New to Reading Tarot? The Court Cards Aren’t as Intimidating as They Seem.
Have you ever pulled tarot cards and out came a Queen and you just groaned? You thought to yourself, “What the heck does this mean?!”
The members of the Tarot court can feel inaccessible sometimes. We are so far removed from royalty in modern life that we feel we can’t connect with the Kings and Queens and Knights and Pages of old. Or can we?
The archetypes highlighted by the Tarot court cards are relatable when you realize that you know them. Once you can correlate the cards to a person in your life or a character you know from your favorite movie, the court becomes like an old friend.
I find it helpful to break down the court cards in a few ways to better get a sense of who they are and what they represent. First, I break them into their hierarchy (for lack of a better word). Then, I break them into their masculine or feminine leanings. Finally, I take a look at what element they are connected to.
Once you do these three things, you start to get a clear sense of the personality of each court card. You may even find yourself picturing someone from your life when you pull a card!
The Hierarchy of the Court Cards
There are sixteen court cards total in the Tarot. There are four suits, and each suit has four cards: King, Queen, Knight, and Page. More traditionally, Tarot was read as if the four cards in a suit had a hierarchy.
The Page is representative of a child or a beginner. The Page still has a lot to learn, and while they bring energy and a beginner’s mind to the table, they may make mistakes that a more seasoned person wouldn’t.
A Knight is like a teenager or someone in their early 20s. They know a little more about the world, but they still have the impulsiveness and optimism of youth. They are more like an apprentice.
The Queens represent the next tier in the hierarchy, and they are like achieving an associate’s or a bachelor’s degree. These are people who have a great deal of knowledge, but they still have a lot to learn.
Kings are often considered the masters or experts in their area. They have dedicated their lives to their craft, and they have plenty of wisdom to share.
Some people don’t like this interpretation, because it subjugates the Queens to the Kings. You are free to interpret as you choose and based on the context that these cards come out in your spread. This hierarchy is a great way to get started, but it is by no means the only way to view the court.
Masculine and Feminine characteristics
Sometimes, it helps also to break the court cards into the masculine and feminine. The Kings and Knights are considered to have masculine energy, and the Queens and Pages have feminine energy. This can inform your readings, because in general, the masculine is more action-based and external, and the feminine is more internal and reflective.
When you read for yourself or a client, you can see the court cards as an indicator of whether the cards are advising a person to take action or go inward and examine. These can be helpful clues, and the court can also help personify a person’s experiences.
Maybe the cards aren’t representing a person in their life but an energy that they are being asked to embody. The possibilities for interpretation open up when you think about it that way.
Breaking the Court Cards into their elements
Earth and the Pentacles — These are the grounded ones
Business. Money. Abundance. Family.
These are some of the words that are often associated with the Pentacles suit. These people make other people feel safe. The Pentacles are the embodiment of the Earth signs: Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn.
Think of someone you know who grounds you. These are people with a calming, almost motherly or fatherly presence. The Pentacles suit also represents businesspeople, farmers, and gardeners. They are connected to the Earth and honor its rhythms. Earth people can struggle with expressing their emotions, preferring to appear calm, cool, and collected. They are the reliable ones, and they have tendencies to overwork themselves.
Air and the Swords — These are the intellectual ones
Communicative. Analytical. Cool-headed. Thinking.
These words can describe the clear, cutting personalities of the Swords suit. These people are who they are, and they rarely apologize for it. The Swords court is the embodiment of the Air signs: Aquarius, Gemini, and Libra. The Air signs are free-thinkers and free-spirits. They see the world from a unique perspective, and they love intellectual conversations.
At their worst, air signs are prone to overthinking and intellectualizing over connecting. They can be spacey, and they could benefit from grounding practices. Their lofty ideas and ideals can make them susceptible to depression since the real world will never fully live up to their fantasies. But if you’re looking for visionary ideas, look no further than the sword suit.
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Fire and the Wands — These are the creative ones
Fiery. Decisive. Innovative. Ambitious.
These words bring to mind the hot-headed Wands suit. These people are go-getters and doers. The Wands are the embodiment of the Fire signs: Aries, Leo, and Sagitarrius. The fire signs have personality! These people tend to be the life of the party and the center of attention.
They can be incredibly creative, and they seem like they have boundless energy. Burnout is something they struggle with since they tend to overcommit. They make promises when they are feeling inspired, and when that inspiration burns out, they don’t always follow through. If they can stay balanced, they can accomplish great things.
Water and the Cups — These are the emotional ones
Feeling. Spiritual. Intuitive. Soft.
These are some of the traits of the Cups suit. These people are emotionally tapped in, and they have a depth to them that draws you to them. The Cups suit is the embodiment of the Water signs: Pisces, Cancer, and Scorpio. Water signs bring empathy, compassion, and humanity to the forefront.
They are also tapped into spiritual wisdom, so people often come to them to share their emotions. These signs have to be careful that they don’t lose themselves in their emotions, and they can be ruled by their fluctuating moods if they aren’t healthy. They benefit from having a circle of friends who ground them.
Ready to learn more?
You can go way more in-depth with learning about the Court cards in the Tarot by picking up a copy of Ethony Dawn’s book Your Tarot Court. I highly recommend her work, as she has taught many students from around the world how to confidently read the Tarot through her online Tarot Readers Academy. Click the link to purchase the book on Amazon, or check out Ethony’s website here. Join her mailing list to get a weekly card pull in your inbox every Wednesday!