The Tower Card is one of the few cards in a Tarot card deck which can seem to be very scary. I find that when I get this card in a reading, my clients are often terrified by the image on this card. But I always end up telling them not to be scared or worried about this card because although it looks scary enough, it might not that bad a situation.

First in my series of articles about scary looking Tarot cards, today lets have a look at The Tower Card, and understand why and how this card isn’t all that bad after all.

Whenever anyone sees the image on The Tower card, it is but natural to assume that this card talks about really bad things. However, not all bad things are, well, bad. I believe that the imagery on the Tower card is pretty symbolic – and yes, while it might be meant to scare you, the events that this card might portray aren’t bad – not in the long run, anyway! 🙂

 The Tower Card: Image Description

If you look at the image of the Tower card, you are bound to notice a few things.

First off, there is a tall tower that has been struck by lightning, and two people have been thrown out of it, and they are falling down onto the rocks below. The tower itself has caught fire. A big crown, which looks like it might have been the top part of the tower is falling too. And all around, in the image, is darkness.

Yes, it isn’t difficult to see why this card can evoke too many nasty feelings.

But do you also notice the other shiny elements in the card – which look like Yods? There are 21 of those Yods in the Tower card. And Yods represent blessings!

Isn’t it funny that a card that pictures so much destruction, can also depict so many blessings?

So what exactly is this image trying to convey to us?

The Tower Card: The Symbolism

If one glances at the image of the Tower card and just looks at it literally, then yes, it looks too scary. But understand, we are looking at a Tarot card – and symbolism plays a big role in these images. So lets look at the symbolism present in the tower card.

The Lightning: Although relegated to one corner of the image, this lightning is the cause of all the events happening in the card. Strangely, the lighting also looks like a zig-zag arrow! And if you look closely, the arrow follows a path that outlines the ‘Tree of Life’ in Kabbalah. While I don’t claim to know much about Kabbalah, I do know that the ‘Tree of Life’ describes a way towards God, or spiritual enlightenment. Lightning is always sudden – always comes on without warning, and strikes down whatever it hits. It carries a great electrical charge, often causing destruction where it strikes. And it is said, that lightning never strikes the same place twice. From all of this, one can say that the lightning describes a sudden flash of understanding, insight and even enlightenment that can reveal many hidden things, and destroy  many things as well.

The Crown: The crown represents the ego. Ego is often the image of one’s self or one’s identity that one creates within one’s mind. It is our image or concept of who and what we are. And it is but natural, that one has an over inflated sense of self right in the center of this ego. When the lightning strikes the tower, the crown is the first to fall. Thus, the ego is the first to go in the event described in the tower card. Losing one’s ego has been part of the spiritual quest for all of us. The falling crown can thus also represent this part of the spiritual journey of a person when he / she loses his / her ego.

The Tower: This is the central part of the card’s imagery. The tower card is, after all, about the tower. This tall, narrow building is a structure made out of bricks and mortar and stone and cement (and whatever construction materials are used), and is a strong structure. To me this structure represent the structures and patterns and habits and cycles in our lives that have, over a period of time, become reinforced and permanent in our lives. These patterns and habits have become part of who and what we are – and naturally, also a part of the ego. In fact, the crown sits on top of this structure. Thus, one can even say that the structure has contributed towards the creation of the crown itself. These are our beliefs, our ‘systems’, our habits and routines – these are the timetables and calendars that we stick to and follow, and these are our ‘principles’ and rules of society which we enforce upon ourselves and others. And yes, now this structure is on fire. With one strike of the lightening of realization, this structure catches fire and burns, and crumbles and collapses.

Realization, in one fell swoop, has managed to destroy the ego and the structure that it stands on.

The Two People Falling: And this is the outcome of all the above events. Once realization hits, and all the old patterns and cycles crumble, these two people don’t really have much that can keep them confined within the walls of this tower. Naturally, they are expelled from the walls that have encompassed and enclosed them for so long. And yes, such a sudden expulsion leaves them without a ground to stand on, and without anything to hold on to. They fly through the air, falling downwards – waiting to hit the ground – waiting to be grounded in the truth.

The Yods: All of this is the result of, or can result into a lot of Divine blessings. Yes, this destruction of the ego, and of the structures and of everything else around it, carries within it the seeds of blessings from the Divine. And of course, we can’t quite see what those blessings are just yet, but sometime in the future, we are bound to see it. Life is changing, right here, right now, and what blessings there are will be revealed and can be appreciated once things become more clearer. The wise people therefore don’t see any so-called ‘bad’ event as a ‘bad’ thing – they always try to see the good that results from it. It takes practice, though! A lot of it. 🙂

The Tower Card: In a Nutshell

So, now if we combine the meanings of what we’ve just understood, we can clearly say that the Tower card talks about:

• A sudden realization: this could be an event, a news, a situation. Something very much ‘out of the blue’ and unplanned.
• Destruction of the Ego: this could be a situation where one realizes that one’s self image is too puffed up, and the reality is something else altogether.
• Destruction of Old Patterns, Cycles, Routines: this could be a situation where you realize that all that you believed in so far, has been false and illusory. The pure, unvarnished, naked truth is revealed. You might not like what you see, but that’s the truth out there. Your old ways are a thing of the past now.
• A completely new beginning is being offered to you: after all the old ways are destroyed, you are to be given a new slate to begin all over again. Now, just make sure that you don’t repeat your past mistakes and patterns all over again.
• And yes, all of this is a blessing in disguise. Perhaps you can’t quite see the blessing in there, but give it time.
• These insights can translate into sudden events in real life which serve the purpose of bringing about the above mentioned changes within your perspective. This could be sudden news, accidents and even natural disasters like earthquakes etc.

The Tower Card: Other Connections

Of course, there are plenty of other meanings and connections of the Tower card as well.

Many Tarot-ists link also link the imagery of the Tower card with the awakening of the Kundalini energy.

Some link the imagery of the Tower card with the story of the Tower of Babel.

Your Turn

What do you feel when you see the images of the Tower Card? Does it scare you? What about the image scares you so much? Do share your thoughts in the comments section below.