Cards of the Tarot

Here is an introduction to the different cards of the tarot.  All my decks are based off of the Rider-Waite deck, so therefore I will tend to stick to this style of tarot card in my blog.  Keep in mind that there are many decks and not all of them are based on the Rider-Waite.  Even those based on Rider-Waite can have variations per the whims of the creator(s).  The imagery can be very different from the original Rider-Waite cards.  My favorite decks have pictorial scenes on all the cards.  I won't go into any meanings or descriptions at this point.  Believe me, you will thank me later.  LOL. 

First off, the Rider-Waite (RW) tarot and decks based upon it have 78 cards.  There are 22 major arcana cards and 56 minor arcana cards.  Of the minor arcana cards, there are 16 court cards and 40 pip cards. The minor arcana is divided into "suits" and each suit contains 14 cards.



Major Arcana Cards


Major Arcana cards have beautiful imagery and carry us along the path of The Fool as he proceeds in his journey.  These cards carry a lot of meaning in a spread.  Some books and decks refer to these 22 cards as the Trumps.

0. The Fool (may be #22 in some decks)
1. The Magician
2. The High Priestess (may be called The Popess in some decks)
3. The Empress
4. The Emperor
5. The Hierophant (may be called The Pope in some decks)
6. The Lovers
7. The Chariot
8. Justice (in some decks may be card #11)
9. The Hermit
10. Wheel of Fortune
11. Strength (in some decks may be card #8, may be called Fortitude in some decks)
12. The Hanged Man (may be called The Traitor in some decks)
13. Death
14. Temperance
15. The Devil
16. The Tower (in some decks may be called Fire and in others Maison Dieu)
17. The Star
18. The Moon
19. The Sun
20. Judgement (may be called The Angels in some decks)
21. The World



Minor Arcana

Minor Arcana consists of four suits.  Each suit contains pip cards numbered Ace (or one) through ten and the four court cards (Page, Knight, Queen, and King).  The four suits are Wands, Pentacles (or Coins), Cups (or Chalices), and Swords.  Some decks and books separate the minor arcana into pips and court cards.  Here is a breakdown.

Suits

Wands (or Batons) - represent either fire or air, depending on the deck
Pentacles (or Coins) - represent earth
Cups (or Chalices) - represent water
Swords - represent either air or fire, depending on the deck


Court Cards

Page (or Prince)
Knight (or Princess)
Queen
King


Pips

Ace (or 1)
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10


Tomorrow I will post my first entry regarding a card meaning.  Check back soon. :-)