pouring water from two vases, one into a pool and the other on the earth. Waite describes the woman as “the Great Mother” pouring the “…Water of Life from two great ewers irrigating sea and land.” In a biblical context, “…the river of water of life, bright as crystal…” is mentioned in Rev.22:1.

The heptagram star has been considered a symbol of the Eternal, containing the seven attributes of the Divine, all reflecting one another. To make a drawing of a heptagon that will yield a seven-pointed star, it cannot be exact because the angle needed to mark it on a 360° circle is a numeral of infinity (51° 428571….). In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, The Star card has been painted with the 7 colors of the rainbow – red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and purple: a promise of hope for the future. Madeline Montalban states in “The Prediction Book of the Tarot,” (Blanford Press, 1983, p. 115) “The Star is hope; it tops the good fairy’s wand…hope signifies regeneration.”

The Tower

The Tower: Wake up!

Wham! A bolt of lightning strikes “The Tower” from out of the blue. Shock! Dismay! Are you feeling shattered and burnt out? Are you fleeing from chaos and disaster? A lot has been written lately about the “The Tower” card of Tarot, especially in the aftermath of the 9/11 collapse of the twin towers in New York City. The commentaries range from endless discussions in popular magazines, newspapers and blogs, to rants of biblical proportions (see Revelation 9:11). In Tarot, the meaning of The Tower differs from what we think about concerning the watchtowers erected on ancient city walls. However, we note that the belief of the populous was—if the watchtower fell during an attack or siege—it signified the doom of the city.

The traditional Tarot view of The Tower is considered an allegory, symbolic of collapse of the social order. In early Tarot cards, lightning strikes the tower knocking off a crown. Two people are seen falling from the top—usually interpreted metaphorically as the plunge from a build up of self-aggrandizement. This refers to someone who has succumbed to “the love of money.” It typifies greed and corruption as seen in promoting rampant selfish capitalism and the tyranny of the “will to power.” In a reading, it can mean its time for a necessary break-up of “towering defenses,” and a willingness to give up old habits. It’s an impulsion to restructure oneself. It’s about liberation from delusions, ignorance, and materialistic thinking. In some interpretations, the thunderbolt that topples the crown is seen as a symbol of celestial power. A lightning flash reveals sudden spiritual insight and awareness. “The tower of pride is here destroyed by the lightning bolt of God’s judgment,” says Joseph Campbell in “Tarot Revelations,” (with Richard Roberts, Vernal Equinox Press, 1982). In mythology, Jupiter throws thunderbolts, which are an emblem of his sovereignty and power.

In Tarot of Cosmic Consciousness, the background of The Tower card appears red, indicating violence as bands of lightning streak through a shower of sparks. The crown is falling off a broken brick structure, much like we see it in older decks. What is the significance of the “crown”? It’s a mighty emblem of sovereignty that takes a fall when a false will to power and puffed up egos are exposed.


Johannes Dorflinger portrays “The Devil” and “The Tower” together in his sculptures at Constance, Germany, as mentioned in the previous blog. There, a sign describes the juxtaposition of the two as: “A tenuous balance between aggressive and defensive impulses…” The significance of the falling people represents those who are experiencing a sudden flash of insight about the Higher Self as disaster strikes. Something has to change in a hurry.

J.E. Cirlot says that “…liberation rather than ruin is the esoteric meaning of this key,” in “A Dictionary of Symbols,” (Philosophical Library, 1962 p.75).

An arrogant and powerful king, Nimrod, was building a tower to reach the heavens in the biblical allegory of the “Tower of Babel.” But the workers, who originally spoke a common language, couldn’t understand each other’s speech anymore so the work stopped and the tower collapsed. The implication was that Nimrod’s vanity brought about its downfall. This was his punishment for his arrogance and pride. Only the “Book of the Jubilees” from the Dead Sea Scrolls mentions the actual destruction of the tower.

Cynthia Giles in “Tarot: History, Mystery and Lore,” (Fireside, 1994, p. 176) describes a Surrealist art exhibition held in Paris, 1947, where the Major Arcana, including The Tower, were exhibited as a stairway made of book ends. The Tower was referred to as “The God House” whose reference book was Goethe’s “Faust.The artists were comparing the symbols of Tarot to certain books that seemed to exemplify the themes of the Major Arcana.

In a reading, when you get The Tower card, its time to ask yourself: what is breaking up in your life? How can you restructure and improve your environment? Gail Fairfield in “Choice Centered Tarot” (Red Wheel-Weiser, 1984) says: “The flash of enlightenment is like the lightning hitting the tower. It starts off a whole chain reaction.”