Deck Distress

Well if you look at the card- the death and destruction has not affected him.
He is outside of that and has not the slightest effects of Vesuvius upon him.
So.....if you consider the card shows strength, determination and discipline, he is preparing himself for the final step of concentrating on his inner strength and mastering his will not to run. Very effective image seen in that light. I can use a deck with some images I do not like.
I use decks from the Magic realist press and there is always cards that I do not like.
I hope you can overcome this one card.
~Rosanne

Rosanne said:

I hope you can overcome this one card.
~Rosanne

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I think it's going to be a big challenge to me for a while... for now it's relegated to a metaphorical lead casket....sigh!

I know this may sound a bit.....mad. But would it be possible that you had a past life in Pompeii? Hence the strong reaction? Tis OK to have these icky feelings though ♥

Perhaps the simplest thing you could do is to replace the 9 wands with the face card for the deck and just go ahead that way. Also keep in mind that Baba is many things,but not an historian. It's A Painting,not a real person. Never Was. It's art, it's fantasy, it's not the real world, it's not actually a roman solder, it's not actually Pompeii, it's not actually anything but a work on art and the imagination. Try to get a grip, before you toss a beautiful and valuable deck that actually works for you.

I have to agree with Magpie...it is not a photo of a man who died there, in Pompeii, dear...it is just a representation of a soldier...not real, just art...but I totally get the gut repulsion.

I have the same deck and I hate the two of Swords picture. Absolutely, gut-reaction, loathe it. But the Two remains in the deck, and if it comes up in a reading, I just see it very briefly, note the meaning, and move on. I don't dwell on it.

Celtictarot said:

I know this may sound a bit.....mad. But would it be possible that you had a past life in Pompeii? Hence the strong reaction? Tis OK to have these icky feelings though ♥

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Ive been wondering too! It would explain the extreme reaction. I wonder how one heals from that...

Yes magpie you're totally right and I had a little laugh at your post because I've been telling myself to get a grip too I found out that there was no such soldier, the idea was from lytton who wrote a novel on pompeii and the tour guides passed on the story to victorian tourists as truth. Also the residents had plenty of warning and pliny the elders friends escaped pretty late in the day. So anyone who died was either misguided or chose the danger. So im starting to see this diffefently!

pumog said:

I love all this, the irony angle is a neat challenge to my brain ;-) Lots of food for thought. I will think on that deeply! Best I don't do the Greer exercise though - I have this horrible habit of getting sort of OCD obsessed with tragedies that upset me, so that I start to find out every tiny detail and can't stop myself researching and imagining. I know what I'm like, which is why I avoid films and exhibitions of this sort of thing like the plague!!!!

I won't dump the deck. It will sound silly but it really upset me, this whole episode... I had been so enjoying journalling and studying and then - Bammo!

I'm off to bed now, everyone - I really appreciate all the suggestions and support very much - many thanks - and if there's more I'll be reading them tomorrow. Thanks again!

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Perhaps the new role to give him is - he is searching for an escape route so he can help others who feel exhausted, frightened, & lost to safety. Peering at something around the corner - perhaps an escape route not yet blocked...? His feet suggest movement forward as they are not parallel to each other. The ten would be the one where he feels overburdened by responsibility for others - & perhaps overcome by the lava & the finality of it all - so while we are visioning with the nine there is hope.

Many who perished in Pompeii & its surrounds would've passed already from asphyxiation due to the gases released from the early eruption before the lava flowed in... The Victorians loved melodrama - the more gruesome the better - the era of Frankenstein & Dracula - so I'm not surprised this painting is so graphic.

pumog said:

Ive been wondering too! It would explain the extreme reaction. I wonder how one heals from that...

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Does the card trigger anything more like visions? if you want to address this, you can see about getting regression. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Past_life_regression

The plus side of thinking this is that the guard dude is looking like that as the painter really wanted him to stay still whilst he wants to run. The look of his eyes is like "um, I REALLY want to go now, why do you paint me!" He makes it!

Lotus Padma said:

but I totally get the gut repulsion.

I have the same deck and I hate the two of Swords picture. Absolutely, gut-reaction, loathe it. But the Two remains in the deck, and if it comes up in a reading, I just see it very briefly, note the meaning, and move on. I don't dwell on it.

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At last, someone else who had a similar problem! I can understand the 2 swords loathing as well - I don't have such a problem with it but I agree, it is quite a creepy card. Maybe the 9 will have to become my equivalent (in the sense of personally challenging) to the tower for this deck - the tower in this deck I find quite tame...