Story

He knew somehow that he was nearing the end of his journey. He had grown and matured; his inner voice told him he was very close to finding the wisdom and the inner peace he sought.

His mind preoccupied, he was strolling along the river that ran through this beautiful city when two policemen stopped him. One of them handed him an official looking brown envelope, stamped and sealed. He tore the it open and took out the folded piece of paper. It was an order summoning him to court to face charges but there was no other explanation. “It must be a mistake,” he thought. He had no idea why anyone would want to sue him and he realized the only way he could find out was by actually going to the court.

When he walked into the courtroom, he felt the weight of several accusing eyes on him — a truly uncanny feeling, almost physical. As soon as a somber faced bailiff directed him to his place, the judge began to speak with a booming voice.

The judge informed the jury that the defendant had set upon his journey a long time ago without taking the required permissions. Everyone in the courtroom, including members of the jury, seemed shocked at this outrageous act.

He felt like laughing at this charade — this was stupid, unbelievable. Whose permission did he require and why? He tried to address the judge but the older man rudely interrupted him, making it clear that he was the one asking questions in this courtroom.

“Did you or did you not take permission? This is the issue here.”
“Of course, I did not!” he replied. Where on earth would you need to take permission to set upon a journey? This was ridiculous and getting even more so by the minute.
“Let the record show that the accused admitted his guilt,” declared the judge with a satisfied expression on his face. “What say the Jury?”
“This whole thing must be some kind of sick camera joke,” he thought as the members of the jury walked out to deliberate their decision.

The jury returned fifteen minutes later. Their spokesperson stood up and read the guilty verdict against him. He was now convinced that this was indeed big joke and everyone in the courtroom was on in it. He had to give it to them, though; they were all playing their part admirably. But he was getting a little uneasy, too. OK, the joke was fine — though not very funny in his opinion — and some people must have taken a kick out of it but enough was enough. It had to end now.

The judge spoke again. Despite the guilty verdict, he said, the defendant would not serve time because there was a statue of limitations on his crime. He was free to go. He sounded like he truly regretted this but law was law and even guilty scum like him had their rights.
He turned and began to walk out of the courtroom, still expecting someone to jump from behind a secret door and announce that the joke was on him.
No one did.

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Tarot Interpretation

At number 20, Judgement will reopen past cases, and push ajar the door of freedom, along with the acceptance of the sentence it has passed.

Although he sensed that he was close to the end of the road, and was full of the inspiration provided by the Sun, something prevented the Fool from progressing and turning the last corner. The Fool was being held back a pair of invisible hands on gripping his collar, and for him to take the next step, this grip had to be released…

As certain things are completed, it is highly probable that you will come across the Judgement card. A wall appears when you are very close to your spiritual and/or physical target, when there is a very short distance for you to reach your pinnacle. The bricks of this wall come from your past. Certain people and events you have rejected, avoided and ignored have secretly accompanied you this far.

The time is right to face the past. Whatever it is that is preventing you from progress is awakening, and coming to life. All the wounds you covered up are now, in front of your very eyes, demanding to be reopened, and healed properly.

If you want to continue, you must bring your soul peace. You must forgive the ones you have not yet, shed your harmful habits, and graciously accept all past memories that continue to awaken poisonous emotions such as anger, regret or worry. No good can be achieved by force, you must let certain people and things go. And you must also seek peace with those you have caused harm. Only such tolerance will allow you to put the final piece of the puzzle in place.

Thus, you are at a crossroads where you have to make a decision: You will either cling to the past and reject change, or ask for your sins to be forgiven, and progress. The Judgement card will give you the necessary courage for emancipation.

The Judgement card tells the person who draws the card to accept past mistakes in order to open a new page. Salvation will be possible when the necessary lesson is learned. The ruling planet of the card is Pluto, the God of the underground in mythology, and the planet of life and death, beginnings and ends and the unknown.

Once you accept and make peace with the courage provided by the Judgement card, you put your past behind you and start with a clean slate, embracing the new with your conscience at ease. Past events and people that play on your mind make it difficult for you to see the bigger picture, and it is difficult to remain balance when you only look at the details. Yet, as the pieces fall into place, you awaken as you see that both good and bad form part of a meaningful whole. So begins the healing and regeneration. You shall see that an age comes to an end, and a new age begins.

However, as you go over the past, you should not become mired in regret and guilt. The past is in the past; you cannot go back and change it. If there is a mistake, or a regret that is gnawing at you inside; the only thing you can do is to accept the mistake, take the lesson, and move on. Do not destroy yourself in the name of settling accounts. If you do not have the strength to face the past alone, do not hesitate to seek the help of someone who can act as your guide.

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