Tarot reading: the tower tarot card and the promise of freedom

Perhaps considered one of the most negative cards in the Tarot deck, The Tower is the card of chaos and turmoil. His contemporary tarot card meanings often refer to disruption, instability, transformation, and the inevitable truth. When the Tower card appears in a tarot reading, one can anticipate the total deconstruction of their belief system. The Tower presents an unrecognized truth. It is an indicator that one’s faulty perceptions have caused the creation of an unreliable base. It is a warning that one’s thought processes are not aligned with a higher truth. It always means the beginning of an emotional purge.

However, there is much more to the Tower card than the concept of destruction. In truth, the Tower is a letter of liberation and freedom. It is there to assure you that if you choose to get rid of your wrong beliefs; you will experience inner freedom. In its place comes a new level of consciousness. This increased awareness is the direct result of new channels of communication with the higher mind or divine spirit. In a Tarot reading, the Tower clarifies the parts of our own inner being that we have been reluctant to examine. It is this denial that causes our actions or behaviors to conflict with our personal truths. In the end, when we find the courage to look at our misconceptions, we are released.

What is so scary about the Tower Tarot card is the feeling of inevitability. During a Tarot reading, the Tower informs us that disorder and confusion cannot be avoided. There is a need to delve into the unknown. The unknown represents our greatest fears. This is where we must surrender to uncertainty. However, true freedom lies in the act of surrendering. Instead of trying to wish our lives in certain directions, we have the opportunity to merge with our higher consciousness and let the Universe guide us. There is nothing more liberating than giving up our concept of control. On some level, we must come to accept our helplessness and our finite nature.

Symbolically, the Tower represents the power of the Divine. This is represented by the penetrating beam that knocks down the top of the Tower. Here he reminds us that we do not have the highest authority. Our concept of power comes from our ego. In Tarot reading, The Tower suggests that there is something much greater than ourselves. There is a universal law that we must honor and respect. Taking this into consideration, we feel humbled. Our old ideas no longer serve us. In the end, we must be willing to accept the fact that our concept of self-power and control is unreliable, self-centered, and flawed.

Finally, the Torre letter refers to narrow-mindedness. The Tower informs us that we have outgrown our old ideas. Our past perceptions and value systems have become too stingy. We are finally ready to expand our perspectives. As we begin this process, we realize that we were prisoners of our own creation. The Tower frees us from self-imposed imprisonment and assures us that a false self-image will be replaced by self-knowledge. Although there is a lot of fear and chaos with its arrival, in the end we always discover a new freedom.

For more information on tarot readings and tarot card meanings, visit Carolyn’s blog.