The Tarot Deck - The Major Arcana

The simplest tarot deck that a novice can use is the Rider-Waite tarot deck. Through practice, you can then move on to a more complex set.

The tarot deck is divided into two categories: the major and the minor arcana. The terms reflect the weight of each group. The major arcana cards represent energies that are strong, deep and decisive, whilst the minor arcana cards are more general.

Each card in the tarot deck has a different meaning and some of the basic meanings for the major arcana cards are discussed below.

  • The Magician Upright: Dexterity, creativity, originality, willpower, confidence.
  • The Emperor Upright: Confidence, richness, stability, capability, accomplishment, father/husband/brother
  • The Fool Upright: new beginnings, challenges, adventures, thoughtlessness, pleasure, passion
  • The High Priestess Upright: knowledge, intuition, impatience, wisdom, purity.
  • The Hierophant Upright: conventional, orthodox, follows society’s norms.
  • The Empress Upright: action, concentration, wife/mother/sister, decisiveness
  • The Chariot Upright success, perseverance, rushed decision, vengeance, turmoil
  • The Lovers Upright: trust, honor, optimism, love, harmony, beautiful and meaningful relationship
  • The Wheel of Fortune Upright: good luck, success, destiny, end of a problem, progress, development
  • The Hermit Upright: maturity, inner strength, caution, patience, solitude, withdrawal, counsel
  • The Hanged Man Upright: willingness to make an effort, change, boredom, sacrifice, improvement, rebirth
  • Strength Upright: energy, determination, heroism, virility, strength
  • The Devil Upright: downfall, violence, disaster, bad person, ravage, weird experience
  • Justice Upright: equality, fairness, righteousness, honor, advice, considerate, harmony, virtue
  • Death Upright: making way for unexpected new changes, failure, death, disease, bad luck, transformation
  • Temperance Upright: patience, confidence, positive influence, balance, moderation
  • The Tower Upright: unexpected events, end of something good, disruption, downfall, failure, loss, bankruptcy
  • The Star Upright fulfillment, balance, hope, faith, pleasure, spiritual love, optimism, insight, good luck
  • The Sun Upright danger, mistake, deception, disillusion, disgrace
  • Judgement or Rejuvenation Upright: health, enlightenment, renewal, progress, improvement, rewards
  • The World Upright: perfection, eternal life, success, victory, end result, completion
  • The Moon Upright: cheating, trickery, deception, mistakes

When reading a tarot deck, always bear in mind that what the tarot card reveals is not written in stone. The future is the result of one’s actions and decisions. The tarot reading offers insights into what the future may be, based on your current actions. The reading of the tarot deck should never guide your actions; it just provides insights on what to do to ensure a better future.