Minor arcana

[edit] Understanding the suits and symbols in Minor Arcana

You must have surely heard about Tarot cards, but have you come across the term Minor Arcana? ... Most probably, you have not. The fact is that the latter has very much to do with Tarot cards and a term used exclusively in esoteric practice. Here's some basic information on a life-prediction concept that involves Arcana cards and has its roots in ancient Egyptian culture.

[edit] What is Minor Arcana?

The Minor Arcana deck of Tarots consists of 56 cards that closely resemble the common, 52-card deck used in various card games today. It primarily involves four suits that have evolved from the playing card suits of the earlier Latin version. The most common and popular names given to the four suits are 'Wands', 'Cups', 'Swords' and 'Pentacles'. Today, some players use Arcana Tarot cards with the more popular and common suits - Spades, Hearts, Diamonds and Clubs.

[edit] What are the symbols associated with Minor Arcana?

The four suit symbols of Minor Arcana (Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles) have symbols that are based on the ancient belief, at the time of its origin, that the universe was made up of four elements, air, water, fire and earth. Several years later, such elements were believed to be closely related to the four fixed signs of the Zodiac - Aquarius, Leo, Scorpio and Taurus. Based on this belief, Cups are associated with water, Swords with air, Wands with fire and Pentacles with earth.

[edit] Cups

This suit symbolizes beauty, emotions, fertility and happiness. Among the Arcana cards, the Cups symbol signifies water and represents instincts and the subconscious mind as opposed to reasoning and the conscious mind. In today's regular deck of cards, the Hearts suit has its origins from the Cups.

[edit] Pentacles

The Pentacles suit symbolizes industry, material gain and money. Except for the 5 of Pentacles, all cards in this suit depict people enjoying the fruits of their labor. The coin-like discs, which carry pentagram inscriptions (5-pointed stars), are Pentacles. To protect themselves from evil, people wore pentagrams in ancient times. In the regular playing cards of today, this is how the suit of Diamonds originated. Pentacles are associated with the earth.

[edit] Swords

In the Arcana deck of cards, the Swords suit represents ambition, aggression, courage, force and misfortune. This is why the cards of this suit depict combat or people with heads bowed down owing to misfortune. Swords also represent action, both good and bad. In today's regular deck of cards, this is how the Spades suit came about. The Swords suit is associated with air.

[edit] Wands

The Wands suit represents animation, energy, enterprise, growth and glory. These are portrayed on the Arcana Tarot cards as greenwood, which has a few live twigs that signify growth. The Wands are meant to symbolize a club used in combat, or as a staff for carrying the victor's crown. The position of Wands in a layout determines whether the nature of its energy will be good or bad. Wands also symbolize agriculture, creation and ideas. The suit of Clubs has evolved from the Wands. Wands are associated with fire.

Lesser events of everyday life are reflected in the Tarot card meanings of the Minor Arcana. On the other hand, the Major Arcana, considered the more powerful of the two, predicts major issues rather than the minor difficulties of everyday life revealed by the Minor Arcana. In the fast-paced stressful times that we live in, maybe there is a lot we can learn from the ancient traditions and cultures of old.