Let’s compare the Seven of Wands!
The Seven of Wands is the a card of keeping on the path, to keep going. The Seven of Wands appear in the middle of the journey through the Suit of Wands, and it is a sign to keep going through the challenges. On the left, in the Santa Muerte deck, we see a dark forest, with tall looming trees; a place that is not welcoming to stop and rest. On the right, in the Tarot of the Divine deck, we see a strong man, pounding railroad spikes into the stone.
The legend on John Henry, as portrayed in this card, is an American folktale. If you are unfamiliar with this tall-tale, it’s about an African-American man, who works for the railroad, laying railroad lines. One day, a machine is brought in to lay rails and dig through a mountain, in an effort to replace the man-labor with machines. John Henry fights the machine by working much harder than it, digging through the mountain himself and laying the rail-line through the mountain. He succumbs to exhaustion on the other side, dying, but his point is made to the railway company. This essential American folktale tells of the hard-work and drive of American people, and the inherent urge of some Americans to fight the machine, metaphorical and literal. Here is a link regarding the identity of John Henry and whether he was real or not, from the Virginia Museum of History and Culture.
This card comes as a sign that the work that has been done is not done yet. It is a sign to keep working. Both cards bring this message to us in different ways however; for the Santa Muerte card, we see a place that warns against stopping, an omen. In the Tarot of the Divine, we see a figure of determination and hope, showing that by finishing this hard work, a well-earned rest will come and a lasting impact will be made.
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