Break the Chains
The Devil card, for me, represents two main concepts – bondage and deception.
I won’t argue that as a practical matter, for most of us most of the time, limitations on our free will or agency don’t exist at all. As much as it is true to say that a brick wall is really not solid at all from a quantum viewpoint, from a practical standpoint it’s still going to hurt if I bash my head into it.
I do believe that our own self-imposed limitations end up hobbling us much more, and more often, than we realize. We are held back because we surrender unquestioningly to thoughts of doubt, limitation and lack. The Devil card represents, more than anything else (for me, at least) those self-defeating illusions of bondage.
As another of the “acolyte” cards, the Devil is a shadow version of The Hierophant. The High Priest offers his subservients the keys of wisdom. The Devil’s power serves the ego, not the higher good.
When this card turns up, we scan the environment, both internal and external, for undue influence and deception. Our chains are broken as we seek light and truth.