The 22 Major Arcana: Meanings, Symbolism and Card-by-Card Reading

The 22 major arcana are the great cards of the tarot: The Fool, The Magician, The Wheel of Fortune, Death, The Sun, The World… This guide presents each of them with its names in the Marseille and Rider-Waite traditions, its keywords, its symbolism, its nuances and a question to ask yourself, then explains how to read them in a spread. It makes no promise of prediction: here, the tarot is a tool for reflection and symbolism.

What are the major arcana?

The word “arcana” means something hidden or mysterious. In a 78-card tarot, the major arcana are the 22 cards set apart: each has a name and an image of its own (The Chariot, The Star, The Moon…), unlike the 56 minor arcana, which are divided into four suits of 14 cards (wands, cups, swords and coins in Marseille).

Originally, the tarot was a card game invented in fifteenth-century Italy: the cards we now call major arcana were “trumps” with allegorical images. Its divinatory use only developed at the end of the eighteenth century, notably with Antoine Court de Gébelin. The long-held idea of a very ancient Egyptian origin, or of a secret wisdom handed down since Antiquity, is now set aside by historians. The images nonetheless remain a rich symbolic vocabulary.

The Fool's Journey: one possible reading

The Fool is the only card with no number in traditional Marseille decks. This inspired a very popular reading: that of the Fool's Journey. One imagines the Fool passing, card after card, through the great stages of a human life, until The World, which represents fulfilment.

This is neither the “official” meaning of the cards nor the only way to read them. Nineteenth-century occultists saw in it an initiatory sequence; in the twentieth century, authors of psychological inspiration, such as Sallie Nichols in 1980 with her Jungian reading, offered other images. It is a reading grid, useful for memorising the whole. It is often divided into three stages:

Numbering and names: Marseille and Rider-Waite

The Marseille tarot refers to a type of deck more than to a city: old decks of this type were made in Paris, Dijon or Marseille as early as the seventeenth century, and the name became popular in the twentieth century, notably through Paul Marteau from 1930. The Rider-Waite tarot (or Rider-Waite-Smith), published in England in 1909, illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith under the guidance of Arthur Edward Waite, follows the structure of the Marseille deck with modernised names and images.

The differences in names

Marseille tradition	Rider-Waite tradition
The Fool (Le Mat, or Le Fol)	The Fool
The Magician (Juggler)	The Magician
The High Priestess	The High Priestess
The Hierophant (Pope)	The Hierophant
The Lovers	The Lovers
The House of God	The Tower
The nameless arcanum (often called Death)	Death

All other cards bear the same name in both traditions. Other decks, such as the Thoth, offer yet other titles.

Strength and Justice: the swap of numbers

In the Marseille tarot, Justice is card VIII and Strength is card XI. In Rider-Waite, the order is reversed: Strength is VIII and Justice is XI. The explanation most often given is that this swap follows the astrological correspondences of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a British occult society of the late nineteenth century, which associated the eighth card with Leo and the eleventh with Libra. The exact reason for Waite's choice remains debated. Many English-language tarots follow this numbering.

The Fool: 0, 22, 21 or no number

The Fool has no number in Marseille decks. Depending on the author, it is placed at the beginning (0, as in Waite's), at the end (22) or between Judgement and The World (21). Old decks also write some numerals in the old style (IIII, VIIII, XIIII, XVIIII). For the rest of this guide, we follow the Marseille order and indicate the Rider-Waite number when it differs.

The 22 cards, one by one

Each entry gives the number (the Marseille one, with “RW” for the Rider-Waite number where it differs), the name in both traditions (Marseille / Rider-Waite), keywords, the traditional upright symbolism, a nuance or an aspect in tension (what is sometimes called the reversed card) and a question to ask yourself. Schools differ: some read the reversed position as the opposite of the upright meaning, others as a delay or a block, and many tarot readers draw only upright cards. Take these entries as starting points, not as closed definitions.

No number (RW: 0) · The Fool

Keywords: beginnings, spontaneity, trust, openness, carefree spirit.

Symbolism (upright): A traveller on the move, a bundle over the shoulder; in Rider-Waite, at the edge of a precipice, with a small dog at his side. Traditionally it points to the start of a path and a fresh outlook, without knowing everything in advance.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: recklessness, scattered focus, refusal to see reality. For some authors, this card in fact has no dark side.

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

I · The Magician (Juggler) / The Magician

Keywords: initiative, skill, beginnings, communication, available resources.

Symbolism (upright): A figure standing before a table of varied objects; in Waite's version, the tools of the four suits are laid out in front of him. Traditionally: knowing how to use what is at hand, the energy of a beginning.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: showmanship, lack of sincerity, scattered resources. A juggler is a street performer: skill can dazzle more than it builds.

Question: What resources do you already have, without having really looked at them?

II · The High Priestess

Keywords: inner life, intuition, silence, discreet knowledge, patience.

Symbolism (upright): A seated woman, crowned or veiled, a book on her knees; in Waite's, between two pillars, in front of a veil. She is associated with what is kept within: inner listening, study, the unspoken.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: withdrawal, a secret that weighs too heavily, coldness, difficulty saying what one knows.

Question: What do you already know, deep down, without having yet put it into words?

III · The Empress

Keywords: creation, nourishment, expression, abundance, sensitivity.

Symbolism (upright): A crowned, seated woman holding a sceptre; in Waite's, surrounded by nature and wheat. It speaks of creation in the broad sense (projects, ideas, works) and of the care given to others and to oneself.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: overprotection, comfort that lulls, or difficulty producing and receiving.

Question: What would you like to nurture at the moment?

IIII (RW: IV) · The Emperor

Keywords: structure, authority, stability, responsibility, framework.

Symbolism (upright): A crowned man seated, holding a sceptre; in profile in Marseille, face-on on a throne decorated with ram heads in Waite's. Traditionally: setting rules, protecting, deciding, building something solid.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: rigidity, the need to control everything; or, conversely, a framework that is missing.

Question: Which framework would help you move forward, and which one weighs on you?

V · The Hierophant (Pope) / The Hierophant

Keywords: transmission, tradition, teaching, values, guidance.

Symbolism (upright): A religious figure wearing a tiara, addressing two disciples. It is associated with the teaching received, the values passed on, institutions, and the role of the one who guides.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: conformity, dogmatism, dependence on an authority; or, on the contrary, rejection of all rules on principle.

Question: What teachings have you received, and which ones would you like to keep?

VI · The Lovers

Keywords: choice, relationship, commitment, alignment, heart.

Symbolism (upright): In Marseille, a figure stands between two female figures, with a small winged archer above: the card of choice. In Waite's, a couple beneath an angel: more a card of union.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: hesitation, being pulled in two directions, a choice imposed on us. The subject is not always sentimental: it may be a life choice.

Question: What choice are you seeking to make, in line with what matters to you?

VII · The Chariot

Keywords: drive, mastery, progress, direction, determination.

Symbolism (upright): A figure standing on a chariot pulled by two horses; in Waite's, two sphinxes, one light and one dark. It shows the will to hold two opposing forces in a single direction.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: haste, loss of control, the pride of success.

Question: Where do you want to go, and what is pulling in the opposite direction?

VIII (RW: XI) · Justice

Keywords: balance, discernment, truth, responsibility, consistency.

Symbolism (upright): A seated figure holding scales and a sword. It is associated with measure, fairness, and taking responsibility for one's actions. It is card VIII in Marseille and XI in Rider-Waite.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: harsh judgement, rigidity, guilt, refusal to look at one's responsibilities.

Question: What would seem fair here, for you as well as for others?

VIIII (RW: IX) · The Hermit

Keywords: perspective, wisdom, chosen solitude, search, prudence.

Symbolism (upright): An old man walking, a staff in one hand and a lantern in the other. Traditionally: retreat, reflection, and the light one carries first for oneself.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: isolation, withdrawal, difficulty asking for help.

Question: What kind of step back would you need right now?

X · The Wheel of Fortune

Keywords: cycle, turning point, impermanence, rhythm, movement.

Symbolism (upright): A turning wheel, with figures rising and falling. The card traditionally reminds us that situations move: nothing is fixed.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: a sense of being subjected to circumstances, or passivity while waiting for things to “turn”.

Question: What is changing right now, and what can you do with it?

XI (RW: VIII) · Strength

Keywords: courage, gentleness, self-mastery, patience, endurance.

Symbolism (upright): A woman holding a lion's jaws without any apparent violence; in Waite's, she strokes the lion, with an infinity sign above her head. The strength evoked is that of calm. It is XI in Marseille and VIII in Rider-Waite.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: forcing oneself, suppressing emotions, or losing patience.

Question: Where could you replace the effort of domination with more gentleness?

XII · The Hanged Man

Keywords: suspension, change of viewpoint, letting go, pause, self-giving.

Symbolism (upright): A man suspended by one foot, head down, arms behind his back. It suggests that a pause or a reversal of perspective can unblock what was stuck.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: standstill, endless waiting, a feeling of pointless sacrifice.

Question: What would you see differently if you looked at this situation upside down?

XIII · The nameless arcanum (Death) / Death

Keywords: ending, transformation, closure, passage, renewal.

Symbolism (upright): A skeleton with a scythe, whose name is generally not inscribed on Marseille decks; in Waite's, a rider on a white horse. The card speaks of the end of cycles: what ends makes room for something else. It evokes a transformation, not a physical event.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: resistance to an ending, difficulty grieving. If you are going through a real bereavement, this image may be painful: you can set it aside.

Question: What is coming to an end, and what would you like to keep from it?

XIIII (RW: XIV) · Temperance

Keywords: harmony, measure, flow, patience, adjustment.

Symbolism (upright): A winged figure pouring the contents of one jug into another; in Waite's, an angel with one foot in the water and the other on the land. Traditionally: dosing, mixing, and moving at one's own pace.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: lukewarmness, excessive caution, poorly adjusted proportions.

Question: What would benefit from being dosed differently in your daily life?

XV · The Devil

Keywords: attachment, dependence, temptation, desire, matter.

Symbolism (upright): A horned, winged figure on a pedestal, with two small figures tied to it; in Waite's, the chains are loose, a reminder that one can free oneself. It is associated with what holds us: habits, fears, desires, our relationship with money.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: a hold over others, dependence, cynicism; but also a desire one does not dare to acknowledge. The card is not “evil”: it takes stock of what holds us back.

Question: What do you cling to out of habit more than by choice?

XVI · The House of God / The Tower

Keywords: upheaval, rupture, revelation, collapse, liberation.

Symbolism (upright): A tower struck by lightning, with figures falling. It shows what rested on something fragile or false collapsing: a sudden awakening.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: shock, fear of change, resistance. Readings vary: upheaval for some, liberation for others.

Question: What in you rests on foundations that have become fragile?

XVII · The Star

Keywords: hope, serenity, inspiration, trust, openness.

Symbolism (upright): A kneeling, naked woman pouring water beneath a starry sky. It is associated with the calm after an ordeal, trust in the future, and generosity.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: idealism, daydreaming without action, tiredness or disillusion.

Question: What restores your hope, even modestly?

XVIII · The Moon

Keywords: dreams, intuition, uncertainty, emotions, imagination.

Symbolism (upright): A moon above two towers, a path, and animals (a dog, a wolf or a crayfish, depending on the version). It is associated with the zone of shadow and doubt, but also with sensitivity and creativity.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: confusion, fears, illusions. Some readings see in the reversed card a clarity that returns.

Question: Which uncertainty would benefit from being looked at in full light?

XVIIII (RW: XIX) · The Sun

Keywords: clarity, vitality, joy, simplicity, success.

Symbolism (upright): A radiant sun above two children; in Waite's, a child on horseback before sunflowers. Traditionally: light, energy, conviviality.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: excessive optimism, ego, or joy that is hard to feel. The meaning always depends on the context of the question.

Question: What gives you a sense of being alive at the moment?

XX · Judgement

Keywords: call, awakening, rebirth, review, vocation.

Symbolism (upright): An angel sounding a trumpet above figures who are rising up. It is read as a call to take stock, to forgive, or to reorient oneself.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: excessive self-criticism, difficulty turning the page.

Question: What call are you hearing, and what would you do if you listened to it?

XXI · The World

Keywords: fulfilment, integration, completeness, openness, achievement.

Symbolism (upright): A figure dancing at the centre of a wreath, surrounded by four figures at the corners. Traditionally: a completed cycle and a sense of fullness.

Nuance or shadow: In tension: incompletion, difficulty concluding, perfectionism.

Question: What have you accomplished, and what do you want to do with this achievement?

Summary table of the 22 major arcana

The numbers follow the Marseille tradition; “RW” indicates the Rider-Waite number where it differs.

Number	Card (Marseille / Rider-Waite)	Keywords
no number (RW: 0)	The Fool	beginnings, spontaneity, trust
I	The Magician (Juggler) / The Magician	initiative, skill, beginnings
II	The High Priestess	inner life, intuition, silence
III	The Empress	creation, nourishment, expression
IIII (RW: IV)	The Emperor	structure, authority, stability
V	The Hierophant (Pope) / The Hierophant	transmission, tradition, teaching
VI	The Lovers	choice, relationship, commitment
VII	The Chariot	drive, mastery, progress
VIII (RW: XI)	Justice	balance, discernment, truth
VIIII (RW: IX)	The Hermit	perspective, wisdom, chosen solitude
X	The Wheel of Fortune	cycle, turning point, impermanence
XI (RW: VIII)	Strength	courage, gentleness, self-mastery
XII	The Hanged Man	suspension, change of viewpoint, letting go
XIII	The nameless arcanum (Death) / Death	ending, transformation, closure
XIIII (RW: XIV)	Temperance	harmony, measure, flow
XV	The Devil	attachment, dependence, temptation
XVI	The House of God / The Tower	upheaval, rupture, revelation
XVII	The Star	hope, serenity, inspiration
XVIII	The Moon	dreams, intuition, uncertainty
XVIIII (RW: XIX)	The Sun	clarity, vitality, joy
XX	Judgement	call, awakening, rebirth
XXI	The World	fulfilment, integration, completeness

Reading the major arcana in a spread

The weight of a major arcanum

In a spread, a major arcanum is traditionally read as a card of “greater weight”: it points to a background theme, a stake that goes beyond the situation of the moment. A minor arcanum describes instead a concrete situation, a mood, an action, an ordinary event. The Three of Cups (minor), for example, evokes a friendly meeting; The Moon (major), a deeper doubt.

A few landmarks, to be taken as reading habits rather than rules:

In the spread	Usual reading
Many major arcana	The subject touches on deep stakes; people speak of turning points, values, stages of life.
Few or no major arcana	The question concerns everyday matters, practical details, the mood of the moment.
A single major arcanum among minor ones	It is often read as the common thread of the spread, the card to reread first.

A point of common sense: out of 78 cards, 22 are major arcana, about 28%, a little more than one card in four. Drawing several major arcana, or none, is therefore nothing out of the ordinary.

Reading a major arcanum step by step

1. Look at the image. Colours, gestures, gazes: what do you see before searching for the meaning?
2. Find the keywords. Choose one or two, not all of them.
3. Take the position into account. The same card does not say the same thing in first or in third place.
4. Connect it to your question and rephrase it in your own words.
5. Cross-check with the other cards: what answers, opposes or repeats.
6. Write it down in a notebook. Rereading a spread a few weeks later teaches a great deal.

A sample spread

Here is a fictional spread, to show one way of reasoning. Question: “How should I approach my plan to change careers?” Three cards, three positions: where I am, what holds me back, one path to explore.

Position	Card	Possible reading
1. Where I am	The Hermit (major)	A time of reflection and perspective: the person searches, weighs things up, and moves forward cautiously with “their lantern”.
2. What holds me back	Seven of Cups (minor)	Many possibilities, sometimes idealised: hard to choose, one scatters across several dreams.
3. One path	The Star (major)	Staying open, regaining confidence, moving forward in small steps rather than deciding everything at once.

Two major arcana out of three: the subject is experienced as a real turning point. The only minor arcanum provides the concrete point: too many options at once. Question to ask yourself: “Which path do I most want to test first?” The spread does not say what is going to happen: it helps to put into words what one feels.

Common mistakes

Mistake	Why, and what to do
“Death announces a death”	No: traditionally, the card evokes the end of a cycle, a passage, a transformation. It is also often associated with renewal. If it makes you uneasy, that is a reason to ask yourself what is ending, not to fear an event.
“The Devil is an evil card”	It speaks of attachments, temptations and dependencies; it invites us to look at what holds us back rather than to fear evil.
“The Lovers is always about love”	In the Marseille tradition, it is first and foremost the card of choice. It may concern a relationship, but also a professional or life choice.
Asking about health, legal matters or the death of a loved one	The tarot replaces neither a doctor, nor a lawyer, nor a psychologist. For these subjects, turn to a professional.

Frequently asked questions

Going further

See the tarots and oracles For beginners

The meanings presented here come from the tradition and symbolism of the tarot: they vary according to schools and authors. The tarot is a tool for reflection and symbolism; it does not predict the future and does not replace the advice of a doctor, a lawyer or a psychologist.