Death

This card is one that is often misinterpreted one way or another but is one of the most positive cards to see in the upright position. Upright the card speaks of a time for transformation where the old makes way for the new.
In reverse the card warns of faulty planning and that fate is taking over.

Mourning Ravens

Ravens aren’t the most uncommon sight as I have learnt. They are able to live well in urban areas and on occasion it is quite possible to get close to one or two. As ravens have taken to the urban environment, so have the risks of being within one.

Sadly, a part of life in an urban environment is being careful with vehicles. It is not even uncommon for birds to accidently not get out of the way of a vehicle in time, and sadly today it seems to have happened to a raven.

Upon a street light a number of ravens were upon a street light cawing, even with one or two with their wings extended. It was as if they were mourning the death of a fellow raven killed by a vehicle on the road, although just safety upon a street light where they would unlikely be disturbed by walking pedestrian or vehicle. The ravens were loud with their cawing and constant, a thing which catches your attention. A sight that may not be rare, but it remains unusual and thought provoking.

Osama bin Laden Dead

As happy as I am to be able to say that I bought a couple pineapples and avocadoes not only to eat but also to try to grow, there is always something much more exciting to tell of.  In this case it is of the death of Osama bin Laden.

Although a persons death isn’t usually what one would call good news, it is such a story that is of great news to many. The demise of such a man hasn’t caused people around me to show much excitement. Glad to hear it, yes, show how glad they are for bin Laden’s death? No. Maybe it is the nature of bin Laden’s death and how it could cause retaliation, maybe the fact that life won’t change much because of it.

Hades, Santa Muerte and Yen-Lo-Wang

Many fear it, many like me find it interesting. When you look at different cultures you can see how views about death and the afterlife is different, even with individual people there are many views with death. Death is something that nobody can escape and there is countless symbols for it such as of a human skull. Over the years there has been many cults to death gods and there are three who have caught my attention that highly relate to death.

There is Hades, child of Cronus and Rhea. A god who was feared to a point that people didn’t say his name and it is said to know Hades is to be dead. Hades is the eldest brother out of his siblings. When the Olympians defeated the Titans and took control, there was to be a new order that would forever determine the power structure of the gods. In Ancient Greek law there was a law that told that the eldest son should get the biggest share, but Zeus, Poseidon and Hades draw lots.  Hades draws the shortest straw which gave him the power over the underworld instead of being the ruler of the universe or the seas.
The underworld is named after Hades himself and it is well known to have several sections. In Hades, there are three places one can go, the Asphodel Meadows, a place of ordinary souls are sent, the second is of Elysium, this is the resting place of the souls of the heroic and the virtuous. There is a place where those who offended the gods go, this is the third place to be sent; Tartarus, a place so associated with the Christian Hell it gets mentioned in the New Testament in 2 Peter (2:4: “For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but threw them down into Tartarus and delivered them to be kept in chains…”). Some translations of the Bible however simply call Tartarus ‘hell’.

Santa Muerte, Saint Death, “Our Little White Girl”, is of much worship today and its cult is much condemned by the Catholic Church in Mexico. She is said to wear a white robe and of skeletal appearance, often carrying a globe and a scythe. Santa Muerte apparently has over two million worshippers who offer her incense, food, flowers, and even cigarettes and cigars. Sadly, many associate the worship of Saint Death with doing criminal work.

The god of death and the ruler of the Fifth Court of Feng-Du (realm of the dead with all of the levels of Hells), Yen-Lo-Wang, was the formerly the King of the First Court of Hell but was accused of leniency. The Jade Emperor put another King of Hell in charge of judgement while putting Yen-Lo-Wang to the Fifth Hell. Yen-Lo-Wang is however not just in charge of what goes on in the Fifth Hell (gouging and boiling), but he himself rules over the whole of Feng-Du. Interestingly, the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Sun Wukong, wiped his name out along with names of all the other monkeys known to him in the Book of Life and Death which granted them immortality much to Yen-Lo-Wang's displeasure.

I, personally, am interested in death and it has captivated my mind for some years now, nor am I a stranger to it anymore as I have came across death time and time again through not only animal form but plant life, too.

Death And Ghosts

Death is an unavoidable part of life and the fact that a life has ended also puts parents of young children to explain death. To many people, death is something to fear, to be frightened of, but it truly isn’t. Death itself has always been around and will always been around.


One thing that has been spotted time and time again throughout history is ghosts. There are many ghost stories to tell from this modern world and many more pop up. Ask a classroom of high school students for ghost stories of their own to which you are likely to get at least one story from a small class. Even I can tell of a ghost or two. Ghosts themselves can be found culture to culture, and many have given much respect to the deceased through from just funeral rites to ancestor worship. Some people claim that a ghost have given them a message or to have seen a ghost or ghosts of animals.

There are also hungry ghosts, those who come back from the afterlife for whatever reason (such as lack of food or water) and are said to feed on peoples fear and energies. Offerings to help these ghost survive in the next life is said to get rid of hungry ghosts. Recently the Hungry Ghost Festival was celebrated on August 24, a Chinese festival honouring the dead and ancestors. There is also the Day of the Dead coming up in a couple months which is another day to honour the dead. Both days are a reminder of how life is not eternal, but both great days to celebrate but also to teach children about death.

Death and ghosts are both subjects that are interesting, both something to study. Many have their opinions of their own. Some do think ghosts do exist, some don’t. Some have ghost stories, others don’t. People claim a certain thing about the afterlife, but many people have many differing ideas of what when one dies.