black tarot · major arcana VII
The Chariot in the Black Tarot
Victory at any cost, motion with the question 'where to' forbidden.
Portrait of the shadow
The Black Chariot races magnificently — sparks off the wheels, the crowd gasps. One question is banned on board: where. The driver stopped steering long ago — he is holding on; the sphinxes of his fate pull toward what he is afraid to look at, and the speed exists precisely for that: at this speed you can't see that the view never changes. His victories are real, the trophies heavy — only the shelf he puts them on stands in a house where nobody lives. The Chariot's shadow is vector swapped for magnitude: no amount of 'faster and further' adds up to 'there'. The way out insults a champion: stop. In the stillness you can hear which races were escapes — and see the one road with nobody to overtake, because it is yours.
The trap
Speed has replaced direction: what matters is overtaking. People divide into fellow travellers and obstacles, and fellow travellers convert quickly.
The shadow in love and at work
In love: A partner as crew: useful while pulling her way.
At work: Goals for goals' sake, a burnt-out team behind the triumphant one.
The way out
Stop for one day and ask: where do I arrive, if I arrive?