A standard tarot deck has 78 cards, divided into 2 groups; 22 major arcana cards and 56 minor arcana cards. In the tarot, the major arcana denote important life events, lessons or milestones, while the minor arcana cards reflect day-to-day events. The minor arcana cards are arranged into 4 suits – swords, pentacles, wands, and cups. Each suit has a ruling element and correspond to a specific area of life:
Swords represent air and have to do with intellect and decisions.
Pentacles represent earth, money and achievement.
Wands represent fire and action. Cups represent water and emotions.
Court Cards represent a person – either yourself or someone else. They reflect personality traits and characteristics and can give insight into motives.
What are the suits in the Tarot deck?
The suits, which are comparable to those of modern playing cards, are as follows: wands, batons, or rods (clubs); cups (hearts); swords (spades); and coins, pentacles, or disks (diamonds). Each suit has 4 court cards—king, queen, knight, and jack—and 10 numbered cards.
The Major Arcana Tarot cards represent the life lessons, karmic influences and the big archetypal themes that are influencing your life and your soul’s journey to enlightenment. The Major Arcana card meanings are deep and complex –in beautiful ways! Theses Tarot cards truly represent the structure of human consciousness and hold the keys to life lessons passed down through the ages.
Also known as the Trump Cards, the Major Arcana cards include 21 numbered cards and 1 unnumbered card (the Fool). The Fool is the main character of the Major Arcana and makes his journey through each of the cards, meeting new teachers and learning new life lessons along the way, and eventually reaching the completion of his journey with the World card. This is known as the Fool’s Journey and is a helpful way of understanding the story line of the Major Arcana Tarot card meanings.
The Minor Arcana Tarot cards are arranged into 4 suits – swords, pentacles, wands, and cups. Each suit has a ruling element and correspond to a specific area of life.
What element does each Tarot suit represent?
Polarities in Tarot Elements
| Suit | Element | Keywords |
| Wands | Fire | Action, inspiration, drive, willpower, passion, ambition |
| Cups | Water | Emotion, feelings, intuition, relationships |
| Swords | Air | Logic, ideas, intellect, communication |
| Pentacles | Earth | Nature, body, material world, stability |
The Four Tarot Card Suits and their Meanings
The Tarot deck has four suits in the minor arcana and the court cards, each has a different meaning and energy. The Four Tarot Card Suits : fire , water, earth and air, just like the signs in astrology and they are also connected as you will see. The prominent energy of a suit and a card will affect the reading and also show vibrance, steadiness, mental energy and emotion or feeling. A knight of cups and the knight of pentacles have quite different characteristics. Pentacles is about focus, work and achievement while wands is more about passion and adventure. The aces are the absolute and intense interpretation of each suit.
Fire: The Suit of Wands
The Tarot suit of wands aligns with the element of fire. And, just as fire conveys heat, passion, ignition and consumption – so too does the suit of wands. Creative sparks, spiritual passion and social vitality are all key messages from this suit. When connecting the element of fire to the suit of wands, ask yourself “What lights my fire?” in relation to the wand cards pulled in a reading. This suit indicates a lot of energy and passion coming in for a project, relationship, interest or topic. Wand cards also symbolize creativity, intelligence, strength, growth, will and primal energy. They may also symbolize career path, and may stand for what is truly important to a person’s inner self.. Astrology- Leo, Aries and Sagittarius
Earth: The Suit of Pentacles
The earth element helps us in understanding Tarot suits of pentacles because it’s a grounding energy. This energy and suit deal with matter. Material concepts such as the body, home, money and physical things all fall under this element/suit. Consider the tactile nature of the suit. Things you can feel, taste, touch and experience are all dancing in these cards. This also points to dedicated focus and work to bring a project to completion. Material abundance is also indicated so it is a positive financial sign. Pentacles can also stand for material possessions, trade, commerce, industry, finances, security and industry. Astrology- Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn
Air: The Suit of Swords
Mental energy and force are often indicted by swords. Intellectual reasoning and logic. The swords point a sharp tip to our fears, worries and doubts (which are negative thoughts practiced habitually). The double-edged sword is akin to the dual nature of the mind. There is often a bit of a balancing act involved to stay positive and with a positive attitude swords can overcome barriers with the sharp and clear focus of the mind. Swords relate to consciousness at a mental level, where thoughts and intellectual pursuits begin. Swords tend to reflect the mind present within an individual’s actions, thoughts, beliefs and overall attitude. Astrology – Gemini, Libra and Aquarius
Water: The Suit of Cups
Our emotions and intuitions are the same way. Our intuition runs far deeper than what is perceived. Our emotions run just as deep. There is no denying our emotions, and there is not stopping the running will of water. When working with the suit of cups, consider these associations with the element of water. Ask yourself what emotions run deeply within you, and how does your intuition flow through your life when pulling cup cards in your readings. Cups often show up in relationship to intuition, love and family matters. Cups are also associated with love, feelings, decisions and emotions. They also have to do with sensitivity and relationships, and the overall emotional aspects of consciousness. Astrology- Pisces, Cancer and Scorpio
Each tarot card has its own meaning and the elements strengthen and enhance the energy into the direction of fire, water, earth and air. Astrology can also offer more information on the elements and their interpretations.
Source : https://www.biddytarot.com/tarot-card-meanings/major-arcana/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minor_Arcana
Author: Spirit Connection
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