The Fool
The personality in the primal state, the willful child in all of us. Instinct. Innocence. Impulsive actions. Setting off in a new direction in life. Liberation of the impulses. Insight and wit from instinct rather than instruction.
(reversed) -- A false step. Impetuous beginning. Rash and irrational behavior. Childishness. Bacchic intoxication, oblivion and violence.
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The Magician
Mastery of words and of matter. Eloquence, including eloquent silence and Hermetic wisdom. Mediator, messenger, and communicator. The Magician may be a sage or just a quick talker. He is a master-manipulator of the material world, but the miracles he effects may be true physical and metaphysical transformation of mere illusion and technical tricks. With Hermes, one never knows; he is the god of orators and liars, merchants and thieves, trickery and arcane science.
(reversed) -- Mercurial chicanery. Fraudulent activity. Demagoguery. Sophistry. Misused technology. sideshow thrills.
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The Priestess
The abstract, spiritual and intellectual face of the anima, which is the feminine nature of the soul. Primordial feminine wisdom. The cyclic and balancing forces of nature. The ancient underground tradition of healing arts, magic, and spiritual mystery.
(reversed) -- Obfuscation. Mumbo jumbo. Heresey.
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The Empress
Feminine fertility and power. Civilization. Domestic tradition. Family and childrearing. The active, fecund aspect of the anima. The mother and the queen, on earth and in heaven.
(reversed) -- Stifling domesticity. Bourgeois limitations. High-handed matriarchy. Junoesque jealousy.
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The Emperor
Worldly authority. Professional success. Social power. The life of action and decision, especially in politics and business. Patriarch, clan leader, and pater familias.
(reversed) -- Tyranny. Pomposity. Jove-like self-indulgence.
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The Hieropfant
The abstract, spiritual and intellectual side of the animus, or masculine nature of the soul. Spiritual authority. Religious tradition. Avuncular wisdom. The old order and the old school.
(reversed) -- Dogmatic beliefs. Spiritual authoritarianism. Enfeebled philosophizing.
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The Lovers
Romantic passion. Amorous attachment. The stages of love: discovery, attraction, pursuit, flirtation, courtship and consummation. The gifts of Aphrodite: beauty, youth, dalliance and delight.
(reversed) -- Love unrequited, star-crossed, soured, illicit, blind or foolish.
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The Chariot
Victory. Triumph over opposition. New order. Change by force. The chariot of the soul pulled to one side by the force of vigilance and restraint, or drawn to the other side by the force of passions.
(reversed) -- Bullying. Grandstanding. Sword rattling. A setback or defeat.
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Justice
The vindication of the just and the punishment of the unjust. Rule of reason. Balance of power.
(reversed) -- Justice miscarried or delayed.
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The Hermit
Introspection. Retreat. Pilgrimage. Spiritual quest. The search in oneself and in the world for the "Honest Man" of Diogenes the philosopher. Meditation on the passage of time and the dissolution of matter.
(reversed) -- Barrenness. Loneliness. Cynicism.
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Chance
The intrusion of chance into affairs. Unlikely coincidence. "What goes up, must come down." The intercession of good fortune in life. A sudden opportunity that must be exploited deftly and promptly; according to Machiavelli, in The Prince, Fortune is "bald behind", that is, once she runs past, it will be too late to grab her, and so she must be seized as she approaches, "by the forelock".
(reversed) -- Unauspicious atmosphere. Strange omens. Dark auguries.
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Strength
Strength and fortitude. Moral resolve. Triumph over base instincts. Mens sana in corpore sana (Sound mind in a sound body)
(reversed) -- Weakness. Unresolved conflict.
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The Hanged Man
Sacrifice. Vigilance. Martyrlike forbearance. Suspension or paralysis of the soul. A mind divided and undecided. Stasis and constraint.
(reversed) -- Masochism. Self-imposed confinement. Potential release from bondage.
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Death
Death. Loss. Death and rebirth. End of an old situation and the beginning of a new one.
(reversed) -- Death averted. Brush with danger. Rising from a deathlike sleep.
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Temperance
Balance. Moderation. Harmony. "Nothing in excess." Blending of opposites. Androgyny.
(reversed) -- Excess. Imbalance. Indulgence. Polarization.
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The Devil
Wickedness and danger. Darkness and licentiousness. Slavery to the senses. Imprisonment by baser instincts. Temptation. Selfishness.
(reversed) -- Irresponsible pleasures. Prankishness. Childish panic. Undignified behavior. Fare baccano, to "paint the town."
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The Tower
Comeuppance. Setback. Disaster. Arrogance of pride cast down by Providence. Unforeseen event. Calamity.
(reversed) -- Disaster avoided. Dramatic rescue. False alarm.
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The Stars
Blessedness. Tranquility. Beauty.
(reversed) -- Fleeting peace. Melancholy. Pensiveness.
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The Moon
Mystery. Changeability. Unseen and unknown forces of the night, and unpredictable transformations from the mutable moon. Young womanhood. Feminine beauty. Ordeal and honor of childbearing.
(reversed) -- Gradual clarity. New hope. Light of dawn.
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The Sun
Glory and rejoicing. The light of reason. The flower of manhood. Inspiration in poetry and music.
(reversed) -- Poignance of dusk. Twilight shadows. Nostalgia. Haunting memories.
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The Angel
Resurrection and rebirth. Perfection of the body and soul. Final reward or punishment.
(reversed) -- Delay. Procrastination. Mediocrity. Indecision.
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The World
Completion and perfection. Focus. Synthesis. Interweaving. The vast design of nature. The interconnecting patterns of experience. Fulfillment and success.
(reversed) -- World out of balance. Incompleteness, Vain striving, Gracelessness.
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