As I mentioned in last weeks blog, symbolism is one of the main reason tarot works. Symbolism is part of our collective unconscious, and units us as a whole. In this post I will outline the main forms of symbolism you will find when looking at a cards.These include: numbers, colors, and images you will see on the cards. Astrology, the planets, and elements also play a role in the meanings of the cards, but will be gone over in detail when we start covering each card individually in September. It is helpful to have some knowledge of of the symbolism when reading the cards, but also some people like to see how the symbols speak to them before they learn what they "mean" as society has decided. This will be up to you to figure and is part of your tarot journey. Let's begin!
Images:
There are too many images used in the tarot to cover them all here in this post, but I will list the most important (from my perspective) or obvious ones. There are countless resources online as well that you can access if you have questions about one that isn’t listed here.
Angles: Subconscious mind, messengers
Ankh: Egyptian symbol of eternal life, truth, regeneration
Banner: Freedom for the material realms
Boat: Movement from one ideal/situation to another
Circle: Perfection, unending love, the superconscious
Clouds: The psychic veil (if bright it means spiritual upliftment, if dull depression)
Crescent: The soul
Crow: The crown is linked the the Crown Chakra and a direct link to the higher self
Cypress Tree: The Tree of Knowledge. Trees also symbolizes new growth and stages in our life
Fire: Awareness and enlightenment
Flowers: Spiritual thought, love, happiness. Also an expression of healing.
Fruit: Fertility, abundance, pleasure
Hands: The left hand represents logic and reasoning the right represents intuition and emotions
Houses: A shield and a safe place. The condition of the house in the card tells of the situation at hand.
Leaves: Growth, vitality, new beginnings
Lighting: Unprecedented spiritual growth, soul illumination
Moon: Emotion, feminine energy, veil of mystery
Mountains: Wisdom and understanding
Pillars: Support and balance
Pyramids: High vibration and spirituality
Rainbow: Universal blessings
Roses: Beauty. White roses mean freedom from lower forms of desire and passion.
Scales: Judgment and harmony
Ships: Spiritual vehicle, body of progression
Staff: Wisdom, authority, power
Star: Illumination of hopes ideals, also indicates love and peace.
Stream: Flow of emotion idea, information, spiritual refreshment
Sun: Wholeness, good fortune, growth
Veil: Hidden things
Water: Subconscious, emotional state. The state of the water speaks to our emotional and spiritual state.
Colors
It is a scientific fact that colors influence how feel and respond to situations. They play a major role in our life and the tarot is no exception to this. Here are the list of colors you will find with meaning in the tarot
Red: Color of passion, love, and sex. Red is also the color of Mars, the planet of energy and aggression. Because of this it can also represent anger and alarm. It is the color of the Root Chakra, the chakra that roots you in a feeling of safety.
Pink: Being a lighter shade of red, is indicates that passions and anger have cooled. Pink is soothing and calming, symbolizes friendship, forgiveness, peace, and harmony
Orange: Symbolizes the flames of passion. Orange will often represent vitality, vigor, health, enthusiasm, and enjoyment. Orange is the color of the Sacral Chakra, the chakra of emotions, passion, and creativity.
Yellow: Symbolizes energy, clear thinking, and the consciousness. Also represents optimism, radiance, and brilliance. This is also the color of the Solar Plexus Chakra, the chakra of joy, willpower, and confidence.
Green: Color of nature, growth, fertility. It also symbolizes creativity and prosperity. Green is also the color of the Heart Chakra, the chakra of love and compassion not just for those around us but ourselves and universal life.
Blue: As does the sea and the sky, blue symbolizes depth and calm. A peaceful environment for reflection. Blue is the color of the Throat Chakra, the chakra of communication and self expression.
Indigo:Indigo symbolises mysteries, contemplation, cosmic wisdom, spiritual realization. Also the color of the Third Eye Chakra, the chakra of the intuition.
Violet: The color of royalty, leadership, luxury, wealth, sophistication.
Black: The color linked to darkness and sleep, when we fade into the subconscious. This makes black very mysterious. It is also the color of mourning, depression, anxiety, and the darker forces of nature and destruction.
White: Like the clouds, white symbolizes innocence, spirituality, intuition. Our Crown Chakra is a pure white light at the very top of our heads and it connects us to the universe and the purity of our higher selves.
Gray: Asa mixture of black and white it is the color of the shade and confusion.
Brown: Brown is the color of the earth and therefore symbolises grounding, stability, and the practical part of life and ourselves.
Silver: Silver is the color of the moon and reflection.
Numbers:
I love numbers and how they play a role in nature and all the sciences. I also really love how the tarot uses the symbolism of numbers. The significance of numbers is vast, but I will do my best to condense how it relates to the tarot below.
Zero: Because zero precedes all of the other numbers it symbolizes the period before existence.
One: One is the first number so it symbolises leadership and is also a symbol of unity and singularity. In the tarot every card in the minor arcana suit is said to originate with the ace of that suit. Because of this the number one also symbolises fertility and new starts.
Two: Twos represent duality and choices, pairs and combinations. This could be in relationships partnerships and the attraction between two people. It is also the point and counterpoint of two opposing ideas.
Three: Three symbolizes creation. The number three can also represent body mind and spirit, past present and future. Many religions believe in the holy trinity such as the father son and holy spirit or maiden mother and crone or the triple goddess of the new full and old moon.
Four: Fours symbolizes structure, stability, and security. Four points comet together to form a solid. There are four cardinal directions. For seasons, for winds. Four phases of the moon. There are four elements and four corresponding suits in the minor arcana.
Five: Fives represent a halfway point in the progression from one to ten. This is a point of crisis, the midway point when events could go better or worse.
Six: Historically speaking the six symbolizes the human being because man was said to be created on the sixth day. Six also represents the sixth sense and the six directions of space.
Seven: Seven is a mystical and magical number. There are seven days of the week, seven notes on the musical scale, seven colors in the rainbow, seven chakras or energy points in the body. Seven is the number of self reflection.
Eight: Eight symbolizes infinity because of the sideways symbol of infinity.
Nine: Nines symbolize compassion, spirituality, humanitarianism
Ten: 10 is the number of culmination and perfection. There are 10 spheres on the Kabbalistic Tree of life and 10 numbered cards in each suit on the minor arcana.
Eleven: 11 is a master number because it amplifies the power of a single one
Twenty-Two: 22 amplifies the power of two as the other master number. We have 22 pairs of chromosomes as humans. There are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet, 22 paths on the kabbalistic tree of life, and 22 cards in the major arcana.
Next week is the last post before we start a deep dive into the individual cards. I will be covering the tarot spread, how to read the spreads and how to make your own. I am really looking forward to this post as it is the first step in the art of using the tarot. See you next week!
Namaste
Shannon