The Death Archetype in Dreams (and why it’s not about dying)
Image from the Occult Encyclopedia showing depictions of the Death card from four different Tarot decks.
Most people recoil at the Death card in a tarot reading.
A key Archetype card in the Major Arcana, number XIII (13), it usually depicts actual death. And in the West, people are taught to fear death. In tarot, in dreams, and in life, it signals THE END. It signals loss, grief and pain.
But what if it isn’t here to take from us?
What if it’s here to give us a gift?
As a tarot reader, the Death card and the corresponding Death archetype have given me pause for thought many times.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how/where/when the Death card shows up in readings. It’s always during transitions - children moving out of home, redundancies, burnouts, breakups, breakthroughs, and marking the end of a cycle.
It’s a shedding of a skin that no longer fits.
It’s the falling away of safety that has become a cage.
It’s the uncomfortable liminal space before the new reveals itself.
It’s never a surprise, and it’s sometimes a relief.
Like a caterpillar turning to goo before emerging from the cocoon as a butterfly, it’s natural and inevitable - anything else would be keeping you in limbo, stuck, in some kind of half state. And even if you WANT to keep things how they are, you can’t. Death won’t let you. Death is here to help you move forward, to usher in change.
Death isn’t about dying. It’s about evolving.
So what is the Death Archetype?
I’m glad you asked.
1. What is the Death Archetype?
Jungian: Jung viewed death as an Archetype ‘which seeks to add itself to our own individual life in order to make it whole.” (Jung, C. G. (1989). Memories, dreams, reflections. New York, NY: Vintage Books). Life and death could be understood to be in balance as equal parts of a complete human existence. Death itself is seen as a transition or transformation, an inevitable and integral part of the life cycle, not something that takes away or is to be feared.
Tarot: Death signifies the natural end of something, in order to bring in the new. It may feel painful or uncomfortable, but change is the only way you can grow and find freedom. You can be reassured that you have the chance to begin again.
Astrology associations: Scorpio, Pluto, transformation, decomposition, surrender
Reflect: What symbolic death have I experienced/am I experiencing? What have I let go of, and what has it allowed me to invite in? Think about key transitions in your life, ego death, cyclical endings, losing parts of identity and self.
2. Death symbols in dreams that don’t mean death (and ones that do)
From around age 12, I experienced recurring dreams where someone was trying to kill me. The dream usually ended at the inevitable moment - their knife scraping my skin as I woke up with a jolt.
Actual death in a dream often represents a loss of a part of self. The manner of death is significant: is someone trying to kill you in the dream? Is it an accident? Are there (symbolic) tools or weapons involved? Does the death actualise?
Conversely, symbols that may represent thoughts of actual death could be crumbling houses, floods, breaking glass, disappearing people, being lost, running out of time, funerals, suitcases/packing, unexpectedly empty rooms
Feelings to notice: fear, relief, grief, curiosity
Reflect: What in this dream was trying to end? What no longer served its purpose? What am I clinging to, and what could I let go of?
3. Tarot: How to interpret the Death card (in a positive way)
The Death tarot card is full of symbolism associated with endings, transitions, and faith in a higher power. In the traditional Ryder-Waite-Smith deck, we see:
A skeleton figure on a white horse, unarmed, but in a knight’s armour (representing Death itself, or the Grim Reaper). Together the black armour of the figure and the white horse depict a perfect balance, the yin-yang of the life cycle.
Death holds a black flag with a white flower, specifically a Tudor Rose - representing beauty, purification, and immortality.
The horse steps over a fallen King laying on the ground without his crown, symbolising humility, loss of mortal power, and showing us that we are all equal in the face of Death.
Two young children kneel in front of the figure, representing innocence, new beginnings, their supplicatory gestures indicating both vulnerability and submission to what is inevitable.
A religious figure (dressed as a bishop, representing God or a divine higher power in a mortal body) appears to be fearless, even welcoming - he appears enlightened, and raises his hands to the figure in a gesture that shows spiritual acceptance.
In the background, we see water and a ship in the left corner, a symbol of the idea of Death as a ferryman, guiding the transition to a new place or state. The water is choppy, showing a heightened and perhaps unpredictable emotions surrounding this transition.
On the right, a gateway of two towers reveals a sunrise or a glow from heaven, showing peace, new beginnings and hope ahead.
What it asks of us: release, trust, transformation
Reflect: Use my free one-line Tarot Meanings download to do your own tarot spread, and consider how the meaning of the Death card changes when considering the other cards placed around it.
4. How the Death archetype shows up in life
Key life transitions: leaving school and starting university, changing jobs, moving house, ending relationships, shifting relationships with a parent or family member, becoming a parent, children leaving home.
Key changes in self: illness, surgery, loss of limbs or use of limbs, loss of physical aspects (such as hair turning grey or losing hair), perimenopause and menopause, traumatic event leading to fragmentation of self or loss of a ‘part’ of self.
Burnout: Shutdown, breakdown, breakthrough, depression, existential fatigue
Astrological events: Full moon leading to New Moon; Eclipse season, Solar New Year, Lunar new year.
5. Soft ways to work with the Death archetype
Journal prompts:
What part of you is asking to be released?
What’s dying so something else can live?
What would it feel like to surrender instead of resist?
Ritual to try:
You can set intentions and create a simple (but powerful) ritual with just some paper, a pen and a candle. On a piece of paper, write down what you want to let go of that is no longer serving you, then what you want to invite in. Read the words aloud to yourself. Light a candle (black or white is ideal) and hold the paper in the flame (carefully) until the words burn away. Say to yourself ‘it is done’ or ‘and so it is’.
Practices:
Dreamwork: before going to sleep, invite your mind to give you a symbol of what's ready to end. When you wake up from a dream, write down a sentence, a feeling, words or images you remember to capture the significance of what was revealed.
Tarot card reading to gain insight and advice for difficult transitions and endings (let me know if you’d tips on spreads to use or questions to ask)
Somatic movement is incredibly powerful for helping move feelings through your body when you’re having difficulty processing a transition. Look for dedicated somatic movement classes, 5Rhythms dance, breathwork or even certain types of yoga or pilates classes.
In summary:
The Death archetype asks us to have faith in what’s next for us.
It teaches us to shed our skin without knowing what’s underneath yet. To allow it to be revealed.
And when we do… we make space for transformation and liberation, for the unexpected, and for our authentic self.
This post was originally published on Substack. See the original post here.
