Tarot · Major Arcana
Major Arcana tarot cards and their meanings
The Major Arcana are the 22 trump cards of the tarot, numbered 0 to 21, from The Fool to The World. They belong to no suit. Each one names a stage that most lives pass through: a first step, a teacher, a choice, a test of nerve, a loss, a recovery, a completion. Laid out in order, they read as one long story, often called the Fool’s journey.
The story opens with the Fool at the edge of a cliff, a small bag on his shoulder and a dog at his heels, and every card after him is a lesson on the road. The Magician learns to use his tools, The Hermit goes inward, The Tower breaks a structure built on a false base, The Star brings hope back and The World closes the circle. This site uses the Rider-Waite-Smith order, in which Strength is 8 and Justice is 11; older Marseille-style decks swap the two. In a reading, the Minor Arcana describe the days and the Major Arcana describe the chapter you are in.
What these cards speak about
- Beginnings and the courage to take the first step
- Teachers, beliefs and the choices that define you
- Patience, inner strength and time alone
- Endings, upheaval and sudden change
- Hope, recovery and a chapter completed
The 22 cards
Major Arcana at a glance
| Card | Upright | Reversed | Yes or no | Astrology |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Fool | New beginnings, Openness, A leap of faith | Recklessness, Holding back, A start with no plan | Maybe | Air |
| The Magician | Skill, Resourcefulness, Focus | Scattered effort, Misused talent, Self-doubt | Yes | Mercury |
| The High Priestess | Intuition, Inner knowing, Stillness | Ignoring your instinct, Secrets, Confusion | Maybe | Moon |
| The Empress | Abundance, Nurturing, Creativity | Neglecting yourself, Overindulgence, Creative block | Yes | Venus |
| The Emperor | Structure, Authority, Stability | Rigid control, Domination, No clear direction | Yes | Aries |
| The Hierophant | Tradition, Teaching, Shared values | Questioning tradition, Going your own way, Rigid rules | Yes | Taurus |
| The Lovers | Love, Partnership, Choice | Disharmony, Indecision, Mismatched values | Yes | Gemini |
| The Chariot | Determination, Momentum, Self-control | Lost direction, Scattered energy, Forcing it | Yes | Cancer |
| Strength | Courage, Patience, Inner strength | Self-doubt, Raw emotion, Impatience | Yes | Leo |
| The Hermit | Reflection, Solitude, Inner guidance | Isolation, Loneliness, Withdrawal | No | Virgo |
| Wheel of Fortune | Change, Turning point, Luck | Resisting change, Bad timing, Repeating patterns | Yes | Jupiter |
| Justice | Fairness, Truth, Balance | Unfairness, Dishonesty, Avoiding responsibility | Yes | Libra |
| The Hanged Man | Pause, Surrender, New perspective | Stalling, Resisting the pause, Needless sacrifice | No | Water |
| Death | Endings, Change, Transition | Clinging to the past, Stagnation, Fear of change | No | Scorpio |
| Temperance | Balance, Moderation, Patience | Imbalance, Excess, Impatience | Yes | Sagittarius |
| The Devil | Attachment, Temptation, Habits | Breaking free, Release, Facing the hold | No | Capricorn |
| The Tower | Sudden change, Upheaval, Revelation | Avoiding the fall, Slow collapse, Fear of change | No | Mars |
| The Star | Hope, Renewal, Healing | Discouragement, Lost faith, Feeling disconnected | Yes | Aquarius |
| The Moon | Uncertainty, Intuition, Dreams | Confusion lifting, Facing hidden fears, Truth coming out | Maybe | Pisces |
| The Sun | Joy, Success, Warmth | Temporary dip, Overconfidence, Delayed success | Yes | Sun |
| Judgement | Awakening, Calling, Reckoning | Self-doubt, Ignoring the call, Harsh self-judgement | Yes | Fire |
| The World | Completion, Wholeness, Achievement | Unfinished business, Loose ends, Delay | Yes | Saturn |
When several of these cards come up
Count the Major Arcana in a spread before you read any single card. One card in a three-card reading usually marks the main theme. Three or more suggest that the question belongs to a whole period of life rather than one decision, and that it will take time to settle. Then read them in order, as a short story. The Tower followed by The Star is commonly read as a sudden break and then a slow return of hope; Death followed by The Fool, as one door closing and another opening. A single hard card is a chapter, not the whole book.
The other groups
Wands · Cups · Swords · Pentacles · All tarot card meanings