The Death card

Day One of implementing my Plan of learning Tarot reading. The first card I pick after shuffling my Rider Waite deck turns out to be the Death card. Number Thirteen to boot. Bad Omen, you'd think. Not at all, I'd say.

The Death Card - Rider Waite Deck

Ever since my precious daughter was born on the 13th, I consider the number to be lucky for me. Besides,  according to Cheiro's Book of Fate and Fortune the number thirteen is not as unlucky or dreadful as people have made it seem.

Surely the artwork and the title 'Death' should worry me then, right? Well it depends entirely on the way you see it. Death makes way for new beginnings. That was the whole tone of my interpretation.

Here is what I wrote down after studying the card:

Major Arcana Card - Death
Number - Thirteen

Card description & feel - Stern looking soldier mounted upon a white horse. Both horse and its rider look unrelenting as they face a person standing with folded hands as if begging for mercy. The horse has just trampled a person who lies lifeless on the ground. It is still marching forward stubbornly, ready to trample anything that comes in its way.

Beside the person with the folded hands, there is a girl kneeling down looking away from the terrifying Rider and his fearsome horse. As if looking away could avert Death. There is also a small child looking at the Rider passively as if he were just an object invoking the child's curiosity. Looking at the child makes me feel as if this is how we should view the Death card as well - as something that is inevitable and will pass by.

Nothing and nobody really 'dies' or goes away forever. Things only change form. I say this because I believe in Spirit. Things keep changing form and become something new, something else. Just like the caterpilar 'dies' to make way for the beautiful butterfly. Like a seed gives up its form to bring forth a little sapling that may eventually become a great Oak tree that will outlive you and me.

This card signifies new beginnings as much as endings. I think my interpretation is different from what it would be if I were looking at a Death card for the first time. But I have seen and looked in great detail - the Death card in the deck by Liz Dean. Its artwork is etched in my mind. A woman standing next to a tree with new green leaves with a dead tree in the background. Perhaps that image causes me to think of this card as a card that depicts new beginnings rather than just death.

Death is on the move. It will cause changes in the things that were and whether you were prepared or not, these changes will be unavoidable and necessary.

The card also shows the sun setting in the background. Just as we know and trust that the sun will rise tomorow, we must trust that things will be alright. We may have to scrap a plan that was not working or give up a goal we set our heart on and worked hard for. Maybe we'll have to look for new ways of approaching a situation. Let go of old things, plans or dreams or a relationship that was just not working.

There is a need to examine the current situation. If you have been working too long and too hard at achieving something but things still seem doomed, reconsider the goal. Revamp the whole plan. Perhaps consider changing your goal altogether. Let Go.

Just like the person on the card who is looking away from Death, being in denial and refusing to accept the futility of the situation will only drag the process of accepting and moving on.

Efforts never go waste. There are lessons to be learnt even in failure, so never be unhappy over 'wasted' effort or time. This card signifies the need for closure and the importance of moving on to new beginnings. Think Acceptance and Hope.

Do not delay action. It is better to give in to the changes that are bound to happen than to resist change. Let go of what is no longer useful or relevant.

Reversed Card meaning: The reversed Death card seemed to tell me that there is too much energy wasted in resisting change. Accept change and be hopeful about new beginnings.