O' Death

Death is the 13th card in the Major Arcana. We are jumping ahead a bit, but it is Autumn, and we are in the sign of Scorpio, so it is only fitting that we should give Death a little attention.

Creepy Celtic Death is staring at YOU. 

Barbara G. Walker's Death

As you can see in the both the Barbara G. Walker and the Celtic deck, Death is not wearing his customary robe. Yep, he's just standing there in all his bare-bone glory. And why shouldn't he? Death is inevitable and sometimes ugly to look at. It's best to be honest about it. 

However, this card is not so much about literal death as it is about profound change.  Death can actually be a very positive card to receive in a spread. It strips you down to bare-bones basics, slashes and burns with its scythe, and lays the ground for new fertility.  It's a good card for detoxing.  

Like the sign of Scorpio, the Death card is about rebirth and regeneration.  When a baby is born, the parents "die" in their former identities as people without a child, and they are reborn as mother and father. When two people get married, they cease to be who they were when they were single; they are reborn as a couple.  

However, change is not always pleasant. Even good stress can tax the body, and even good changes bring stress.  But Death can bring a calm, dark energy, and energy of rest and respite.  Even though the Tower, or House of God, is the 16th card and comes after Death in the order of the Major Arcana, the vibrations of the Death card can be a balm after the devastating change of the Tower. 

      

The energy of the Death card can be one of peace, an eye in the storm of change. Examine Robin Wood's Death, above.  What do you notice about it? Do you see any violence, or hopelessness? Or do you see symbols of transformation and purity? 

Now, please don't think I'm telling you what to see in the cards. As always, go with your first instinct. Go where your eye draws you, and trust your intuition about what it means.  

In the Goddess Deck, the 13th card isn't even called Death.  It is called Transformation, as you can see, and it is represented by the Shinto goddess of food, Uke Mochi. When Uke Mochi was murdered by the Moon god, Tsukuyomi, her body was transformed into livestock and fields of rice, grains, and beans. Good things come from endings. 

Martha Beck says that all good things can be traced back to a loss. That is the message of the Death card. Peace can be found in the center of the Self during times of change. Change and loss are inevitable, but it makes room for beautiful, vibrant possibility.  

Scorpio--Mysterious. Alluring. Deep. John Cleese.

Scorpio is the sign of people born between October 22 and November 22, but anyone can access Scorpio energy. The animals associated with Scorpio are the Scorpion, the Eagle, and the Phoenix. 

Oh, I love Scorpio. I am a Jupiter in Scorpio. Jupiter is the planet of luck, so my luck comes from Scorpio energy. Plus, five of my most favorite people are Scorpios. They are all loving, vibrant people, which is interesting when you think that they are born under the sign that rules death. And sex. Lots of hot sex.

That is because, I think, people misunderstand the archetype of death, and its multiple meanings.  Think of your friendly neighborhood rotting tree stump. It is home to myriad life forms of flora and fauna. They also misunderstand Scorpio. Scorpios are not all sociopathic sex maniacs. They are creative, hilarious, and have great taste in literature. At least, the ones I know and love do. If it helps, John Cleese is a Scorpio.
One meaning for Death is change--a cleansing away of the old for the new, or using the old to nourish new life. Scorpio energy is adept at changing the old and dead into something new and flourishing.


Scorpio is charged with the heavy elements of sex, death, and rebirth. This is why the Phoenix is associated with Scorpio--it dies, but then rises again, from the ashes of the fire that killed it.  Scorpios can take pain and transmute it into something beautiful.

As for sex, the French nicknamed the orgasm "le petite mort" or "the little death." While Virgo rules the intestines, and cleans up the body, and Libra runs the lower back, keeping the body in balance, Scorpio rules the genitals. Scorpio's colors are crimson--for blood and passion, and black, for death and the deep mysteries of the subconscious. After all, Scorpio is a water sign, the element associated with the subconscious. Unlike Pisces, however, who rules spiritual secrets about the meaning of life, Scorpio knows all our dirty, sexy little secrets.

Scorpio energy is stereotypically all brooding and aristocratic and eccentric, like famous Scorpios Pablo Picasso, John Keats, and Sylvia Plath. And it can be that way, but it can also be hysterically funny. Come on people, Scorpio energy has to deal with death and rotting and squeamish sex. It's important to laugh.

Scorpios can be very convincing. This is because the energy, if handled right, can be seductive and magnetic. I find myself telling my Scorpio loved one's my life's secrets, while they listen patiently. I have no compunction about this. Healthy Scorpio energy leads to trustworthiness. In myth, people and animals with Scorpio vibes were entrusted to protect and guide the dead. Pluto, the planet that rules Scorpio, is named for the Roman god Pluto, known in Greece as Hades, the King of the Dead. He watched over his people in Elysium (Heaven), Asphodel Meadows (Greek purgatory) and Tarturus (Greek Hell).  Scorpio energy is good to have presiding over you during a soul crisis, or a "Dark Night of the Soul," as St. Thomas Moore wrote.  This energy can give you courage and strength during scary, painful, and uncertain times. It's also good to use when your psyche is withholding secrets from you. Since Scorpio rules secrets, it's pretty good at ferreting them out. Scorpios are known as the Private Eyes and 007s of the zodiac. They also make excellent therapists, because they are naturals as spelunking the subconscious. Sounds fun, huh?

Scorpios are also shamans. They are the shamans who are willing to experience life-in-death for a spiritual vision and awakening. This passion and dedication is an earmark of Scorpio, who doesn't like anything half-assed, whether it's sadomasochism, spending, or surprising their friends.

Out of balance Scorpio energy, on the other hand, leads to Charles Manson. It can also flail that tail around and sting people all willy-nilly when it's pissed. Poison Scorpio energy also tends to use people for sex.

Scorpio associations: Scorpions in Egypt, guarding the tombs of the pharoahs.
The Phoenix
Shamans
Shiva, Hindu god of Destruction, who paves the way for new things
Hecate, goddess of the New Moon, Queen of Witches and Warlocks, specializing in the enchanting of others and channeling the dead.
The Morrigan, the death facet of the Celtic three-faced goddess, and her crows and ravens--traditional messengers of the underworld and harbingers of Death
Anubis, Egyptian god of embalming, who had the head of the Jackal, another animal associated with death and corpses
therapists
spies
compost heaps

How to bring Scorpio energy into your life:
Wear deep red and/or black, especially red and black silk or satin.
Throw out the stuff in your house that you're not using. Let it die, for God's sake.
Write down things you want to manifest in your life on a piece of paper, then safely burn it. Trust that these intentions are not released to God or the Universe, and something will rise from the ashes.
Visualize fire and deep, still water
Turn something that angers or terrifies you into something tangible in your mind's eye. Then, destroy it. Imagine you are Shiva or Hecate. Just obliterate it, and then imagine something you want growing from the carcass, ashes, or empty space. You can also do this by writing things down on dishes and breaking them, or tearing up paper, or burning it (again, do this SAFELY, people) if you're kinesthetic like that. I find I do my best destroying and regenerating in my own brain. I can really let loose that way. But, if you like to crush and rip, you might want to consider making something artistic, like a collage, from your dead stuff.  You can also take an image of something that causes these negative emotions and paint or color over it. Turn the ugly into something beautiful and passionate.
Okay, I'll say it: have sex. Either solo or with another/others.