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). Four court cards are in each suit. 10 numbered cards, a king, queen, knight, and jack, as well as 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 This Article...
What are the tarot cards supposed to mean?
What do tarot cards generally stand for? As shamans like to say, “medicine around what is happening in your particular orbit: love, money, work, aspirations, and general life path” is what tarot cards are there for.
What are the major tarot cards?
Some of the most recognizable symbols in tarot card decks include The World, The Lovers, The Devil, and The High Priestess, to name just a few. These days, you can even find them on nails. These archetypes, also referred to as the Major Arcana, serve as the foundation for each tarot reading.
What does the 22nd Tarot card mean?
One of the 78 cards in a tarot deck is The Fool. It is one of the 22 Major Arcana in tarot card reading, sometimes denoted by the numbers 0 (the first) or XXI (the last).
What is the name of a deck of tarot cards?
Around 1789, Etteilla was the first to publish a tarot deck created especially for esoteric uses. Etteilla’s tarot included themes pertaining to ancient Egypt, in keeping with the unfounded assumption that such cards were originated from the Book of Thoth.
Esotericists utilize a 78-card tarot deck that is divided into two parts:
- 22 cards without suits make up the Major Arcana (greater mysteries), sometimes known as the trump cards:
- The Magician, The High Priestess, The Empress, The Emperor, The Hierophant, The Lovers, The Chariot, Strength, The Hermit, Wheel of Fortune, Justice, The Hanged Man, Death, Temperance, The Devil, The Tower, The Star, The Moon, The Sun, Judgement, The World, and The Fool are just a few of the characters mentioned. The Fool is the only card in the deck that is not numbered; it is sometimes dealt at the start of the deck as 0 or at the end as XXII. Cards from The Magician to The World are numbered in Roman numerals from I to XXI.
- 56 cards make up the Minor Arcana (lesser secrets), which is divided into four suits of 14 cards each.
- Four court cards and ten numbered cards. The King, Queen, Knight, and Page/Jack in each of the four tarot suits serve as the court cards. The four suits of the classic Italian tarot are swords, batons, coins, and cups; however, in contemporary occult tarot decks, the coins suit is frequently referred to as pentacles or disks, while the batons suit is frequently referred to as wands, rods, or staves.
The words “Major Arcana” and “Minor Arcana” are never used in relation to tarot card games, which follow a different set of rules, and were initially coined by Jean-Baptiste Pitois (also known as Paul Christian). Some decks only exist as works of art, and these decks may only include the 22 Major Arcana.
The Tarot of Marseilles, the Rider-Waite-Smith, and the Thoth tarot decks are the three most popular esoteric tarot decks.
Aleister Crowley, who together with Lady Frieda Harris created the Thoth deck, said the following about the tarot: “This deck of cards has a very hazy history. Some scholars want to date it back to the Mysteries of Ancient Egypt, while others want to move it forward to the fifteenth or possibly sixteenth century. The only notion about the Tarot that is truly intriguing is that it represents the universe admirably and symbolically, using information from the Holy Qabalah.”
Can you interpret tarot cards for yourself?
It’s normal to be a little clumsy when you first start practicing the tarot. Tarot study is similar to learning a new languageit takes time to become proficient. But what happens if you no longer require the booklet and have intimate familiarity with the deck? Are you able to read yourself? No, except for a few rare instances. Simply put, it’s a horrible idea.
You see, the majority of us turn to astrology or tarot when we’re looking for clarity amid a period of ambiguity. In contrast to astrology, which is quite technical, our consciousness restricts our capacity to read tarot cards. Working with your personal interpretation of the cards, you are not constrained by short- and long-term cycles like the planets’ orbits. It might be tricky to go beyond your current circumstances while utilizing the tarot to better understand a trying scenario. Even if all the cards are spread out in front of you, putting them together requires such a broad perspective that it is all but impossible to fully understand the meaning of each card. Basically, any biases you already have will always be reflected in your tarot reading!
Pentacles stand for what?
- The Ace of Coins is pictured as a hand emerging from a cloud clutching a Pentacle or a coin with a five-pointed star on it. Behind is a lovely garden that suggests a lot. It can also be compared to Eden’s Garden. Two mountain peaks can be seen outside the garden, which could symbolize the right and left pillars of the Qabalah. Both result in increased wealth. White flowers in the garden represent innocence, maybe in innocent relationships like Adam and Eve’s friendship before the fall. One of the blossoms has a cross-like shape, maybe signifying self-sacrifice. Since self-sacrifice is the only way to reach heaven, this sacrifice could be as straightforward as passing away naturally. The Ace of Pentacles, like all the Aces, represents a new beginning and something that is being presented. This is frequently a new source of income for someone. Usually, it is additional recurring money of some kind. It can represent fresh chances that bring about greater fortune. The card suggests a change in one’s financial condition for the better, or at the very least, that opportunities exist to do so. It may also indicate increased cash flow as a result of better financial management.
- When upright, the Two of Coins represents juggling, striving in a positive direction, balancing (in fact, juggling and balancing at the same time), and maintaining. Here, the equilibrium is actively being preserved; part of the preservation is self-realized. The card’s reversed meaning refers to imbalances, excessive juggling and struggling, and the card’s advise is to restore equilibrium.
- The Three of Coins has many positive connotations attached to it, including the accomplishment of perfection, the mastering of a skill in trade or job, creative aptitude, and dignity via recognition, status, or authority. When the card is in reverse, negative characteristics include sloppiness that results in a lower-quality output, a lack of expertise, cliched ideas, and obsession with off-task issues.
- The Four of Coins represents a person who loves material wealth and hoards valuable items with no intention of sharing them. The Four of Pentacles, on the other hand, gives a caution against the propensity for being wasteful when it is in reverse.
- The Five of Coins portends a challenging and terrible circumstance, one from which the victims won’t soon be able to escape. The Querent may be ambivalent, mired in uncertainty, and feeling excluded or cut off, but they are nonetheless resolute. The charities and hopes depicted in the cathedral windows are challenging to realize but nonetheless worthwhile. The man on crutches is not immediately apparent to be the right figure’s friend or foe, implying a tense relationship.
- In The Six of Coins, a businessman is shown weighing money on two scales and giving it to people in need and trouble. It represents satisfaction, but it also calls for attention because not every distressed person can be appeased. The card’s reversed meanings include desire, cupidity, envy, jealousy, and illusion.
- The Seven of Coins frequently represents motion.
- In The Eight of Coins, a stone craftsman is seen working on pieces that he displays as trophies. Work, employment, commissions, craftsmanship, business acumen, possibly in the planning stages. These are the meanings associated with divination. persistent patience while keeping success in mind. Ambition, conceit, cupidity, exaction, and usury are reversed. It could also mean having skill in the sense of having an inventive mind that has been bent toward guile and intrigue.
- The Nine of Coins shows an aristocratic woman surrounded by a big estate’s worth of grapevines, most likely signifying a high level of material status. She is wearing a floral-patterned robe, and a hooded falcon is lazily perched on her arm. The ancient sport of falconry was particularly well-liked by historical nobility and kings. Given that falcons are predators, it is likely that the woman is familiar with the money and power that this sport entails and feels at ease with it because she clutches her falcon without any excitement or fear. It is also important to note that the falcon is hooded, which means it is not actively pursuing its prey. This implies that the woman is conscious of her influence yet chooses to restrain it. She is wise because she is aware of her power and knows when and how to use it. She comes across a young snail with a blue shell that is moving across her path. She has no idea that it could be fatally close. Being upright entails having wealth, sophistication, knowledge, and success.
- The Ten of Coins arranges the coins in a tree-like pattern that corresponds to the kabbalistic Tree of Life. It shows an elderly man conversing with a woman while being guarded. It frequently has to do with either family issues, financial issues, or a combination of the two. Some sources link it to wealth or even luxury. It might represent a workplace. This card is referred to as Wealth in the Thoth Tarot deck and is connected to Virgo’s third decan, which is ruled by Venus. Mercury is said to rule Virgo’s second decan, which is said to be ruled by Venus.
- A youthful individual is frequently represented by the Page of Coins.
- The young guy with a dark complexion and features is represented by the Knight of Coins. This mixes the imagery of knights and black completeness, as well as the suit of coins and male adolescents and young adults. The card could also stand for someone who is determined, tenacious, serious, or set in their ways. This card can also be used when a person is struggling with a dilemma where one of those problems is involved, such as when they are debating whether to stick up for themselves in a conflict or not. With the exception of the Knight of Swords, the knights of the tarot represent defense. The Marseilles Tarot and other earlier representations of these Knights were disarmed, but the Rider-Waite deck gave them armor. The Knight of Coins might therefore stand for protecting one’s assets or one’s well-being.
- “Sensual and earthy, she appreciates abundance in many facets of her life,” is how the Queen of Coins is defined. She enjoys luxury and is generous with her fortune. A pregnancy or fertile times are suggested by the Queen of Pentacles. The Queen of Coins, like all court cards, is typically taken to refer to a person who has some significance in the questioner’s life, however it could also symbolize the asker. According to legend, queens stand for mothers, mature ladies, or young women who are wise beyond their years. She can also be a hard worker for material success, a businesswoman, a supporter of the arts, a provider, etc. She is a caring, maternal, down-to-earth individual who is interested in the wellbeing of others, particularly those she looks out for. Dark hair and eyes, a dark complexion, and a strong physique are among the physical traits associated with the suit of coins. In the Reversed version, this Queen disregards her duties while maintaining her persona regardless of the situation.
- The King of Coins shows a wise, experienced adult with significant earthly power; he is typically shown as a diplomatic businessman. The King of Pentacles has a reputation for being frugal. He enjoys receiving material presents and sensuous treats. This man has social prestige and values keeping up with the Joneses highly. On the down side, he could have an ego so enormous that the querent would be foolish to offend him. The image on the card shows a man who may assist the reader in gaining the social and practical understanding necessary to get money or respectability. The occurrence of this card, like the other court cards, could indicate interaction with a person of this great standing. Unless previous cards have further backed this, it does not always represent material wealth to the querant. The RiderWaite deck features a guy sitting on a black throne ornamented with a gold bull. His clothing is covered in grapes, and a castle may be seen in the distance.
What do the 21 cards in the Tarot mean?
The World card has multiple tarot connotations, according to A.E. Waite’s 1910 book The Pictorial Key to the Tarot:
THE WORLD, 21
Guaranteed success, payment, travel, route, emigration, flight, and relocation.
Inertia, fixity, stagnation, and permanence inverted.
The World is the culmination of one cycle of life and the interim period between that cycle and the following one, which starts with the fool. Between the heavens and the earth, the figure is masculine and female from above and below. It’s completion. The possibility for perfect oneness with the One Power of the universe is claimed to be represented by it as well as cosmic consciousness. It teaches us that in order to truly be happy, we must also give to the world by imparting what we have learned or acquired. According to Juliet Sharman-Burke and Liz Greene’s book The New Mythic Tarot (p. 82), the woman’s image, known in Greek mythology as Hermaphroditus, represents wholeness unrelated to sexual identity but rather of combined male and female energy on an inner level, integrating opposite traits that emerge in the personality charged by both energies. The opposite traits of male and female that cause us stress are united in this card, and the idea of becoming entire is portrayed as an ideal goal rather than something that can be attained.
The four creatures on the Universe card, according to Robert M. Place in his book The Tarot, symbolize the fourfold framework of the physical world, which encloses the holy center of the world, a location where the divine can incarnate. The fifth element is spirit, or the sacred center, and its name is Sophia, which means Prudence or Wisdom (the dancing woman in the middle). The fourth Cardinal virtue in the Tarot is prudence. The woman in the middle represents the aim of mystical seekers. This prominent character can be Christ in some older decks or Hermes in others. This card represents what is actually desired whenever it appears.
What is the Tarot card number 11?
In A. E. Waite’s 1910 book Pictorial Key to the Tarot, the Justice card is associated with the following divinatory concepts:
ELEVEN. JUSTICE
Equity, rightness, probity, and governmental authority; the legal victory of the deserving side. Reversed: Law in all of its facets, complex legal issues, prejudice, discrimination, and overly harsh punishment.
The planet Venus and the zodiac sign Libra are related to the justice card in astrology.
What is the Tarot card number 12?
In contemporary tarot decks, a guy is seen hanging upside-down by one foot. Most frequently, the figure is hung from a tree or a wooden beam (such as a cross or gallows). Due to the possibility of viewing the card itself upside down, there is ambiguity.
A. E. Waite, the creator of the Rider-Waite tarot deck, described the symbol in his 1910 book The Pictorial Key to the Tarot as follows:
The figure from the location of the legs creates a fylfot cross, and the gallows from which he is hanging forms a Tau cross. The apparent martyr’s head has a nimbus around it. It should be noted that the tree of sacrifice is made of living wood and has leaves on it, that the face conveys intense fascination rather than agony, and that the figure as a whole conjures up the idea of life in suspension rather than death. False names for it include “card of martyrdom,” “card of caution,” “card of the Great Work,” and “card of duty.” It expresses the relationship between the Divine and the Universe in one of its dimensions, I will state simply on my behalf.
According to Waite, the card has the following connotations in divination:
THE HANGED MAN 12.
Prudence, insight, sacrifice, testing, prophecy, divination, and wisdom. Reversed: Selfishness, the masses, and the governing body.
The hanging man’s head has a glowing halo around it, denoting a better understanding or enlightenment.
The Hanged Man card is connected to the astrological signs of Pisces and Neptune.
