Major vs Minor Arcana Cards in Tarot
The tarot deck, at its core, is divided into two distinct sections: two categories of tarot cards – the Major Arcana, and the Minor Arcana. Each of both complements the other and only leads to deeper and better insights every time you try to get a Tarot reading done. No matter if you are a tarot master or just starting to use tarot decks, learn how the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana offer their own specific insights to the story that leads your life as a reflection of major arcana vs minor arcana.
What is the Major Arcana?
Let’s focus on the Major Arcana cards, beautiful in its appeal. These are the 22 “trump” cards of the tarot deck, major arcana as differentiated by their significant meaning and impact. When the minor arcana examines the minor points of life the major arcana examines the bigger picture, lessons, and plans of life.
It is essential to think of the major arcana as steps, or markers on one’s path. Every card represents some character or an aspect of life; it maps out your journey of change or transition. The Fool represents an act of faith, the High Priestess is definitely offering an opportunity for instinct and the Wheel of Fortune is a circle of life brought in a very vivid manner through these cards.
Whenever there is a major arcana card in the reading it is a pointer to a change or a huge lesson ahead. The feeling is as if you have received some message from the cosmos that will help you understand your role, or the phase, you are in.
What is the Minor Arcana?
Well now, let’s move onto the less ethereal and slightly more practical, the Minor Arcana. While performed by 56 cards, the minor arcana is where the daily oscillation between spiritual highs and emotional lows manifest – our mind, feelings, struggles, and relationships. As for the major arcana, it addresses the notions connected with our path; the minor arcana is something to help in the understanding of daily situations.
Consider minor arcana a mirror of what is going on both inside and outside of you. The four suits of the cards including Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles each reflect a certain part of human life domain.
- Wands represent fire and the aspect of passion, creativity and action;
- Cups are connected with water, and feelings and emotions;
- Swords symbolizes air and actions, ideas and conflict;
- Pentacles refers to earth and resources, wealth, stability and work.
In each suit, the cards are numbered Ace through Ten and the Court Cards: Page, Knight, Queen and King. These cards reveal a developmental progress of the suit within the card’s specific field of operation. When you draw a minor arcana card in a Tarot reading, you are given a view of the current moment, of the forces in operation and the options available.
Major Arcana: Key Symbols and Their Meaning
The Major Arcana is incredibly lovely and strong due to the imagery in the face of the cards. Each figure depicted in these cards and all the colors and symbols used are significant, and they all hide something in their explanation. While minor arcana revolves around finance, work, romance, health, etc., it is major arcana that seems to be appealing to the global human emotions and experiences.
These archetypes are related to experiences of a human being. The first card, “The Fool”, represents new opportunities and infinite possibilities; The Lovers card represents options, togetherness, and connection. The Tower represents change and disruption as do the disintegrating walls of the structure. Each card has a message and provokes us to decide what that message means and how it is relevant regarding our experiences.
Let’s briefly discuss two examples: Joy, success and vitality is associated with The Sun card which looks like a card of warmth and light. Interpreting this card means that when it appears in a reading you are likely to experience joy or a period of contentment. The Devil card, which has chains and temptations nearby, may mean having such experiences like being trapped by some patterns. It acts as a sign post to regress and assess yourself and cut off toxic entanglements.
Minor Arcana: A Look into Everyday Life
While the Major Arcana gives an overall perspective about life, the Minor Arcana provides a way in which you can look at your existence more closely. The content of each of the four suits reflects the particular aspect of our experience, therefore there cannot be any more effective tool to analyze the complexity of the present.
Wands are often linked to fire which symbolizes passion, action and ambition. In a reading, they might appear when you are enthusiastic, beginning something new, or wanting to be inspired.
The Cups – the water element – relate to feelings, love, and instincts. The cups can assist you in decision making, love, friends and even how to take care of yourself.
Swords, associated with the air, represent mental activity, word, tests. Whenever there is a fight or struggle in your life, you are likely to meet Swords in a Tarot reading and this may include self-reflecting, coming up with clear and logical ideas in your mind or telling the hard truth.
Pentacles being connected with earth element are responsible for the secured aspects of our life as money, job or health. These cards can help to highlight these issues, as well as your feeling of ground, your ability to “ground”, and relation with the tangible reality.
For instance, the card with the image of the Ace of the Wands is known to represent a new start and an exciting beginning. The Ten of Cups may mean happiness, joy and satisfaction. The Three of Swords stabbing through a heart is quite likely to symbolize feelings of sadness, grief or dealing with a huge blow or rueful truth. The Queen of Pentacles is a positive card often associated with responsibility, strong values, stability, prosperity, and maybe home.
Comparing Major vs Minor Arcana
Now that we have looked at the characteristics of the Major Arcana and Minor Arcana let us take a look at how they work together.
In other words, one would think of the major arcana as the constellations pointing to where you are going in your lifetime, or the life lessons that you’re going to learn. They hand light sources to guide your path, to explain who you are and why, and milestones that you cross. On the other hand, the minor arcana is a bit like the daily forecast that guides one’s daily life. These cards mirror current aspects of your life: your feelings, relations, job, material aspects, and so on.
For example, consider you are thinking of undertaking a road trip. The major arcana may be a reflection of where you want to end up and the experiences that you want to go through in the process. The minor arcana, in contrast, would represent particular paths that are chosen, deviations that may be experienced and meetings with people on the way.
Each of the two forms of tarot cards provides a different outlook into your life giving you a complete view of your life spectrum. The major arcana is the vision, the grand image that is painted within the larger sphere of life while the minor arcana gives guidance at the more general level. The major arcana gives the broad picture in your life path while the minor arcana assists in making choices in the immediate future.
In any tarot reading it is vital to understand how these two groups of cards interact or relate with one another. A major arcana card could be a sign of an important life change, or a lesson to learn on a spiritual level, and the other, minor arcana cards may tell something about how to proceed, or what you may expect during the process.
Conclusion
In essence, both the Major and Minor Arcana provide unique perspectives that, when combined, offer a comprehensive understanding of your journey. The Major Arcana illuminates overarching themes and life lessons, while the Minor Arcana provides guidance on navigating the everyday challenges and decisions we encounter. Together, they offer a powerful tool for self-reflection, growth, and empowerment.
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