Tarot Cards - Minor Arcana

The 56 cards of the Minor Arcana are representative of the everyday occurences in a person's life. They are divided into 4 groups, called 'suits,' : Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles. These 4 suits are further divided into 2 groups per suit : the Numbered Arcana, 1 through 10, and the Court Arcana, King, Queen, Knight, and Page.

Each of the 4 suits has certain traits associated with it : the elements Earth, Air, Fire, and Water; the directions North, South, East and West; the seasons Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter; and the realms of Thought, Emotion, Action, and Manifestation (material realization.) These correspondences are further enhanced by their association with the Zodiac signs for the Court cards, and numerology for the Numbered cards.

Wands: the element of Fire; the direction South; the season of Autumn; the realm of Thought.
Wands represent mental activity, thought, the conscious mind, plans, the beginning of new projects, creation, growth, the first stage of development.

Cups: the element of Water; the direction West; the season of Summer; the realm of Emotion.
Cups represent emotional activity, feeling, the subconscious mind, beauty, desire, spirit, fertility, abundance, the second stage of development.

Swords: the element of Air; the direction North; the season of Winter; the realm of Action.
Swords represent physical activity, movement, struggle, effort, aggression, force, courage, striving to achieve a goal, the third stage of development.

Pentacles: the element of Earth; the direction East; the season of Spring; the realm of Manifestation.
Pentacles represent material gain, realization, attainment, prosperity, industry, physical comfort, money, the achievement of a goal, the final stage of development.

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This page was last updated on - Feb. 1997. "Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore!"
Copyright © 1997 Lia Wolf-Gentry A member of