Discussion: What card? (Bad Habits)
While reading The Yoga of Jesus by Paramahansa Yogananda today, I came across an interesting quote that I have edited down and would like to share here:
Bad habits seldom keep their promises.
The meaning and content of this quote is that sooner or later we will discover that a bad habit does not provide any lasting benefits. Its benefits are completely short term, and in the long run it will lead us to a crashing defeat rather than the joy or victory that it “promises” us. We will eventually discover this lie and then begin to try to escape from the bad habit. Unfortunately, we often have to hit rock bottom first, such as is the case for most alcoholics before they finally turn to AA. (Hopefully, hitting rock bottom is not a fatal encounter.)
My question here is this: Which Tarot card or cards does this quote (along with the commentary about it that I have provided) call to mind for you?
To find more posts of this type (what Tarot card does this remind you of?), see this list: http://jamesricklef.wordpress.com/category/card-meanings/what-card/
The most obvious card is the Devil, which I definitely connect with bad habits such as overindulgence. Other behaviours can become bad habits, too, I think, such as using emotional blackmail on others, which I associate with the negative aspect of the Queen of Cups. Likewise, repressing emotion or exploding when overwhelmed by it – King of Cups. Lying to get your own way – Knight of Cups. Getting completely caught up in yourself and your emotions, so self-involved you do not see others – Page of Cups.
I guess the same could be said for pretty much any card in the deck – their negative aspects can be something we get stuck in. For example, Six of Wands, success. But, if it’s the negative aspect of the card, it can represent being so concerned with success that you trample on others in your ambition. If that becomes your accustomed way of behaving, it is surely bad, and habitual. So, I’ll have to go for the whole deck on this one – if ill-dignified, reversed, or in a negative position, depending on how you read the cards :I
Chloe: Yes, I can see how any card can indicate its own flavor of bad habits. However, I think your first suggestion, the Devil, is a good card for our bad habits in general. Any habit can become like the chains in the RWS version of the Devil.
I’d agree and go for The Devil because while all the other cards can represent specific bad habits, I’d see that aspect when the cards were reversed. The Devil, on the other hand, can be seen to represent bad habits in general, rightsides up.
Ali x
I would also add that this quote relates well to the Devil since Satan is sometimes called “the Prince of Lies”,
The tower
I’m going to say the 4 of Cups because it is the card of disappointment. So, in keeping up with bad habits (overeating, being sedentary–my bad habits), I am continually disappointed with my body’s response of pain and weight gain.
(I am working out and losing weight so I’ve beaten or am beating this set of bad habits.)
Arwen:
Congrats on beating these bad habits! Your disappointment with the pain and weight gain is the way in which you discovered that the bad habit didn’t keep its promise of good feelings, right?
I see three different cards.. the first two have already been mentioned. I say the Devil just as everyone else has.. I also include The Tower.. hitting rock bottom and everything comes crashing down in order to start over. The other card I see is Temperance.. it is about moderation and balance and healing.