Angels fear to tread where stands the fool
The Fool – The Fixx
But the air is warm and the walls are cool
So I’m kept away so here I’ll stay
Even the judges kneel and pray
I am the winner in any event
Who was the man who said society’s bent
So I’m locked away in my padded cocoon
A square of hell where nightmares bloom
Armageddon couldn’t come too soon
If it only meant that I could leave this room
Here stands the fool
Shuttered Room – 1982
00 The Fool (The Fool)
Who is this nameless man that the Gods should fear him? Why is he locked away? And why did he make that fatal observation? The answers to these questions are best not found in politics or sociology. The Angels and Judges fear him because as a man (person) he has access to ultimate power – himself. Even the Gods know that they cannot completely control the actions of this man.
The Fool is currently locked away because as yet he is not fully in touch with his own potential. But even so, he is aware that there is far more of himself lurking in the shadows of his psyche. Hence the nightmares. It is this beginning of awareness that caused him to observe that life was “bent”. This, of course, means The Fool must now leave the dubious security of his room and go in search of himself.
Our Fool is currently nameless because he represents all mankind as it progresses from a state of ignorance to knowledge and wisdom.
In Tarot The Fool is the first and last card. He both starts and completes the circle or cycle. This is shown in the card by The Fool walking along a road which leads from the mountain peaks and a strange world to the Sun. The strange world is a representation of a perfect balance of the elements or a realm where all things are possible.
This man is also known as The Fool because every choice he can make is foolish. To turn his back upon his world of endless possibilities to enter a mundane world of restriction is foolish. Yet to deny the adventures and growth ahead of himself is equally foolish. The Fool is shown reading an instruction manual for life which means that he is not looking where he is going, and so he is about to fall off a cliff into a new set of adventures. Also, by studying the instruction manual, he hasn’t noticed the wisdom which is part of nature in the form of the four elements – air, fire, water & earth.
- AIR – is the realm of the sky & gasses and relates to the mind in the form of thoughts and ideas.
- FIRE – is the element which gives action to ideas and emotions.
- WATER – is the realm of rivers and seas. It relates to feelings, emotions and the intuition.
- EARTH – is the realm of the land and everything in it. It is through the Earth that actions and objects take form.
Whatever choice The Fool makes will make him foolish, yet he is driven onward by the winds of change – out into the wider (or mundane) world. It is this drive toward learning that will keep him moving so that all his follies can bring him insight and greater self-awareness.
DIVINATORY MEANINGS
New beginning, Awakening of self-awareness, Travel or a journey, Possible foolishness in making of choices, Wanderer, No fixed course of action, Confusion over a choice.