The Study of Archetypes: The D'vil
Let us say for a brief moment that the 22 Tarot Cards of the Major Arcana represent aspects of the Psyche, outside of the initiation of the Magician throughout their life. They represent powers and abilities, as well as general archetypes that play a role in the psyche and development of the magus, each archetype being either a shadow, possessed or active part of their mind. I generally consider the Empress to be the full embodiment of one's interactions with women in their life, and how these women have impacted them. An aunt, a teacher, a mother, a Dona from down the road, we internalize a lot of things and these impact the formation and interaction of the Empress within the mind. Traits that are deemed as feminine, as represented by the Queens and the Empress, can be suppressed and thus one will be exposed to those issues in future interactions both internal and external.
We're not here to talk about the Empress though, but rather the D'vil, a card sorely misunderstood but seemingly to its advantage.
The Devil card takes on the imagery of Baphomet, His one hand raised to the Heavens, his other bearing a torch downwards to the earth. Two figures stand before him, archetypal representations of Masculine and Feminine Activity. Although I cannot fully think about what the tail of the male may be, I assume it to be an oak leaf based on its shape. The Oak itself is considered a symbol of Male Virility. The Feminine Archetype has the grape, another symbol of abundance and fertility. Both figures are chained to the pedestal, upon which stands the Devil, with his Baphomet Stance.
We see above his head the Averse Pentagram, which is often taken in two lights:
The Dominion of Matter over Spirit
The Presence of Spirit within Matter.
The Latter seems to be represented better, what with the sacred imagery in both the Male and Female Powers, and the Torch being held in his left hand to the Earth, associated with the Arm that speaks of Coagula, the partner of Solve. The Devil carries on with the Baphomet Symbolism, the Chest of the Man, Head of the Goat, Wings of a Bat, Legs of what may be a goat but the claws point to something else. Regardless, there is still atavistic symbology which points towards the animal nature of man.
Now, we come into the archetypal studies.
We see the chains and the D'vil, and greater still is the symbolism. The Devil is often represented as the force of punishment, evil and temptation. The fact that the Devil is represented with atavistic symbolism would point towards the more Shadowy Aspect of the Animal in Man, the urges, desires, wants, what would be perceived as the Id, being chained down in favour of social conduct or morality as represented by the Superego. The Fire would then be marked as a representation of the Presence of Spirit within Matter, that being the idea of VITRIOL and the necessity of man to first descend into the depths of the self before gaining any traction when they go up. In a similar way to Dante's Adventures, one needs to first go to Hell, then through Purgatory and then eventually to the Celestial Realm.
The Animal Nature is interesting in this regard. We ourselves have regarded the urges as brute, savage, animalistic, barbaric and so on. It would seem suitable that all these urges would form a part of the Devil Card and it is also well understood that the reason we shy away from these is because of our own repulsion of that nature. This is not to say that one should become possessed by that nature, not at all, because we would just chain ourselves naturally, but more so, there is a necessity to uncover the purifying fire, the natural and divine element latent within it, to gain control over it and to become one with it. We find this in the former card, Temperance and the Latter, The Tower. Temperance's Shadow Aspect representing overindulgence, which brings us to the Devil, and the Interactive Aspect representing Patience and Harmony, with which we can them move onto establish harmony within the antinomy. Whereas Justice represents the external order, Temperance represents the Internal Order, the waters she moves being waters of the self. We may also assume some idea of decanting, the removal of material from a disturbed water source by way of letting the sediment settle, then pouring out the cleared water. In a similar way, she holds two cups far from each other, representing the interaction between two forces.
When we interact with ourselves, our forces and begin to decant, that requires an acknowledgment of the proposed sediment. This clarity then brings us to the Devil and allows us to confront, integrate and bring the Two Cups of Self and Self-"Undesired" or Mind and Animal Mind, into order and balance.
The Tower represents the result of the Devil's Misdoings, the Tower being cast down by his excess and pride, a sort of reference to the Tower of Babel. There is, however, another aspect to this. Whereas the Tower has been destroyed, this may represent past dogma, the pillar of the Devil, but it may also represent the sudden revelation that destroys that which no longer serves us, the most often referred to (whether for better or for worse) Dark Night. The Devil could also be taken as a symbol of N.O.X, in which the Work of Temperance in self purification, theurgy and ritual, results in the katabasis of the Magus, the Destruction of the Self and the Resurrection through the Star thereafter.
In all senses, the work of Temperance, Her Realization of there being dualities and thus hers being the form of Shadow Work, mediation, integration, confrontation, theurgy and so on, the Devil representing the Katabasis, the acknowledgement of the aspects of the Self that we hide from others, thus chaining ourselves in the process, and the Tower finally being the release, the climax, the Catharsis of the work, it all adds up to a picture of majesty.
