When does Death really mean Death?

[docdoo]

Hi folks,
I have an interesting question (well ok, perhaps I think its interesting cause Im the one posting it! :rolleyes: ) Anyway I have never taken the Death card to mean a literal Death. However 4 days ago I pulled a reading for a friend, his entire reading was swords and pentacles...with the Death card reversed in the 'immediate future' position. For some reason I was terrified just looking at the cards, before I even got to the reading part. I have pulled Death many times before and many times I have also pulled it with swords and pentacles but never has it influenced me the way it did this day.

Thankfully he was not there and had asked my husband to ask me if I would pull a few cards for him. In any case I wrote down the reading as I interpreted it but did not give him the reading. The emperor was also his 'problem' card (Im using the Celtic cross so the Emperor was in #2 while Death was in #6) upon looking at the cards I was immediatly impressed by his father and Death.

Ok so heres the not so surprising part....his father died yesterday afternoon. So here is the heart of the matter, is there any way to 'know' if/when Death truly means death? Or is it done based upon your impression at that time? Is it something you just know? And here is the other question...the one that has been bothering me. Was it right for me to hold out on him? I cannot say how glad I was that he was not there when I pulled his cards for my heart literally skipped a beat as I was laying them out. I fear that had he been there I would have lied to him, everything I have ever read says that a good Tarot reader will never interpret death as a literal death. It seems as though there was little that could have been done but should I have given him the results anyway? I rather think not but what do you all think?

Til next time

[FaerieGothMommy]

Yes,

I believe, the cards can mean all sorts depending on who the reading is for. Usually, i depict death as change/new beginning. But, i believe that if it comes up in a reading & your intuition is telling you something different from what it usually means, then go with your intuition.

I have pulled cards before, where one card means something totally different from what it meant in a different reading i done. You need to trust your intuition, because it is 100 times better than books.

[Storm]

I would say that it is an intuition thing. I have also pulled death in the #6 position and all the other cards reflected her bad relationship-for the one I was reading. Within days the relationship ended. For the better I might add.

I think that your reaction was an indication though for most people most of the time if they get that reaction will question it. Does it mean that...It doesn't...does it.
It is not until the unfortunate event has passed that we go..oh, it did mean that.

I have heard it is good etiquette to interpret death as non-literal even if we, the reader, interpret it as otherwise.

[Lunacie]

I've only had the impression that the death card meant literal death in a couple of readings, oddly enough they were for the same person. She and her hubby had several grandparents who were not generally expected to live a lot longer anyway. I don't remember the words I used in giving her the reading, but I did tell her what I saw, and in both cases an older relative passed over within a couple of weeks. If I were to see the death of a healthy younger person I would think carefully on how to present that information.