Death Reversed Tarot Card Meaning

Ah, the Death Card. Signifies an end to something, a time of grieving with the hint that there will be something new to take the place of this lost thing in the future. Rebirth is at the other end of this tunnel, but a dark tunnel must be traversed. Reversed?

1) Opposite: The easiest reversal here is to say that something does not come to an end, or it does not die. But this may not be as good a thing as it sounds. Ever have a favorite TV show? You watch it over three seasons, it hits a pinnacle of being brilliant and wonderful...and then it starts to go down. And as it sinks and gets worse, and as it stretches out you begin to wish it had ended after that pinnacle.

Sometimes, things need to come to a blessed end. Anyone who's had someone in the hospital, alive but not alive, holding to life but not living, knows that "not death" isn't a desired thing. Not death keeps people from grieving, and from starting over again when done. It just stretches out a "not-life."

2) Blocked: Unlike the Opposite, I would say that the Blocked interpretation does allow for the death or ending of something. The real energy of the card here is about that time of grief and nadir that leads to re-birth. If this is blocked, then the querent can't grieve. They can't face or relieve the pain of loss. They remain at one end of the tunnel, refusing or unable to transverse it.

Re-birth is held at bay as well.

Curious about this card when upright? Go to our Tarot Card Meanings.

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