What does a typical Tarot deck consist of?

Written by: Ginger Red Hawk
Published on: July 9, 2011
Category: Tarot

Tarot reading like most other New Age beliefs relies more on intuitive feelings than on ay scientific explanation. This is what makes finding the perfect deck the most difficult task in Tarot reading. One needs to find a deck that 'speaks out' to one. With the wide variety of decks available its possible you may need to go through several before you find the 'right' one.

While there is a wide variety of decks available that use different symbols, they all represent the same things. A typical tarot deck consists of 78 cards, divided into the Major and Minor Arcanas.

The Major Arcana:

The Major Arcana consists of 22 Trumps. These are the spiritual cards in the deck. They deal with the inner self. They represent the universal forces of nature and trace an individual's path as depicted in the Qabbalah i.e. the 22 steps that take you from the material world to the spiritual world of God. Spiritual readings are done only using the Major Arcana. They give insight into hidden talents as well as to an individual's karma.

The Trumps are:

The Fool
The Magician or Magus
High Priestess
Empress
Emperor
Hierophant
Lovers
Chariot
Strength
Hermit
Wheel
Justice
Hanged Man
Death
Temperance
Devil
Tower
Star
Moon
Sun
Judgement
World

The Minor Arcana

The Minor Arcana consists of 56 cards. They represent the physical or material aspect of life. The Minor is divided into 4 Suits (similar to the deck of playing cards) and the numbers in each Suit correspond with those of a playing deck. The 4 Suits are Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles. Each Suit also has 4 Court Cards - The Knight, Queen, Price and Princess.

Each suit represents one of the four elements (Wands-Fire, Cups-Water, Swords-Air, Pentacles-Earth), the three signs of the zodiac ruled by the element the suit represents and one of the four letters of the Tetragrammaton (Wands-Yod, Cups-Heh, Swords-Vau and Pentacles-Heh-Final).

Each of the Court Cards is also ruled by an element. Princesses are ruled by Earth, Princes by Fire, Queens by Water and Knights by Air.

Interpreting The Cards

Numerical Values

Each card in the deck is also assigned a numerical value. The numerical value is different from the numerological correspondent and the two must never be confused.

Numerical values are based on the face of the card. The Ace is an exception to this rule as it always takes the numerical value of 5. The Major Arcana cards are numbered 0-21 using Roman numerals. The Minor Arcana cards 2-10 take the face value of their card. Princesses always take the numerical value of 7. The remaining three Court Cards (Queens, Princes and Knights) take the numerical value 4.

Numerological Correspondents

The numerological correspondent helps to clarify the essence of the card. Since numerology deals mainly with the numbers 1-9, higher numbers are written in the unreduced/reduced format. Thus 10 is 10/1. While a knowledge of numerology makes the reading richer, it is not essential for a Tarot reading.

Astrological Correspondents

Each card is represented by an Astrological Correspondent. These include the signs of the Zodiac, the elements and the planets.

Dignified Vs III-Dignified

Some readers believe that each card has two meanings. If it shows in an upright position then the card is said to have a positive meaning. However, if the card is upside down or in a reverse position, it may indicate negative events. It may also indicate the unwillingness on the part of the querant to accept his or her hidden feelings and desires. Basically, it represent the subconscious of the querant.

So to brief it all up:

The Major Arcana has 22 cards, numbered 0-21 and they are spiritual in nature.

- The Minor Arcana has 56 cards divided into 4 suits. Each Suit has cards from 2-10 and 4 Court Cards. The Minor Arcana represents the material facets of life. Each Suit also has an elemental ruler.

- Each card is assigned a numerical value, a numerological and astrological correspondent and a Hebrew letter.

This explanation is a simple listing to get you started. To actually be able to make interpretations one would need to understand the nature of each of the Major Arcana cards in addition to the various combinations and implications of the Minor Arcana.