Death
Death signals an inevitable ending that clears space for new beginnings, urging you to prepare rather than resist. It represents necessary pruning — letting go of people, places, or parts of yourself so growth can continue. This card often indicates deep transformation, whether personal shedding, a major life transition, or a fundamental shift in a relationship. It reminds you to grieve losses but to release fully so you can move forward. Death is rarely literal; it more commonly symbolizes endings like leaving a job or graduating that pave the way for your next phase.
Keywords
XIII. DEATH
Planetary Correspondence
Pluto
Meaning
Key Questions
What are you ready to let go of? What must be destroyed to create your best life?
Overview
Death is usually not the most welcome card in a tarot deck, yet it is an inevitability. All beginnings require an ending. Death cannot be resisted, but when you know it's coming you are empowered to prepare for its arrival.
Creative Necessity
Like all cards containing the number 3, Death is a card of creative necessity—something must be pruned, plucked, or excised so you can continue to grow. This could be a person, a place, or a part of you. When Death is pulled as a personal card, you may be shedding your skin. Take time to grieve, then embrace this new part of your life. When Death refers to another in your life, you're being warned that the relationship will experience a bone-deep transformation.
Examples and Advice
This is not always a parting of ways or a passing away. Instead, you may be leaving a job that shaped your career or graduating from school. Be certain to release whatever you must in its entirety so that you are ready to move forward.
Visual Description
A turquoise skeleton striding across a pink, flower-dotted landscape holds a large black-handled scythe. Rosettes and leafy vines crawl over and around the bones, and small stars speckle the white sky. A crescent moon hangs in the upper left and the border at the bottom bears the inscription "XIII LA MORT."
Rainbow tarot
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