Death vs The Tower vs Judgement

elena_jaymz

Hi everyone, I'd like to discuss in more detail the meanings of Death, The Tower and Judgement, especially when drawing them as advice. Everytime I get one of them as advice I tend to interpret them in the same way :D but that's wrong, because they have different meanings of course.

- Death is mainly about getting rid of the old and what serves you no more, in order to make room for something new and much better for you

- The Tower talks about a more drastic change, but doesn't it look similar to Death then? Also The Tower asks you to cast aside things and/or people that are by now only toxic for you and therefore in a way, again, getting rid of the old stuff/people etc?

- Judgement seems similar to the previous cards to me.. It asks yout to move on from the past forever, as you already know what you want and so you need to act upon that from now on, but it shares the same advice as Death and The Tower, doesn't it?

So as you see I'm a bit confused :D Could you help to clarify these cards meanings? Thanks so much.
 

WhyWuh

For me:

death is about change: you have to change something but not necessarily let it die completely. You can make some parts die and then replace them with something new. This card for me is about letting something die to let something new arise. Like getting rid of old sofa and buying new one.

tower: is about demolishing stuff and patterns that no longer serves you. Not necessarily replace them with something new. You just have to get rid of something. Like getting rid of old sofa because you no longer need sofa at all.

judgement: this card is telling me about things that are wrong in your life and not necessarily about endings. Like the way you do something is wrong and you have to do it the other way but not necessarily demolish something. Like you sleeping on old sofa is bad for your spine so you of course can buy new sofa (death), you also can throw away sofa and decide to sleep on the ground (tower) or you can simply put new mattress on top of the old one without throwing something away (judgement).
 

elena_jaymz

Hi WhyWuh, thanks!
For me:

death is about change: you have to change something but not necessarily let it die completely. You can make some parts die and then replace them with something new. This card for me is about letting something die to let something new arise. Like getting rid of old sofa and buying new one.
I agree, making room for new things by letting the old ones die.

tower: is about demolishing stuff and patterns that no longer serves you. Not necessarily replace them with something new. You just have to get rid of something. Like getting rid of old sofa because you no longer need sofa at all.
I see what you mean, the important thing with The Tower is to demolish something, because it turned out to not work with you.

judgement: this card is telling me about things that are wrong in your life and not necessarily about endings. Like the way you do something is wrong and you have to do it the other way but not necessarily demolish something. Like you sleeping on old sofa is bad for your spine so you of course can buy new sofa (death), you also can throw away sof and decide to sleep on the ground (tower) or you can simply put new mattress on top of the old one without throwing something away.
Yeah, that's right, Judgement says there's something wrong, then it's up to you to find a solution and it could be anything.
 

ana luisa

Although I agree with the interpretations, I still think it is important to consider not only the question being asked but also the other cards that came with them. For instance, if I were to ask "should I trust this new diet program ? " and got Death, I wouldn't do it. If I got the Tower, it might be telling me that it will be a VERY confusing system and that I may eventually drop out of it. With the Judgement, it is telling me that monthly meetings may be mandatory or essential and I may not be ready for this commitment.
 

elena_jaymz

Although I agree with the interpretations, I still think it is important to consider not only the question being asked but also the other cards that came with them. For instance, if I were to ask "should I trust this new diet program ? " and got Death, I wouldn't do it. If I got the Tower, it might be telling me that it will be a VERY confusing system and that I may eventually drop out of it. With the Judgement, it is telling me that monthly meetings may be mandatory or essential and I may not be ready for this commitment.

Hi ana luisa, thanks. You're right, we have to consider the question as well as the context and the other cards, as all of this can lead to very different interpretations.
 

Farzon

Death for me is about a natural ending that can't be influenced. As advice I think this card speaks more of accepting change then changing things actively for yourself.

The Tower for me is about breaking free or breaking out. Think of "I want to break free", Queen-style. This add advice is a call to action and I second the above, not necessarily about replacing something. It doesn't have to be about getting rid of someone... it simply shows that things should change in a rather drastical way. Regarding other people it may "simply" advise you to address a difficult topic or something like that.

Judgement is always one of the most difficult cards, methinks. It has all these meanings of getting to a new plane, listening to your intuition or consciousness, accepting the past, forgiving yourself etc. It's one step in front of the end, that's the World. I don't see this card as advice to change, but as advice to listen to your intuition and to make peace with your past. Strictly speaking, this can be a great change after all, but the focus is a different one.

In general I have to say that I dislike the word "change". Similar to "balance", I find it way overused regarding the Tarot. Every reading we do shows a change in some way, so there's really a need to specify the kind of change, even with these cards that, I admit, have "change" written all over them.
 

elena_jaymz

Hi Farzon, thanks for your reply.
Death for me is about a natural ending that can't be influenced. As advice I think this card speaks more of accepting change then changing things actively for yourself.
I can see that, after all when death comes you can do nothing, but to accept it.

The Tower for me is about breaking free or breaking out. Think of "I want to break free", Queen-style. This add advice is a call to action and I second the above, not necessarily about replacing something. It doesn't have to be about getting rid of someone... it simply shows that things should change in a rather drastical way. Regarding other people it may "simply" advise you to address a difficult topic or something like that.
I agree, "breaking free" makes sense with The Tower, it implies a radical change for the better, like for example, as you said, adressing a difficult topic when it comes to people. It's an action card for sure.

Judgement is always one of the most difficult cards, methinks. It has all these meanings of getting to a new plane, listening to your intuition or consciousness, accepting the past, forgiving yourself etc. It's one step in front of the end, that's the World. I don't see this card as advice to change, but as advice to listen to your intuition and to make peace with your past. Strictly speaking, this can be a great change after all, but the focus is a different one.
Yes, this is a very difficult card :D Anyway I'm with you on this, make peace with the past once for all, as you can't change it and move on to The World, that's the end of the jouney.

In general I have to say that I dislike the word "change". Similar to "balance", I find it way overused regarding the Tarot. Every reading we do shows a change in some way, so there's really a need to specify the kind of change, even with these cards that, I admit, have "change" written all over them.
:D None likes changes (me too), but I think they're often the best weapon or the only one at our disposal, once I didn't believe in this, but then I >>changed<< my mind :D Anyway yes, any reading needs to specify the kind of change required, it cannot be taken for granted.
 

Thirteen

Death: As Farzon said, Death is less about getting rid or something so much as accepting that it's over, done and there's no resurrecting it. Death says "you need to grieve, accept and find something new to take the place of this thing that is gone." That's very important advice, as the one thing we often see in posts here are readers hoping that something isn't really over (like a relationship). Death says that you can't remain in denial about the fact that is *over*...DEAD. You need to acknowledge this and, hard as it is, go through the process of accepting it. You also need to understand that while nothing will replace it, something new will come to fill that void.

Tower: I think the advice of the Tower is to shake things up. To surprise yourself. Or, more roughly, to "wake up!" It's that friend who grabs you by the shoulders and says, "Stop being so blind!" Remember, the Tower is a flash of lightning that illuminates all that was in the dark. You may be shocked to learn that what you thought was solid wasn't. But you need to see that. So the advice here is to give things a second look. And be willing to see the truth. Rather than what you want to be true.

Judgement: Judgement is what you assumed Death was...letting go. Like a real Spring Cleaning where you finally get rid of something in your closet that you've been holding onto for years. A grudge. A hope. A belief that has been proved false over and over again. You let it go so that you can move on. Because holding onto this has been holding you back. It is very similar to Death, but the Death advice is more like a widow who insists that her husband is not dead, he's coming back (Death = sorry, he is dead. Grieve and accept. New love will come). Judgement is like the widow who accepts that her husband is dead, has mourned, and has now met someone new...but won't clean out her lost husband's closet. (Judgement = you need to clear out that closet. No new love can move into your life if there's no closet space for him). This is why Judgement is linked to forgiveness and deep healing. Because to let go of this often requires we forgive someone (the husband for dying), or forgive ourselves (for falling in love with someone new). We give ourselves permission to rise up and start a new life.
 

headincloud

death - endings - We have no say in the matter.

Tower - disruption - but not necessarily the end of something

judgement - decision - we have a choice in the matter and can turn away from growth if we wish.
 

elena_jaymz

Hi Thirteen, thanks for your clarification.
Death: As Farzon said, Death is less about getting rid or something so much as accepting that it's over, done and there's no resurrecting it. Death says "you need to grieve, accept and find something new to take the place of this thing that is gone." That's very important advice, as the one thing we often see in posts here are readers hoping that something isn't really over (like a relationship). Death says that you can't remain in denial about the fact that is *over*...DEAD. You need to acknowledge this and, hard as it is, go through the process of accepting it. You also need to understand that while nothing will replace it, something new will come to fill that void.
I agree, after all we're talking about death, you can't change the result unfortunately, so yes, accept that something is over and that something new awaits.

Tower: I think the advice of the Tower is to shake things up. To surprise yourself. Or, more roughly, to "wake up!" It's that friend who grabs you by the shoulders and says, "Stop being so blind!" Remember, the Tower is a flash of lightning that illuminates all that was in the dark. You may be shocked to learn that what you thought was solid wasn't. But you need to see that. So the advice here is to give things a second look. And be willing to see the truth. Rather than what you want to be true.
That's right, I agree, be willing to see the truth, even though it could be shocking.

Judgement: Judgement is what you assumed Death was...letting go. Like a real Spring Cleaning where you finally get rid of something in your closet that you've been holding onto for years. A grudge. A hope. A belief that has been proved false over and over again. You let it go so that you can move on. Because holding onto this has been holding you back. It is very similar to Death, but the Death advice is more like a widow who insists that her husband is not dead, he's coming back (Death = sorry, he is dead. Grieve and accept. New love will come). Judgement is like the widow who accepts that her husband is dead, has mourned, and has now met someone new...but won't clean out her lost husband's closet. (Judgement = you need to clear out that closet. No new love can move into your life if there's no closet space for him). This is why Judgement is linked to forgiveness and deep healing. Because to let go of this often requires we forgive someone (the husband for dying), or forgive ourselves (for falling in love with someone new). We give ourselves permission to rise up and start a new life.
I see.. Yes, it makes sense, Judgement is the final step to move on and start a new journey and until you haven't forgiven yourself or someone else, you can't.