In honor of William Ernest Henley’s poem Invictus, which started me down this road with the line “My head is bloody, but unbowed” and its perfect complement in the Waite-Smith Tarot’s 9 of Wands, I decided to render the entire poem in tarot cards. Although the text is structured in four-line stanzas, the three-card triptych made for a more compelling visual narrative. Once again, the Thoth Tarot’s vivid imagery and evocative titles fit the mood like a glove.

Out of the night that covers me,
The Moon
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
7 of Disks (“Failure”)
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
The Star
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
10 of Wands (“Oppression”)
Under the bludgeonings of chance
Wheel of Fortune
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
9 of Wands (“Strength”)
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
8 of Cups (“Indolence”)
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
Death
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.
7 of Wands (“Valour”)
It matters not how strait the gate,
7 of Swords
How charged with punishments the scroll,
The Priestess
I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.
The Chariot
One of my favourite poems – great idea!
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