The Devil is card XV of the Major Arcana in the Thoth Tarot. In a reading it speaks of creative energy, matter, ambition and bondage. In the Golden Dawn system it corresponds to the Hebrew letter Ayin, path 26 of the Tree of Life between Tiphareth and Hod, the element Earth and Capricorn in astrology.
creative energy · matter · ambition · bondage · desire
What does The Devil mean?
Powerful creative energy and strong ambition: recognise the forces that move you and use them consciously.
Everyday meaning
Material force, ambition, desire, bonds and temptations. It points to situations of dependence, but also to a powerful creative and sexual drive.
Psychological meaning
Your relationship with your own instincts and shadows: what you fear or desire until it dominates you, or which, once acknowledged, becomes strength.
Initiatic meaning
Path 26 from Tiphareth to Hod, the letter Ayin (the eye, 70) and Capricorn, the cardinal earth of Saturn in which Mars is exalted: generative energy in its most earthly expression. The eye that sees the divine even in the lowest and the darkest.
The shadow side
Ill-dignified, it signals obsession, dependence, blind materialism, exploitation of yourself or others.
The Devil reversed
The Thoth Tarot is traditionally read without reversed cards: the reader judges from the cards around it whether a card is well or ill dignified. This is its ill-dignified or blocked reading:
Bonds that begin to loosen, or dependences that are denied; you need to look squarely at what you fear.
The Devil in love, work and spirit
In love
Magnetic attraction, intense sexuality; possible dynamics of dependence or power.
At work and career
Ambition, tenacity, material power; watch out for ethical compromises.
In spiritual practice
Pan as totality: welcoming even the shadow as part of the divine.
Kabbalah, astrology and the Hebrew letter of The Devil
Ayin ע (70) · path 26: Tiphareth – Hod · Earth · Capricorn
Crowley on The Devil
For Crowley the Devil is Pan the begetter, a Himalayan goat laughing on the summit of the world: creative force without moral judgement, delighting in the harsh and the barren as much as in the fertile.
Frequently asked questions
What does The Devil mean in the Thoth Tarot?
Powerful creative energy and strong ambition: recognise the forces that move you and use them consciously.
What does The Devil mean in love?
Magnetic attraction, intense sexuality; possible dynamics of dependence or power.
What does The Devil mean for work and career?
Ambition, tenacity, material power; watch out for ethical compromises.
What does The Devil mean reversed?
The Thoth Tarot is traditionally read without reversed cards: the reader judges from the cards around it whether a card is well or ill dignified. This is its ill-dignified or blocked reading: Bonds that begin to loosen, or dependences that are denied; you need to look squarely at what you fear.
What are the Kabbalah and astrology correspondences of The Devil?
In the Golden Dawn system The Devil corresponds to the Hebrew letter Ayin, path 26 of the Tree of Life between Tiphareth and Hod, the element Earth and Capricorn in astrology.
