Introducing The Devil XV
The card that probably freaks most people out (alongside Death and the 10 of Swords).
If you get this card, you are BOUND to some power. Rachel Pollock wisely says about the Devil card, ‘The Devil’s power rests in the illusion that nothing else exists’. You see what you get, and nothing more.
The Devil is everywhere that there is light – because we must also have shadow.
Symbols & Systems
Devil
The devil is the proverbial devil of Medieval times, reminding us of the pagan horned god. He reminds us of all that we reject in society and all that we reject in ourselves. In other words – The Devil represents our shadow.
Body Posture
This is a being who knows what he wants and uses his power and charisma to seduce and/or control others. His open legs reveal his rebellion against convention, by showing his private parts.
Facial Expression
His expression is piercing, stern, and frightening. He represents all of the dark energies that we fear in life.
Inverted Pentegram
The upright pentagram symbolizes life (4 elements + spirit), as does the human standing with her head as the top triangle, indicating that the head and the consciousness are prime. When the pentagram is reversed, it is often viewed as a perversion: Where the head was, is now where the genitals are, indicating that the genitals, i.e., sexual and carnal passions, rule the human.
Hand gesture
The Devil holds up his right hand, his fingers are held in the ancient hand gesture of the High Priest in the Temple in Jerusalem bestowing his blessing, indicating the ability to subdue the Spirit Force. This hand gesture tells us that the Devil is as much part of the Creator’s plan as anything else, and that there are secret teachings to be discovered. On the Devil’s palm is the glyph of the planet Saturn, which returns back into our birth charts to the same place approximately every 28 years. Saturn represents misfortune and deep change.
Flaming Torch
The flaming torch in the Devil’s left hand represents passion, excitement, and sexuality. It tells us that we perceive nothing to be real beyond our physical experience. We need to be careful, as if we believe this, the fire can consume us.
Throne
In Kabbalah, the cube represents space and the creation of the world. The High Priestess sits upon a cube, as do other figures. The Devil, however, straddles above a half cube, i.e., he is not complete; there are areas missing in his perspective.
Chains
The chains indicate bondage to the Devil and his ways. When we do not understand ourselves, we can be overtaken by addictions, desires, and harmful urges. Once we illuminate our minds with light and truth, we can break free.
Man
The man is naked and chained to the Devil’s cube. He has a tail indicating his animal facet, the end of which catch’s fire from the torch held by the Devil, indicating enslavement to base desires.
Woman
The woman is naked and chained to the Devil’s cube. She has a tail indicating her animal facet, at the end of which is a bunch of grapes, indicating addiction and seduction.
black background
This indicates the darkness and shadows wherein the Devil operates. When inhabit a dark, heavy place, there is an inability to see light and truth.
gods & goddesses
The Devil is ruled by all the Gods and Goddesses that rule over being rude, naughty and wild!
Female: Lilith, Banshee, Morrighan, Baba Yaga Na’amah
Male: Pan, Dionysus, Lucifer, Baphomet, Mephistopheles, Satan, Bacchus, Dionysus, Volos, Horned God, Azazel, Iblis
number
The number of The Devil is 15. When we add 1 + 5, we get 6, which is the Lovers card in the Tarot deck. Read at the end of this blog post all about the connection between the Devil and the Lovers.
Astrology
The astrological sign Capricorn rules over the Devil card. Capricorns are experts at manifestation and positive thinking. The downside is that Capricorns can too attached to material goods. The Capricorn month has the Winter Solstice within it: the darkest night of the year. The Capricorn challenge is to sit within that darkness and emerge reborn.
Capricorn rules over bones, joints, and teeth. The planet Saturn rules over Capricorn; we see its glyph on the Devil’s right palm.
Kabbalah
The creators of the Rider Waite Tarot deck were members of the Golden Dawn, a group that followed teachings based on the Kabbalah. Kabbalists are mystics who believe that God is neither male nor female, and has many aspects. Kabbalah is all about learning why we’re here, the mystery of the universe, and what the big plan is.
The Hebrew word for adversary is ‘Satan’ – שטן – and can also mean hostile or ‘turned against’ [something or someone].
Being the 16th card, The Devil corresponds to the 16th Hebrew letter Ayin – ע – also the Hebrew for “eye”. The Devil might try and convince us that only those things that we can see are real.
On The Tree of Life, the Devil sits on the path between Tipheret (Beauty) and Hod (Glory).
The Kabbalistic name of this card is ‘Renewing Intelligence’: Only by understanding our dark side can we raise our intelligence to a new level.
The message from The Devil XV
The Devil tells you that you are indulging in things, people, and substances that are not good for you. If you pull this card, ask yourself:
- Do I feel out of balance in my life?
- Am I addicted to substances or people?
- To whom or to what do I give my power away?
- Am I being dominated by others?
- Am I letting fear and panic overcome me?
- What am I running away from?
- What chains do I need to break?
- Can I understand the negativity inside of me? If so, can I break free of it? If not, why not?
- What healing do I need right now?
Allow yourself to focus on the fact that right now in your life, you are bound to things external from you, be they substances, people, drama, pain, or ways of thinking and being; this no longer serves you. You need to break free of the chains that hold you back from living a balanced life.
The Devil XV reversed
When I see a reversed card I simply see the energy blocked or inhibited in some way.
How would The Devil be inhibited?
We can look at this in two opposing ways:
That the negative Devil traits are entrenched, OR that we are breaking free of bad habits. I tend to favor the latter.
So if the Devil energy is inhibited, then we are more likely to see what is really happening and step out of old ways of being. There is hope that bondage is being broken.
If you get The Devil reversed for yourself or someone else, some questions to ask might be…
- What holds me in bondage?
- To what am I addicted? Am I ready to finally let go of it?
- What lies am I telling myself?
- What am I hiding from others?
- What am I willing to let go of?
- Might I be truly ready to heal?
- Do I know my Shadow? If so, can I make friends with it? If not, why not?
- Do I understand that I have the power to break out of bondage?
If you get The Devil reversed, you’re being challenged to wake up and see where your bondage is and finally break free from it.
To sum it all up
We all have a dark side, and The Devil embodies that. But perhaps it is not all dark…. The Gnostics believed the devil (Satan) to be the true hero, he gave Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden true knowledge of themselves. Perhaps it is the case that without integrating the Devil into ourselves, we will never truly understand who we are.
Lucifer was an angel – yes a fallen angel, but still a messenger of God. Therefore it may be wise to listen to him and what he has to say. Lucifer teaches us about the SHADOW, the parts within ourselves that we deny; yet his name means “light”, indicating that no one is totally evil; every soul can be redeemed.
Hermann Hesse said, ‘If you hate a person, you hate something in them that is part of yourself. What isn’t part of ourselves does not disturb us’. So if you have an issue signified by the Devil card, it might be time to look inside and see all those traits that you hate in others because they may be inside you too: bigotry, intolerance, anger, envy, abuse…
The Devil invites you to embrace your Shadow, rather than deny it. By integrating all parts of ourselves, we become whole, complete, and better able to understand ourselves and others.
