Egipcios Kier * 43 Delusion

The title of this card immediately caught my attention and shaped my expectations, making it difficult to consider alternative interpretations of its symbolism. I've spent two days contemplating this card and have not made any progress.

The central image features a nearly naked woman, running or dancing with her arms raised, hands together, as if ready to dive into water. There’s a clumsiness in the angle of her limbs that suggests she may be intoxicated. She is clothed only in a loin cloth, arm cuffs, bracelets, and a head band, while her feet remain bare. On the wall behind her is a poorly executed image of a musical instrument.

In the upper part of the cartouche, three symbols are present: a geometric figure that resembles two stems each with a bud, a hieroglyph for a ceramic pot or a woven basket, and the Hebrew letter Gimel (ג), symbolizing generosity. The lower portion of the cartouche depicts a mythical creature seemingly more suited to a medieval manuscript than to an ancient Egyptian text.

The title includes an astrological symbol for Neptune, the Latin letter N, and the number seven, a prime number often considered lucky. Neptune, associated with illusion, intoxication, spiritual longing, and emotional escapism, subtly reinforces the card’s themes of confusion and emotional disillusionment.

Initially, nothing in the card spoke to me except for its unsettling title. I fear being deluded, failing to attend to reality diligently, and not taking appropriate action in my life. Gazing at the card, I find myself unable to see beyond the obvious interpretations of its imagery. I wonder, in what part of my life am I deluding myself? Perhaps the appearance of this card was a suggestion that I should get a new perspective.

Stuart Kaplan describes the woman in the card as frenzied and confused, which aligns with the title of the card and my impression of the image. While he does not directly reference the hieroglyph at the top of the card, both pottery and basketry were undoubtedly prevalent in ancient Egyptian society. Does the container suggest the consumption of beer?

According to Kaplan, the object on the wall is a sistrum—a Greek musical instrument with rattling rings on its crossbars. The sistrum, although widely used throughout the Mediterranean, became closely associated with Egyptian religion, ritual, and magic. In ancient art, the sistrum was most frequently depicted with Hathor, a beneficent mother goddess of love and joy. Perhaps the woman is dancing in a temple ritual, with the percussion instrument helping to ward off harmful energies or spirits. The sistrum's presence may hint at a deeper spiritual or mystical aspect to this image, suggesting the woman is not merely in a state of confusion but is engaged in a ritualistic or ecstatic experience, seeking a connection with the divine.

Kaplan speculates that the creature portrayed at the bottom of the cartouche may represent Seth, the god who caused irrationality and lawlessness. Egyptians originally considered Seth a benevolent deity, but later regarded him as the force of death and decay. His domain was the western side of the Nile, and he sought to disrupt the ordered life prescribed by the other gods. Black magicians turned to Seth, harnessing the god's malignant powers against their enemies. Has Seth caused the woman's discordant state?

Kaplan assigns the following meanings to the upright card: delusions, hallucinations, insanity, drunkenness, addiction, irrational moods and actions, outlawry, physical and moral decay, neurotic compulsion, and black magic. In contrast, he assigns the following meanings to the reversed card: recovery from a mental breakdown, abstinence, rigid adherence to rationality, suppression of emotions, and moral struggle. 

Nelise Carbonare Vieira links this card with the Eight of Cups, a card traditionally associated with disillusionment, emotional withdrawal, and the decision to walk away from what once seemed fulfilling. In many decks, the Eight of Cups depicts a solitary figure turning away from neatly arranged cups, under the cover of night, in search of deeper meaning. The Eight suggests emotional exhaustion, escapism, or the painful realization that something is no longer nourishing the soul.

The nearly naked woman may symbolize vulnerability; she has been stripped of illusion, stripped of pretense. Is she running toward intoxication, or away from it? Is she lost, or on the verge of awakening? The sistrum, associated with Hathor’s ecstatic rites, may suggest that spiritual frenzy can blur the line between divine communion and self-deception.

This card captures the unstable threshold between intoxication and clarity. It may represent the moment when illusion becomes unbearable, when we realize we must leave behind a state of confusion, addiction, or emotional stagnation.

Perhaps the woman at the precipice of departure. The frenzy may be the last surge of chaos before withdrawal. The dance may be ending.