Major Arcana XVI
The Tower
The Revelation
The card
Hokusai’s Great Wave tears at the foundation of Anthonisz’s Tower of Babel. The structure collapses from the force and humanity scatters at its foundation as a legion of angels falls to the earth.
Chaos and ruin frame a moment of the mighty fall of all that does not serve. The ground is now leveled and from the rubble, something new can emerge. As with The Lovers, more than our physical realm is depicted. It is one of the few direct intercessions in Tarot between the heavens and earth.
The Tower card indicates an abrupt and earth-shattering ending. Do not let this strike fear in you as sometimes our worlds must be shaken to the ground in order to clear a path to truth. You may find that your world is in upheaval and confusion is your constant companion. Know that the Universe is not out to get you. This unexpected shift is for your ultimate growth and resilience. Lean into your intuition at this time to address any cracks in the foundation so that the bedlam may be contained. Look for the intercedents among us and trust that this is an opportunity to clear away any rubble that has been holding you back.
Which false certainty is already beginning to crack?
Jungian lens
The archetype in motion
A structure unable to contain truth breaks open and releases trapped psychic energy. Its shadow is chaos mistaken for liberation. Integration asks what truth the fallen structure could no longer contain and what must be built differently.