“Oh, I got the Sun card for my daily draw! It’s going to be the Best. Day. EVER.”
“I got a reading and she drew The Lovers. He not only loves me…I’m going to get married!”
“Crap. I asked how my weekend was going to pan out and drew The Tower. I may as well cancel my plans!”
“I wondered if my best friend was talking behind my back. The 10 of Swords jumped out of my deck. Well, I guess that answers that!”
A common misconception about Tarot cards is that they fall into three distinct categories: Bad, Good, Neutral.
Black, White, Gray.
Thus, cards like Death, The Devil, The Tower and the Swords suit are feared—while The Empress, The Lovers, The Star, The Sun, The World, 4 of Wands, 6 of Wands, 10 of Coins and most of the Cups suit are welcomed. They are often interpreted as full-strength negative or positive.
A mistake, in my estimation.
It is my belief that no card in Tarot is wholly “good” or “bad.” In fact, one of the first lessons I taught my students in my online Tarot Classroom is the Light/Shadow Continuum. I present the idea that the meaning and energy of each of the 78 cards of Tarot are stretched along a continuum, from worst-case scenario to best-case scenario—from beneficial to detrimental—in import, application and result.
Thus, cards deemed “negative” by some Tarotists can find redemption and profundity through reversed meanings, the position it falls in or the surrounding cards. Likewise, those cards noted for being “happy” or “positive” can indicate stressful, suffocating, delusional or even abusive energy when reversed, ill-dignified or landing in a particular position.
Think of colors. Blue can range from Powder Blue to Cornflower to Sky to Denim to Royal to Navy to Midnight—and everything in between.
Same with Tarot cards. Each can be stretched like taffy, from auspicious, delicious and beneficial—to ominous, unsavory and detrimental. This is because a card’s energy may be blocked, unexpressed, hidden, internalized, projected, rejected, required, unconscious, ending, excessive, romanticized, beginning or even symbolic.
78 shades of Tarot, if you will.
While space prohibits me from addressing every card in the Tarot and its beneficial/detrimental continuum, here are but a few of the popular “Good” and “Bad” cards—and why they may need a second look when interpreting them.
“Good” Cards
The Star – The Disney card! Full of glitter, hope and a naked woman pouring water in a pool (as if it needed the moisture)—what could possibly be wrong with this card? Well, towards the extreme end, The Star can indicate spiritual elitism—especially in the New Age realm. Indigo Children, Starseeds, Pleiadian People—full of mystical-sounding labels and noble aspirations, these types refuse to acknowledge the Yin/Yang dualism of the material world—only spouting words encased in rainbows or contained within pearlescent bubbles (until they’re insulted or threatened). Card-carrying denizens of the Aquarian Age, they tend to be “space cadets”—being so “heavenly minded, they’re no earthly good” (to borrow a phrase from my Pentecostal pastoring days).
Often fond of fairy wings and iridescent clothing, they live in castles in the air (with no ladder going back down to reality). The Star can also be the Pollyanna: fully of giddy joy and optimism, they meet the suffering of others with platitudes and spiritual band-aids. A homeless man needing food? Give him a crystal and tell him to boost his First Chakra! A young woman dealing with cancer? Give her a card printed with verses from the Bible promising healing! A neighbor dealing with depression? Tell him how to use quantum affirmations to get happy!
The Sun – Several years ago, a science writer at UK’s The Times magazine polled 2,000 people about their worst fears. Shockingly, many feared public speaking more than death. Or as Jerry Seinfeld says, “If you’re going to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy”. The Sun may indicate public performance and being in the spotlight, but taken to extremes, it can indicate glossophobia—terror striking the hearts of anyone visualizing a microphone or speaking in front of others.
Another overlooked aspect of The Sun is hero worship (idolatry). Rather than embracing our own brilliance, we project it onto others. On the other hand, it can also indicate trying to sabotage the success of others through throwing shade or outright negative gossip/slander (think of websites like TMZ that thrive on unflattering pictures of celebrities or scandalous rumors). The Sun may also hint at overexposure on social media (preening promo whores, anyone?) or discontent with how you look (to the point of plastic surgery). On the physical plane, The Sun can even suggest photosensitivity, especially for those on certain medications or who have fair skin and blue eyes (vampires, unite!)—or the need for Vitamin D. Don’t forget the sun block…because skin cancer sucks.
2 of Cups – Ahhhh, the soulmate card. Lovely when it’s one end of the spectrum—but co-dependent when it’s on the other. Ever hear someone say “She completes me!”? Or “I can’t live without him!”? It’s that kind of enmeshment that the 2 of Cups can devolve into. This is when an individual loses a sense of self to the point that being told what to wear, who to talk to, where to go and when to eat is confused with “love”. It’s a loss of boundaries (if, indeed, the individual ever had a strong sense of them in the first place). The novel Into the Darkest Corner portrays this type of control in harrowing detail.
Speaking of books, I once overheard a girl say, “50 Shades of Grey was such a romantic movie! I’d love to be cared about by someone like Christian cares for Anastasia”. Mmmmkay. And there’s the “honeymoon” stage of a relationship with this card, where all is roses, chocolate and marathon sex. Yes, the endorphins rock (as does the Os)…but the plane has to land at some point. Then what? Are the people you ignored while having shagfests going to still be around? What happens when your spouse gets the flu and craps himself? (Look to The Lovers for that kind of clean-up commitment—not the 2 of Cups).
“Bad” Cards
An entire book could be written about the redeeming qualities of the so-called “negative” cards in Tarot (being a Scorpio x 4, I may just be the person to write it!). For now, let’s discuss three of them.
3 of Swords – Yeah, so the Rider-Waite-Smith inspired versions of this card depict a blood red heart impaled with three blades. But you know what I’ve seen in this card? The Three Musketeers: “all for one, and one for all”. In fact, some keywords I’ve assigned to this card include “friendship under duress” or “friendship forged amidst adversity”. Let’s deconstruct the symbolism: in numerology, the number 3 suggests creating, self-expression, expansion, growth, planning and collaboration. The Swords suit deals with assumptions, thoughts, communication, judgments, beliefs, logic, clarity, incisiveness, decisions and reason. Excessive thoughts become worries. Painful assumptions become dejection. Venomous judgments become hurtful. Sharp words—they can sting. So when you have growth among that, perhaps with the collaboration of friends—and, maybe, even strategizing about how best to deal with heartache…tada! Commiserating pals that stick with you through thick and thin, helping you emerge from the crapola.
Queen of Swords – This poor lady gets called “bitch” more than any other card in the Tarot. (I like to think the acronym stands for Ballsy Iconoclast Totally Cleaning House). Other derogatory monikers include frigid dame, battle axe, old widow, witch and terms too offensive for print. And it’s a damn shame, I tell you. Queens nurture, persuade, cultivate, coordinate, catalyze, preserve, mend, teach, influence, promote, endorse and support. Combine that glorious energy with the areas associated with the Swords suit (mentioned above) and you get keywords like Promoting Critical Thought; Nurturing the Intellect; Advocating Discernment; Supporting Rationalism; Encouraging Curiosity; Valuing an Open Mind; Influencing Academics; Catalyzing Complex Ideas; Mending Disparity; Upholding Healthy Skepticism; Cultivating Inquiry; Preserving Principles; Teaching High Standards; Coordinating Communication; Persuading Scholasticism; Endorsing Analysis.
And yes, doing any one of those may earn you the sobriquet “bitch”, because pushing for clarity, authenticity, honesty, excellence, discernment, investigation or rational analysis can land you in scalding H2O when the zeitgeist favors innuendo, fuzzy logic, mediocrity or Emperors with no clothes—especially coming from a woman. Me? I think this gal is a fine role model.
The Tower – Oh nooooo! (Can’t you just hear Mr. Bill here as he falls from the exploding turret?). This is the “shit hitting the fan” card, for sure, but a lot of awesome things can come from having your tower blown to bits.
First off, any shoddy building materials used to construct your “house” get destroyed. Metaphorically, this is a dismantling of faulty egoic structures, delusions or psychological configurations. If you’re the type that craves truth, growth and evolution, this is good news. After all, you gotta have a firm foundation, stable walls and a durable roof to help you endure life’s storms (re: a strong sense of personal meaning and robust self-esteem). In fact, in The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, Arthur Edward Waite called The Tower card “The House of Falsehood” (stemming from the psalmic scripture “Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain to build it”). And when the lightning bolt strikes The Tower—whether you consider that a zap from God/dess, a wake-up call from the Universe or an “aha moment” —little remains the same when the dust settles.
The author of Meditations on the Tarot describes it this way: “The thunderbolt which blasts is the divine light which dazzles and bears down; the blasted tower is what the human powers of understanding, imagination and will have erected, which find themselves confronted with divine reality; the constructors who fall represent the ‘school of humility’ for the human powers of understanding, imagination and will.”
The gift of humility! Veils lifted! Illusions dissipated! Defective foundations laid waste! Disempowering beliefs dismantled! Yes, yes, yes, I say. But smoking cinders aren’t the end of the story! The seeds of some wildflowers (especially in mature chaparral) stay dormant for decades—only blooming in a riot of color by the millions after hot fires sweep through, disintegrating impervious seed coats or annihilating tissue covering embryonic roots. Beauty from ashes! Life from devastation! Fresh palimpsest for writing a new story!
Whew, what a tour, eh? And we’ve only covered six cards! Imagine the rich, diverse continuum contained within every single Tarot card.
Go ahead. I’ll wait.
And so will the cards.
Pick them up. Lend an ear. Ask them to share their 78 shades of secrets with you (because they will).
Loved these interpretations. I've been guilty of good card / bad card thinking. Thanks for enlarging my viewpoint!
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Queen of Swords as she says what needs to be said without holding back