Today is the last day of sharing a tarot card for the A to Z Challenge. Wheel of Fortune is card ten.
In Buddhist thought, there is the concept of impermanence. This states that everything that exists is always changing, in every moment. Therefore, we must embrace the groundlessness of our existence and realize there is no reference point to which we may cling. I find the Wheel of Fortune carries the same message. We are creatures left to the mercies of the fates. There is nothing we control. Even when it seems we have achieved a level of certainty, it is all an illusion. Whatever truth we think we have discovered on our journey so far, even as the hermit who studies and contemplates so diligently, is fraught with illusion.
The image of this card is based on an illustration of a hieroglyph by Athanasius Kirchner circa 1666 CE. It is related to a quote by Horapollo, an Egyptian of the 5th century CE: “If they wish to represent the universe, they draw a snake scattered with bright scales, swallowing its own tail: the flakes indicate the stars of the universe. Each year it divests itself of its skin, the old time. And the consumption of its own body indicates that all things in the world which may be produced by divine providence in the world, also succumb to decay.” All things change. Birth becomes death becomes birth. The cycle continues. The wheel turns.
This is a humbling card. It reminds us to be grateful for the things we have, because anything, even our life, may be taken from us at any moment.
Keywords upright: Fate, groundlessness, impermanence, good luck
Keywords reversed: Overconfidence, clinging to the illusion of control, bad luck
You can find other A to Z Challenge blogs here.
Suicidal Tulip 
I think that of all the cards you have portrayed so far, this would be one of the most unnerving to pick. Which makes me think I’ve got something I need to think about where chance is concerned. Melanie’s Stories
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