I’ve decided to dedicate Thursdays to re-running old posts. Maybe mashed up together or with new information thrown in. Because there are some Tarot stories that deserve to be retold. Because I want to refocus on central themes from time to time. Today is one of those occasions.

One of the reasons I love Tarot cards so much is that they’re deeply meaningful. In particular the group of cards commonly known as The Major Arcana. I refer to them as Life Lessons Tarot because together they read like a book about the core life experiences of a human being. For me this is Tarot’s Holy Book. I’ve divided it up into three volumes and a prologue.

Prologue:

The Fool – The soul waiting to be born.

The first volume of the Holy Book covers childhood:

The Magician – The seed that creates new life. Or the newborn who seems perfect in every way and has so much potential.

The High Priestess – The foetus growing in the womb. Or the newborn babe living off instinct during the first months and years.

The Empress – Mum. Or the toddler at play.

The Emperor – Dad. Or the child being disciplined

The Hierophant – Teachers. Or the school child forming ideas about the world

The Lovers – Lovers. Or the teenager beginning to make choices about what they want and who they want to be with.

The Chariot – Your job. Or the young adult striving for success.

The second volume of the Holy Book represents experiences we have as adults:

Strength – Developing confidence.

The Hermit – Seeking guidance.

The Wheel of Fortune – Experiencing ups and downs.

Justice – Weighing your options.

The Hanged Man – Being pushed outside your comfort zone. / Making sacrifices.

Death – Moving on.

Temperance – Finding balance.

Often one experience leads to another. Lack of confidence can lead you to seek guidance. Experiencing ups and downs in the workplace or at home can lead you to weigh your options. After weighing options, you might decide to pursue a new job/partner/home leading to you being pushed outside your comfort zone and eventually moving on. Then you have to make adjustments to your life to accommodate the changes you have made e.g. Leave earlier for work. Find another way to keep in contact with friends from your old workplace. Redecorate.

The knee bones connected to the thigh bone. Even in Tarot.

And now we come to the scary part. The cards that will shake, rattle and roll your world. The last 7 cards of Tarot’s Holy Book are the most intense to live through. I call this volume ‘Maturity’ because these cards force you to confront yourself. The good, the bad and definitely the ugly. The good news is, if you can manage these energies in a positive way you hit the jackpot: You get The World!

The Devil: Living in denial.

The Tower: Reaching breaking point.

The Star: Finding sanctuary.

The Moon: Revealing hidden depths.

The Sun: Being fully yourself.

Judgement: Being called into action.

The World: Being at peace.

Again each experience leads into the next. If you live in denial the universe will throw challenges to break you in The Tower. After experiencing that kind of trauma you need to retreat for awhile and lick your wounds aka The Star. But having broken through your own blind spots you have a chance to change your inner programming with The Moon. And be re-born in The Sun card as someone closer to the person you want to be. Then Judgement calls you into action to share your good fortune with others. Only by giving to others can you ever experience The World.

Are you as blown away as I am by how beautiful the Tarot journey is?