Tarot Cards Meaning

Tarot cards are a form of divination usually attributed to the occult, or to underground community sub sects that are viewed with scrutinizing eyes by society. The truth is, while most people do not interact with tarot decks on a daily basis, the practice of tarot has a very pronounced presence on society today. This is evidenced by their place in Hollywood. Think about it, even though most people have probably never held tarot cards in their hands before, it is a practice which has survived over hundreds of centuries of which the meaning is culturally understood today. If you would like to know where to begin with tarot and how to do your own tarot readings, continue reading.

The fool is usually represented in one of two ways in a deck of tarot cards, either as a beggar or as a jester or clown of some sort. As the fool is one of the major arcana, and it is considered the first in the deck (or sometimes the last) it is numbered as 0, or 22. The most common usage is to simply leave it unnumbered and the least common is to number it 22. The fool is also one of the most important cards in the deck, and can represent anything from inner childlike nature to the more literal lack of intelligence that the name implies. The rest of this explanation will attempt to go more in depth.

Aside from the fool card, which is usually thought of first or last in a tarot deck depending on the style and region, the magician is the first numbered card in a tarot deck. The magician card goes under many different names and has different pictures but no matter what he is doing in the depiction on the card, he is usually attributed and likened to the Greek God Apollo and everything he represents. For a fuller understanding on all of the beliefs that Apollo and the magician inhabit, keep reading on.

The high priestess is the second trump card in the game of tarot and one of the major arcana used in tarot for divination purposes. Adorned on her head is usually a crown meant to symbolize or allude to the papal crown. There is usually some lunar symbolism included in the card somewhere and in the more traditional interpretations it seems she has something to hide. Her plain blue robes and hands crossed flatly in her lap do not tell all of the secrets that she is likely hiding. It is because of this that she is known for representing mystery in life.

In divination purposes as well as simple playing purposes, lore states that the empress is sisters with the high priestess. What makes it less difficult to draw this connection is the fact that the high priestess is one card right before the empress, thus making the empress the third trump card of a tarot deck, and the third arcana to have a number, excluding the fool which is usually unnumbered or numbered at 0. To find out the significance of what the empress card may mean about your future, continue reading the information below.

In spite of her relationship to the high priestess, the empress is also closely related to the emperor card for obvious reasons. The emperor is the fifth card in the tarot deck. It is numbered as four, because the fool is an unnumbered card, or is numbered at zero, but is usually considered the first of the major arcana. The emperor is usually depicted as wearing a crown and holding a scepter in order to assert dominance. As a standalone he is representative of the strong male ego and he is shown as being the ruler of all.

Hierophant is a word that is hardly heard at all these days, and it is one that is probably misunderstood. The Hierophant is the 6th card in the tarot deck, and is numbered 5. This is because the fool is considered the first card of the deck in major arcana and is not numbered or is numbered zero. Another word for the hierophant to help modern audiences understand the meaning a bit better is the pope. And after you pay more attention to the art closely, it will make sense why he is compared to the pope in so many different situations.