As we shuffle tarot cards, we are asking the universe to guide us. Tarot cards are made up of 78 pieces with fascinating pictures, each with their own meaning and story. They are split into two parts: the Major and Minor Arcana. The Minor Arcana is different in than the Major Arcana because it’s broken down into four suits, just like regular playing cards. These aren’t just any suits; they represent the four elements in tarot: cups (water), wands (fire), swords (air), and pentacles (earth). These elements help us understand different parts of our lives, like our emotions, actions, thoughts, and the material world around us.
When we lay out our tarot spread, each spot has a purpose that helps us read the story. If we pull a lot of cups, there might be some heavy emotions. A spread full of wands might mean we are ready to go and get started on our next idea. Swords represent let us know that some deep thinking is going on. The pentacles might help us understand that there are new opportunities right around the corner.
Understanding these elements isn’t just about knowing what each card means. It’s about how the fire, water, air and earth cards show up in our life. Using the four elements in Tarot in our reading gives us another layer of understanding about what is going on in life at the moment.
The Major and Minor Arcana
The Role of Major Arcana Cards
The Major Arcana cards are the big themes in our life. They represent important lessons, trends, and influences that we may have throughout our lives. These 22 cards are numbered from 0 to 21, starting with The Fool and ending with The World. Each card tells a story all by itself, shaping our journey with themes tied to the natural world and our personal growth.
For example, The Fool represents new beginnings and adventures, reminding us of our curious and spontaneous sides. Let’s think about the Fool, this card represents new beginnings and adventures. The Moon, meanwhile, is somewhat mysterious, asking us to look at our imagination and shows us to start using our intuition and imagination more.
Understanding the Minor Arcana
Remember, there are 56 Minor Arcana cards, split into four suits that reflect our daily life. This is where we are digging into the four elements of Tarot cards. These suits are Cups, Pentacles, Swords, and Wands, each linked to an element of nature – water, earth, air, and fire, respectively.
- Cups: Water element. Love, emotions, relationships
- Pentacles: Earth element. Money, career, material possessions
- Swords: Air element. Thoughts, words, conflicts
- Wands: Fire element. Creativity, action, inspiration
Within each suit, there are cards numbered from Ace to 10, and then there are the court cards: Page, Knight, Queen, and King. These court cards usually represent people or personalities that might pop into our days.
The Suit of Cups and the Element of Water
In tarot, we find that the Suit of Cups represents our emotions and relationships, just like water reflects our feelings and connections with others. Let’s take a peek at each of the elements.
Exploring the Cups Suit
The Cups suit is all about what goes on in our hearts. Just like there are different types of cups and goblets, we see a variety of emotional experiences within this suit. The Cups cards in a tarot deck resonate with love, intuition, and interpersonal affairs.
- Ace of Cups: shows us the start of emotional clarity or potentially, the beginnings of a relationship. This might not be a romantic relationship, it could indicate a friendship.
- Two to Ten of Cups: This is all about the different stages and aspects of emotional experiences and relationships.
- Page, Knight, Queen, and King of Cups: Reflect the different personalities that express emotional wisdom, compassion, and creativity.
Water Element Symbolism
Water, in tarot, flows through the Cups suit, influencing its meaning. We can think of the element of water like an ocean of feelings—deep, mysterious, and essential for life. I always look in the background to notice if the water is calm and clear or stormy. These are clues to the types of emotions we migh be feeling.
Remember:
- Water reflects emotions: Love, relationships, and feelings all fall under this element..
- Cool and adaptable: Water takes the shape of any container, much like our emotions change in different situations.
By understanding the interplay between the Cups suit and the Element of Water, we get a clearer picture of how our feelings and relationships shape the story that each reading tells us.
Joining my Facebook group is another resource to learn more about tarot and manifesting.
The Suit of Swords and Air’s Intellect
When we talk about the Suit of Swords in tarot, we’re diving into the world of our minds This suit is all about how we think and communicate because it’s linked to the element of air.
Cutting Through Confusion with Swords
Ever had a problem that felt like you might not ever figure it all out? We’ve all been there. . Each card here represents different challenges we might face, and how clear thinking can see through the mess. For example, the Knight of Swords charges ahead with a plan, showing us how being decisive can lead us to new ideas and skip the confusion.
Air Element and Intellectual Endeavors
Picture the air on a swift, breezy day—it tosses leaves and whistles through the trees, right? People born under air astrological signs like Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius are natural thinkers and communicators. The cards of the Swords suit challenge us to use our words and brains to solve puzzles. This is where our intellectual pursuits come to play, from figuring out tough homework to planning the ultimate birthday surprise.
The Earth Sign: Suits of Pentacles
In tarot, we often mix up our elements, but today we’re setting things straight. The Suit of Pentacles is all about the earth element and it’s focused on the material side of life—like money, our jobs, and our health.
Grounding with the Suit of Pentacles
When we dive into the Suit of Pentacles, we’re not playing with fire. Instead, we’re planting our feet firmly on the ground. So, what are Pentacles all about?
- Earth Element: Think about the earth—solid, stable, and all about growth. In the tarot, Pentacles reflect this.
- Material Aspects of Life: This is all about money and security. You can use the Pentacles to guide you in matters that have to do with your job, security, and money. Pentacles will help you through different situations and the ups and downs of find material wealth and job satisfaction.
Pentacles are associated with the cool, supportive energy of the earth. They remind us to take care of our stuff—like our finances, our homes, and our health.
Igniting with the Suit of Wands
The suit of Wands is a fire element and it represents creativity, energy, and inspiration.
The Spark of Creativity
The Suit of Wands is all about our creative potential. Wands want you to dream big and use all of your creativity to make that happen.
- Creativity: New ideas come to you all the time.
- Passion: All about loving what we are doing.
- Inspiration: That “Aha!” moment when everything clicks.
The Wands’ Earthy Side
Even though Wands are a fire element, they’ve got an earthy side too. The wands themselves, made of wood, remind us to keep our feet on the ground. They symbolize growth, but growth in in a way that what you are doing is solid, so when things go sideways, your foundation is strong. It won’t crumble right in front of you.
Stoking the Fire
The Suit of Wands nudges us to take action. Got a great idea? Go for it! It’s all about taking action on all of the wonderful ideas you have. It doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy, but taking action and being brave will help you make all your dreams come true.
Remember, the Suit of Wands is a reminder that we have the power to create our own magic and make amazing things happen.
The four elements in Tarot add a layer to our Tarot readings. When you are doing a reading for others, these elements give clues to what the cards mean.
