Tarot Readings By Elise

For my first delve into the individual cards within a traditional Tarot deck it seemed sensible to start with the one most commonly misrepresented within media and thus the one whom the layman is most likely to find confusing or distressing. That being the death card, the thirteenth major arcana.
Death within the tarot marks one of the many cards within the deck that heralds the coming of change. As death is to life some aspect of your clients life will become the utter anthe...sis of its current state. Where it varies from other cards of change is in the subtleties. For instance the changes suggested by the death card lack the brutality of that foretold by the lightning tower, or the implied encouragement of the wheel of fortune or strength cards. Whilst the aforementioned arcana hint as to the outcome of the coming metamorphosis of fortune; the death card simply states that it shall occur and that that occurrence is not up to debate. It places no judgement upon the outcome. I would not counsel a client to take actions to attempt to prevent the change death brings, as that will rob them of resources that may aid them in reorienting themselves when they face their new reality.
Its artwork is unsurprisingly morbid in iconography usually depicting a skeletal knight or reaper. The image alongside this post is from the Ride-Waite Tarot deck,* one of the more common decks used by novice and experienced readers alike. Within the card you see the setting of the sun; the symbolic end of a natural cycle but one that acknowledges that Helios demise is temporary. A man in noble garb is shown collapsed, his identity robbed from him in death, only his station and wealth considered worth depicting. None of the figures appear to be able to see death himself who marches on unconcerned with the prayer's of the priest. Another reinforcement of the inevitability of his conquest, that even the spiritual are powerless in the face of true endings. Perhaps a useful lesson for those of us who engage in occultism; that some change is beyond the mightiest god-speakers.
Part 2 coming soon on some example interpretations of the Death card within hypothetical readings.
*Pamela Coleman Smith - a 1909 card scanned by Holly Voley (http://home.comcast.net/~vilex/) for the public domain, and retrieved from http://www.sacred-texts.com/tarot (see note on that page regarding source of images). Tarot card from the Rider-Waite tarot deck, also known as the Rider-Waite-Smith deck.
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Apologies for my lack of recent posts, a new job and being struck down for a week with plague has detained me. Thankfully I'm feeling better and can get back to getting this page in proper content producing order.

Been thinking of what actual content to put on this page for about a week and I think I've come up with an idea for the moment.
Any books on tarot can be at once incredibly useful and utterly confusing. They provide a basis to revise meanings from which can help a reader build up their initial knowledge of the deck so they can instantly know the basic meanings of a card when they pull it. However, by the time you have some moderate experience in doing readings for others and ...your interpretations of cards steadily become more intuitive, I have found myself feeling somewhat bewildered by some of the descriptions provided by a number of guidebooks.
Thinking on this inspired me to begin writing a short glossary of what individual cards mean to me when I see them in a reading. Perhaps as a means of solidifying my thoughts on the topic. The reality being my interpretations change slightly based on both the deck I am using and the situation or question I am being asked about, however hopefully this will provide you some insight into my thought process when reading.
Entries should be posted approximately every 2-4 days.
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