Tarot Card Meanings

Images and Memories

Images have been known to stir thoughts and feelings within the mind of human beings. Some pictures make us feel happy and some make us feel sad. Images have been used to convey thoughts and feelings since the dawn of time. Pre-historic man used drawings of his hunt to depict an everyday scene from his life. Of course, as time and civilization progressed, the process of conveying thoughts, ideas and events via pictures has developed to its present day status.

Pictures stir up something natural and instinctive within us. They have the power to do so because human beings are very visually stimulated. They, therefore, also have the power to evoke memories that have been stored within our brain since we were born. By that same logic, pictures also have the power to evoke the buried emotions and memories within our subconscious. These memories may be from any of our lives, past or present.

Tarot Card Images and Memories

A standard Tarot Card deck contains 78 cards, all of which have pictures on them. These pictures contain images with a very deep symbolism on many levels, and also images from daily life of an individual. Each of these images, therefore, serves to evoke feelings, emotions, thoughts and energies of a human being on several planes of existence.

Does this mean that all the possible emotions of a human being can be covered in 78 cards? Maybe not. But then, tarot cards are also read in their reversed positions. This means, that each card assumes another meaning when reversed, which doubles the figure to 156 possible emotions. This again, may not be comprehensive, as human emotions go. However, cards are always read in a flow, connecting one card to the next. Thus, several emotions can come up in a reading, creating a process of linking the thoughts, feelings, emotions and energies into each other.

When a tarot card is seen by a person, the images on it stir certain emotions and thoughts within the person. This process is quite logical and straightforward. Therefore, one can also say that the knowledge present within the images of the tarot cards is accessible to everyone.

Understanding the images on the Tarot Cards

Tarot cards are a unique blend of symbolisms from several lines of thought. They contain symbols from everyday life, and religions, astrology and also numbers. Along with all these, they contain images of an evocative nature, such as the moon, the sun, trees, and so on.

While looking at the card, it is important to study every aspect properly. It forms a story by itself. The landscape present within a card shows us the environment. There are people in the picture, who are often experiencing something, or going through something. Study the picture, element by element, and then in its entirety. It makes you feel so many things at one time.

For example, let us study the imagery present in the very first tarot card, which is Major Arcana card number 0, called ‘The Fool’. For the purposes of this study, I shall use the card image from the Rider-Waite Deck.

Observe the card. Let’s go through the card scene, element by element.

A young person is standing on the edge of a cliff, looking into the sky. On his shoulder, he carries a knapsack decorated with an eagle’s head. He also carries a white rose in his hand. He wears a tunic decorated with colorful flowers, and the sleeves of his tunic are tattered at the edges. There is a feather stuck in his cap. And there is a dog jumping near his feet.

The background is dominated by a yellow colored sky, and snow capped peaks. We can also see a white sun. Look carefully, and you will see a cave behind our Fool, and it seems as if he has just stepped out of it.

Now, let us understand the kind of feelings that this card stirs within our psyche.

The young person standing at the edge of a cliff, staring into the sky, portrays a happy-go-lucky attitude. It also cautions us that he will fall off the edge of that very same cliff, if he isn’t careful. The knapsack that he carries contains his talents and skills. The eagle’s head on the knapsack shows us that he aims to soar high into the sky using his talents and skills, which means he has a desire to succeed. The white rose in his hand shows that he has a peaceful purpose and no malice in his heart. The colorfully decorated tunic conveys his creativity, while the tattered sleeves convey an almost irreverent disregard for norms of society. The feather in his cap tells us that he has a positively jaunty attitude towards his future, which is also conveyed by the fact that he is not looking where he is going. The dog at his feet symbolizes the animal instinct that is present within all of us, that drives us forward in life.

The snow capped mountains tell us that he has many tall aims and aspirations. The yellow sky invokes caution. The white sun depicts clarity of purpose. The cave symbolizes the darkness of the soul from which he has now emerged.

Now let us understand some of the few interpretations that emerge from our study.

This young person is starting his journey with a happy-go-lucky attitude and is not thinking about the pitfalls that he might be about to face. This means, that if he is not careful, he just might fall off. This also conveys beginnings – for events such as for projects, journeys, relationships and also the start of the spiritual journey. And in any new beginning, one never really knows how the story is going to end. It is a complete leap of faith.

In a sense, this card shows us exactly how we all begin our journey of life. We are carefree, and careless. We don’t know how things are going to end up. Yet we don’t really bother about that, and jump right in. We are strengthened by the skills and talents we possess, and are inherently peaceful in our purpose. We are only guided by our dreams to reach the sky and our instinct guides us to take the plunge.

Yet, we must be cautious and be careful as well, because we really do not know if this jump is going to cause us to land on soft ground or on pointed rocks.

Such are the beginnings, where we emerge from the caves of our inner darkness and fears.

On a practical note, it always makes sense to see in the flow of the reading where the fool is headed off to. This means, you see the card next to it, to understand where his leap of faith is going to take him.

Now this was just the upright meaning. Let’s see if we can make sense of the reversed meaning as well.

Reverse the card in your hand and look at it. The Fool looks as if he is going to fall off the cliff here too. But it also conveys the feeling that he is probably being cautious now. He may have spent time studying and planning every move in the journey and is therefore approaching the future quite carefully. The reversed Fool card still conveys the other meanings to me, except for the cautious bit.

Of course, the card, whether upright or reversed, may convey some other things to you. Go with those meanings. They are totally your interpretations and you will relate powerfully with them. These meanings will also evolve over a period of time. The logic for this is very simple. In a professional tarot card reading, the cards pulled by the querent are interpreted by the tarot card reader. Therefore, each card is subject to the reader’s interpretation, depending upon his mind-set.

Each of us is a product of his/her circumstances, upbringing, thought processes and so on. Therefore, the interpretations of each tarot card reader vary, but remain focused on a central theme which is essentially based on the thoughts that the images evoke.

Symbolism of the Tarot Cards

Tarot cards contain several symbolisms, which, over a period of time, have been linked to several other systems of divination and philosophical thought.

The symbols are linked to Numerology because each card inadvertently has a number on it. The symbols have also been linked to Astrology, and each Major Arcana card is linked to a Sun Sign or a Planet. Similarly, the symbols are also linked to Alchemy, Kabbalah, and to some Secret Societies. All these links and symbols serve to convey a particular thought or doctrine just by themselves.

Let us consider the images of the two cups in the hands of the angel in the Major Arcana card numbered 14, called ‘Temperance’. Again, I will be referring to the image from the Rider-Waite deck.

The Alchemists were in the process of finding out how to convert base metal into gold. The spiritual undertone in of this process was that they were trying to find out a method in which a common man would find or even become ‘God’. Of course, they spent time conducting various experiments, which was the beginning of Chemistry as we know it today.

At some point, their doctrine says, that base metal will be converted to silver, and then into gold. The two cups in the hands of the angel in the Temperance card are actually showing this process happening. One cup contains silver, which the angel is pouring into the other cup, and eventually converting into gold.

Thus, we can interpret that this symbolism conveys that a process is happening where the individual is attaining higher knowledge, which is eventually going to lead him/her to be closer to ‘God’. This can also convey that the individual is becoming more spiritual or evolving spiritually.

This way, we can use the deeper meanings in the symbols present on the Tarot Cards to interpret the meaning of each Tarot card. A combination of the process of analysis of the imagery of a card, along with the interpretation of the symbols present on a card helps us gain an understanding of the meaning of the card.

The Minor Arcana

Minor Arcana cards often do not carry too much symbolism on the surface. They depict events from everyday life.

There are 4 suits in the Minor Arcana. Each suit stands for an element. Wands stand for Fire, Swords for Air, Cups for Water and Pentacles for Earth. Each element, in turn stands for different aspects of energies, thoughts, emotions and events. The actions of the person/persons on the card, combined with the aspects of each element conveyed within a suit convey the meanings of the Minor Arcana cards.

For example, let us see the meaning of the card 8 of Pentacles from the Rider-Waite deck.

Here we see a young apprentice hard at work on his bench, making pentacles. He has made a few and has hung them on the wall, displaying his improving skills. Notice that each pentacle is different from the others in shape and size. The landscape also shows that he is far away from the main city.

This card therefore conveys the meanings of training, improvement of skills over a period of time, and learning or acquiring new skills. These meanings, thus, translate on a practical plane into seeking for, or finding a new job, or getting into a training session within an existing job to improve one’s skills, and even promotion.

Go with the Flow

This process of studying the images and symbols on the Tarot Cards will help you understand the meaning of each Tarot card. You can also research the meanings of the symbols on tarot cards on the Internet or in several books available in the market. Don’t forget to use your instinct as well, to come closer to the hidden truths present within the cards. The meanings will become clearer, day by day.

This process is, by no means easy. But, I promise you, it is certainly exciting. Each card contains a story that links it to the next card, and the entire suit joins together to form another story. The whole deck, thus, combines to form a cohesive and all pervasive story – one that encompasses the story of everyone’s life on every level.

Go with the flow, and enjoy the journey. It is one of promise, of hope, of energy, of feelings and of practicality, as it is a journey of spirituality. The images on the cards will help open a doorway into the deepest recesses of your mind, and subconscious. The meanings of the cards thus become stepping stones for your journey into the Universal Consciousness.

To take a page out of the meaning of The Fool card, don’t think! Take the plunge!