The number 15 — the analogue of the Pope (the fifth degree): also a bridge and a passage, but where the Pope leads to the heights, the Devil shows the path into the depths of being. Light buried in matter.
The Devil stands on a large black base (as in XIII), holds a torch with a green handle and red flame from a circle, has bat wings — he is in the night of the deep unconscious. His eyes are crossed toward the nose — intense meditation; he has several pairs of eyes (on his face, chest, belly, knees). A pale-blue body indicates a spiritual essence. Tied to the plinth are two lesser demons; the woman on the left has five fingers, the man on the right four. Their leg-roots plunge into the dark earth. The Devil is a hermaphrodite, sticking out the tongue twice.
🔥Torch with flame from a circle — enormous creative activity; the desire to rise from the cave toward the light
👁️Several pairs of eyes — he sees at every level — face, chest, belly, knees
🦇Bat wings — dwelling in the night of the deep unconscious
😈Two bound lesser demons — the active feminine (5 fingers) and passive masculine (4) — energies of the androgyne
👅Tongue stuck out twice — an absence of hypocrisy; beneath the fears — an innocent, almost comical creature
Interpretation
The Devil is light buried in matter; being a fallen angel, he holds a torch and thereby expresses a deep longing to rise back from the cave into the cosmos — just as the human soul, drowning in flesh, yearns to return to its source.
The card speaks of our primal forces, prehistoric memories buried in the depths of the nervous system: to attain enlightenment one must not reject the animal side but accept it, honor it, and direct it toward the angelic light. The Devil contains all the hidden potentials of the unconscious.
Upright — strong creative energy, depth of talent, the force of inspiration; the awakening of what is rooted in the unconscious. Passion, attachment, desire; a union in which the bonds of passion are stronger than the bonds of feeling. Money, a promising contract (which merits careful study).
With the Pope The Pope they are analogues of the fifth degree, both bridges: the Pope — the path upward, the Devil — the path into the depths. With the Tower The Tower the two lesser demons of the Devil are humanized, rising from the cave. With Judgement Judgement the androgynous body 'completes' the legs of the Devil; both stick out the tongue, but the angel's tongue is wisdom. With the Sun The Sun the Sun is akin to the Devil (both 'cross-eyed'): the Devil likely lit his torch from the solar fire.
He conceals nothing: the twice-stuck-out tongue is free of hypocrisy. Reversed — temptation turned into a trap: a fraudulent contract, addictions, the captivity of passion.
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Advice & forecast
✦ The card's advice
Stop hiding behind a mask, acknowledge your desires and learn to govern them, connect with the power of the depths. Creative, passionate energy is breaking through from the unconscious — it is the source of great talent if it is accepted and directed rather than rejected. Study the 'advantageous' deal carefully: beside reversed cards it may be a trap. Beside the Tower The Tower your flame is ready to become an ascent toward the light.
🔮 What the forecast holds
Temptation or a powerful surge of creative and sexual energy from the depths is coming. Ahead lies a strong passion, desire, attachment, possibly money or a contract worth studying. This is the call of the depths and of talent. If you accept the animal force and direct it toward the light, it will become a source of inspiration; if you surrender to it blindly — it will become captivity.
↓ The Devil reversed
The reversed Devil — temptation turned into a trap: a fraudulent contract in the tradition of Faust, economic predation, deception, loss. Addictions rooted in the unconscious: drugs, alcohol, sexual dependency, self-destructive behavior, repeating emotional patterns. Sexual deviance, infantilism ('the refusal to grow up'), lies, gluttony, all the attachments that enslave.
The card in spreads
The same card reads differently depending on the spread and the question — compare real spreads:
Spread "The Call of the Depths"
Understand the nature of a passion or talent
«What is calling to me from the depths?»
The depth
The Devil
The force
Strength
The light
The Sun
The Devil — creative, passionate energy, the depth of talent, is breaking through from the unconscious. The force Strength — the awakening of instinct seeking harmony with the mind. The light The Sun — the Sun: passion is humanized into mutual help and love. Accept the animal force and direct it toward the light — it will become inspiration rather than captivity.
Spread "Checking the Deal"
Evaluate an attractive offer
«Is it worth agreeing to this?»
The offer
The Devil
The check
Justice
Outcome
The Tower
The Devil — before you lies a passionate, advantageous contract or a temptation. The check Justice — Justice requires weighing it without illusions, studying the conditions. Outcome The Tower — the Tower: liberation or a painful rupture, depending on what lies within. Study the 'advantage' carefully: behind the glitter may lurk Faust's trap.
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Spread "Liberation from an Attachment"
Break free from a dependency
«How do I free myself from what enslaves me?»
The captivity
The Devil
What to cut away
Death
Freedom
Judgement
The Devil — you are in the captivity of a passion, an addiction, or a repeating pattern. What to cut away Death — the unnamed arcanum: let go of the dead, sever the bonds. Freedom Judgement — Judgement calls to an awakening and a new life. Acknowledge the desire, stop hiding behind a mask — mastery of the depths liberates; denial enslaves.
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How it differs from Waite
Rider-Waite-SmithThe Devil
vs
Tarot de Marseille (Conver)The Devil
Waite makes the Devil an image of bondage: a horned Baphomet on a black cube, an inverted pentagram, a naked man and woman with tails in chains — materialism, lust, voluntary captivity (the chains can be slipped off). The Marseille Devil is richer in meaning: he is light buried in matter, a fallen angel with a torch who longs to rise back to the cosmos. He conceals nothing — the stuck-out tongue is free of hypocrisy. Waite emphasizes temptation and enslavement; Marseille emphasizes the depth of talent and creative energy: the animal side must not be rejected but accepted and directed toward the angelic light.
WaiteTarot de Marseille (Conver)
ImageBaphomet, inverted pentagram.Fallen angel with a torch, light in matter.
MeaningBondage, lust, materialism, captivity.Depth of talent, creative energy, the call of the depths.
PathChains can be slipped off — recognize the bondage.Accept the animal and direct it toward the light.
Symbolism & correspondences
The degree of number 15 (the fifth degree of the second series) — the analogue of five: a bridge and a passage, but directed into the depths. This is a powerful, deep energy of instinct, passion, and creativity, buried in matter and longing for light. Numerologically — the descent toward the source of primal force in the unconscious, the opposite of the Pope's ascent.
Element
Earth
♑
Astrology
Saturn in Capricorn — the force that binds through structure, fear, and material necessity
✦
Arcana
Major
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