When you look at a traditional deck of tarot cards, you’ll find that it comprises 78 cards split into two main categories- the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. Among these two, the Major Arcana is considered to be the most impactful group of cards in any Tarot deck. But what do these cards mean, and what message do they carry? To find out more, continue reading.
What are the Major Arcana cards?
The Major Arcana cards are 22 and probably the most easily recognizable of the tarot deck. They are symbolic representations of all the different real-life situations that you might face, and each of these cards carries its own unique meanings and perspectives, which you might use to guide you through your journey in life.
Keep in mind that these cards are shuffled at random, so you might be dealt an upright or reversed position of this card, and they both carry different messages. By the way, if you are looking for free tarot readings you can try Tarotoo.
Major Arcana Meanings
The Fool
The fool is representative of a vulnerable young man who has yet to experience the harsh realities of life. This not only makes him oblivious to the many challenges that lie ahead of him but also unaware of the great potential that he holds within.
Typically, if your reader draws The Fool in your reading, it is interpreted as an encouragement for you to be more open-minded and willing to embrace all that is to come with no worries.
Upright: Signifies a free spirit, innocence, and new beginnings.
Reversed: Signifies inconsideration and recklessness
The Magician
The Magician is a card of manifestation. It is there to remind you that you are a unique specimen on this earth and possess many skills that set you apart from the rest of the world.
If your reader draws this card in your reading, it’s a sign that you are ready and equipped with all that you need to face the world and its challenges.
Upright: Signifies desire, creativity, and willpower
Reversed: Signifies illusions and trickery
The High Priestess
This card is known as the card of awareness and is regarded as the most intuitive card in the deck. This card of intuition is what drives you to start listening to the voice inside you and follow your heart. Whatever it is that you are seeking from the world might just be lying within you.
Upright: Signifies intuitiveness and your inner voice
Reversed: Signifies repressed feelings and lack of center
The Empress
Typically considered to be the most feminine card of the deck, The Empress is all about love, compassion, and beauty. This card is also very much rooted in Mother Nature, so it goes without saying that harnessing the energy of the world around you makes you all the more influential.
Upright: Signifies fertility, Mother Nature.
Reversed: Signifies emptiness, dependence
The Emperor
In contrast to The Empress, The Emperor card is more masculine and is seen as a card that signifies power and leadership. The Emperor is projected as a character of authority and structure and is there to remind you that you have power and control over your own life.
Upright: Signifies control, authority, and structure.
Reversed: Signifies coldness, tyranny, rigidity
The Hierophant
This spiritual guide is almost like a messenger sent your way to teach and remind you to play by the rules and look for a higher power to guide and lead you in your current life scenario.
Upright: Signifies ethics, tradition, and morality.
Reversed: Signifies rebellion
The Lovers
As you might have guessed already, The Lovers card symbolizes the close relationships we have in our lives. If your reader draws this card, it probably means that a few things in your love life need attention. If this does not apply to you, it could also mean that you are at a crossroads and need help making a decision.
Upright: Signifies union, partnerships, and duality.
Reversed: Signifies disharmony, loss of balance, one-sidedness
The Chariot
This card might be interpreted as an indication of something triumphant or victorious in the days to come. It is strongly associated with your drive, motivation, and determination, which come from your mind and heart.
Upright: Signifies willpower, direction, and control.
Reversed: Signifies aggression and lack of control and direction
The Strength
This symbolizes your bravery and courage to be resilient no matter what life throws your way. Picking this at a tarot reading encourages you to keep going as you are stronger than you think, and you can handle just about anything coming your way.
Upright: This signifies focus, strength, and courage.
Reversed: Signifies insecurity, self-doubt, and weakness
The Hermit
Much like what a hermit in real life prefers, this card represents solitude. He wants to be alone because he knows he needs to move away from the noise of the crowd and be with himself to find the answers he is looking for.
Upright: Signifies spiritual guidance, contemplation, search for truth
Reversed: Signifies feeling lost, lonely and isolated
Wheel of Fortune
Just like what happens in a game of Wheel of Fortune, this card reminds you that sometimes you might have the best of the best, but at times, you also lose out or fall to the bottom. However, none of this is permanent. It’s just a way of teaching you both the good and the bad situations you might face and that it’s all part of life.
Upright: Signifies inevitability and change.
Reversed: Signifies losing control or longing for control
Justice
The Justice card plays the role of a reminder that tells you that there are consequences for your every action. Hence, whatever you are experiencing at the moment and whatever is lying in front of you is the natural result of the decisions you have made in the past and the decisions you’re making presently.
Upright: Signifies truth, cause and effect, clarity
Reversed: Signifies unaccountability, dishonesty, unfairness
The Hanged Man
The Hanged Man is a card that tells you that sometimes you must let go to move on. Significantly, you sometimes have to make smaller sacrifices for the greater good.
Upright: Signifies letting go and sacrifice.
Reversed: Signifies fear of sacrifice and stalling
Death
Unlike this card’s negative connotation, it’s a reminder that everything must die one day. Hence, holding on to things from the past that are no longer significant to you does you no good. Instead, let death take its natural course and make room for new beginnings.
Upright: Signifies changes, new beginnings, and cycles
Reversed: Signifies decay, fear of change, holding on
Temperance
The Temperance card is all about flexibility, patience, and peace. It reminds you to deal with life in moderation by finding a good balance. Life is unpredictable, and sometimes you must bend in different ways to grow.
Upright: This signifies patience, moderation, and finding meaning.
Reversed: Signifies lack of balance, excessiveness
The Devil
This card represents the feeling of being stuck in a situation. The Devil has managed to convince you that you have no way out. However, this is not the truth; you control your freedom, and the ball is in your court. It is up to you to make the next move.
Upright: Signifies restraint, addiction, powerlessness and materialism
Reversed: Signifies release, freedom, and control
The Tower
This card means destruction, and it might show up in your spread when things aren’t going the way they were supposed to in your life. You might be feeling like your whole world is crumbling down, but you need to remember that sometimes things need to break and move away for newer, better things to come.
Upright: This signifies disaster, destruction, broken pride, and sudden upheaval.
Reversed: Signifies overcoming the disaster, fear of suffering
The Star
The Star card signifies calmness, healing, and renewed hope. This card is your sign that you need to be more optimistic, have faith, and look forward to the good things that are coming your way.
Upright: Signifies renewal, faith, rejuvenation, and hope
Reversed: Signifies losing faith, insecurity, and discouragement
The Moon
This card tells the reader that there might be some hidden fears and doubts that are overriding your ability to have control. The Moon card symbolizes your hidden feelings and thoughts, and they are messing with your faith in yourself and your future. The card encourages you to never take everything at face value- always look within, and you’ll see right through the deceit of your own thoughts.
Upright: Signifies intuition, the unconscious mind, and illusions
Reversed: Signifies misinterpretation, fear, and confusion
The Sun
The Sun card is the most optimistic of them all. It is symbolic of all things good, like optimism, joy, happiness, and vitality. This card showing up in your reading means that everything is going as well as it should and that you’re taking all the right steps and headed in the right direction.
Upright: Signifies celebration, success, optimism and joy
Reversed: Signifies pessimism, sadness and depression
Conclusion
Tarot cards are mystical pieces of cardboard and a guidebook to life. The Major Arcana signifies life’s major events and karmic lessons. On the other hand, the Minor Arcana provides you with guidance about everyday affairs. However, each card has its specific meaning, influencing your overall reading. Regardless of upward or reversed cards, understanding each card’s meaning ensures accurate tarot card readings.
