What was the name of that 1960's TV series based on James Thurber's characters?... I believe it was called:  "My World and Welcome To It".  Well, our ancient teachers came up with a similar title characterization when they named the final card of the Major Arcana... (XXI) THE WORLD.  They were welcoming you to your world, as it will appear in the not too distant future. An advanced look at your future world, the realm of your final spiritual conquest.  They've provided us with a pre-vision of our consciousness reveling in its "most excellent" victory over the powers of past negative programming, controlling subconscious urges and self destructive desires. For most of us it is still an earnest work-in-progress, but none-the-less remains our ultimate quest and greatest aspiration.

  Before we speak more about the importance this final archetype (Card XXI) plays within the Supernal scheme of things, let's take a closer look at some of the action/interaction illustrated in the card... those elements supporting and contributing to this final state of bliss (our arrival into the fabled land of Cosmic Consciousness). 

  First of all, notice that the central figure appears to be female engaged in a light-hearted dance.  Dance yes, but female... no.  The central figure is your unified consciousness (having blended and synthesized both the conscious-masculine and subconscious-feminine minds into one) appearing as an androgynous being dancing to the rhythms of life. 

  Our world is filled with seemingly unexpected events.  Some to our liking, some distasteful.  For one who has finally integrated his or her perceptions and understanding of life and its polarized energies, living within these life rhythms becomes an accepted reality.  They provide an ever-changing kaleidoscopic dance of opportunities and choices that are guided by an all-seeing deity who knows and is ever ready to direct our feet along our next path of action.  As perfected consciousness we accept this reality and are willingly guided by our direct connection to the Divine meditative consciousness.  Self-oriented reasoning and rationale will have finally taken their rightful back seat... choices are made strictly for the benefit of the whole and for the Universal good.

  In our previous card (JUDGEMENT - XIX) we saw how the three central figures (Man-self conscious mind, Woman-subconscious mind and child-the reborn self) merged and were resurrected as one, into the integrated consciousness of the WORLD card.  As resurrected consciousness your future being lives in the WORLD, but is not controlled by the pressures, forces, compulsions or tensions of its alternating 3rd dimensional polarities.  In other words, in the WORLD, but not controlled by its forces and phenomena.

  Now, take a look at the FOUR figures in the corners of the card. They represent first, the FOUR elements of the earth (Air, Water, Earth and Fire), the FOUR directions in space (East, West, North, South), the FOUR fixed astrological signs (Man/Aquarius-Air, Eagle/Scorpio-Water, Lion/Leo-Fire and Bull/Taurus-Earth) and the FOUR suits of the Tarot as well as the FOUR suits of the deck of 52 playing cards (Wands/Fire are Clubs), (Cups/Water are Hearts), (Swords/Air are Spades) and (Pentacles/Earth are Diamonds). 

  Each of these FOUR elements comprises the substance of our Earth, our bodies and our World.  They produce the natural phenomena affecting us everyday, are the elements or forces controlling our daily lives and are the structural forces without which we would not exist.  Each is stationed in a separate corner of the card to symbolize their importance in providing stability and containment to our world.  They are fixed qualities and principles that keep our planet Earth and its residents from hurdling into space.  Our perfected consciousness in the center dances free of their controlling pulls and attractions since it has attained spiritual singularity.  This is illustrated by its apparent dance in mid-air, levitating in a suspended state between the tensions and opposing energies of the four corners.  Our perfected self has attained what is called freedom or perfect control over its being, the gravitational forces of our physical domain and the ego driven needs to satisfy the self.  This control was earned by learning the lessons of each of the previous 21 cards of the Major Arcana and through rigid discipline as it put them into daily action. The wreath which surrounds our future being represents the vast entirety of the Universe and all the Laws of Nature. 

  The perfected being can move, act and execute any and all divine powers, as long as the Laws of Nature are followed and obeyed.  The dancer's powers and abilities are executed through the use of the two wands held in each hand.  They conduct electrical force fields which represent the proper use of the positive pole (conscious mind) and the negative pole (subconscious mind).  With these she maintains a balanced suspension between the tensions and extremes of each polarity.  A secret process developed through lifetimes of disciplined effort to control the urges of the mind and passions.  The red ribbons (forming the crossed "x") at the top and bottom of the wreath symbolize the unending flow of creative solar fire (Fohat) that moves out from God's mind perpetuating all of creation with its Divine creativity.  These "X's" are called lemniscates or figure "8's" representing the beginning of Gods creative force connecting with itself in an unending and unbroken continuum of power. 

  We've come a long way since THE FOOL card as we witnessed our soul's descent from God's Divine world of perfection into the material/physical world of 3rd dimensional polarity.  We've learned within each card, just how to manage the energies of the physical plane and then how to administer spiritual law while living in a dense cellular body.  Finally, after many tests, failures and second chances we saw how through discipline and right choice, we could reach the final state of human perfection.  Finally, in THE WORLD card we see the fruits of our efforts as we co-exist and work with God to maintain this spiritual balance throughout eternity.  Our human destiny or role within God's plan (since Adam and Eve) is to assist Nature in the cultivation and perfection of all forms of matter on the Earth.  It's only by attaining a perfected state as shown in THE WORLD, that this can happen.  It's up to us now.