Overview and introduction to the Minor Arcana of the Tarot
While the Major Arcana tends to be major life events and deals with the big stuff, The Minor Arcana tends to deal with the more day to day aspects of life…where you are. The Minor Arcana tends to be more self-actualized lessons and choices that you can make about your journey going forward. I often like to think of them as course correction cards. Perfect for the compass.
The Minor Arcana consists of four suits, much like standard playing cards. The suits within the Minor Arcana are Cups (water), Pentacles (earth), Swords (air), and Wands (fire). Similar to the individual septenaries that exist within the Major Arcana, each suit of the Minor Arcana also takes its own journey in the first 10 cards of each suit – a climb, a fall, a resolution.
Pip Cards in the minor arcana of the tarot
The Minor Arcana, as mentioned above, consists of four suits. There are within each suit 10 numbered cards, which are referred to as “pip cards.” In modern decks, these pip cards also have pictures, in traditional tarot decks they did not, and so, were the closest cards within a tarot deck to a traditional deck of playing cards.
Court Cards of the minor arcana of the tarot
Each suit also has four court cards or face cards. These are Page, Knight, Queen, King, and they are collectively referred to as the court cards.
The Suits of the minor arcana of the tarot
Cups
Cups, which represent the element of water, generally deal with watery elements like emotions, feelings, relationships, and heart connections. Cups remind us of the importance of fluidity, intuition, healing, and cleansing. Water is a feminine element and reflects the subtle power that often resides within women: sympathetic, flexible, cleansing and fluid. In varying decks, cups are also known as vessels or chalices.
Pentacles
Pentacles are associated with the element of Earth. Earth represents things that are tangible. Things like money, physical or outward consciousness health, finances, work, and creativity. They are more about the external things around us and how we create it, shape it, transform it, and grow it. Pentacles are also associated with the ego, self-esteem, and self-image, growth and development, nature such as plants and trees and how we can keep the world around us healthy as well as how we can ground ourselves in our life. In varying decks, pentacles are also known as discs or coins.
Swords
Swords, which represent the element of air, are thought processes and intellect, rationality, knowledge, power, change and masculinity. As swords can often be double edged, so too does the masculine rational energy of the swords suit present a duality of finding balance between intellect and control. In varying decks, swords are also known as blades and feathers.
Wands
Wands – The element associated with wands is fire, so wands bring an energy that is hot, wild, unpredictable. It is a primal energy in which we also see mysticism, creativity, resolve, power, insight, ambition and expansion, original ideas, and the seeds through which life springs forth. Fire can bring with it inspiration in creating new things, or it can be destructive, like a destructive forest or house fire. In varying decks, wands are also staves, scepters, or pipes.
That is a brief overview of the Minor Arcana and each suit. I will be talking more in depth about the characteristics of each suit in the coming weeks. Next week we are going to start with the Cups suit, with the Ace of Cups. Thank you for reading and as always, please reach out with questions, comments, or to schedule a reading.
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