Each Tarot card has many different interpretations. The interpretation depends not only on the nature of the question (job, relationships or spiritual development), but also on what method of laying cards is used (eg Mystery of the High Priestess, The Celtic Cross, The Cross or 'whichever card comes first or second).

In this section we will mention some of the main meanings that we use for card readings and white magic. Of course, this is not the only possible interpretation. There are very different and sometimes quite contradictory perspectives which can result in the same picture or symbol having several different meanings. We recommend the books by Hajo Banzhaf (Gut beraten mit Tarot, Zwischen Himmel und Erde. Die Quintessenz aus Esoterik, Astrologie und Tarot) and Anna Franklin and Paul Mason.

The first meaning of Tarot wasn’t to predict future. It was a tool, which helped people to awaken unconsciousness into consciousness so that they can acquire self-knowledge.
Working with the Tarot can help us also today- to examine and study ourselves, to understand our destiny (our past and present) and to predict our future. And to finally understand, that fate lies within ourselves. And in order to change our fate, we have to change ourselves!

For deep understanding of this topic, we recommend to read the book from Elisabeth Haich- The Wisdom of Tarot.

Do you have a problem to make a decision? Don't you know what should be your next step? Can't you predict the consequences of your action? We will help you to look into your possible future and we will accompany you in the process of decision-making. Try to imagine how many things you would do differently, if you knew their consequences beforehand? That is exactly what we will help you to make real.

We are here to help you and we are pleased to be your guides on your way. We will help you to have a look at your situation from a spiritual point of view and we will support you in solving your problems.

The Fool

0 The Fool: number 300, letter Shin שׁ Planet Uranus ⛢

The fool accuses the child in us. It stands for a fresh start, a spontaneous and an unbiased openness. It is an expression of playful recklessness, carelessness and joy of life. It shows us that we are a new area of life and wonder without fixed expectations, and often without prior knowledge of having entered it. It can be thought of like a child's mind and is therefore frivolous, silly and shows naivety, playfulness, but also the simplicity. A Foolish or a wise and humble insight to which we can arrive at after a long and often arduous search. The fool is the rogue and the flail in the way Til Eulenspiegel embodied, as well as the only honest adviser in the court as the alter ego of the king. In any case, he lives entirely in the present, an expression of openness and honesty of spontaneity, standing ready to make new experiences. Whether this attitude stems from our refusal to be more grown up, or from worldly insight and spiritual maturity, it can only be judged outside of the card. The fool always indicates a refreshing experience, although sometimes chaotic, even if he falls he falls on his feet, which means he is in no real danger.

The Magician

1 The Magician: number 1, letter Alef א, Planet Mercury ☿

The Mage means wisdom, skill, confidence and an active lifestyle. It stands for a time in which, we masters, even encounter difficult problems and challenges and a sharpened sense of awareness, of life and of alert intelligence success arises. Although this card represents the strength of the conscious forces, it shows us not to neglect the sensitivity of the unconscious forces. On the contrary, the extraordinary power, influence, and effectiveness, which are indicated by the Mage, are based on the mystery of a profound harmony between the conscious and the unconscious. The resulting inner certainty can move mountains.

The High Priestess

2 The High Priestess: number 2, letter Bet בּ, Planet Moon ☾

The High Priestess represents our unconscious forces, our finesse, our divination and often inexplicable but deeply rooted certainty. It is the key to the mysterious truth that eludes the grasp of the logically thinking mind. She knows that the truth that we can't see, the eternal truth. Her bright side is an expression of patience, understanding, forbearance, kindness and willingness to forgive, and is focused on helping, healing and how her power over the unconscious forces can help others. The dark side, however, the archetype of "dark sister "the witch uses her mental to seduce, paralyze or even damage others. Often in Tarot interpretation, their friendly and helpful side is stressed and is traditionally considered to be one of the three protection cards. Christian mythology corresponds with this in the same way as one is considered protected when under the watchful eye of the virgin.

The Empress

3 The Empress: number 3, letter Gimmel ג, Planet Mercury ☿

The Empress represents the infinite power of nature with which she always brings forth new life. It thus stands for vitality, fertility, growth and birth of the new. It is the inexhaustible source of all life, which indicates our creative potential and our ability to absorb momentum and thus to draw up new life. That is on a physical level, growth and fertility, on a psychological level of understanding of ideas and inventiveness in the field of consciousness and increasing knowledge. The continual birth of the new means both the constant change in our life and the need to endure the pain of childbirth.

The Ruler

4 The Ruler: number 4, letter Dalet ד, Planet Jupiter ♃

The Ruler represents the structuring element, for our desire for stability, security and continuity. He shows our desire for independence from the contingencies of nature in all its unpredictability. To match our urge to civilize the world with which we build homes, heating and air conditioning systems, to protect us against heat and cold and wet, cars and aircraft in order to overcome distances easier and faster than walking, and schools to ensure education. The ruler shows both our sense of order, sobriety, discipline, responsibility, and pragmatic course of action. He also shows exaggerations in the form of rigidity, deadness, perfectionism and ambition for power.

The High Priest 

5 The High Priest: number 5, letter He ה, sign of zodiac Sagittarius ♐︎

The High Priest stands for the world of faith and one of deep trust, In the old days he was considered one of the three cards of the Tarot protection, the course of an affair could be easily persuaded by him. This understanding has a lot to say for itself, because the trust forces expressed by him refer to our assurance as well as to trust in a deep sense of our personal life and in our future .This shows the way of ethics and virtue and stands for the personal intentions originating from our moral basic values.

The Lovers

6 The Lovers: number 6, letter Vau ו, Planet Mercury ☿

This card combines two topics. It points to a great love experience which leads us but also the knowledge of the mind that is associated with this step, a necessary decision: the rejection of the existing living environment (The parents, the bachelor life, the many love affairs) and the clear commitment to the one love. This step leads to an overwhelming experience that shows "The Lovers". This card used to be, "The decision called". It may also indicate necessary decisions that have little or nothing to do with love. In such cases, it means that we are asked to choose with a full heart. The themes stressed by this card, can be determined in the context of the question. In any case, it means the big unconditional "yes."

The Car

7 The Car: number 7, letter Zaijn ז, sign of zodiac Aries ♈︎

The car stands for big jumps forward. He shows that we free ourselves from the closed sphere and go our own way. Because of, the desire for independence, ambition, the search for the lost paradise or simply our craving for recognition perhaps is the propelling force. The car is the only tarot card which shows the departure of full confidence and joy. In all other cases resigning to feelings of gravity and fear are marked. Here, is about pressing forward and risk taking. The card shows highly developed skills (driving the car), but also a lack of experience (entering an unknown world). Therefore, it must also be understood as a warning not to overestimate your own strength, not to be too confident and euphoric and a sign that we still have a lot to learn.

The Force

11 The Force: number 20, letter Kaf כּ, sign of zodiac Leo ♌︎

The card has a similar force a certain kinship, if you will, with the card of the Magician. As there is also a lot of emphasis based on the mystery of a deep inner strength and harmony. .The great influence is the magician in harmony with conscious and unconscious forces such as vitality, courage and passion which drives the expression of this card and of civilized people to reconcile with their animal nature. In the myth, this is described impressively in the friendships between Gilgamesh and Enkidu his previously angered opponents. This card shows that it can not  hide our natural instinct behind a pale virtue, but rather respond to us in the living, sometimes terrifying archaic powers opened to them through loving acceptance and gentle violence. In this way We are not only these primitive forces but, also excess powers which we have used up to now to suppress these instincts.

The Hermit

9 The Hermit: number 9, letter Teth ט, sign of zodiac Capricorn ♑︎

The hermit is the map of the seclusion and the internal stop. He marks the introverted life phase in which we shelter ourselves from foreign influence, and steer away from the everyday bustle and focus on ourselves. The Hermit stands for significant experiences in which we can recognize who we are, what we want, and how to get there. He combines two valuable extremes in himself: the depth of experience and the height of knowledge. Wrongfully this card is feared by many people because his qualities are misunderstood, fear of loneliness and abandonment. Those who follow the call of the Hermit are enriched and find clarity, strength and the joyful experience of being their own.

Destiny

10 The Destiny: number10, letter Jod י, Planet Saturn ♄

Depending on the way we face out destiny, we experience the fate wheel either as an expression of our power and helplessness or as a tip to an experience of life in which we can grow and mature. On one level the card shows the situations in which we have at first no influence over. The downturn of the card shows that our plans simply do not want to succeed. The weather, road work, air strikes, the problems of an object or force 'destroy our plans'. The wheel of time show us that it is time to realize our plans. In this case the cards in the remaining places can give valuable tips, like how we can reach the other, climbing up the side of the wheel. Destiny stands for happy, pleasant and astonishing twists.

Justice

8 The Justice: number 8, letter Ceth ח, sign of zodiac Virgo ♍︎

The Justice card includes a range of topics. It stands for clear, objective knowledge, for conscious and decided judgment, for incorruptibility, balance and fairness and shows us that we are right. At an ordinary level it shows that we experience the environment like our echo and are confronted in the good just like in the bad with the results of our own actions: They are recognized and rewarded accordingly, but when we try to achieve by questionable means we fail. This card pushes a high degree of self-responsibility. It shows that nothing will be withheld from us, but that we have to do it alone and even bear the responsibility.

The Hanged Man

12 The Hanged Man: number 30, letter Lamed ל, Planet Neptun ♆

The Hanged Man means that we are trapped and stuck in a spot. Through thorough examination however, lies an outer immobility, this enforced silence both necessary and opportunistic offers a profound grasp of what we now and a change of our view of the world and the way we experience it. The passiveness to which we are condemned in such phases can sometimes be a sign of disease and will be displayed by the card. The experience expressed by the hanged man say CG Jung: ' Can get stuck' or even be seen as a positive such as hanging on. Which signifies, on one hand an apparent difficulty but, on the other hand a unique situation which requires planning and sometimes a large strain.

Death

13 The Death: number 40, letter Mem מ, sigh of zodiac Scorpio ♏︎

Death signifies resignation, that big 'letting go', the end. He is also a pioneer for the new, what is to come, the card itself, however we see at first as the end. It may well be that this is the long awaited liberating in that we are looking for but, obviously with this card comes some of our most painful experiences. In contrast to the 10 swords that are arbitrary and also indicate a premature end, this cards always stands for the natural end and means that it is time to let go of something. Wrongfully Death is one of the most feared cards. Most people do not understand it, interpret it as the herald of the new and that it will bring us a deep experience of parting and of life related experiences. 'We have a separated life from death and the interval between both is fear' says Krishnamurti, 'You can not live without dying'.

Moderation

14 The Moderation: number 50, letter Nun נ, sign of zodiac Libra ♎︎

The meaning of this card is more understandable if we call it 'the right measure'. It embodies the healthy contrast to the card following in the tarot game, the Devil, which is excess, harmony, balance, serenity and peace of mind are all signs of moderation. This card shows blissful experience, health and inner balance, to treat ourselves well and to stand in harmony with our environment. A corresponding matter to this card can also mean healing and recovery.

The Devil

15 The Devil: number 60, letter Samech ס Planet Pluto ♇

Of all the Tarot cards the Devil (due to its nature) can be grasped the most heavily, because he for each person he has an individual appearance. The common experience marked by him lie in dependence, lack of will, failure of good intentions and actions that violate our convictions. The Devil corresponds to the dark side of many Tarot cars: Compared with the Magician, he is the black magician, He is the dark side of the High Priestess, the hypocritical and the materialistic counterpart of the High Priest. The struggle for power and soullessness of the Lovers.  The corrupt and self-righteous side of justice. He embodies unrestrained greed for strength, in contrast to Moderation. He is the ruler over large parts of the lunar landscape. The Devil appears to us, of course, mostly in an enticing form. The card show that we are playing with fire and hell! You must pay attention and not burn your fingers. At a deeper level it means that we have come into a sphere of question with our own dark side in reach.

The Tower

16 The Tower: number 70, letter Ayin ע, Planet Mars ♂

The tower shows that we have walled ourselves in an alleged security which suddenly starts to stagger. Those are just structures and dimensions which are too small and close. It can affect our conviction and basic principles in life as well as safety thinking in aspects of job-related and financial issues, even friendships and other relationships. It is a concept of what we thought is security in life from that we outgrew/distanced ourselves from. In general, surprising experiences or a sudden inspiration is what breaks down the life concept. Because one may think these are basic principles, those changes feel like catastrophes. After that shock, one may realize that he is relieved to be free from all of the old ballast. That breakthrough can be activated by personal cognition or by an exterior event. The I Ging says: 'With thunder and lightning one can conquer the eagerness of nature'.

The Star

17 The Star: number 80, letter Peh פּ, sign of zodiac Aquarius♒︎

The star is the card of hope, wisdom and insight of higher coherence. It demonstrates that we start or plan prospective things in that we can put qualified hope, although in that early state we are not aware of its extensive effects. Just the review shows what kind of arbitrary crossings we have set in terms, which are shown by the star. Like a seed it needs some time before you are able to see the result. In the traditional meaning the star was seen as one of three guard cards.

The Moon

18 The Moon: number 90, letter Zade צ sign of zodiac Cancer ♋︎

The moon-card guides us into the mysterious areas of darkness, into the night and the facets of our soul, into our intuitiveness, desires, dreams, vivacious imaginations and intense self awareness. The card stands for fear, insecurity, nightmares, dark premonition and demonstrates the horror of the unseen and not-comprehensible. It is the same fear we have when walking through a lonely forest at night. It is the fear of ancestral demons which in our enlightened world have the following names: bacteria, virus, millirem, becquerel, lead-coated air and acid rain.

The Sun

19 The Sun: number 100, letter Kof ק, sign of zodiac Gemini ♊︎

This card expresses pleasures and amenities of life, vitality, heartiness and reliance. It is the illuminating load of consciousness with that we can reach clearness and conquer worries, confusion and mysterious anxiety. Furthermore it is a synonym of adolescent virility and the feeling of being re-born. It marks the bright side of life. On a deeper level it challenges to conquer the darkness and to develop our cheerful nature, to redeem our darker brother or sister and bring them to light.

The Court

20 The Court: number 200, letter Resch ר sign of zodiac Pisces ♓︎

The court-card is easily misunderstood because of the name. Court, particularly the Last Judgment, is linked to punishment, perdition, fear and trepidation. The meaning of a card can only be extracted by the picture itself and the mental and mythological illustration. The shown resurrection describes the affecting event of salvation and liberation of what was buried or captured. It demonstrates truth and divinity coming out of the dungeon into the light. It demonstrates the determining step to self-valuation, the succeeded procedure of alchemist metamorphosis which made the lowest to the highest. In a more common level it means every kind of deliverance: deliverance of worries and affliction, ungrateful situations and bonding's, compunction and timidity. Furthermore it is a hint, that in this shown and upcoming intention there is our personal 'treasure'.

The World

21 The World: number 400, letter Tav ת Planet Sun ☉

The world characterizes recovered unity, experiencing the highest harmony and delectable out coming of a development. To couch the beauteous of this card would mean to tell a happy-end tale. In a hero's journey it is the happy ending, the recovered paradise which implies that we reached our goal in life. Just in very rare cases this is meant to be the 'aim in life' rather an important inter station. In an exterior experience the card describes that we found the place we belong to. In an inner experience it means that we took the important step to self-valuation, real authenticity and entireness. On the experience-level this world-card demonstrates joyful times in which we enjoy with a lot of vitality ourselves, furthermore it can also mean cultivating international relationships and traveling.

The origin of tarot cards is unknown. At the end of the 14th Century the cards first emerged in Europe, which probably came from the Islamic world. Cards from this period were found in the last century in the Topkapi Museum in Istanbul. They came from the Mamelukes, a ruling class, who ruled  Syria and Egypt since 13 Century. This is the first time the symbols of the four movements were seen, which is still typical for tarot, but also for playing cards: Swords (Spades); cups (hearts), coins (diamonds), and the bars that developed to cross. As avid polo players, the Mamelukes used the polo bar for the symbol of bars. Interestingly, in Europe these four series found a correlation in the four medieval stands: swords = knight, coins = merchants, cups = clergy and bars = farmers.

Today Tarot consists of 78 cards. The additional 22 cards form as the Great Arcana (the great mysteries) the heart of the Tarot, appeared for the first time in 1428 at the court of the Duke of Milan Filippo Maria Visconti as "The play of the trump cards." These beautiful hand-painted cards are symbolic individual motifs, ranging from the fools to the Pope and the Emperor up to the hermit and ranges from Fortune about death and hell to the sun, moon and star.

They were re-discovered in the 18th Century by Antoine Court de Gebelin (1725-1784), who in his extensive work "Monde Primitiv" (1775-1784) first described these as "the only book that is remained from the lost vaults of the Egyptian library". Since, his assumption has been taken in many cases, according to that Israel is a link between ancient Egypt and the West. This hypothesis is often supported by the correlation arising from the 22 major arcana cards and the kabbalistic significance of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In particular, the great French occultist Aphonse-Luis Constant (1810-1875), better known by his pseudonym Eliphas Levi (Zahed), assures in his main work "Dogma and Ritual of High Magic" (1856), that indeed the Tarot constitutes the book, which attributed to the Hebrew Enoch, to the Egyptians Hermes Trismegistus and to the Greek Kadmos, the legendary city founder, had written. Others suspect an Indian origin of this game, because significant symbols of the cards are also attributes of Indian deities. In his book "Playing Cards" (1973) Roger Tilley points out the interesting parallel that the four main symbols of the Minor Arcana (sticks, swords, coins and cups) can be assigned to the chief deity Ardhanari which is represented on left side by Shiva and on the right by divined Shakti.

In the last century, Tarot cards not only became an ever-growing interest, but received  a significant enrichment by Arthur Edward Waite (1857-1941): Waite, a native American who grew up in England, was a great connoisseur of the occult. He was a member and later Grand Master in the "Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn", an influential magical order, which was founded in 1888, among others, Samuel McGregor Mathers, Westcott and Dr.Wynn Dr.William Woodman. Other well-known members of this order were the poet William Butler Yeats and the famous magician Aleister Crowley. Wait was the spiritual father of a new Tarot deck, which was drawn by a member of the Order, the artist Pamela Coleman Smith. Her initials PCS can be seen on all 78 cards. Since in the previous cards only the Tarot major arcana, the court cards, and sometimes the 4 aces are shown, the deck conceived by Waite shows motifs on the other 36 cards which inspires for interpretation.


Chronology of the Tarots

Around 1370 - The first mentions of cards in many European cities.

From about 1430 - In Italian royal courts, first card sets appeared that exist like today Tarot cards - from 22 trumps and 56 other cards.

1505 - The Italian name tarocco / tarochi appears, which later developes in France to Tarot and in Germany to Tarock.

From 16 Century - The images of today as the classic known Tarot of Marseilles crystallize out.

Esoteric - Antoine Court de Gebelin discovered the esoteric dimension of the Tarot cards (re) Tarot.
                  
1781 - Eliphas Levi linked Tarot and Kabbalah, Paul Christian linked Tarot with astrology and coins the name "Arcana" to refer to the cards

Middle of the 19th century - Ely Star first speaks of great and minor arcana

1889 - Oswald Wirth opens the first esoteric shop.


Modern Tarot

1909 / 1910 - the Rider - Waite cards, which are now the most popular Tarot cards.

1944 - Crowley's Tarot cards published as "DAS BOOK OF THOTH"

1970 - Tarot gains popularity. Hundreds of new Tarot variants arise.

1983 - Salvador Dali publish his rich and beautiful Tarot.

1979-1996 - The Franco-American artist Niki de Saint - Phalle, a phenomenal contribution to the world of Tarot. In Capalbio in Tuscany, she builds a Tarot Garden, in which she issues the motives of the Major Arcana in "sculptures and monumental sculptures".

The Cross

Suitable for assessment of a situation. Proposal and trend process.

The cross is one of the simplest, but by no means less interesting spreads. There is a short, concise statement which has often, enough of a valuable direction. It is very versatile. If you are not used to dealing with the 78 Tarot cards and are not familiar yet with them, so that you are confused by the variety of cards, you are limited with this method of laying the 22 cards of the Major Arcana. The cards here are interpreted as follows ...

The meaning of the places

1 = That's the way it is working.
2 = This will not work out.
3 = This is what you should do.
4 = This is what will happen.

Approach to interpretation

Start with card 1, this sometimes causes a real eye-opener, but sometimes there is rather trivial information. Next, it is particularly important to identify the difference between cards 2 and 3 due to the very tip of the cards which is expressed by these two. Especially with similar cards in the fine difference, the essence of the statement will  be found. Take out of the final card in 4th place, what will develop further is now clear.  (amounts at first).

Variant

You can use the same method of laying if you don't know the meaning of a specific card. Mix up the cards again to use the exact same method of laying again, this time with the question: "What does the card X mean from the last laying?"

In this case, the courses have the following meanings:

1 = That is what the card is about.
2 = This is not the meaning.
3 = This is the meaning.
4 = This is what it is going to serve, this is why it is good.