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Major vs Minor Arcana: How Their Meanings Shape Your Tarot Reading


One of the simplest ways to reflect on your inner potential, fears, and peculiarities is by performing a tarot reading session. Not only does it serve well for self-reflection, but it also gives you guidance that neither friends nor shrinks and other experts can. The conventional tarot deck consists of two key sections. The first one is known as the Major Arcana and second – the Minor Arcana. If you make sure to get to know all of their differences and how they actually interact, you are sure to take your tarot interpretations to the next level.

Meet the Major Arcana

The structure of the Major Arcana is pretty simple: it includes 22 cards, and each card tells us about crucial spiritual lessons, life themes, and inner transformations. All the cards from the Major Arcana mirror the most significant milestones and turning points of your life together with karmic influences that have a huge impact on your journey. 


Whether you perform an in-person or online tarot reading session, any card from the Major Arcana means that an important event is about to happen or signals a life-changing lesson you’re going to learn.


When it comes to the main features of Major Arcana cards, we would like to mention the following:

  • Usually suggest certain circumstances that are impossible to stay away from.
  • Represent intense growth in both personal and spiritual areas.
  • Convey stronger messages that have a huge impact in contrast to the cards from the Minor Arcana.
  • Show universal themes and major life transitions.


As for the examples of the cards from the Major Arcana and their typical examples, here’s something to consider:

  • The World is your personal signal about completion, wholeness, and fulfillment.
  • The Fool is always that very card that tells you to engage in new beginnings, take risks, etc.
  • The High Priestess is your intuition, hidden knowledge, and that inner wisdom that you might be looking for in your everyday routine.
  • Death tells about the upcoming transformation and all the endings that open the doors to new beginnings.

 

Let’s say that you shuffled your cards, pulled some and…most are from the Major Arcana camp. Congrats! It means that you are experiencing a significant phase in your life. You should be ready for deep changes and personal growth that are both about to kick in (and you're going to like it!).

Here Comes the Minor Arcana

As for the structure of the Minor Arcana, it involves 56 cards. The latter includes four suits that are Cups, Pentacles, Swords, and Wands. If you’re going to do a tarot reading session to uncover your everyday emotions, situations, and challenges, there’s no better instrument than the Minor Arcana. The cards from this Arcana have nothing to do with destiny, grandiose events, and lost-lasting outcomes. They deal with our daily lives, thoughts, actions, decisions, etc.


Speaking of the Four Suits and their meanings, here’s a quick explanation at your service:

  • Cups (Water) reveal your motions, relationships with your inner self and other people, your intuition, love, etc.
  • Pentacles (Earth) goes more about the material side of life, such as finances, career, and studying.
  • Swords (Air) show you all the thoughts and communication issues, conflicts, and hidden power of your intellect.
  • Wands (Fire) helps identify your passions and ambitions and lets your creativity juices flow.


The key features of the cards from the Minor Arcana are given (but not limited to!) below:

  • Give you a better idea of how you interact with other people in your setting.
  • Represent your personal decisions and trivial events in your everyday routine.
  • Provide guidance on how to deal with opportunities that life gives us and combat challenges.


When it comes to the examples of the meanings of the cards from this Arcana, we recommend to pay attention to the following:

  • Ace of Cups opens the door for new emotional beginnings, love, joy, and happiness.
  • Three of Pentacles signals teamwork, more opportunities for collaboration, skill development, etc.
  • Nine of Swords goes about anxiety (an essential part of modern life), all our worries, and sleepless nights.
  • King of Wands is the synonym for leadership and confidence.

 

If you shuffle the deck, and all the cards you happen to draw are from the Minor Arcana, it means you are most likely dealing with personal decisions and short-term challenges. In other words, there’s no place for any sort of transformative changes with long-lasting effects.

Maintaining the Balance Between the Two Arcanas

While the chance to pull cards from Major or Minor Arcana only is pretty small, be prepared to draw cards from both camps. That is why you have to understand the mix of Major and Minor Arcana cards in a reading session. Thus, you’ll get a better idea of the message that spirits are trying to convey. As for the reading séance with a dominant Arcana, the ritual with most cards taken from the Major Arcana signals life-changing events and spiritual growth. At the same time, the Minor Arcana cards highlight all those daily experiences and practical things that are part of personal, professional, social, and other niches. According to the experts in the divination séances, it’s much better when both Major Arcana and Minor Arcana cards appear together during the practice. Thus, the querent receives a more layered message. While the Major Arcana sets the overarching theme, the cards from the Minor Arcana give you all those crucial details on how this or that situation unfolds in your daily life. After all, details matter more than we think.

Tips for Beginners

Using both Major and Minor Arcana together can feel overwhelming; however, following some simple tips for beginners might help you have the best experience possible:

  • Start with daily pulls;
  • Do simple spreads (3 cards will do);
  • Trust your intuition as you shuffle the deck;
  • Ask open-ended questions;
  • Look for help from like-minded tarot users;
  • Use a tarot journal to see how reading sessions are linked with your experiences.

Conclusion 

To cut a long story short, we believe that both – the Major and Minor Arcana – are the cornerstones of a successful tarot reading session. When it comes to the grandiose themes of life, incredible transformations, and obstacles that are larger than life – the Major Arcana signals each. However, all the tiny details are hidden behind the cards from the Minor Arcana. If you make sure to learn and understand all the unique meanings of the cards and the interplay as part of the sacred process, you are sure to boost your practice in order to gain more meaningful insights.



author

Chris Bates



STEWARTVILLE

JERSEY SHORE WEEKEND

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