Take a breath. We have made it through the Tower. The chaos and destruction have finished screaming, and while the dust is settling, we can start to find some ease or relief that it is over.
Once the dust finally settles, it’s easy to see that the Tower no longer dominates the view. You look, and for the first time, you can see the stars. There is no obstruction. There is no blocking them. You can, perhaps for the first time in a long time, see the stars for all their beauty.
This is the energy of the Star. It is the balm that comes in and softens us after a period of deep change. The systems, structures, and things in our lives that do not serve us have to fall away. While it is ultimately for our best and higher selves, the Tower is not easy.
The Star comes in afterwards and helps us find a way to soften our ego and let our spirits come forward. After everything we have been through, what harm could it do to trust and surrender even more?
Looking at the numerology of the Star (17), we have this quote from the Numerologists Pro website, found here. “The influence of the number 17 on the Star card emphasizes the themes of hope, inspiration, and spiritual renewal. It suggests that through spiritual insight and introspection, one can find the strength and inspiration to embark on new beginnings and achieve personal growth.”
Nourishing and Tending to the Spirit
The Star marks a significant shift, and speaks to the pivot in our evolution. All the cards in the third line of the Major Arcana, starting with the Devil and ending with the World, hold themes of creation and destruction together, a culmination of the first two lines of the Majors. They all speak to the evolution within the self that we constantly experience in the cycles and journeys of our lives.
The Star marks the point where the loss, destruction, and letting go are over. Now, we can take this moment and pivot towards our higher alignment. We can take this situation and let the Star guide us towards a new, brighter, and better beginning. The first way that I read the Star is that it speaks to: Nourishing, tending, incubating, healing, and guiding energies within the spirit.
After the wreckage of the Tower, we have a moment here to just come back to ourselves, feel the pain, lick the wounds, but also find grace and a sense of healing. We have an invitation here to soften the body and the ego. They have just been through a lot. We have a pause so that we may look inward and take care of ourselves. We have an invitation to rest, incubate, and nurture ourselves. When ready, we can go forward with guidance, hope, and a trust in the Universe that we are still on the right path.
Main invitations with the Star:
1. Nourishment, tending, incubation, healing, guidance.
2. Keep and chase the wonder and awe of your own life, and all that it is within it, even that which had to be cleared away and lost.
3. After clearing away what no longer serves, the way is clear for your transformation
The next way that I read the Star card is: Keep and chase the wonder and awe of your own life, and all that it is within it, even that which had to be cleared away and lost. This is not easy, and that is why the point of the Star is not to fix, reset, or forget what happened from the Tower, or any of the cards we have experienced. The Star is not here to erase what has happened and bring us back to mere love and light.
The Star is the opposite of spiritual bypassing. It is an invitation to see and face all the shadows, edges, and hardships, and still find a way to see the beauty. The Star invites you to find the awe in your life, and going through a Tower moment and still finding a way to soften yourself is truly awe-inspiring. We all know people like this, or if we don’t know them personally, we read or learn about them. Their stories inspire us. The light they shine in this world inspires us.
I think of people like Malala, Dave Pelzer (author of the book series A Child Called It), Bethany Hamilton, Jim Carrey, Michael Jordan, you get the picture….
The Star highlights how we nurture our spirits and grow stronger than before because of the challenges, not in spite of them. We need the Tower to have the Star. The Devil reveals the chains that hold back our evolution. The Tower breaks them. The Star shows us to rise with this gift of guidance, freedom, and renewal.
The last way that I read the Star card is: After clearing away what no longer serves, the way is clear for your transformation. The path was blocked because of the Tower, and now that the path is open, we are free to go forward. We can see the bigger picture of the sky, and let it fill us up with hope, inspiration, and a renewed purpose.
The Star speaks to us, saying that if we survived this, there is nothing that we can’t face. If we can still find grace and softness after the Tower, we can find the light in even the darkest of situations. We can still find our way. The Star keeps our spirits rising, even when everything feels heavy or hard to bear.
This is a card that, when it comes forward in a reading, is a welcome sight because it says things will pass. Even the hardest things are made bearable when we have the conviction within our spirit, a good support group that loves us, and things that keep us open. The Star reminds you that you are a beautiful light, and when you are ready, let yourself be guided by all the beautiful lights in this world towards something better, a space that is meant to let your spirit shine.
Symbolism and Imagery of the Star
Let’s look at the Star from across my decks to see the symbolism and imagery that can help us build an intuitive understanding of this beautiful card. I am going to start at the top of this blog post and work my way down. I encourage you to look at your own Star cards and see what you see. What understandings of the Star do you take from these images?
- The Dark Wood Tarot: A naked woman sits on the edge of an ancient tree, her toes dipping into the water. The nakedness shows the lessening of self-consciousness and the facades of the ego. She is open and in her beautiful truth. As she looks skyward, she sees the familiar and misunderstood creatures of bats, who find their way in the darkness.
- Grimalkin’s Curious Cat Tarot: We see a you cat being held among a field of flowers and butterflies. Support, love, and grace are what allow us to face our fears and step towards the unknown.
- Bird King Tarot: A Jackalope sits at the edge of a pond. Everything shimmers, and the Jackalope shows that dreams and myths are what we make them. They are real if they hold a place within us that inspires us or moves us in some way
- Ostara Tarot: A young girl flies after a Star through the night sky. She chases the light with a playfulness that keeps her spirit light.
- Nightmare Before Christmas: Zero as the Star is the best thing ever, but it’s true. Zero shows all the qualities of the Star. His bright pumpkin nose guides Jack through the Christmas fog, but his essence alleviates Jack’s hardened obsession with Christmas. Zero keeps a part of Jack true to himself as the Pumpkin King.
- Herbcrafter’s Tarot: Cottonwoods indicate the presence of water. This shows a part of the Star we haven’t touched on, the need to look for signs and clues that point you towards your path.
- Crow Tarot: This image is a close comparison to the Rider-Waite. The Crow stands at the edge of the pond. One foot is on the ground, showing stability and a grounded connection to the foundation of Earth.. The other is in the water, showing a surrender to the flow of life. Water pours on both the land and into the pond, showing a nourishing energy to the body, and fills up the heart and the soul.
- Tarot of Dragon: Extremely similar imagery, but the dragons encircle the eight-pointed star. The eight-pointed star symbolizes balance, harmony, hope, protection, and spiritual guidance. The seven dragons speak to the seven chakras. When aligned and open, they aid us in enlightenment and a connection to the Universe.
- Guardian of the Night Tarot: The Deer is sensitive and strong. They move gently with the cycles and rhythms of the planet, and encourage a grounded, but light approach to movement.
- Mystical Dream Tarot: The Star, named here the Dream Angel, stands at the shore of the lake. Her soft beauty echoes her inner radiance. The turtle speaks to the need for incubation and patience. The herbs speak again to the signs of the land, and help with our needed healing.
- Hocus Pocus Tarot: Our Star is Emily, Thackery Binx’s sister. Her youthful spirit was coveted by the Sanderson sister’s, but her truest self was something they could never take because they don’t possess that lightness within themselves.
- Hush Tarot: The Sparrow perches on the skull of an old warrior, emphasizing a new day or beginning. Also, a need for more grace and less brute force. The phrase “A hunting we will go” comes from an old children’s song, but symbolizes a spiritual pursuit, new adventure, or quest towards enlightenment.
- Shadowscapes Tarot: Similar symbolism, but the Fish swimming upward highlights insight from the unconscious into the waking world to guide and aid us.
- Spirit Animal Tarot: The Peacock has large and bright tailfeathers that sweep towards the accepting and graceful spirit of the sky, encouraging us to do the same. Peacock is aware and unashamed of their beauty, and asks you to embrace your wholeness and to reclaim your inner beauty. Your unique self is the gift and the guide that will see you through all things, as long as you trust in that truth.
- The Wild Unknown: The multiple colors in the star show endless possibilities. This image is meant to reflect our sense of wonder and awe when we look at the night sky. Even though there is so little we know or control, standing under a starry sky fills us with a sense of connection and purpose to something bigger.
Here is the poem of the Star from my poetry book “Major Arcana: A Poetry Collection.” You can purchase it by clicking the link below.
The Star
Although I have been orphaned from my makings,
cast out into this vacant darkness I shake off
the demolished rubble, breathe the snap of lighting
back into the vortex that sought to claim me.
As I heave myself through this void that has claimed
others, charred them down to the inch, I unearth
the ways of grass, how it does not negotiate
with the unbearable heat of the flames.
This loss will not tighten around me like tornado
to prairie where the vultures circle, a reminder
that something must always follow to clean up
the mess. This drunken midnight, tipsy with the hour,
could sink ships, sending all the pretty living things
into the deep. Just when I thought the crash of waves
would weaken me sick, I preened a war cry
from my throat. Young battles make old generals.
I shoulder these stars who speak of my story,
saying that I made it through the darkness.
Major Arcana: A Poetry Collection
Ashlie McDiarmid
Hello there! I hope you liked this blog post. As a tarot and oracle reader, my goal with my blogs is to offer you content, resources, and access to the tools that have transformed my life.
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