giving the Devil a chance

I don't often get the Devil in the "future" position(s) of a relationship reading; most of the time it shows a previous betrayal of trust that started things on a downward spiral. If it comes up in the future, I present it both ways: both as a warning and as an opportunity to "get creative" in some sense.

nisaba said:

ALL my ancounters with it are positive. t warns me of danger and gives me a change to change the course I'm on before the danger happens.

Red traffic lights are exactly the same when you're driving: they warn you of danger and give you a chance to avoid having an accident by hitting the brakes. View the card as working for your protection, just as traffic lights work for your protection.

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Great point.
Also the devil could be seen as teacher of life. He puts an exam before you and only up to you if you'll pass or fail. Passing means to become wiser and stronger regards the situation or the matter.

Ruby Jewel said:

The only card in the tarot stronger than the Devil is Temperance. Resistance does not work. Transformation comes through finding the middle way....balance.
[...]
Are you familiar with Narcissistic Personality Disorder? If not, do some research into it on Utube. You may find it very enlightening because it is exactly who the Devil is.....you need to know, next time you meet him, and you can identify him because they definitely have specific attributes that may surprise you. You most definitely do not want to give them a chance.

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By resisting, I mean that I must consciously avoid dwelling on the people/topics that obsess me in order to escape their pull, because my own attention is what fuels the Devilish fire within... And the longer that I can keep it up, the more likely it is that other, "healthier" things will gain entry and fill the resulting void -- further weakening the obsession and its negative hold.

There's intense pleasure and relief involved when "giving in" to obsessive thought/compulsions, despite the pain that results, overall; it can even be likened to a drunken/hungover cycle... And like an alcoholic's complete avoidance of alcohol in order to survive, sometimes certain subjects/thoughts need avoiding, as well. Temperance probably is the energy what winds up taking over at some point, though, making the process feel more effortless and "natural" -- once enough of the Devil has been willfully pushed aside to allow for a foothold.

The type of person that draws me in most often is a Narcissist, yes -- cloaked in a deceptively subtle, "shy" persona, but with telltale roots that eventually poke through... And I'm likely very similar on some level(s), hence the resonance with/attraction to them, so I don't expect that pattern to change unless I happen to, first. In the meantime, singlehood has been healing.

IndigoWaves said:

It definitely has for me, with my obsessive/compulsive tendencies (though they're rarely permitted outer expression, not in ways that would disturb those involved)... It's a seeming inability to stop my brain from focusing on a desired person, to the near-exclusion of everything else -- endlessly trying to figure them out, and how I might please them, in the hopes of gaining a "deeper" connection (read: getting what I want).

In the end, however, I've always been the one left damaged and alone, even though it was I who was technically the Devil, on a mental/emotional level. That's just how "he" works, sometimes... And looking back, this card has always tried to warn me of that influence, long before I'd willingly climbed in too deep to escape unscathed. For me, it's really been about resisting/ignoring the temptation to indulge in Devilish energy and heeding its warning, instead -- preferably while it's still relatively easy to do so.

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Totally understand. To be more specific- the devil has shown up for me when I was giving my power away to these really bad influences. I kept myself in the shadow without realizing it, not listening to my intuition. There was some insecurity in me that these influences took advantage of, which is very devilish, and the person may not even understand they are doing that to you. Thats how I would personally see your situation, you didn't act in your best interest because an outer influence was taking a hold of an insecurity of yours, and your over/thinking was a symptom of that. I guess that is what I really mean by it not being simply about over-thinking it. The devil says more about the context of what is happening than that.

Whenever the devil card comes up for me I examine my behaviour, particularly in relation to things that are pleasurable/sensual, as the devil is related to this earthly realm. Am I indulging too much? Am I neglecting the sensual things in life and in need of more?

nisaba said:

ALL my ancounters with it are positive. t warns me of danger and gives me a change to change the course I'm on before the danger happens.

Red traffic lights are exactly the same when you're driving: they warn you of danger and give you a chance to avoid having an accident by hitting the brakes. View the card as working for your protection, just as traffic lights work for your protection.

Click to expand...

I think the OP is asking whether the card itself and what it implies could be interpreted in a way that doesn't warn of danger. Like someone else mentioned they see sensuality in the card.

Most replies lent themselves to my curiosity on the positive aspects of the card. However there were many that didn't provide a specific example.

I think this just means that largely, the Devil can be viewed positively if you put a positive spin on it. For example, Nisaba sees the Devil as an advice to heed negativity and even evil (in many/all forms). But overall...it looks as though the Devil is a card to be wary of. This thread is now chock full of great responses and the fear I had been building around this card is now greatly subsided.

At this point in time, I see many of the more positive aspects of the card are associated with sex and sensuality. But there are so many cards to represent these same things and in a much better light/connotation. It's something to come to terms with. The Devil in the deck is necessary. Without it, we don't have a full spectrum and in real tangible everyday life, there will be energies/events/etc that we can't sugarcoat or find the positive in.

A bit of a rant but just wanted to share the change in my thinking up to now. Thank you all for the responses And to Nisaba especially, your specific post on an old Devil thread largely inspired me to start this one and I will carry that with me every time this card is drawn. Thanks for the awareness <3

Embracing the darkness

I understand where the negative interpretations are coming from, but I also believe that light and darkness are two sides of the same coin. The good and evil in us is all intertwined. Ours is a human journey. It's richness is not fully expressed with only positively-skewed feelings and filters. It's true, life can be unbearable agony. But there is beauty in agony, there's something pure and wonderful about pain. It's all part of the human experience, it makes us who we are. Subtract all the negative experiences you've had and what are you? Trial by fire *does* forge the strongest steel.

The Death/Devil kind of all-consuming passion pushes us to our Tower moment. The Devil kind of ultimate deception or trickery forces us to change paradigms and adapt. Being "used" by the Devil shows us we have the spine to take that and still survive. I may not have absolutely positive examples of the Devil as a person, situation or feeling - but that does not detract from it, IMO. We need the Devil, just as the moon needs the sun and darkness needs the night.