TAROT CARD MEANINGS

The seventy-eight cards from the Tarot, with their powerful, challenging images, have
fascinated people since the late Middle Ages.

The origins of the cards are lost in time, giving us the option to believe any - or all - of
the myths and legends that surround the deck. We have no idea when the cards first
appeared, though they were first described in 1377, and since then have been used
in many different ways.

The deck comprises the Major Arcana - 22 powerful allegorical images including The
Fool, The Hanged Man, and Death; and the Minor Arcana, which comprise 56 cards
of four suits, which correspond closely to ordinary playing cards available today.

The cards may have been used for divination right from the beginning, though the
medieval interpretations would probably have been quite different to our own.

The decks around today are mainly influenced by Arthur Waite, president of The
Order of the Golden Dawn, an esoteric society formed in England in 1887. Waite's
cards (the Rider-Waite deck) were illustrated by Pamela Coleman Smith and are the
most widely used of all tarot decks. Waite reordered a few of the Major Arcana and
asked for illustrated pip (number) cards, an example most decks follow today, as it
means reading the cards can be done more intuitively by reading the symbols on the
cards themselves. At the same time it is always useful to have a grounding in
traditional meanings, which is what this website offers.

The Major Arcana – Meanings

Fool: Take a leap into the unknown! The Fool is about taking risks. He may indeed be seen
as a Fool by those around him, but indicates that you need to think outside the box. The Fool
also can be a warning to take care - that pitfalls lie ahead.
Magician: Conscious awareness of yourself and your world. New initiatives, new dreams and
creative ideas. Very much a card of manifestation. Skill with communication, self-confidence.
You need to get out there to make things happen!
High Priestess: Intuitive insights and wisdom. The ability to act with empathy and
understanding. For a man, his anima (muse and soulmate). For a woman: dreams. Can
indicate creative blocks and loss of spiritual connection; creativity, intuition and spirituality
probably need to be given more emphasis in your life.
Empress: Abundance, womanhood. Great prosperity and self-awareness. The Empress
nourishes as well as receives. Bountiful fate, the weaving of destinies. Sensuality, fecundity,
receptivity. Harvest. May indicate you need to take care of yourself.
Emperor: Authority, integrity, focus, vigour, willpower. The Emperor indicates a strong
masculine energy, someone with real influence and power. Patriarchal issues - obedience,
duty, family, control. It can also show a tendency to tyranny and workaholism.
Hierophant: An impartial adviser, elder, priest, teacher. Meditation, bridge-building, peace-
making. Firm, deep traditions upon which to build. Morality, integrity, understanding,
compassion, spiritual connection. May indicate a slight rigidity and close-mindedness.
--------------

The Intuitive Tarot, the tarot deck used by the author, is the work of Cilla Conway and
is published by St Martin's Press (USA) and Connections (UK). Cilla is a visionary
artist who has been reading since 1981, when The Intuitive Tarot was completed. Her
approach is psycho-spiritual, based on Jungian philosophy, and she is a member of
the Tarot Association of the British Isles.
To order a pack, please click here