Between Magic and Mind… and the discovery of Who You Are through the Tarot

By now forms of art as well as divination, tarot cards have spread in the new era and are transmitters of advice. They are the light that guides choices when they are too dark to understand.

You can now find them almost everywhere illustrated by the hands of various artists who nevertheless remain faithful to the symbolism of the tarot.

With this first article, I would like to recount the history of these wonderful divination tools. And at the end, you can also take a quiz to discover which arcana you are.

Every week we will explore a different side of the tarot to eventually have a generic map that will allow us to use them during our lives.

A BIT OF HISTORY:

The Tarot was born in the north of the Italian peninsula during the 15th century, as an evolution of the “triumphs” in Renaissance courts, and only later were they reinterpreted in an esoteric and divinatory key between the 18th and 19th centuries.

Deck composition:

A standard deck has 78 cards: 22 Major Arcana and 56 Minor Arcana. The Minors are divided into four suits (Wands, Swords, Cups, Pentacles), with 10 numbered cards and 4 court cards per suit.

TAROT AND PSYCHOANALYSIS:

During my personal journey of self-discovery, I came into contact with the figure of Jung.

Carl Gustav Jung was one of the most influential psychiatrists and thinkers of the 20th century, founder of analytical psychology. His theory of the collective unconscious and archetypes revolutionized the way we understand the human mind, dreams, symbols, and inner images.

Jung did not write a specific treatise on the Tarot, but he spoke about it in various contexts, recognizing its symbolic and psychological value.

In fact, he described the Major Arcana as “psychological images, symbols with which one plays, as the unconscious seems to play with its contents.”

The cards were not only able to predict the future but represented true inner states; for this reason, Jung cited the Tarot as useful tools to dialogue with and understand one's unconscious.

🌟 Major Arcana (22 cards)

The 22 Major Arcana thus represent universal archetypes and fundamental stages of the inner journey. There is often the prejudice of believing that the Tarot predicts the future, dictating an immutable premonition, whether good or bad. In reality, this is not entirely true. Indeed, these are divinatory tools but act as guides, providing advice and predicting what that advice will bring.

But the choice is ours alone. The future is ours.

Below is a brief preview of the Major Arcana:

0. The Fool

Beginning, freedom, trust in the journey

1. The Magician

Personal power, initiative, creativity

2. The High Priestess

Intuition, mystery, inner knowledge

3. The Empress

Fertility, abundance, care

4. The Emperor

Structure, authority, stability

5. The Hierophant

Wisdom, tradition, spiritual guidance

6. The Lovers

Choices, relationships, harmony

7. The Chariot

Will, direction, conquest

8. Justice

Balance, truth, responsibility

9. The Hermit

Inner search, solitude, reflection

10. Wheel of Fortune

Fate, cycles, change

11. Strength

Courage, patience, gentle mastery

12. The Hanged Man

Suspension, sacrifice, new perspective

13. Death

End, transformation, rebirth

14. Temperance

Harmony, healing, balance

15. The Devil

Desires, addictions, shadow

16. The Tower

Breakdown, revelation, liberation

17. The Star

Hope, inspiration, faith

18. The Moon

Illusion, dream, unconscious

19. The Sun

Joy, clarity, vitality

20. Judgement

Awakening, calling, spiritual rebirth

21. The World

Completion, integration, fulfillment