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Tarot Major Arcana 13
Death

Overall meaning
Tarot card Death points to change and new beginnings, not actual death! The need to let go of old problems or beliefs. To draw a line in the sand, forgive and move on. That you have to let the past be the past in order to move forward in a positive direction. Death is also a dramatic card and indicates that these changes will happen suddenly or even traumatically.

Think of the Death tarot card as transformation or change, and a call not to resist the change, as that will only make the transition difficult and painful. What should go away at death is therefore not a person, but rather unconstructive patterns of action and mindset.

Description
Death shows a skeleton dressed in armor riding across a field. The skeleton does not symbolize death, but rather transformation. Death’s armor is black and Death holds a flag with a white flower on it. Black is the color of death, while white symbolizes purity; together they refer to the cleansing of body, mind and spirit through death.

On the field lies a king – his crown lies some distance away – and by his side stands a bishop praying. Presumably his hour is also near. That it is a king who has died on the card shows something that death will come to you, whether you are rich, powerful or strong.

A woman and a child kneel beside the body on the ground in mourning and also await their fate. The woman symbolizes the beauty and love of death. These people represent the world of men. There is a bluish landscape in the background, which could indicate that it is nighttime. Although the map seems cold and destructive, it actually brings with it a new order.

The card symbolizes that the old must die and that something new must be born. Death is also called Transforming or Transformation. It practically never means actual death, rather something has definitely ended and something new must begin.

The symbols in the card represent in different ways three phases of the death/rebirth process: the armor represents that we must take care of ourselves, protect ourselves during periods of change and letting go. The rising sun and the sailing ship remind us that in order to undergo transformation, we have to let go of our old identity in order to be able to express a new one.

In 1347, Europe was hit by the plague, the Black Death. Here arose the image of Death as God’s tool. Death is represented in the Dance of Death, where it dances around among the people, mocking them because they have not prepared in time to meet God. Some of the oldest dances of death can be found in southern France and northern Italy, and it is from here that the first tarot cards appeared. The dances of death probably inspired how to illustrate death in tarot cards.

Interpretation
Death stands for endings, changes and a cycle that has now ended. It may be that a certain type of lifestyle has come to an end, a relationship is over or a career path has ended. You can consider it as if the slate has been wiped clean, and there has been a release from something, and you have moved on to the beginning of something else.

That is to say, one does not have to subscribe to the traditional awareness of death, which relies on anxiety. However, when you draw this card, it will mean that something is coming to its natural end.

But the card automatically also refers to new life, but both endings and beginnings can be exciting and scary. When you face this ending, you may experience some sadness or nostalgia. It is a period of mourning that is natural and must be accepted.

Keywords
Other words that characterize Death are: renewal, past, you die every moment, transition to another dimension, loss and critical change, liberation from old bonds, decomposition, becoming, sweeping external changes, freedom, renunciation and bonds that are cut. Renewal, new possibilities and ideas, removing something that has been an obstacle. Change of consciousness.

Numbers
The tarot card is associated with number 13 – which in numerology is often reduced to 4 (the sum of 1+3) which means that you must pay attention to these two numbers in relation to the challenge you are asking the tarot about.

Astrology
The card is linked to the sign Scorpio, which in the tradition of astrology is associated with transformation, death and rebirth.

Affirmation
I let go of people and situations with ease and dignity. I easily make the necessary changes in my life.

Tarot | Arcana | Death

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