What do the various tarot card types represent?
All tarot decks share a few characteristics, despite their vastly different designs. Each one has 78 playing cards, divided into the main and minor arcana. The major arcana, which are the deck’s 22 trump cards, generally allude to bigger influences and disclosures when they are revealed during a reading. These cards stand alone without a suit and represent key occasions or people in a person’s life.
In contrast, the minor arcana refer to influences and issues that are more commonplace. Wands, swords, pentacles, and cups make up the four suits that these 56 cards are divided into. (Occasionally, tarot decks will use different terminology, such as “Pentacles for coins, but they are exact equivalents to the four original divisions.) A different aspect of life is symbolized by each costume. Wands typically represent imagination and passion, swords intelligence, pentacles work and wealth, and cups emotion. Additionally, each suit is associated with a certain set of astrological signs, such as wands being associated with fire, swords with air, pentacles with earth, and cups with water.
Since we’re beginners, the meanings you’ll most frequently refer to are the functional definitions, albeit these meanings can be used when cards symbolize people and their zodiac signs. For example, a three-card spread with three pentacle cards strongly denotes a financial concern. (More on the various spreads will follow.)
There are a few conventions that apply to most tarot readings, though most of this depends on the deck’s owner and what seems appropriate to them. If you’re reading cards for someone else, you should ask them to provide you with a question or suggest something they’re interested in, and keep that question in mind while you shuffle the deckalso referred to as “removing the effects of earlier research and readings. (An illustration would be, “When will I discover love?” Am I pursuing the correct career? “How can I get through my block?
Then you could query the person you are reading for (also known as “again concentrating on their inquiry, the querent) to trim the deck. Although some readers will cut the deck for the querent, we prefer this option since it gives the querent a chance to feel linked to the deck personally. In any case, you will draw the necessary number of cards for your spread and, if you’re reading for yourself, place them between you and the querentor directly in front of you.
In This Article...
What do swords in tarot cards mean?
According to Vanderveldt, the Swords in tarot represent the element of air, which has to do with our honesty, discernment, communication, thinking, intelligence, and mental activity. Kings, on the other hand, stand for “our societal obligation and the highest expression of a certain element,” in this case air.
In light of this, she continues, the King of Swords urges us to exhibit “leadership, development, and expression, by sharing our experiences, taking aligned action, and bringing people together.”
What do the tarot card suits represent?
Wands, batons, or rods are used for clubs; cups are used for hearts; swords are used for spades; and coins, pentacles, or disks are used for playing cards (diamonds). 4 court cards make up each suit. 10 numbered cards, a king, queen, knight, and jack. The value sequence in each suit is from aces to ten, followed by jacks, knights, queens, and kings (though the ace is sometimes assigned a high value, as in modern playing cards).
In Tarot, are wands and batons interchangeable?
The Minor Arcana, which consists of the Minor Arcana’s four suits, includes the Suit of Wands. The wands suit of the tarot has fourteen cards, including the ace (number one), the numbers two through ten, the pages and knights (also known as princess and prince), the queen, and the king. The suit of Wands correlates to the suit of Batons in the Tarot card games that are played throughout most of Europe. Tarot cards came to be used mostly for divination in English-speaking nations where the games are little recognized.
In Tarot, are wands and spears interchangeable?
The 56 minor cards in the tarot provide additional insight into one’s daily life by offering perspectives to think about and actions to take to resolve conflicts, seize chances, and accomplish goals. It relies, like with any reading, on the problem you’re trying to solve and how you interpret the cards you’ve been dealt.
We’ll instead examine each suit of the minor arcana and just touch on a select few of the details contained in the Game of Thrones deck because conducting 56 analysis would be an enormous undertaking.
One of the four elements is paired with each minor arcana suit:
- Spears (traditionally used as wands): Fire (the soul): fervor, hunches, dialogue, and action
- Swords: Air (the mind): conflict and choices, conflicts on both the inside and the outside
- Cups: Water (emotional): romance, ties, creativity, and interpersonal development
- Coins: Money, structures and security, a dwelling, and rewards on Earth (physically).
Since most of the cards in this suit feature images of spears in their respective numbers, this suit is generally simple to understand. As a result, there isn’t much analysis to be done. There is one noteworthy element, though, and that is how similar the Two and Three of Spears are to one another. As we can see, despite the fact that the characters and card meanings are different, the picture is startlingly similar.
When Daenerys’ card is upright, it depicts the decision to advance or remain stationary. She chose to advance by traveling to Westeros and deciding to take part in the fight against the White Walkers. The Two of Spears, however, foretells an unstable alliance when it is reversed. One wonders what exactly is in store for Daenerys in light of this as well as the parallels between Daenerys and Littlefinger, the latter of whom was betrayed by his allies (however flimsy that alliance was) when the Starks heard of his past atrocities.
The imagery may just be a coincidence, but for now, take from it what you will.
The designs of this deck are representative of this suit’s reputation as the most violent. Swords, which has air as its element, is characterized by blood and combat. A few examples include Bran giving up Winterfell to Theon, Locke capturing Brienne, Grey Wind at the Red Wedding, and the location of Jon’s death at Castle Black.
The Son of the Harpy, Ramsay Bolton, Cersei Lannister, and the Night King are among the individuals who use violence and take pleasure in it on the court, which is appropriate given the cruelty of the case.
Compared to Spears, this costume is associated with a lot more personalities. Sam and Cersei also make an appearance, but the Starks make the best use of the Cups costume, possibly because their emotional bonds with one another better capture the concept. Togetherness, love, nostalgia, and the future are all major themes in the suit, all of which offer a positive outlook for the family.
The way Sansa and Jon conduct themselves as the Queen and King of Cups speaks volumes about both their distinct personalities and their bond as the guardians of Winterfell. These personalities are both sensitive to their emotions and use their empathy for others for the sake of all, whether they embrace or reject them. These cards’ reversed meanings suggest internal conflicts and emotional tiredness while urging open communication, which has been a recurring topic in Jon and Sansa’s time together since their reconciliation.
The connections between Thrones and Coinssuch as Arya’s Braavosi coin, “A Lannister always pays their debts,” an Iron Bank official, Joffrey and Margaery’s expensive wedding, and financial backers Olenna Tyrell and Petyr Baelishappears straightforward enough, but they are all compatible with the corresponding cards.
The focus on incentives, gifts, and a sense of comfort and home can be found in the details, even if money is undoubtedly at the forefront of each card. This is especially evident in The Nine of Coins, which shows Daenerys and Drogon in Qarth: She has discovered a sense of fulfillment with her dragons and her own objectives, as shown by the card’s upright stance. However, as indicated by the reversed card, Daenerys also deals with money problems as she mulls over whether to accept Xaro Xhoan Daxos’ proposition. When his dishonesty is exposed, she ultimately imprisons him.
Each court’s holders are listed below:
The remaining monarchy is as follows because about half of this cast has passed away:
Now, just as we shouldn’t rely on tarot to predict our futures, we shouldn’t anticipate that this specific deck would predict any Game of Thrones plot points. However, it does offer instruments for introspectionor in this case, speculationjust as the tarot is intended to.
The two kings have a clear animosity for one another, but might we anticipate the emergence of a war of the three queens in season 8 as well? If we assume that only one king will win, then one queen may also do so, as their cards and corresponding aspects point to their contrasts in temperament and leadership.
The deck’s final evaluation: Even if some characters are deeply missed Overall, the Game of Thrones tarot card offers fascinating insights into many of the surviving characters and their storylines, including Catelyn, Robb, Theon, Margaery, and Oberyn, to name just a few. The handbook is extensive enough for seasoned tarot readers to enjoy, even when we are familiar with all the rules, and the artwork is exquisite. It is also instructive enough to make tarot beginners comfortable without overwhelming them.
What do wands in tarot mean?
As a symbol of our soul, creativity, energy, and willpower, the wand suit in tarot corresponds to the fire element, according to psychic medium and tarot reader Meghan Rose. “Wands in the tarot might point us toward circumstances including rivalry, development, ambition, strength, and a desire for power.”
What do swords stand for?
The swords stand in for the mind and the heart, which are invariably the victims of this treatment. Avoidance is represented by the four swords. putting issues (the swords on the wall) to one side and pleading for deliverance. This card may also be used to denote submission or, in some instances, pacifism.
What kind of religion are tarot cards?
Tarot cards are frequently cited as a component of New Age thought and practice along with astrology, aspects of Buddhism, paganism, and First Nations teachings in the eclectic scholarly approach to the New Age.
What number of tarot cards do you draw?
Howe advises to be calm and believe in your own agency if this sounds daunting. “In order to see it less as “This holds all of these secret meanings that I have to do all this work to access” and more as “I know all the meanings; it’s just a matter of establishing the connections and being able to articulate them,” use language or knowledge that you already possess. She points out that the four elementsearth, water, fire, and airplay a significant role in the tarot, which is advantageous because the majority of people already have an understanding of the meanings of each element. ” If you do that, your viewpoint will be more personal, and you will be able to express yourself more freely.
Howe suggests the Celtic Cross and the three-card pull as the two fundamental spreads for beginning readers. In the former, three cards are chosen at random from the deck to symbolize the subject’s mind, body, and spirit, or past, present, and future. According to Howe, you could even up the stakes and use a six-card draw, with one card for each location.
Is the Major Arcana sufficient for Tarot reading?
Any Tarot spread, as long as it has fewer than 22 cards, can use the Major Arcana. My advice is to reserve these potent cards for Tarot readings that will have a significant impact on your life.
The Major Arcana cards are known to be connected to universal forces that are present in our lives and frequently represent the most profound lessons in life that we must experience before we can change for the better and go on to the next phase of our lives. We are also aware that certain facets of our psychological and spiritual selves are represented by the Major Arcana cards. Therefore, we must consider these factors when selecting a Tarot spread suitable for the Major Arcana.
For the following kinds of Tarot spreads, think about using the Major Arcana cards:
- Tarot readings that are spiritual or psychological
- Personal development and change readings with tarot cards, like the Sacred Mandala
- Annual projected values
For queries of major significance, you might also want to consult the Major Arcana. The Major Arcana cards, for instance, may be suitable for a straightforward Past/Present/Future spread if the query is, “What lessons in life do I still need to learn? or “What should I understand about myself? Look for inquiries that touch on universal or enduring impacts.