![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F65f3ea5e-7e84-4c7f-892c-7d3651e7d5af_3451x3072.jpeg)
There are certain tarot cards people fear. Chief among them: Death. It’s the 13th card of the deck, a menacing skeleton coming at you on horseback.
When I turn over Death in a reading, the querent doesn’t usually super-love it. I reassure the person that physical death is rarely foretold by this card. Tarot talks in the language of symbols and metaphors. This is the death of an aspect of yourself, part of your life, a relationship, or a belief it’s time to shed. Something needs to die so you can grow.
When Death shows up reversed, I used to automatically tell my querent, “Breathe a sigh of relief!” The conventional reading is that it’s positive to see death upside down—this is something you’ve put behind you. Let’s find a fresh start.
But recent synchronicities have brought out a new meaning of this card. Now, when I see Death reversed, I ask, “What is deadening you?”
I’ve been reading psychologist Phil Stutz's latest book, Coming Alive, and one of its big themes is accessing your life force. The concept of a spiritual “life force” is a bit ineffable, but I immediately knew what he was talking about, and I bet you do, too.
Life force is the movement of vital energy in your body and mind, almost a physical sense of optimism and power.
Deadening is the exact opposite of this.
I started to use the word deadening a lot when talking about my corporate job last year. This should have been more of a red flag than it was. I’ve been away from that particular death force now for eight months, and the word “deadening” has dropped out of my vocabulary. But it came up again, multiple times, in a conversation with another woman.
She felt stuck in a situation that was choking off her life force. I realized that this is the energy of the Death card reversed.
Of course, with this insight, Death started stalking me in my own daily draws, so I continued to think about it. This card insists that I pay more attention to any and all deadening moments and experiences—even the small stuff. Deadening doesn’t have to be a life-consuming abyss.
A short list of my own recent deadenings:
Continuing to watch the TV show Palm Royale, even though I don’t really like it.
Long car rides.
Not drinking enough water.
Scrolling Instagram.
Sending endless cold emails trying to get new clients.
Identifying the deadenings is important, but even more important is finding things that activate life force energy. For me, that means:
Practicing yoga.
Cooking plant-based meals.
Reading tarot for others.
Reading nonfiction.
Talking and spending time with friends.
Writing.
The experiences that deaden me are worse than the ones that kill off a part of myself. Deadening is, in fact, worse than death. It’s a lifelessness I could choose to shake off.
When I look back on times that embodied the energy of the Death card upright, like when I killed off my alcohol-drinking self in 2017, I see that these were some of the best times of my life, the most important transformations.
Death reversed, on the other hand, now calls to mind times when I’ve been stuck in a loop doing the wrong things for the wrong reasons, drifting further and further away from the source of my vital life energy (as depicted in the Sun card).
When I see Death reversed now, I ask myself what is deadening me, even in small ways?
What taps my life force, and how can I expand it?
As a thank you to YOU, my first 10 subscribers, I’d love to offer you a free tarot reading via Zoom. Use this link to schedule yours. Please sign up with the same email address you used to subscribe to this newsletter so I know it’s you.
I love that you are sharing this part of yourself here on Substack! I still think about the virtual reading you did for me a few weeks ago. You have a real talent and flair for seeing and communicating the insights that Tarot can offer. Thank you for your generosity!
Thank you for making me feel more brave to pull reversals! I got Death reversed last week and now need to think about this in a new way.