The Cynic's Guide to the End of the World

Barleywine

It's snowing hard here and we're supposed to get two feet. I'm feeling philosophical and a bit fatalistic, so I thought I would tackle the "end of the world as we know it" scenario (which I sub-titled "A sneaky way to get you to read T.S. Eliot, Archibald MacLeish and Edgar Allan Poe" :))

The first two positions I call the "Eliot Option" because the idea came from Eliot's poem "The Hollow Men." It suggests the two ways things might end.

The "Pick Your Poison" column refines those options into four categories of potential demise, both natural and man-made.

The "What Does Spirit Say?" position speaks for itself.

The 8th and 9th positions are based on the MacLeish poem "The End of the World" and Poe's "The Raven," respectively.

The last position suggests healing, with or without human participation.

I recommend using a majors-only deck without reversals if you want to try this one.

I did a sample spread using my Tarot of the Golden Serpent.

The "With a Bang" position came up as The Devil, indicating that we are perfectly capable of doing the deed without scruples.

The "With a Whimper" position was the Magus, suggesting that the methods would be more gradual, subtle and devious.

The Sun in the "Nuking" option could mean nuclear war, an asteroid strike or a Carrington event, any of which could drive us back toward the Bronze or Stone Age.

The High Priestess in the "Roasting" position might better be called "Poaching" if sea temperatures rise significantly and the CO2 blanket increases dramatically.

The Moon as the "Boiling" condition may mean that we can find even more insidious ways to accomplish this, like the myth of boiling a frog - it would be too late before we notice.

The Hierophant as "Choking" relates to that card's correspondence with the sign Taurus, ruling the throat. The idea here is air pollution.

I came up with Justice in the "Spirit" position, which doesn't need any explanation.

The last three cards are more hopeful than their positions would suggest. The Lovers indicates there may be an alternative path to redemption, the Last Judgement that there is no going back, and the Star that Gaia will abide and ultimately take care of herself.
 

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gregory

Please spell poor old Thomas right - Eliot. Thank you for your time !

Signed: Pedant :D
 

Barleywine

Please spell poor old Thomas right - Eliot. Thank you for your time !

Signed: Pedant :D

Heheh, you just can't trust wikipedia. (Or it might be more accurate to say "You just can't trust old eyeballs.")
 

gregory

Heheh, you just can't trust wikipedia. (Or it might be more accurate to say "You just can't trust old eyeballs.")
WIKI has it wrong ? I must go edit :mad:

Humph. Eyeballs it is :D
 

barefootlife

And now I have the REM song in my head, thank you.