78 Weeks of Tarot: The Tower

[Trogon]

For information on what these threads refer to, see this thread;

 

78 Weeks of Tarot - Informational Thread

 

The above linked thread gives suggested dates for the cards as well as links to the individual topics.

 

Some of us may be working through the study in a different order and using different decks. If you have general questions or comments regarding the 78 Weeks of Tarot study group, please post in the topic in the above link.

 

Have fun.

[Bookworm]

Deck: Fairytale Tarot

 

Card name: The Tower

 

First impressions:

 

A woman looks out at some birds flying in a cloudy sky. Sunbeams break through at a couple of places. She is standing on the stone balcony of what looks like a castle. A stone tower is nearby. We see the woman from a three-quarter angle from behind. She has very long brown hair and is colorfully dressed. Beyond the castle is a green hilly landscape and then water. Across the water are purple hills. She holds a scarf in her right hand.

 

From the book

 

Keywords and phrases: Cataclysmic change, explosive events coming suddenly, feeling as if everything has fallen to pieces, dramatic disruptions and upheavals, a necessary shakeup in order for things to change, a sudden release of emotions that you’ve been bottling up.

 

One striking element of the story is Deirdre’s vision of the birds flying over the tower; it marks the turning point in her fortunes. She can’t convince Naoise to refuse the invitation, and she knows that this means their doom.

 

However, the Tower is not always doom-laden. It does symbolize a serious and often sudden disruption, it can also signal a necessary transformation, albeit one that may come as a shock.

 

Perhaps in order to emerge peacefully from a sudden and disruptive change we have to accept transformation?

 

The Story of Deirdre lets us consider the fact that in reality we often see warning signs of something about to happen. What stops us from taking necessary action is often simply a misplaced sense of fatalistic doom. Cards tell us a version of what may happen – then it’s up to us.

 

The original story:

 

“The Story of Deirdre,” from Celtic Fairy Tales, collected by Joseph Jacobs

 

http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/authors/jacobs/celtic/storydeidre.html

 

Traditional meanings:

 

Sudden & unexpected change, upheaval, destruction, ruin, catastrophe, release, revelation, breaking down of old forms, renovation, an accident or damage to the home, bankruptcy, re-dundancy or loss of work, being overthrown or ousted, house repossession, prolonged & continued upheaval, disruption, obstacles, difficulties, losses but milder, a disruptive person, a volatile situation, fearing the worst, illness, the calm after the storm.

 

My impressions of the card/story combination:

 

I realize after reading the story that the birds in the image on the card have bloody beaks. This was part of Deirdre’s vision that convinced her that terrible things would happen if Naoise accepted the King’s invitation. It’s a great choice for the card because it gives such a strong sense of foreboding. Usually the image on the Tower card is of the Tower burning or falling or something. In this image, the Tower is intact, but you understand that the destruction is coming, which is in a way even more powerful than an image of the destruction itself.

 

Karen says it’s also an indication of the possibility that whatever terrible thing is about to happen may be preventable if you take the appropriate action. On the other hand, it could also signify that forces more powerful than you are at work here, and there isn’t a lot you can do about it (which is more how I think of the Tower).

 

I do kind of miss the total destruction that’s usually apparent in the Tower. Depending on the situation, the Tower can actually be kind of a relief: everything is finally out in the open, the worst that can happen has happened and soon you will be able to pull yourself back together again.

 

My take (what I make of it/what I might see in a reading where I drew it):

 

I think I would be more inclined now to see this card as a sense of foreboding – the feeling that something terrible is about to happen and there may not being much of anything that you can do about it – the pre-apocalypse, rather than the apocalypse itself.

 

[Hemera]

The Tower (Llewellyn 2017)

 

Description:

The witch has done some magic. She is holding her wand which is still sparkling and the Tower has just fallen. It has not been a major disaster like in many Tower cards. No-one has been hurt or died. Only the cat has gone hiding.

 

What action is going on:

The kitten is hiding under the bush. Witch’s hair is blowing in the wind. She is looking straight at us with a mischievous smile on her lips. She seems to say “I was clever, wasn’t I?”

 

Images and Symbolism:

Wand: The wand is sparkling with electricity. It is a symbol of power. And magic, of course.

 

Colours:

I love the purple, mauve, pink and grey in the witch’s dress. I think she looks very elegant. The purple looks majestic and almost royal. Her shoes seem to be purple, too.

 

This card encourages:

-to fight for liberation from ignorance, traditions, habits, structures

-letting nature take over man-made structures

 

Warns against:

-becoming inflated

 

Traditional meanings (J. Bunning):

-Sudden change; crisis, chaos

-Releasing; letting go, breaking through pretence

-Falling Down; being humbled, suffering a blow to the ego

-Revelation; bursts of insight, getting the answer

 

From the Book:

-The book says that the tower that has fallen is a fairy-tale tower. So perhaps it represents something that has been fabricated by our (or somebody’s) imagination and that has now been crushed.

 

Sallie Nichols: (in Jung and Tarot. An Archetypal Journey. Weiser 1984)

-House of God or House of Fire?

-most of what she writes about is not relevant for this card because it differs so much from the traditional RWS image

 

Notes:

- The Tower is often the scariest card in a deck for me and I sometimes dread pulling it. But this card seems to bring a new vibe to the Tower and I really like this one!

- Something that is unnecessary has been taken down but there is no real chaos or panic here. It’s now time to build something new. Or let grass grow and nature take over.

-I love it that there is no panic or bad feeling anywhere in this card. This card is more about necessary house cleaning, "konmari", discarding of old unnecessary structures.

 

Quote:

The end of something has a satisfaction.

When the structures go,

light comes through,

to begin again.

(Olson)