A Deeper Look Into This Tarot Card

The Devil

The Devil tarot card represents temptation, bondage, and materialism. It suggests that the querent may be facing a period of temptation and materialism, and that they may be struggling to break free from the bonds of materialism and excess. The image on the card often depicts the Devil holding a chain that is attached to two people, symbolizing the idea of bondage and control.

The Devil card can also indicate that the querent may be experiencing a sense of addiction, whether it is to material goods or other vices. It can suggest that they may be feeling a sense of powerlessness and control, and that they may be struggling to find balance and self-discipline in their life. Additionally, the card can indicate that the querent may be feeling a sense of fear and anxiety, and that they may be feeling a sense of guilt and shame about their actions.

In a reading, the Devil tarot card can indicate that the querent may be facing a period of temptation and materialism, and that they may be struggling to break free from the bonds of materialism and excess. It can serve as a reminder to be mindful of their actions and to make choices that align with their values and beliefs. The card can also suggest that the querent may need to take a step back and assess the situation, and to gain a better understanding of the challenges they are facing.

Historical Reference

Go back in time to what the creators of the deck had to say about it.

The design is an accommodation, mean or harmony, between several motives mentioned in the first part. The Horned Goat of Mendes, with wings like those of a bat, is standing on an altar. At the pit of the stomach there is the sign of Mercury. The right hand is upraised and extended, being the reverse of that benediction which is given by the Hierophant in the fifth card. In the left hand there is a great flaming torch, inverted towards the earth. A reversed pentagram is on the forehead. There is a ring in front of the altar, from which two chains are carried to the necks of two figures, male and female. These are analogous with those of the fifth card, as if Adam and Eve after the Fall. Hereof is the chain and fatality of the material life.

The figures are tailed, to signify the animal nature, but there is human intelligence in the faces, and he who is exalted above them is not to be their master for ever. Even now, he is also a bondsman, sustained by the evil that is in him and blind to the liberty of service. With more than his usual derision for the arts which he pretended to respect and interpret as a master therein, Éliphas Lévi affirms that the Baphometic figure is occult science and magic. Another commentator says that in the Divine world it signifies predestination, but there is no correspondence in that world with the things which below are of the brute. What it does signify is the Dweller on the Threshold without the Mystical Garden when those are driven forth therefrom who have eaten the forbidden fruit.

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