Shall I tell you what the real evil is? To cringe to the things that are called evils, to surrender to them our freedom, in defiance of which we ought to face any suffering.
Seneca (Roman philosopher, mid-1st century C.E.)
Don’t look now, but The Devil has come calling this week. And, as it is one of the Major Arcana cards, it will be speaking in its own voice, for in fact, it is one of the great Guardians of the Tarot. ~ Beth
Come Closer. Let Me Show You Who I Am.
Well, hello. It’s been a while, hasn’t it? And yet, don’t you sometimes feel like I never completely go away?
It’s clear that this week you can expect something big to be going on. Since I seem to be one of the most misunderstood cards in the Tarot, it might be instructive to know that Arthur Waite wrote, “Hereof is the chain and fatality of the material life.”
Although you may be used to thinking of “fatality” as a synonym for dead person, another interpretation ties it instead to fate, meaning that something is an inevitability, outside your control. It is the doomed sense of being helplessly at the mercy of fate, especially if one puts all their faith in a strictly material world. I have no doubt this is what Waite had in mind.
Thus, the R-W-S Tarot places me directly in contrast with The Lovers card, “as if,” says Waite, “Adam and Eve after the Fall.”
It is not a coincidence that I am assigned the number fifteen in the Major Arcana. This reduces to six, which is the Lovers card.
Compare us side by side, and you’ll see that the couple is the same. The triangular composition of the two cards is also identical—the two nude figures, with the woman on the left, and the male on the right.
But in The Lovers, they are in a sun-filled field, framed by two trees. Above the couple is the archangel Michael (some believe he is Raphael), whom the woman is turned towards, while the man looks towards her.
But I am showing you none other than the Horned One, perched on the slab above the couple. This being is also sometimes considered to be the archangel Uriel. The humans ignore both the towering figure and one another. Instead, they only stare blankly downward.
In both cards, the magical creature overseeing the couple is offering acknowledgement or blessing. The angel in The Lovers gazes down upon the couple; the cloven-footed beast looks straight out at you.
Like The Lovers card, I am here to indicate that you have important choices to make. Whereas the couple in their garden would indicate faith, awareness, and benevolence, I am surrounded by black emptiness. My purpose is to reveal your deepest fears and how you hide from them, sublimate and deny them, project them onto others, or else numb out.
My lesson is what happens when you have no awareness and the consequences that come when you fail to recognize your own power to act. For notice—if you look closely at me, you’ll see that the chains the man and woman wear are loose. They seem fatalistically (there’s that word again!) resigned to their prison. Yet, if they would only awaken from their trance, they could easily escape.
Big Changes and I Am Here For You
The astrology this week is, as usual, in exquisite tandem with my visit this week. The wise and wonderful Elisabeth Grace tells us that on Wednesday:
Late afternoon offers a sneak peek of Friday’s trine between Mars in “get away with murder” Leo and Saturn in “because I said so” Aries, as the Sagittarius Moon forms a Fire Grand Trine, with Mars at 3:51 PM ET and Saturn at 5:44 PM ET.
A Fire Grand Trine suggests a projected aura of self-sufficiency, as in, “I am a law unto myself and need no energy from you, thank you very much.” OK, fine, but keep in mind that Fire is not known for its planning skills; it’s more of an improviser. The ability to act decisively, for better or worse, is not the same as choosing wisely… or attending to essential details.
And as the saying goes, I am in the details. Is projecting such a persona actually to your advantage? Or could it lead to a fall?
But there’s more. For this Thursday, she cautions:
Meanwhile, another kind of vibe has been humming in the background. Power broker Pluto has been slowing to a virtual standstill, commanding attention like a blaring car horn. At 10:40 PM ET, Pluto turns direct, ending the retrograde that began on May 6th…
When Pluto is retrograde, stop trying to control the external environment. Work on transforming your own responses, your own patterns, your own relationship to power. Purge whatever no longer serves. When Pluto turns direct, you’re primed to direct that renovated power into the outside world. The outer world reflects whatever you’re actually running inside.
To understand the bigger picture, note that Pluto is fully committed to its trek through Aquarius in November 2024, where it remains until 2043. Expect breakdowns, transformation, and empowerment in matters associated with Aquarius: information and communication networks, technology, power grids, aviation, astrology, groups, administrative bodies, friendship, freedom, revolution—and the masses.
Since May, Pluto has been retracing territory it first covered earlier this year, revisiting developments that have been unfolding since mid-January. Now, as Pluto turns direct on October 15th, whatever has been reworked, exposed, or broken down is poised to manifest in the outer world—just in time for the midterms.
We’ll see how well we like those revisions as Pluto crosses the same territory for the third time between now and mid-March 2027. Only then will Pluto be on to something new.
Pluto’s last transit through Aquarius coincided with the US Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the French Revolution—but those developments didn’t happen until Pluto was more than halfway through Aquarius. That happens this time in 2032. In my experience, it takes about that long to see where an outer planet is taking us—for better or worse.
Will this power shift be for better or for worse? Will Aquarius and Pluto work in harmony for the good of the community of humanity? Or will humanity be assimilated like the Borg? This week, you have choices to make and power in your hands to help or harm.
The Invisible, Insidious Bondage
Some might consider me to be the dark side of the collective unconscious. As a great Guardian, I bid you to stop wherever you find yourself and look at the bigger totality of your circumstances. If you were observing yourself from afar, you would see that the path to liberation is quite clear. It is a matter of finding the courage and the will to recognize your chains and remove them.
But when you, yourself are caught in a web of deceit, drama, or disconnection, it does not seem that straightforward.
And if you should find that there is true human depravity staring you in the face, what will you do about it?
Let me be clear. I am not the principle of Evil. I am not claiming that supernatural forces of malice are coming after you.
I am your Guardian and therefore a friend. I am declaring in earnest to you that there is a situation heavy with self-sabotage, fear and chaos, or a lack of integrity and responsibility. What might this be? And what are you going to do about it?
Portending Rectification
Look at the faces of this couple. They are passive, detached, and desensitized to what is happening. They seem obedient to their captivity, oblivious to their danger, and at ease in their bondage.
The goat-headed creature himself seems unconcerned with them as he makes the sign of the Birkat Kohanim, a priestly blessing. And so, too, I am your protector, warning you of potential peril.
What will it take for you to remove your bindings? How do you personally address the problems, habits, and fears in your life? Because if you don’t, the next card in the sequence of the Majors is The Tower, which is how Divine rectification rains down, whether you like it or not.
In what ways are patterns of doubts and inertia keeping you stuck?
Beware of adopting a default of denial or learned helplessness. Whether you are trying to get out from under twenty-five pounds, a crummy, depressing job, or even some kind of self-destructive habit, you are not helpless. Do not give your sovereignty away.
In your community, and in your personal life, do you ignore addiction, despair, and behavior that causes harm? How are you sometimes complacent? In what ways do you shun creative risks, preferring instead “the devil you know?”
Do you feed the fears and projections of your Shadows? What bargains with the Devil have you perhaps made in order that you need not see or act upon the uncomfortable, inconvenient truths around you? What chains have become invisible to you?
The Opposite of Love
When I come to visit, I come as a loving ally, directing you to recognize that whatever is binding you must be faced. And now.
Despite any apparent obstruction, you must not surrender to hopelessness. Thus, the need for change is more urgent than you may realize.
What will it take to motivate you? What is the straitjacket you have assumed is normal, or that some would have you believe you deserve?
I urge you to resist being a passive bystander. Get angry; get sad; get real; get moving. Whatever it takes. Just wake up. You cannot afford the indulgence of your own or anyone’s excuses, denial, or lethargy.
Everyone has their pet distortions, fears, and blind spots. But there is great hope in knowing that once you are willing to look The Devil in the eye, you can take back your life.
Remember that the opposite of love is not hate. It is indifference. The most malevolent acts of mankind always come, not from passion, but from apathy.
Cowering at bullies or turning away from those in need has consequences, for these empower evil in the world.
Dare to see with clear eyes and an open heart. Embrace the Divine spirit that is your true nature, and honor it in every soul you encounter. The best way to heal your Shadow is to face it and embrace it with understanding, forgiveness, and tolerance.
Remember, the Devil’s real name is Fear. And Fear bargains:
I will keep you safe.
But Love says:
You are safe.