Hi, all.

I'm just curious if anyone has had a unique experience with the Tower Card in the tarot deck.  I have several decks, and in all of them, the card means a drastice and horrific change in someone's life, usually catastrophic in scope.  Occasionally, I've had The Tower card pop up in my own readings as well as readings I've done for others.  One friend of mine called the Tower card the only card in the deck that could mean a death (since the Death card really doesn't mean death).  

This is probably the only card in the deck that gets me a little worried when I see it pop up.  I was just curious if the Tower card had any truly posistive meanings and what they would be.

Thanks!

Hallooo, Lycona. Nice to see you in this forum.

I am very drawn to your question because I have always had a very intimate relationship with the Tower. Just as in dream symbols, the same card can have many different meanings for different people. We relate to them. and react to them in different ways, although some of these reactions are learned.

The Tower card has been popping up regularly in my readings for as long as I can remember. Since it is a very striking card, it is easy to remember if you keep getting it. And, lo and behold, I am still in one piece. In fact, I have never had an accident or been in hospital.

The Death card means endings, and as such, death is one possible ending, although it is true that we end so many cycles throughout our lifespan that we cannot afford to freak every time this card comes up.

Something similar happens with the Tower. Its meaning is what I see as a drastic and combined version of  Death and the Wheel of Fortune rolled in one. In the Tower, something changes drastically, usually entailing sudden ends to long standing situations that seem to explode. So, basically, change through crisis, rather than just movement, as in the Wheel. The fact that we have let situations get so far that they break up "spontaneously" only means that we should learn to recognize symptoms better and not let them surprise us.

But there are many examples of drastic changes that can be felt as thrilling challenges rather than full scale disasters. In my example, I got the Tower so much because I kept moving with my family from one country to another when I was younger. That meant a new environment, new weather, new school, new friends and even new food to get used to. Of course, when I was younger it all felt like a great adventure and I was much more excited about it than my parents, for whom each move meant a lot of work.

These moves stopped in my early twenties, but my Tower kept coming to me and I always wondered what BIG surprise was in store next. After going through a few jobs that I did not enjoy in the least, I finally recycled myself into my present profession. It not only meant leaving my family and friends 1500 miles behind, as usual, but I also work in a real tower, and have done so for the last 11 years, most of which I also lived in another tower. You can see why it is a very special and welcome symbol in my life.

Now I wonder what are the most disliked cards in the Tarot deck for everybody. Mmm... Gem asks us this question while in the Tarot course, but maybe we could do a little poll here.  

pirbid explains this card very well but can i add a different view on this
This card can sometimes be a reminder to reevaluate your present situation you may have been to preoccupied with other things to notice changes going on around you now with out your intervention things will collapse - this could be a friendly warning
or if you look at the Tower as been the body its telling you to learn to express your anger tell others what you want and what your prepared to put up with we can only take so much before we explode and arguments escalate or implode and we become depressed
I would also like to add that I don't believe any one card on its own should be read as actual death look for an alternative meaning, I have had in readings The Tower, Death and the ten of Swords to mean an actual death but when i get these i also get a sense of when
 I hope this is helpful, as i do believe there is nothing scary about the information given by one card alone

I fully agree with everything, Chris. I find it specially interesting to see the Tower as myself exploding outwards: reminds me of my PMS    I had never heard that specific view before.

This is the advantage of sharing meanings in a forum: there is always an interesting approach to try on future readings that I have not come across before.

Thank you, Chrisdee!  

I dont consider myself a full tarot reader and I 90% of the time only read for myself. But most of my interpretations have been really accurate. I had a question about the Tower in a relationship spread or just dealing with love. Now, for some reason I never really look at the Tower as a "bad" card. I have had it before and nothing truly "bad" has happened that I have noticed. I might have a strange interpretation for this and I am slightly new so keep that in mind. I think of the tower as bringing a sudden change only if you have let things get that far by not taking action and letting things move as they are. But then again I could be WAY off.

The question I had about the Tower in a relationship spread is that I have a book that although mentions the Tower bringing misery, distress, calamity, etc... It also mentions that "Occasionally the card signifies the emotional pyrotechnics of falling in love...". Does anybody have any thoughts on this?