Posts Tagged ‘tarot interpretation’

The Basics
You’re probably anxious to get to know your new deck. In this section you’ll find a brief introduction to the structure of the deck. This will help you understand the meanings of the cards in general terms.
The later sections will help you provide more in-depth interpretation. Think of this as the outline for the card meanings. The details and nuances will come in time.

The Cards
Remember that the tarot is very personal and that the cards are packed with many meanings. Use this text as a guidebook, but let your own intuition be the final word. If something here does not make sense, discard it. Divination is not a hard science. Use the exercises provided to help flesh out the meanings that you’ll use for your own readings. A journal or notebook will be especially handy in keeping all your notes and observations in order. Throughout this book, there will be exercises to help you solidify your understanding of the cards.

Seventy-eight cards may seem like a lot to learn. Dividing the deck into sections makes it easier. The first main division is in two parts: the Major Arcana (twenty-two cards) and the Minor Arcana (fifty-six cards). Arcana means “secrets”-so the Major Arcana are the “big secrets.” In practical terms, these are the cards that represent important milestones, major changes, events beyond our control, and spiritual growth. The Minor Arcana, “lesser secrets,” generally depict events, situations, or people related to everyday life. An important characteristic of the Minor Arcana is personal control-that is, they represent aspects of your life over which you have the control.

The Minor Arcana
The Minor Arcana are usually very simple to understand because most people are familiar with the structure already. Think of a pack of playing cards: four suits (clubs, hearts, spades, and diamonds), with each suit having ten pip cards numbered ace through ten and three court cards (King, Queen, Jack). The Minor Arcana is just like that, with the addition of one court card for each suit. The court cards of the tarot reflect their medieval roots: King, Queen, Knight, and Page.
The suits have different names and symbols but still relate directly to the suits of playing cards [alternative names are in brackets]:

WANDS [Rods, Batons, or Staves] = Clubs

CUPS [Chalices] = Hearts

SWORDS = Spades

PENTACLES [Coins, Disks, or Stones] = Diamonds

In addition to relating to playing-card deck suits, the tarot suits are associated with the four elements.
This helps define the suit’s relation to our daily lives.
The illustration below shows the four suits, and the list below it reveals each suit’s elemental association and the aspects of life it represents.

WANDS (left). Fire or Air. Career, projects, inspiration.

CUPS (top). Water. Emotions, relationships, creativity.

SWORDS (right). Air or Fire. Challenges, intellect, ways of thinking.

PENTACLES (bottom). Earth. Physical world, money, resources.

Each Minor Arcana suit is associated with an area of life. All the cards are numbered as well; each of these numbers has meanings.

ACES: New beginnings, opportunity.
TWOS: Balance, duality, a crossroads or choice.
THREES: The full expression of the suit, achievement.
FOURS: Structure, stability, stagnation.
FIVES: Instability, conflict, loss, opportunity for change.
SIXES: Communication, problem-solving, cooperation.
SEVENS: Reflection, assessment, motives.
EIGHTS: Movement, action, change, power.
NINES: Fruition, attainment.
TENS: Completion, end of a cycle.

Using this information, you can already get a sense for a card’s meaning. For example, the Seven of Pentacles could represent an assessment of resources or property. This card shows a woman looking at the fruit on a tree. She might be contemplating the work invested and comparing it to the harvest gained by that investment. The Three of Cups could indicate the achievement of relationships. This image shows three woman celebrating the joy of their friendship.

While the numbered cards show different situations of everyday life, the court cards bring personality to these situations. They can represent other people or the querent (the person asking the question). Because real people are complex, the court cards usually represent just a facet of a person-the part of the person engaged in the particular situation being inquired about.

PAGES: Novices, eager and enthusiastic but sometimes shallow; can indicate a message that the querent will receive.
KNIGHTS: Extremists, very focused (like a knight on a quest); can be unbalanced or fanatical; may represent a fast-moving situation.
QUEENS: Mature and reflective; one who nurtures others; can be prone to obsession.
KINGS: Mature and expressive; one who organizes and controls external matters, sometimes at the expense of internal or personal matters.

Exercise 1
Put your Minor Arcana cards in numerical order. Look at each one and connect the image on the card to the associations of the suit and the number as described above. Write your observations in a notebook. Note whether the connections were obvious or subtle. Also note whatever details grab your attention. Write down why a particular image intrigued you and how it affects the meaning of the card for you.

Exercise 2
Lay out your court cards. Think about the personality represented on each card. Match that card with someone in your life, noting the particular behaviors, characteristics, or habits that caused the connection in your mind.

The Major Arcana
The Major Arcana are made up of twenty-two cards, numbered zero through twenty-one. Just as the minor suits have an elemental association, so does the Major Arcana; it is connected with the element of Spirit. In addition to being numbered, the Majors are also named as follows:

0 The Fool
I The Magician
II The High Priestess
III The Empress
IV The Emperor
V The Hierophant
VI The Lovers
VII The Chariot
VIII Strength
IX The Hermit
X Wheel of Fortune
XI Justice
XII The Hanging Man
XIII Death
XIV Temperance
XV The Devil
XVI The Tower
XVII The Star
XVIII The Moon
XIX The Sun
XX Judgement
XXI The World

The names give some indication of the meaning. For example, the Hermit means taking time to retreat from the world and look inward. The Star brings hope and guidance, a light to follow through otherwise dark times.

Exercise 3
List the meanings or associations that come to mind simply based on the name of each Major Arcana card.

The Fool’s Journey
Just as dividing the Minor Arcana into suits and learning about the suit and numerological associations provide a brief overview and introduction to these cards’ meanings, learning the Fool’s journey helps introduce us to the Major Arcana. The twenty-two Major Arcana cards depict a journey through life, a journey of self-development and spiritual growth. We all start as the Fool, the first card of the Major Arcana, though all our journeys are different.

To visualize the Fool’s journey, lay out the cards, placing the Fool alone at the top. Then lay out the rest of the cards, in numerical order, underneath the Fool in three rows of seven (1-7, 8-14, and 15-21).

1. The first row shows the steps we go through in our basic development from birth to young adult and in learning how to live in society.

2. The second row illustrates the universal laws or rules of society that we must confront, question, and come to terms with; it also is about discovering who we are.

3. The final row is our spiritual development.

THE FOOL: The Fool marks the beginning of the journey as an archetypal child, unformed and unlearned, innocent and eager.

THE MAGICIAN: The Magician represents the male principal or animus. This is our active or outgoing energy, our skills and abilities in terms of the outer world. In basic terms, it is how we do things and how we learn.

THE HIGH PRIESTESS: The High Priestess embodies the female principal or anima. This is our passive or introspective energy, our skills as they relate to our inner world and self-reflection. In short, this is how we think or feel about things and what we know intuitively.

THE EMPRESS: The Empress represents the Mother archetype and our experience with mothering, nurturing, emotions, and our creative impulse.

THE EMPEROR: The Emperor represents the Father archetype and our experience with authority, reason, and logic.

THE HIEROPHANT: The Hierophant is our formal education within our society, including school, religious training, and cultural traditions.

THE LOVERS: In a word, adolescence-our experience of hormones, sex, and our sense of self.

THE CHARIOT: The Chariot illustrates the ability to see both sides of an issue; it marks the ending of the “but that’s not fair!” stage.
Once we have synthesized these archetypes into our sense of self, we are usually pretty well prepared to participate in society. Sometimes we incorporate some of these elements better than others. For example, if someone “has issues with her mother,” she may not have dealt very effectively with the Empress.

STRENGTH: Strength is where we learn to control our instincts and impulses, where we master ourselves and develop self-control. We may want to party all night, eat the entire buffet, or shop until our credit card reaches its limit, but we realize that it is probably best if we do not indulge all these desires.

THE HERMIT: This is us feeling the need to “find ourselves.” We turn inward, questioning all we’ve learned, and try to find a sense of inner peace.

WHEEL OF FORTUNE: Just when we feel centered and balanced, our resolve is tested by a spin of fate. Something happens beyond our control or our ability to foresee.

JUSTICE: In the aftermath of the spin of fate, we find out how we fared, and realize that we reap what we sow. If we were well prepared, we come out perhaps shaken but okay. If not, we may need to revisit the Hermit phase of the journey-or move on to…

THE HANGING MAN: The Hanging Man shows us the strength and power of letting go and enjoying the view from a different perspective. This card also shows us the importance of sacrifice. Some things are worth sacrificing for and maybe we really can’t have it all-at least not the way we planned.

DEATH: Just when we get comfortable hanging on by a thread, we are faced with a major change in our lives. This can be any major change, positive or negative: an unexpected promotion, the ending of a relationship, moving to a new place.

TEMPERANCE: After coming through a transformational experience, we learn graceful balance and tolerance.
We learn to adapt to changes in circumstance while maintaining our center, our sense of self.
We have come through a very difficult phase of our development.
We have faced Death in some guise. We’ve learned to maintain ourselves, to adapt to circumstances, to not rail against the seeming unfairness of the universe. What more could we possibly have to do?

THE DEVIL: Balanced, strong, and confident, now we are asked to confront our shadow selves, the dark aspects of ourselves that we fear and that may control us in subtle ways. These may be aspects that we learned to control or repress in the Strength card.
This worked well for a while, before we had the knowledge and experience not just to ignore and repress these aspects. Now we need to revisit them, learn to appreciate the positive qualities they can bring to our lives, and synthesize them appropriately.

THE TOWER: Although we feel we’ve got ourselves under reasonable control by now, the universe reminds us that we are not in control of everything.
The Tower gives us a bolt from the blue that shakes our very foundation. This may differ from the Wheel or Death in that rather than disrupting the external circumstances of our lives, the Tower shakes the foundations of our belief systems.

THE STAR: The Star provides us guidance, hope, and optimism after cataclysmic events, giving us the strength we need to rebuild our crumbled foundations.

THE MOON: While the Star guides us on our way, the Moon teaches us to question everything and to realize that things are not always what they seem.
By the light of the Moon, we can lose our way or be distracted by enticing shadows. We can also have inspiring dreams. We must learn to tell the difference.

THE SUN: After wandering in the Moon, we emerge into the Sun with increased strength and self-awareness, with the certainty that we know ourselves, what we believe in, and what is real.

JUDGEMENT: The Judgement card calls us to a deeper spiritual realization. Often it is a call to action, to share your knowledge or experience with others.

THE WORLD: This is the end of the cycle; we have learned all of our lessons and have achieved integration, balance, and spiritual awareness.

Exercise 4
Look at each Major Arcana card. Write down a situation or experience from your own life that reminds you of each step of the Fool’s journey.

Perfect Tarot Divination by: Robert Wang is a book intended for anyone who has been uncomfortable with the completely arbitrary way in which, over the centuries, attributions of meanings have been attached to the cards. This remarkable book offers the first comprehensive system of tarot interpretation to combine Kabbalah, Jungian psychology, and three thousand years of astrological tradition with clear documentation of the source of each attribution. Beginners may find the system to be very challenging at first, but experienced astrologers will immediately be able to interpret each card and will discover that the system yields remarkably accurate results a surprisingly good and reliable balance to their astrological charts. (Volume III of the Jungian Tarot Trilogy.)

read more

also check The Jungian Tarot Deck

by Gerald Schueler, Ph.D.

Abstract.

The Tarot deck contains archetypal symbols that can be related to the analytical psychology of the Swiss psychologist, Carl Jung. The Tarot deck, especially the major arcana or trump cards, can be used effectively in therapy. The client, with the assistance of the therapist, conducts a reading or uses several cards to tell a story and then discusses possible meanings of the symbols in his or her own words. The therapist then relates the symbolic meanings given by the client to the client’s problem in much the same manner as in Jungian dream analysis. This therapeutic process can be explained by using a chaos model. Using a chaos model of therapy, a period of psychic instability is deliberately induced by the therapist through stimulation of the imagination via the Tarot symbols. Concentration on the Tarot symbols induces bifurcation points that the therapist then uses to direct change toward desired attractors. This is similar to the well-known techniques of paradoxical communication, paradoxical intervention, and prescribing the symptom, all of which induce a temporary condition of psychic instability that is required for a bifurcation.

Introduction

Loye and Eisler (1987) see the roots of modern chaos theory, as it pertains to social science, extending all the way back to the ancient Chinese Book of Changes or I Ching. The I Ching, the oldest oracle still in use today, (Bannister, 1988) was used to make predictions by casting stalks, straws, or sticks. Today, this is usually done by throwing coins (Cleary, 1986). In the West, the oldest oracle still in use today is the Tarot card deck.

The Tarot is a deck of cards which can be used for meditation, psychic stimulation, or divination. It also can be used as a psychological tool to look inside the unconscious (Bannister, 1988; Nichols, 1984). The Tarot is medieval man’s equivalent of today’s highly respected Rorschach and Thematic Apperception tests (Schueler & Schueler, 1994). Wang (1978) describes the Tarot as “a system accepted by many respectable sources such as the school of Carl Jung, which views the Tarot images as agreeing perfectly with the archetypes of the collective unconsciousness” (p. 8).

The Swiss psychologist, Carl Jung, saw all of the Tarot images as “descended from the archetypes of transformation” (Jung, 1959/1990, p. 38). These archetypes include several of the primary archetypes that are encountered during Jung’s individuation process, a process of psychological maturation similar in nature to the aging of the physical body (Jacobi, 1942/1973). These include the shadow, the anima and animus, and the wise old man. The Tarot also contains symbols representing other important archetypes of transformative processes such as the hero, the sacrifice, rebirth, the mother, and the Self. In Jung’s analytical psychology, these archetypes comprise the major dynamical components of the unconscious which affect the human psyche in many different ways.

Modern chaos theory addresses complex systems, which are systems with a large number of interrelated parts. It also addresses dynamic systems. Every complex system, and especially every living system (living systems are usually referred to as self-organizing systems), is also a dissipative structure. Ilya Prigogine won the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 1977 for his work on dissipative structures, which he defined as any structure that takes on and dissipates energy as it interacts with its environment. A dissipative system, unlike one that conserves energy, gives rise to irreversible processes such as the growth of organisms (Nicolis & Prigogine, 1989). All systems that exhibit disequilibrium and self-organization are dissipative and have a dissipative structure (Briggs & Peat, 1989, p. 138). Dissipative systems are those which are able to maintain identity only because they are open to flows of energy, matter, or information from their environments (Prigogine & Stengers, 1984).

Not only is our body a dissipative system, but our psyche as well. Jung designated the ego as an ego-complex, because of the numerous components and processes with which it is comprised, and taught that the ego was one of many complexes that exist in the psyche. “The psyche is a self-regulating system that maintains its equilibrium just as the body does” (Jung, 1954/1985, p. 152). Designating the psyche to be a self-regulating system, Jung (1968) states that “Dreams are the natural reaction of the self-regulating psychic system” ( p. 124). By assuming the psyche to be a complex dynamic system, as well as a dissipative system, we can look at it through the lens of modern chaos theory.

Chaos, as an archetype, is well known in the Tarot where it is depicted fully in card 16, a trump card titled the Lightening Struck Tower. According to Wanless (1986), this card represents transformation. Jung taught that we can become conscious of the unconscious contents in our psyche by examining the symbols that come to us in our dreams. He details many of these archetypal symbols in his Symbols of Transformation (1956).

by David Cherubim

Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.

The Devil of Tarot not only represents the darker elements, limitations and illusions of mankind, but beyond the Veil of Appearances, the Devil represents a much higher principle, being that the Devil also symbolizes Pan – the All – and Baphomet, who is both Male and Female, Two in One, uniting all things, integrating all parts of the Self.

In Magick, the Devil is a door to a Great and Eternal Mystery, which can only be understood by fearlessly passing through the door and entering into the Temple of the Unconscious. One Mystery of the Devil Atu of Tarot is, in fact, that there is more than meets the eye, and that we must look beyond the Veil of Appearances to Understand the True Nature of a Thing. The Devil Atu also informs us that the only real enemy is the self. But again, there is a much higher and more spiritual interpretation of the Devil, not as the false image of the self, but as the Integration of All. The Devil of Christianity is a perverted form of Pan, the All. Pan represents both the human and the animal united into One, symbolizing a perfect balance between Nature and Humanity.

The Devil represents the Unconscious Self for various reasons. The Devil can signify one’s unconscious fears, limitations, and the unknown and hidden elements of the Psyche. Or it can signify one’s Animal Self, which these days is very unconscious in its basic and pure form, but which must be accepted and integrated. Or, on a much higher level of thinking, the Devil, as Pan, can represent the Secret Self, or the True Self, the Spirit of the Middle Way and the Perfect Balance of All Things.

The Hebrew letter that corresponds with the Devil Atu of Tarot is Ayin, the Eye, which has two fundamental implications: As the Human Eye, it represents the limiting of consciousness to outside appearances or external conditions, which is ignorance. As the Third Eye, it represents the expansion of consciousness beyond the veil of the external into the interior World of Understanding. It has a double meaning, as does the Devil. The same applies to the inverted Pentagram, which is often only seen as a symbol of negativity, but in actual fact it conveys the formula of initiation itself.

The Devil is the Shadow Self, which is another term for the unconscious self or personal unconscious. It is the Natural or Instinctive Self, the Primitive and Animal Part of our natures, and pertains to all that we do not want to know or accept about ourselves due to the false beliefs and imprints of our society and a general fear of the unknown. It is called the shadow since it relates to the image that is cast upon the screen of life when the Light of Divinity illuminates the self. When the light emerges into consciousness, via the works of initiation of whatever kind, the shadow self appears and must be accepted, integrated and ultimately transcended, so that true equilibrium may be attained in the soul of the initiate. Without accepting our shadow self, we remain imbalanced. And Balance is the basis and the end of the Great Work!

Love is the law, love under will.

Copyright © David Cherubim. 1998 e.v. All rights reserved.

by Cheryl Lynne Bradley

“Being the source of virtue, woman is the best means of reaching heaven.
Man’s efforts to be virtuous are impossible outside of conjugal virtue…
There is no doubt that women are a source of happiness.”
Vatsyayana

An ancient principle of Indian civilization was the teaching of the Kama Sutra and the sixty-four arts that a woman should acquire as knowledge. This was called kala. These were considered to be accomplishments in the teaching of erotic techniques and were taught to all girls regardless of their social standing.

It was advised that women should teach this subject to young girls as long as they were trustworthy, well born, independent and understood the meaning of the words. She could be a woman used to sleeping with men, a girlfriend who was already initiated, a maternal aunt close to her own age, a serving woman treated as an aunt and confidant, a nun known for a long time or an older, trusted sister who has had experience with men. Even if it was not possible to master all sixty-four arts, it was felt that at least some should be practiced.

Courtesans were highly respected in this society for their beauty, knowledge, usefulness and their social role. Princes and princesses were sent to them for instruction in the arts, social graces, pleasure and music.

In keeping with the flexibility of Tarot interpretation, I have applied these arts as qualities and attributes of the Tarot Queens. Court cards can be confusing for although they can represent specific people, they also represent universal patterns of behaviour, the feminine side of your nature and the mental, physical and spiritual development of the individual. As a person grows, matures and acquires wisdom and knowledge or declines in these areas, the changes can be marked by changes of the suit of the Court cards which represents them.

For the purpose of this article, each of the Queens of the Tarot will represent 16 of the sixty-four arts which a woman (or a man) should achieve mastery of. No blushing is required here.

Queen of Cups
Water represents the origins and the unconscious. In India, water is the symbol of superior consciousness. The rivers in this superior world produce soma, the drink of the gods, symbolizing the rise of libidinous urges. This is a vital force which is closely guarded as it stems from animal instincts that require mastery before true pleasure is available.

1. Vocal music
2. Instruments
3. Dance
4. Drawing
5. Cutouts
6. Carpets of flowers or coloured rice
7. Bouquets
8. Dyes and colorants for the body
9. Mosaics
10. Bed arrangements
11. Musical instruments made from bowls of water
12. Water games
13. Use of charms, drugs, magic wands
14. Garland making
15. Crown and head ornaments
16. The art of dressing

Queen of Wands
Fire is the vital cosmic force which transforms and transmutes. Since fire was originally produced by rubbing two sticks together, the act of making a fire this way symbolizes sex in folk stories and legends from around the world.

17. Ivory or mother of pearl ornaments
18. Preparation of perfumes
19. Jewellery
20. Conjuring
21. Magic
22. Manicure
23. The art of cooking
24. Preparation of drinks
25. Needlework
26. Lacemaking
27. The art of playing the drum
28. Conundrums
29. The art of completing quotations
30. Riddles
31. Bookbinding
32. The art of telling stories

Queen of Coins
Earth is the symbol of the Universal Mother, motherhood, fertility, regeneration and receptivity.

33. Quoting the classics in answering questions.
34. Weaving, plaiting
35. Woodwork
36. Carpentry
37. House furnishings and decorations.
38. Expert knowledge in stones and gems
39. Mixing and polishing metals
40. Valuing the shape and colour of stones
41. Arboriculture, the care of trees
42. Stock breeding
43. Teaching birds to speak
44. Massage and care of the body and hair
45. Sign language
46. Foreign languages
47. Regional languages
48. Decorating vehicles with flowers

Queen of Swords
Air is the symbol of spiritualization, where divine inspiration is manifested. Air is the intermediary between heaven and earth, fire and water.

49. Observing the omens
50. Fabricating machines
51. Developing memory
52. Alternate reciting of texts
53. Puns
54. Knowledge of the dictionary
55. Poetic meter
56. Versification and literary forms
57. The art of cheating
58. The art of disguise
59. The art of gaming, the art of dice
60. The game of chess
61. Children’s games
62. Good manners
63. The rules for success: “Even when conquered by fate, man wins by a battle.”
64. Physical culture (prepared to defend what is hers)

A fun reading to ascertain the future of potential relationship or just to understand the ladies in your life, involves separating the Queens from the deck. You then proceed to lay the Queens cards out side by side in this order: Cups, Wands, Coins and Swords. Assign a name of someone you are involved with, friends, coworkers or just interested in to each card. You can choose “Unknown” for one of them. Shuffle the cards and ask a question. ie: Who do I have the best chance of having a successful relationship?; Who will I marry? Who will I date next? Who will I hear from next? Who will marry first? Who will be pregnant next? Who is most loyal to me?

Deal out the cards face up, laying them out one at a time on one of the Trumps, proceeding across all four and returning to the beginning if required. Your question is answered when you deal a matching suit on one of the Queens. Ask another question and start laying down cards from the beginning of the row again, stopping again when a suit matches a trump. After all of the cards have been dealt, pick up each stack and count the number of cards of each suit. Consider the interpretations offered above, as well as standard tarot definitions, as you read the cards presented for each of our ladies. The more you have of one suit indicates the predominant influence or potential asset of that relationship or within that relationship.

Perhaps this will allow us all to look at these ladies of the Tarot with a deeper understanding of their potentials and recognition of abilities. If we follow “The Three Aims of Life” as outlined in the Kama Sutra, we must realize ourselves on three levels. Virtue, wealth and love must be harmonized so that none of them are prejudicial to the others.

“An excess of charity is an obstacle to the fulfillment of duty….An excess of ascetism…destroys material success…an exaggerated pursuit of riches… grief in virtue and love.”

It is interesting to note that the Kama Sutra recommends abstinence and study in an isolated spot until your studies were completed. It was felt as essential to study music, because it belongs to the heart of love, as it was to study your sexuality. If a girl studied the erotic sciences she would know how to behave in her youth, in her married life and ignorance would never be her trap.

Thought provoking isn’t it?

Sources:

“The Complete Kama Sutra” Translated by Alain Danielou

The Mammoth dictionary of symbols

L. Doherty/Witchypoo ©2002

by Alison Day
We all have times when we feel like we’re fumbling around in the dark, full of fear and anxiety, unable to see the way out of a difficult situation. The bright, fiery Ace of Wands illuminates the path ahead!

All the Aces represent new beginnings, and in the case of the Ace of Wands, this can indicate the arising of exciting new opportunities – especially in the area of work and career.
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