This is a bit like the Death card in the Tarot – there is no need to fear the Underworld for it is a place for change, transformation, and sometimes cleansing before starting something new. Take time to consider what you need to transform your life and what needs to change.
THE UNDERWORLD – Where all things pause and begin again
Another realm, shadow filled
Travel from death’s bed
Where we stop and transform
Within the realm of the dead
The idea of the Underworld, a whole realm that we go to after we die, is a concept that crosses a huge variety of cultures and eras. The Sumerians, the Turkish, the Incas, the Greeks through to the Siberians, the Maori and the Kymers – all had a distinct word for the Underworld. What is different though is how these cultures treat this concept – whether the Underworld is seen as a place of rest and rejuvenation or horror and punishment.
The Christian hell is a place of darkness, fire, and punishment. The Egyptian underworld is one of judgment, peace, and renewal. In Maori culture, it is an in-between place of waiting, wisdom, and transition. Many myths that mention the underworld often involve the concept of a place of waiting and of trials and eventual judgment. It can also be a place of joy and peace.
Should the Underworld card be present in your reading, you are being asked to consider exactly what you have to do to transform your life into something you find easier or more authentic to you. This may involve changing course. It may involve trials and tests. Keep moving. Whilst things may fall away and your life may appear bare for a time, this is temporary. Space is being made into which you can create the new.
The Halloween Oracle by author Stacey Demarco and artist Jimmy Manton
Parting the Mists 
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