The Fool (Le Mat): meaning of the unnumbered tarot arcana

In brief: number, names and keywords

The Fool is the only Major Arcana card without a number in the Marseille decks. In Waite’s deck it takes the number zero and opens the series; other authors place it at the end (22) or between Judgement and The World (21). This lack of a fixed place is already an answer: the Fool is the card that does not fit into any box.

In most older decks it is called “Le Mat” or “Le Fol”, in modern ones “Le Fou”, and in English-speaking decks “The Fool”. The word “mat” is said to come from the Italian matto, meaning “mad” or “fool”. The link with the “mat” of chess is a common one, but it is a different word.

Keywords: beginnings, spontaneity, trust, light-heartedness, openness to the unknown. It is the card of the first step, before one knows where the path leads.

The image in the Marseille tarot

In Marseille-type decks, such as those of Jean Dodal or Nicolas Conver, we see a figure on the move, dressed in colourful clothes, with a cap or hat that recalls the jester’s (sometimes with little bells). Over his shoulder he carries a stick from which a small bundle hangs.

Behind him an animal, often described as a dog or a cat, bites or claws at his leg, tearing the fabric of his clothes. The ground is bare: a few blades of grass or small tufts. There is no scene around him and no setting: the figure is alone on the card. The colours vary from one edition to another, but the sense of movement is almost always there.

It is not always clear whether the figure is fleeing the animal, ignoring it or taking it along with him. That is precisely what keeps the card open to several readings.

The image in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck

In the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot (1909, drawn by Pamela Colman Smith), the Fool is an elegant young man in an ornate tunic, with a feather in his hat, walking towards the edge of a cliff with his head raised to the sky. A large white sun shines behind him against a pale yellow background, and snow-capped mountains rise in the distance.

He holds a white rose in one hand and, over his shoulder, a stick with a small bag. A small white dog leaps at his feet, which can be read as a faithful companion or as a warning. Where the Marseille version shows a restless wanderer, the Waite version shows a confident, almost luminous young man.

Symbolism of the elements in the image

These are the details that come up most often in traditional readings. They are lines of interpretation, not official definitions.

• The stick and the bundle: one sets out light, with little baggage. A symbol of a departure that does not wait until everything has been planned.
• The animal: in Marseille it bites or holds back (the body, the instincts, reminders of reality); in Waite’s deck it accompanies (loyalty, the instinct that warns). Both readings coexist.
• The edge of the cliff: in Waite’s deck, the unknown lies ahead: it can be seen as trust or as recklessness, depending on the question.
• The white rose: traditionally the purity of intentions or desire, without hidden motives.
• The white sun: a light without shadow, and therefore a fresh way of seeing. The Fool does not look where he puts his feet: he looks up.
• The absence of a number: the Fool escapes order: it can come before everything, after everything, or between two stages.

Upright meaning

Upright, the Fool traditionally suggests a departure, a fresh impulse, a taste for adventure or a wish to change scene. It carries a form of trust: accepting that one does not control everything, and starting before one feels “ready”. It is the card of curiosity, of a rediscovered childlike joy, and sometimes of the humour that defuses an overly serious situation.

Many authors stress that this is not pure lightness: the Fool walks, he moves forward. He carries a bundle, so he has a destination, even a vague one. In the reading of the “journey of the Fool”, he is the traveller who passes through the other 21 cards. Alone in a spread, he may simply say: “What if you began?”

Reversed: two schools of reading

School 1: the opposite of the upright meaning. Reversed, the Fool speaks of recklessness, scattering or flight: one throws oneself into a project without looking, avoids committing, or refuses to see what the animal on the card points to (a reality that calls for attention).

School 2: a block or a delay. The card keeps its meaning, but slowed down: the wish to leave is there, and an inner or outer brake holds it back. The question then becomes what prevents the first step. Finally, several tarot readers do not read cards reversed at all: for them, the Fool has no “official” shadow side, only nuances depending on its place in the spread.

In common areas of reading

The tarot does not say what will happen: it offers images for reflection. Here, in symbolic terms, is what this card may bring up depending on the theme of your question.

• Personal reflection: a need for renewal, for letting go of an old idea of oneself, for rediscovering spontaneity. Possible question: what would I like to try, without expecting a result?
• Relationships: a connection that is just beginning, or a lighter view of a settled relationship. The card invites openness, but also reminds us that commitment requires settling down.
• Work: a new project, a career change being considered, the urge to dare something different. Symbolically, a departure rather than a detailed plan: to be completed with more concrete cards.
• Money: in a spread about money, the card may call for caution as much as boldness: an impulse without calculation. It says nothing about a gain or a loss and does not replace the advice of a financial adviser.

Combinations with neighbouring cards

A card is rarely read on its own: its neighbour nuances it. Here are a few common pairings, to be taken as starting points.

• The Magician (Juggler): a departure followed by a first action: the Fool gives the impulse, the Magician finds the means to make it real.
• The High Priestess: the impulse meets silence: taking the time to listen before setting out.
• The Chariot: departure and direction: a wish that turns into a committed course.
• The Hanged Man: two ways of not following the usual path: one through impulse, the other through pausing.
• The World: the beginning and the end of a cycle: one closes a journey and prepares to set out again.

To learn how to combine cards, try the three-card spread. To place this card among the 22 Major Arcana, see our guide to the Major Arcana.

Keyword of the day, question and practice

Keyword of the day: Dare. For the day, you might ask yourself which small unusual step you could take: change your route, taste something new, ask a question you had not dared to ask. Nothing heroic: one step is enough.

Question to ask yourself: What would you begin if you accepted not having everything under control in advance?

Writing (10 minutes). Draw or describe a bundle: what would you put in it for a light departure? Write five objects or qualities you would take with you, then five that you would agree to leave behind.

Short meditation. Sit down and look at the card for a few minutes. Imagine yourself on a path whose end you cannot see. Breathe, then note the feeling that dominates: curiosity, fear, excitement? That feeling often says something about the situation you are going through.

History and variants of the card

In the earliest Italian tarocchi of the 15th century, the card already exists, but without a number: it is a “fool”, perhaps a beggar or a vagabond, sometimes close to the figure of the court jester. It is not a trionfo like the others: it often plays the role of a card set apart in the tarot game, the “Excuse” that survives today in the French game tarot.

Modern symbolism was added in the 19th century. Among the occultists, the Fool became the soul setting out on the path of initiation; in Waite’s deck, the card receives the number zero and a luminous face. In the Golden Dawn, it is associated with the Hebrew letter Aleph and with air. These correspondences are one tradition among others.

In the 20th century, a “psychological” reading (inspired by Carl Gustav Jung, notably through Sallie Nichols) saw in it the life impulse that comes before the ego. Versions vary: some Marseille decks place the Fool at the end, others leave it aside. All these variants are valid: they simply say that the Fool escapes the box.

Frequently asked questions

Also read

The meanings mentioned belong to tradition and symbolism. They are neither promises of results nor medical advice. Back to The 22 Major Arcana, card by card.