XV- The Devil - Break the Spell
XV The Devil from the Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot
Here we have - XV The Devil Card … It would have to be amongst the most confronting cards in the tarot. It is easy to see why.
The image is dark and weird. It shows a strange and primal ram-bird-bat-man creature sitting between 2 naked, human-like horned demons, who are chained around the neck and bound to a little plinth the devil perches upon. The word "devil" itself carries strong connotations from myth and religion - even for secular souls - around “bad” and “evil” and "wrong" that immediately and reflexively can cause us to judge, recoil, and reject.
Notice your immediate response in your body to the image.
Are you tensing somewhere? Pulling back? Do you notice any impulses? to turn away, grimace, lean in, gasp?
What is happening in your face? What images/memories/words/emotions come up for you?
It's easy to defend against any suggestion that we could be under the influence of such a being. At least it is for me... "I'm a good person", "I try and do the right thing". But the truth is, we can all be vulnerable.
Traditional interpretations of the card warn against the traps of materialism and addiction, so for this the danger in the "worship of false idols" could hold. Take a look at the devil's eyes. I've always been quite taken with their hypnotic stare. And perhaps this is what happens. All of a sudden we're under a spell. We've been mesmerised by the thing that is so alluring - alcohol, drugs, money, owning stuff, sex, power, food .... name your poison. These things have mesmerised, swayed us from our Path, and now entrapped. And we may not even realise it. Look at the faces of the little demons. They're not stressed or struggling to leave. They even seem to be quite pleased!
But it's a false bliss. They are under the illusion that all is well. They are also under the illusion that they can't leave! - those chains could easily be slipped up and off, right? The meaning in the card offers us a reminder to examine ...
How it is that I've been swayed from my soul path?
How do I deny that I've been entrapped by the things I think I want ? How do I break the spell?.
When considering how to address what arises from the enquiry, one of my favourite things to do is to use the card symbols and imagery itself as a solution. We can make also sorts of intentions and promises but symbolic, ritual action combined with that can amplify the effect.
Here is a simple visualisation-action for you, if you are willing to address and go into the "darker" parts of you (you may not be ready, and that's ok). This requires lifting the veil of illusion and denial.
Close your eyes and name the thing that "bedevils" you.... Can you also see and feel that thing as the chains around your neck.... Feel its weight. Notice how it limits you. Grasp the chains...[you could enhance the visualisation by actually standing and moving your body here] ... lift the chains up and off.... Look around you, for the path that will lead you back to Self and Soul. And step onto it. Notice how this feels in your body. ... Set an intention for a small achievable action, for how you might carry this forward in your life today?
Much love
Mendy