The Tower:

 

The Tower:

“Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.”

The twenty-seventh path on the Tree of Life is Peh and is represented in the Tarot as The Tower. This path connects Netzach and Hod and their union culminates again in the sphere of Yesod, which symbolizes the unconscious. The union between all the spheres on the tree culminates in what may be called states of realization. These states may also be considered as different levels of creation that finally is brought into material existence at Malkuth. The interplay between these opposites at every step along the tree is passionate and even violent, this may especially be noted between the union of Binah and Chokmah resulting in the creation below the Abyss. Another name for this card is War and the name is indicative of what has here been stated.

The Tower is associated with Mars and presents an issue that is manifesting martially without consent or planning and wholly out of the observer’s control. Inner conflict has given rise to an explosion and has left the subject with no further options. Before this happened there was an inability to make a decision about that which has become corrupted, and the outcome is now that the choice has been made on the enquirer’s behalf and without the luxury of planning. This forces one who has been unwilling to change into the fire and the circumstances forced upon one in this situation are felt as turmoil. However, this is a card indicative of creation and growth and so inherently it is a good card, although the situations presented by it may not feel very beneficent at the time. This card thus symbolizes someone who is in the midst of suffering a great loss, this is due to a lack of internal congruence by the subject and the inability to create from this conflict a sustainable relationship with the world. Such as could be the case with wants and needs for example. Loss is always traumatic, however there is new freedom to be experienced from such a fall from grace. Having no expectations, confronted with a new sense of self in a new world, can indeed be very freeing.

The god associated with this card would be Aries who is associated with blind rage and the chaos of war. Aries was the most hated god in ancient Greece and from my understanding the only person who ever really liked him was Aphrodite, who was his lover and the goddess associated with the sphere of Netzach, which as mentioned joins to Hod through the path which is the topic of this essay. He was the son of Zeus and Hera; his character is bloodshed and war and the antithesis of Athena, the goddess of war associated with Geburah, who represents the art of war as strategy and pioneering. Although the character of Aries is brutal; the opposite side of this, is that at times of great distress we may call upon Aries to bless us with courage when faced with obstacles that seem insurmountable. Therefore, he is also represented as the strength needed to face these obstacles head on and to not shy away from them, thus seeing the current circumstances through to their conclusion.

“Love is the law, love under will.”