
Tarot Cards: Exploring the Major Arcana and Minor Arcana
Tarot cards have been used for centuries. Now, it’s easy to point and click, and BAM, a digital tarot deck will appear. But how reliable is that? We want to have the ability to read tarot cards for ourselves. In that case, we have to discuss the two main components of a tarot deck: the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana; the meaning and how they play a role in your tarot reading.
Arcana means a kept secret or a mystery. It comes from the root word arcanum.
Arcanum- noun
ar· ca· num är-ˈkā-nəm
plural arcana är-ˈkā-nə
1: mysterious or specialized knowledge, language, or information accessible or possessed only by the initiate —usually used in plural
Elixir-
elix· ir i-ˈlik-sər
1: a substance held capable of changing base metals into gold
2: a substance held capable of prolonging life indefinitely CURE-ALL
3: a medicinal concoction
4: the essential principle
The word arcanum (pluralized as “arcana”) came from Latin arcanus, meaning “secret,” and entered English as the Dark Ages gave way to the Renaissance. It was often used in reference to the mysteries of the physical and spiritual worlds, subjects of heavy scrutiny and rethinking at the time. Alchemists were commonly said to be pursuing the arcana of nature, and they sought elixirs for changing base metals into gold, prolonging life, and curing disease. The frequent association of the word with the alchemists’ elixirs influenced the use of “arcanum” for “elixir.”
Merriam Webster’s definition link HERE

The Major Arcana: The Big Hitters; The Big Picture; The Main Act
The Major Arcana
Major arcana means “Big Mystery”
The Major Arcana is the headlining performer at the “tarot deck concert”. These 22 cards represent notable and reoccurring themes/events in your life, archetypes, and spiritual life lessons. Each card depicts a different theme in the human experience from solitude to celebration, career and sickness. There are also life lessons like transformation, hard work, generosity, and challenges. The tarot is believed to reveal the energy that surrounds you and your life at the time of the reading, past, and or future.
The Major Arcana is also looked at as a journey starting at the Fool card, a lower vibrational existence/situation of self discovery trials and tribulations, to the end of the journey at the World card, a card of completion of a cycle with rewards and fulfillment.
The Major is filled with cards the depict images that are seemingly recognizable at first glance. Some of the images are self- explanatory like the lovers card. We can deduce the lovers card is all about relationships. Then there are other cards that aren’t as self-explanatory, and misleading at the same time. The Tower card is one. It depicts a horrific scene. There is a building on fire, people leaping from the burning building, there is apparent destruction. It seems like a total loss. This could be no further from the truth. The Tower Card depicts total destruction because it is a signal for renewal, new openings, and new opportunities because something that needed to be destroyed, was destroyed. This something was only destroyed because e of necessity. The universe/your higher self/God knows you better than you know yourself. The universe knows that without total destruction, you will not release that which was holding you back. The universe (and you deep down on the inside) knows it will take a stronger intervention to free you. And from the ashes, new life was formed.
The Major Arcana is the main themes in your everyday life. Let’s talk about how the Minor Arcana supports the Major Arcana.

The Minor Arcana: The Details; The Supporting Cast; The Side Dish
The Minor Arcana
Minor Arcana means “Simple Mystery”
The Minor Arcana play a crucial supporting role in the tarot deck, although the Major Arcana are the “stars” of the deck. This would be the only time somebody actually came to see Otis. Did you catch it? The 56 cards of the Minor are also divided into 2 parts. The Minor has Numbered Cards and Court Cards. The themes and elements of the Minor Arcana are representative of experiences we have on a daily basis. While the Major is playing out the portrait (as a whole), the Minor is all the colors that make up that portrait. If a sentence consists of a subject and a predicate, the Minor would be the predicate of the sentence and the Major the subject. The Minor is everything around the subject, that completes the sentence enough for you to comprehend the message communicated in the sentence. Yes, with the Major, you know what the sentence is about, but the Minor makes the sentence make sense.
To confuse you even further; another joke. The Minor Arcana is divided into 4 Suits (subsections called Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles). The suits each have their own themes and energetic elements. Each Suit has Numbered Cards (Ace through 10) and Court cards (page, knight, queen, king (similar to a playing card deck) which add additional layers of meaning. The numbered cards represent specific experiences, energies, and stages within each suit. The Court cards depict archetypes and personality types that can show up in our lives – the naive and inexperienced Page, the impulsive and adventurous Knight, the intuitive and nurturing Queen, and the regal, commanding King.
Comparing the Minor Arcana to the standard playing card deck is the easiest way to explain the parts of the Minor Arcana. In history, before Tarot decks were available or when divination was practiced (but one could not afford nor had access to a standard tarot card deck) a standard playing card deck was used. I imagine a playing card deck being used by my country ancestors to gain divine insight even before they had knowledge of tarot. Also, I wonder how the make up of a standard playing card deck matches so perfectly with the Tarot Suits. I plan to do more research on that and the merging of the two.
These cards can provide incredibly insightful and practical guidance on the smaller day-to-day happenings in your life. They’re like the supporting cast that brings better understanding and details to the Major arcana cards.
Minor Arcana Suits
Each suit in the Minor Arcana corresponds to a different aspect of human existence of our lives and inner experiences.
– Wands: Creativity, passion, and action
– Cups: Emotions, relationships, and intuition
– Swords: Intellect, communication, and the mind
– Pentacles: Finances, the physical/material world, what you value most
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SUITS ARTICLE HERE
In conclusion, if you are learning or are a beginner, be sure to familiarize yourself with the energetic themes of each card individually. Eventually, with practice, you will easily interpret the Major Arcana Cards as well as the Suits, Numbered, and Court Cards.
Was this article helpful? Comment below.