Tarot Card Meanings

Having a general understanding of tarot card meanings is helpful whether you're receiving a reading or giving a reading. A deeper understanding of what the deck is telling you comes from knowing what each of the cards represents, and how the cards work within the larger arrangement of the deck.

Now, while I don't use only the specific meanings of the cards to do a reading (I read them as a story, if you will), I do rely on them as a starting point. You'll find the following pages quite helpful for any tarot reading you have received (or that you give). Feel free to reference it at any point and look at the specifics (health, money/career, romance/relationships, spirituality) to deepen your insight into what the tarot cards are showing.

I really like the original Rider-Wait deck so that is the one I use most often. If you're looking to start reading tarot you will probably start with this deck, as it's the "gold standard", but you certainly don't have to. There are many beautiful decks out there so buy the one (or two, or three!) that really resonates with your soul. You'll get a much better interpretation of each tarot card meaning when the artistry on the card speaks to you.

General Breakdown Of Tarot Card Meanings

A tarot deck consists of 78 cards:

22 Major Arcana

The Fool Tarot Card From The Rider Wait Tarot Deck.

These are the cards most people immediately think of when they think of tarot cards. They have descriptive names such as “Strength”, “The World”, “The Devil”, and “The Fool”. They are the “big picture” cards; they tell the overall story.

These cards are numbered 0-22, starting with “The Fool” and ending with “The World”. In the most general sense these cards represent the path of life and the major issues most of us will face. We all start our lives and we will all complete our lives. In between there will be happiness, sadness, gaiety, loss, anger, success, love, hate, devastation, rebuilding, and adventure.

The Major Arcana cards show the arc of life from “The Fool” starting out on his journey full of youthful optimism to the end of the cycle, when life is complete, with "The World". It always feels good to come full circle and have resolution. That's why so many people hate movies and books with ambiguous endings. They don't have a resolution! We like things tied up nice & neat. “The World” emphasizes looking back on our lives and being satisfied and grateful. Maybe everything didn't go as planned, maybe there were things we didn't get to do, or maybe we were luckier than we ever could have imagined but regardless, everyone's goal is to look back with contentment on a life well-lived.

All the cards in between can, and do, happen in any order in our lives, so the numbers are there more as an organizational tool not as a specific order of events.

56 Minor Arcana

The Knight Of Swords Tarot Card From The Rider Wait Tarot Deck.

These are the “number”, or "pip", cards. They are divided into four suits, a familiar style to anyone who has used a deck of regular playing cards before.

The Minor Arcana cards are numbered from Ace to King. Ace is always representative of a new start or a fresh beginning. You can correlate it to “The Fool” as both are a starting point. In readings where trouble is coming the Ace signifies the lowest level of trouble or stress. As the numbers increase towards ten it is like a volume knob. Whatever issue you're facing (money, love, spirituality), it becomes a stronger presence or force in your life the higher the number up to ten. So, Ace will be the most mellow and ten will generally be the most impactful.

Tarot card meanings for the face cards- the page, knight, queen, and king- don't translate as the numbered cards do. Instead, these cards point out personality traits; who we are as a person or the type of person we will be dealing with. They bring up momentum; knights are always moving forward whereas queens and kings are very stable and alter their courses very little. They also represent the amount of power a person has in the situation; pages have far less power than a king.

The Four Suits Of the Minor Arcana

Each suit has its own meaning too. There are four basic personality types based on the four elements (fire, water, earth, air). Each personality type also correlates with a zodiac symbol.

Cups- Represents water. They are concerned with thoughts, feelings, and emotions. They correlate with the zodiac water signs of Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces. Read more about the Suit of Cups here.

Pentacles- Represents earth. They highlight material possessions, the physical world, and practicality. They correlate with the zodiac earth signs of Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn. Read more about the Suit of Pentacles here.

Swords- Represents air. They show communication, language, and social interactions. They correlate with the zodiac air signs of Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius. Read more about the Suit of Swords here.

Wands- Represents fire. They are focused on passion, drive, and energy. They correlate with the zodiac fire signs of Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius.

I know this is a lot of information and you're anxious to get started, but I also know you have one last question...

What Does “Arcana” Mean?

Arcana means a secret knowledge that isn't held by the average person. It is a special, mysterious knowledge that only a few people possess. It's considered a very deep secret that a person must be initiated into knowing. This means it must be taught by someone who already has the knowledge and they pass it on as a master would to an apprentice.

You may rely on an expert tarot reader to use their arcana to interpret the cards and answer your questions. You may also choose to build your own arcana by learning tarot card meanings for yourself.

Luckily, Tarotastic offers both solutions!

Whatever You Choose...

Welcome to the wonderful world of tarot! Once you start learning tarot card meanings and applying them to your life you'll be surprised how much they can reveal.

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