The Esoteric Symbology of the Rider-Waite Tarot The Devil By Gary Shook The Devil card is one of the richest in symbolism within the Rider-Waite deck and contains multiple levels of meaning. Waite has used the symbols of this card to speak to us on more than one level and these messages are quite different. It is now common practice for modern tarot decks to have the Devil card removed and replaced with a materialism, or greed card. I feel this oversimplifies the depth of meaning in the card. One of the most common misconceptions about the Devil (as with the Death) is that is does not really mean the Devil, it only represents one's failure to reject materialism and thus becoming stuck on its plane. There can be no dispute that it represents the Christian Devil on its most obvious literal level. When used in divination, the card contains all the meanings that can be traditionally attributed to Satan, or the Devil. Misfortune, oppression, manipulation and danger are but a few of these aspects. I find it vaguely humorous that the exoteric or literal meaning of the card has become hidden and one of its traditionally esoteric or hidden meanings (materialism) has become the literal. Here the Fool has reached the dark night of his soul and has fallen to the depths of the underworld. He stands before the Devil whom he must confront before passing on to the rest of his journey. Here is the dark soul of the Fool, his personal archetypal evil. This is the Shadow that Jung described as being the evil in every man that must be faced, and understood as a part of us all. Only then can the Fool look into the dark mirror and see himself reflected back. The most common meaning found in the card today is one of materialism. In it the Devil represents the material aspects of this plane and humankind's unwillingness to see that clinging to them, and devoting our lives to the collection of them, prevents our further spiritual evolution. Even this politically correct meaning would not be possible without its foundation in the Christian concept of the Devil. The Devil as portrayed by the church is the Lord or God of this Earth. As such He directly represents the material aspect of existence, and thus can represent man's greed for material possessions. Another symbology included in the Devil card is found in its relationship to the Hierophant card. The two cards can be viewed as direct opposites of each other, and thus can be seen in a dualistic sense as being two sides of the same coin. Place the two cards side by side and note the similarities. Both cards depict figures seated on thrones (in the Devil's case it is the cubit throne of the material plane) as figures of authority for the two people before them. As the Hierophant's disciples have become the Devil's slaves, so too has his theology become the Devil's dogma. At best Waite suggests that at this point of the Fool's journey all external beliefs have become tethers that will prevent his spiritual progression, and that these belief systems must be discarded before personal growth can continue. At worst Waite is equating the established Church (and the Pope) with the Devil. This message is that they are one and the same—the Church's duality made manifest. Symbology The Devil is depicted with the wings of a bat. The bat is a creature of the night and on an archetypal level such creatures correspond to the subconscious. This subconscious representation shows the Devil is symbolic of the darkness hidden within the Fool himself. The horns on the Devils head have been attributed variously to Pan, Baphomet, Cernnunos, and Herne. These are gods of the earth (with the possible exception of Baphomet) and of its earthly pleasures. It is interesting to note that long before horns represented evil they were reflections of the highest spirituality. They were antennas to God and denoted a divine connection or communication with Him. Also interesting is that the Devil's horns twist earthward, pointing down into the material. The inverted pentagram symbolizes spirit descending into matter. The normal pentagram consists of five points, with one point reaching straight up. The lower four represent Earth, Air, Fire, and Water—the fifth is Spirit. With the four material points below on the pentagram, the message is Spirit ascending above matter, or that the wearer holds the spiritual plane above the material. To invert the pentagram is to make the statement the one values the material above the spiritual. Thus the Devil is worshipped and the Christian God reviled. The man and woman have been linked to the figures on the Lovers card by some, and to the conscious mind (male) and the subconscious mind (female) by others. The exact meaning of the pair is less important than the chains that bind them to the material cubit. The chains are sturdy and unbreakable, yet they are loosely placed abound the couples’ neck. The obvious symbology is that they have chosen to remain bound to their material master and a simple act of will could free them. The Devil's right hand is raised and on the palm is etched the symbol of Saturn. Saturn's effect is to limit, but that limitation brings knowledge. Its friction and inertia promote inner growth. The fruit on female's tail is representational of lust and intoxication and of the pleasures of the flesh. The flames on the male's tail symbolize the passions of greed and desire. The card has a black background which both represents the darkness of one's soul and the void of the subconscious.
This is part of a series of articles on the esoteric symbology of the Rider-Waite tarot deck. Dr. Waite spoke to us not in words, but in hidden symbols. Symbols are truly the universal language expressing ideas in a way that, with study and contemplation, all can understand. But this understanding may not be the same for everyone who seeks it. While symbols do speak to all that will listen, they may say different things to different people. To truly understand the archetypal symbology of the Tarot, you must listen to a chorus of voices, not just one. Read as many different explanations as you can on the Tarot, and then the true meanings of the symbols will naturally come to you from within.
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