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Total Barbelith Tarot: XVI THE TOWER

20:02 / 08.10.01

Tadah!

The Tower represents a sudden, drastic change. This change can be incredibly freeing. It can be a change in the way you think, or a change in environment. The physical body may be healed of a long illness in a seemingly miraculous way. Dramatic change may lead you into a completely different career or lifestyle. On the negative side of things, you may suddenly lose your fortune or have an experience that shatters your sense of identity.

The Tower that crumbles under the lightning bolt is the physical and may be indicative of some aspect of your physical world. But as the Tower crumbles it reveals a sturdier foundation, something which perhaps you did not expect but which, nevertheless, arrives fully formed and strong into your life.

[ 09-10-2001: Message edited by: kegboy ]

[ 09-10-2001: Message edited by: kegboy ]

Rex City-zen

20:35 / 08.10.01

Ya just couldn't wait eh?

um...where is it?

[ 08-10-2001: Message edited by: Rex City-zen ]

Rex City-zen

20:40 / 08.10.01

Only one iterpretation for me.
The Tower:September 11 2001

14:24 / 09.10.01

WAKE UP!!!!!

15:43 / 09.10.01

Try http://www.angelfire.com/art2/tarot/images/tarotowerFINAL2.jpg

Its rather shiney actually, well done that Kegboy.

<Hmmm angelfire must have special mojo to prevent crosslinking. Copy the URL into a new window that seems to work.>

[ 09-10-2001: Message edited by: invisible_al ]

17:01 / 09.10.01

(Dude, that page is like, blank.)

The Tower: All falls down.

Rex City-zen

09:34 / 10.10.01

NICE CARD KEGBOY!!

09:34 / 10.10.01

yeah I rather like it even with all the syncronisticess (or whatever the applicable word may be). Thats one card down, now only seventy some left to go and ill have my deck. At the rate this one went I should expect to be finished before the start of the next millenia...
I kind of liked the idea of using the artist dummies to represent the people instead of actual peoples. But having done that for one card I dont want to do that for them all...
now comes the long process of finding the appropriate models and convincing them that they would much rather work for free..but anyway I digress...

On a tower related annecdote..
THe tower represents drastic sudden change. Martin Luther was said to have come up with his idea for the reformation in the tower. The tower was old slang for the crapper.
The crapper also brings to mind the invisibles and the harlequin on the crapper/black grail...just an observation...

[ 10-10-2001: Message edited by: kegboy ]

09:34 / 10.10.01

The tower. Catastrophy. Disaster. Loss. The price the devil takes. The folly of achievement. The darkness before the dawn. In pieces falling, a scream silenced. Terror, confusion. Destruction. Fear.

But the dust must settle eventually. Do we learn or choose to burn?

11:17 / 10.10.01

quote:Originally posted by the Fool you though you knew:
The tower. Catastrophy. Disaster. Loss.

I guess that applies to the picture of the tower as well, given an inability to access the pictures.

Rex City-zen

17:30 / 16.10.01

he he hee!

09:37 / 10.04.04

Anyone think that the tower is an overly negative card? I'm trying to find balance with this one but i'm having problems with it.

09:53 / 10.04.04

The Tower card represents to me a sudden change or say energy input that has burnt out. But then on a positive tip everything happens for a reason. I suppose it's like Shiva lightning bolts crushing all or the tower of Babel crumbling down. I mean what hexagram from the I Ching would you say that it shares similarities with? In essence it means change for the better.

10:56 / 10.04.04

macrophage: I mean what hexagram from the I Ching would you say that it shares similarities with? In essence it means change for the better.

In the positive sense, Chen..."Arousing"..... in the negative sense, Po...."Splitting Apart". Chen.... The breaking through of enormous energy finding violent expression, followed by a reforming, and good stuff. Po.... The shattering or falling apart due to the influx of unfavorable forces, a time where it pays to do nothing. In short, crap is hitting the fan, it pays for one to cover oneself with a garbage bag.

11:07 / 10.04.04

Cheers but i see the tarot cards as allies/spirits/archetypes and that there's always a good side to them, i wonder if there was another meaning to it originally than just things going haywire. It's causing me problems with it's corresponding path between Hod and Netzach on the tree sometimes aswell, maybe i should meditate on it.

What i mean is that there should be a calm opposite polarity in the Tower card itself and the picture doesn't seem to have anything positive in it. (for instance the rising sun in the background of the death card etc.)

15:02 / 10.04.04

The tower is the experience of having your illusions shattered. The experience is a wholely unpleasent one, but it is a necessary step in progressing towards actual enlightenment. So, the positive side isn't the experience the card represents, but what it allows you to do once you move beyond it.

18:17 / 05.08.15

I noticed something interesting with the Rider Waite deck recently that made a bit of sense - the Yod flames that are falling next to each character are different by 2. On the right, the figure still has its crown on, a symbol of ego, and there are 10 Yods, with number 10 in the tarot being the wheel of fortune. Next to the left, the figure is crownless and there are 12 Yods, number 12 being the Hanged Man.

To me, the wheel of fortune represents the cycle of karma, which the poor sod with the crown will never escape, because he still clings to his power in Babel and will keep on repeating the same mistakes over and over. His mindset will not change.

The guy that's crownless accepted his fall from grace and is willing to take on the role of the hanged man and make the sacrifices needed to further himself rather than going to rebuild the same tower again.

I don't know about anyone else, but anytime now that the tower appears before anything terrible, I take it as a disguised blessing, as long as you are willing to go with it. I had it shortly before being made homeless, but although the transition to my eventual situation was utter shite, I am very glad because I was in a major stagnation at that point and the destruction of everything around me was the best thing that could have happened.

18:18 / 05.08.15

I noticed something interesting with the Rider Waite deck recently that made a bit of sense - the Yod flames that are falling next to each character are different by 2. On the right, the figure still has its crown on, a symbol of ego, and there are 10 Yods, with number 10 in the tarot being the wheel of fortune. Next to the left, the figure is crownless and there are 12 Yods, number 12 being the Hanged Man.

To me, the wheel of fortune represents the cycle of karma, which the poor sod with the crown will never escape, because he still clings to his power in Babel and will keep on repeating the same mistakes over and over. His mindset will not change.

The guy that's crownless accepted his fall from grace and is willing to take on the role of the hanged man and make the sacrifices needed to further himself rather than going to rebuild the same tower again.

I don't know about anyone else, but anytime now that the tower appears before anything terrible, I take it as a disguised blessing, as long as you are willing to go with it. I had it shortly before being made homeless, but although the transition to my eventual situation was utter shite, I am very glad because I was in a major stagnation at that point and the destruction of everything around me was the best thing that could have happened.

17:44 / 21.08.15