16: The Tower

The Tower card right after the Devil card always feels a little overwhelming! There is a good reason the Tower follows the Devil and why it, like the Devil is not at all as scary as it first seems to be…

 

On the card we see a giant tower being struck by a bolt of lightning which blows the giant crown shaped roof off of the tower and sets it ablaze. We see fire coming out from the top and the windows and a man and a woman falling out of the windows. They both have blue and red items of clothing on symbolizing material desires and intuitive connection. Their faces are filled with fear and surprise which makes sense considering the circumstance. One may ask why didn’t they just attempt to leave the tower if they had an idea a storm was coming, instead of possibly falling to their death as a result of an inevitable strike of lightning causing them to leap? If you look closely, you see there is no door on the tower. They had no way to leave, besides the window. These two built a tower around themselves, to keep others out and themselves in. But to what purpose? We also see the 22 yods which are symbols of divine blessings, so is this really as terrible as it first appears?

The tower card in a reading shows that some idea or belief that you have built around yourself, perceiving it to keep you safe, isn’t really as safe as one would think. Moreso, the proverbial tower which you have trapped yourself in, forsaking any exits besides stories high windows, wasn’t at all a safety, but a prison. Too often we have beliefs and behaviors that aren’t even ours that we have adopted without question and that don’t serve us any longer that must be shed whether we like it or not. The tower is warning it’s time to let go and that you will be forced to let go, so you can choose to welcome destruction of the walls of false security you’ve built around yourself , or fight the inevitable destruction. Either way, the end is nigh and you will have to let go. 

Often we think this means something drastic like the end of a relationship, or end of a job, etc., and it could mean something big like that, but it could also be something slightly innocuous such as letting go of outdated perceptions and beliefs that have trapped you in an endless cycle of self sabotage. In my experience, the  tower card has been the sign of change, big and small and most often it was the sign that something I perceived to be true and held on to was no longer going to be a safety net for me. For some people they would rather lose a job or relationship, than have to face the reality that what they once trusted in could no longer hold them secure.