Gilded Tarot

XV - THE DEVIL

Intriguing, powerful, compelling; what a dangerous and attractive figure this is. The mask, while adding the mysterious allure, warns us that this man is hiding something. He wears a pentacle, giving a hint of his earthiness and sensual pleasures. However, because his eyes are blinded, he pursues these pleasures blindly, without consideration for anything else. He is obsession, bondage, and destructive practices. He is what happens - what we can become - when our lives go very badly out of balance.
The message of the Devil is a warning, a cautionary tale. If Temperance is perfect balance perfectly expressed, the Devil is imperfect balance recklessly pursued. Anything in the extreme - eating, working, sexual activity, exercising - leads to an unbalanced life. Take heed and moderate your behavior. Keep watch for obsessions in your life. Do not let any belief or practice overshadow all other aspects of your life or your responsibilities to yourself and others.
Be aware of being so afraid of pleasures out of fear of addiction that you repress or deny all desires, even healthy ones.