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Tarot Cards
The following information was written by John Pollard:
The Tarot is of profound interest to those who recognize it for the wealth of mythical symbolism that it is. Jung pointed out that
the figures of the Tarot are archetypes, and that this accounts both for their familiarity and for their power as tools of divination. That is
to say, on a deep level we identify as a people with each of these figures, and our encounter with them in a reading suggests a situation
as archetypal as the figures themselves. Therefore, we can apply this situation-the reading-to our individual lives, elucidating our past
and our present, and perhaps glimpsing a hint of the future.
I don't know if that last element of the Tarot has been sufficiently stressed to those unfamiliar with the cards; they are not exclusively,
or even primarily, tools of prediction. At minimum, they are used to assess the situation of the inquirer, and to suggest something of his or
her personality and the general predicament in which he or she currently finds himself, for better or worse. The reader interprets the cards
and their arrangement, and gives advice based on the interpretation. This advice may reach into the future, or it may deal predominantly
with the inquirer's current situation. This, of course, depends largely on the reader and on the arrangement of the cards, but either way, it is a
mistake to view the Tarot simply as a method of predicting the future.
The Tarot consists of 78 cards, divided into two distinct groups: the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. The Major Arcana, as a
general rule, tend to reflect the inner life of the spirit of the inquirer, while the Minor Arcana reflect the more ordinary or everyday aspects
of the inquirer's life. In many versions of the Tarot, a card can be interpreted as positive or negative depending on whether it falls upright
or inverted, but this is not universally true. A card may herald positive or negative influences depending on which cards fall near it in the
reading, as well.
The Major Arcana are perhaps the more well known among those only vaguely familiar with the Tarot. It consists of 22 cards, numbered
0-21. Each of the cards represents a figure, most of whom are well known from myth and fairy tale (e.g. Death, the Fool, the Moon, Satan.)
The Major Arcana are often subdivided into four groups, particularly by who view the cards from a psychological standpoint. The first is
the Fool, who is numbered 0 among the Major Arcana, and is viewed as a wanderer, free to go among the other cards and explore them.
The remaining twenty-one cards fall into three groups of seven, which represent, the conscious, subconscious, and super-conscious minds.
Cards I-VII (conscious) are, in sequence, the Magician, the Priestess, the Empress, the Emperor, the Hierophant (also called the Pope,) the Lovers, and the Chariot.
Cards VIII-XIV (subconscious) are, in sequence, Justice, the Hermit, Wheel of Fortune, Strength, Hanged Man, Death, and Temperance.
Cards XV-XXI (super-conscious) are, in sequence, the Devil, the Tower, the Star, the Moon, the Sun, Judgment, and the Universe (also called the World.)
The fifty-six cards of the Minor Arcana more closely resemble playing cards, in that they are divided into four suits: Wands, Cups, Swords,
and Pentacles.
Each of these suits consists of ten numeric cards, 1 being the Ace, and four court cards, being the Page, Knight, Queen, and King of
that suit.
The four suits are emblematic of the four elements, and each corresponds as well to one of the four cardinal points on a circle (north,
south, east, and west.) The Major Arcana, according to some, are found at the center of this circle.
The Suit of Wands is emblematic of the spiritual world, and deals with growth, passion, and inspiration. Its element is fire, and its direction is south.
The Suit of Cups represents the world of creativity. It deals with dreams, fantasy, love, art, and the psyche. Its element is water, and its direction is east.
The Suit of Swords symbolizes the rational mind, and the struggles accompanying its search for truth. This suit's element is air, and its direction is north.
The Suit of Pentacles generally represents worldly activity and material things such as occupation and money. Its element is earth, and its direction is west.
From Vision of Escaflowne
A big thank you to John Pollard for helping me with the Italian translations and for providing some of the meanings.
Ep. - Card - Translation - corresponding card & meaning
1. La Torre - tower - it means dramatic change...inverted, it can mean chaos
2. Il Fusco/La Luce - fuoco is Italian for fire, luce means light
3. La Morte - death - means change and ending; transformation or passage from one part of life to another; inverted
it can mean stasis, due to an unwillingness to change; upright just means the beginning of a new phase
4. L'Impiccato - the hanged man - means being in a sort of state of limbo, where nothing is changing
and/or being unable to do anything about it, also
means one might have to make a sacrafice to bring about change
5. Il Guidizio - judgement - releasing the past and beginning a new part of life
and inverted it can mean refusing to let go of the past
6. La Giustizia - justice - impartial judgement and clarity of mind
7. La Carrozza - chariot - inner conflict, potential for resolution and victory
8. La Temperanza - temperance - harmony within relationships
9. L'Aria/La Vita - aria means air, vita means life
10. La Ambizione - ambition
11. Il Diavolo - devil - facing conflicts inside oneself to reach growth
12. Il Papessa - papess means priestess - secrets to be revealed
13. L'Imperature - from imperator, the emperor - need to make something solid or with a firm foundation
14. Il Veggente - means clairvoyant - new potentials, new skills, adventures unfold
15. La Stella - star - hope and belief in a better world
16. La Luota - ruota means wheel - wheel of fortune - new beginnings
17. La Imperatrce - empress - fertility, abundance, or creativity
18. Il Monde - the world - completion of a cycle, attainment
19. Il Pazzo - fool - new phase in life begins
20. La Luna - the moon - uncertainty
21. Il Papa - the pope - the hierophant; search for spiritual purpose and values
22. Il Sole - sun - optimism, time for clear vision
23. La Terra/La Legge - terra means earth, legge means act or law
24. L'Elemita - eremita means hermit - time of meditation and solitude
25. La Forza - strength - courage, self-discipline
26. L'Amore - love - the lovers; love affair with choice or trial attached
*meanings for Justice through Lovers Cards from kenaz.com