SPECTRUM OF MEANING

                       SPECTRUM OF MEANING 

                                                          By  SIXBERTY MANSON

There are no “good” cards or “bad” cards; they all have a spectrum of meaning.  Here are some thoughts about positive aspects of a card that is typically seen as being negative.

In our culture the word “devil” has such a universally bad rap that this card is exceptionally hard for most people to interpret in anything other than a negative way.  However, like any other card, it can come up in a reading in a positive position such as “What can help you” or “What is the benefit of this situation” … so what do you do then?

To consider this question adequately, we need to explore the wide range of implications for the Devil card.  For instance, we need to deal with the obvious symbols of the Devil, Hell, and demons in general.  There are also this card’s metaphorical implications of materialism, addictions, and obsession.  We need to see how these meanings can lead us to positive interpretations for this card.  The easy way out is to say that this card presents excellent advice through the warnings of bad examples.  There is, of course, more, as we shall see.  In addition, though, this card does have the positive traditional implications of humor and mirth, and it is associated with Capricorn, which is about ambition and hard work.  We’ll look at those interpretations as well.

THE DEVIL

Consider all the famous phrases and proverbs that incorporate the word “Devil” (along with variations on it and associated terms, such as demons).  Here are a few:

* The Devil made me do it.
* Playing Devil’s advocate
* Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t
* The Devil is in the details.
* Give the devil his due. (This means that we should admit the good qualities of even a bad or undeserving person.) [Ref: William Shakespeare, Henry IV, Part I, Act I, scene 2.]
*  The creative urge is the demon that will not accept anything second rate. — Agnes de Mille
* Have a “devil may care” attitude!

Hell:

Consider all the famous phrases and proverbs that incorporate the word “Hell”.  Here are a few:

* The road to hell is paved with good intentions. (Paraphrased from Bernard of Clairvaux)
* When you’re going through Hell, keep going. — Winston Churchill
* The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven. — John Milton
* There will be hell to pay.

Again, these sayings suggest interpretations for this card that may be good advice (ex: “When you’re going through Hell, keep going.”) or at least somewhat neutral (ex: “The road to hell is paved with good intentions”).

Demons:

As noted above, we often project our demons onto others.  As Rumi said, “Many of the faults you see in others are your own nature reflected in them.”  Thus this card contains the helpful advice that we can discover what our faults are by seeing what really pisses us off about other people. This is valuable because you can’t fix a fault if you don’t know you have it.  To help your understanding of a message like this, look to the surrounding cards in the reading to see what the issues may be that need to be addressed.  For example, if there are a lot of Pentacle cards around, it may be financial issues.  If cups, maybe relationship issues.

Similarly, the Devil card contains the advice to face our demons head on. Indeed, they are often more in our heads than in our lives, and it helps to realize that and come to grips with it.  On the other hand, this card also contains a warning about running around fighting the demons of the world.  As Friedrich Nietzsche said, “Be careful when you fight monsters, lest you become one.”

These sayings suggest interpretations for this card that may be good advice (ex: “Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t.”) or at least neutral (ex: “Playing Devil’s advocate”).

Consider also that Christianity incorporated aspects of Dionysus, Pan, and Cernunnos—the old gods of earthiness, fruitfulness and sensuality—into the essence of the Devil.  Sometimes we should see the more positive traits of these old gods still lurking around in the Devil card.  This association says that there is also freedom, earthiness, sensuality, and spontaneity in the Devil card.

This card may also indicate someone who we consider to be evil, in which case we should look deeper, for those who we see in that way are often merely reflecting our own shadow issues.  We don’t want to look at that part of our subconscious that is our shadow, so we project it onto others.  And since we don’t want to acknowledge it in ourselves, we are repelled by those shadow traits when we see them in other peoples precisely because we are trying to deny them in ourselves.  So this card, when it seems to be indicating someone else in your life, may be saying that this person is one of your best teachers.  They are a mirror showing you what you need to work on in yourself.  They are a blessing in disguise, for they show you where you need to work on yourself.  As a corollary to this interpretation, the Devil card also holds the advice to deal with your own demons before you try to condemn them in others.

The power of our shadow

Again, the Devil card can represent our shadow issues.  It advises us to face them, and in doing so, we can find great power hidden there.  There is a lot of strength in our shadow, strength that we cannot effectively access until we face these issues and own up to them.  Sometimes our addictions and obsessions with things like food, drugs, or personal relationships imply that we are in touch with a great deal of energy that our selfish, self-centered ego wants to misdirect inward (i.e., selfishly).  And so this card’s advice may be to understand that power and then find a positive way to redirect it.  Truly, to reach enlightenment, we have to see who we are without condemning ourselves; we have to discover, face, and integrate our unconscious shadow into our consciousness and thereby become a whole person.

Temptation:

The Devil is traditionally seen as the source of temptation, which is thus a concept integral to this card.  The following is a discussion of temptation from my book, The Soul’s Journey: