Minor Arcana Flashcards
Ace of Pentacles
- Material
- Prosperity
- Trust and Security
- Prosperity
- Abundance
Ace of Swords
- Mental force
- Justice
- Truth
- Intelligence
- Reason
- Clarity
- Perseverance.
Ace of Cups
- Emotional Force
- Intuition
- Love
Eight of Cups
- Deeper Meaning
- Weariness
- Leaving the Past Behind
- Delving within for personal discovery and answers
- turning away and disengaging from the material for the spiritual
- moving on, letting go
- weariness
- drain.
Cups
Timeframe?
Realm?
Season?
Element?
- Timeframe - Weeks
- Realm - Emotions
- Season - Summer
- Element - Water
Ace of Wands
- Creative force
- Enthusiasm
- Confidence
- Adventure
- Courage
- Personal power.
Eight of Pentacles
- Diligence
- Care for Detail
- Education
- A craftsman
- Patience
- aborbed in a project
- Seeking knowledge
- Pursuing a higher understanding.
With diligence and patience, the Spider crafts her gossamer web. Dawn dusts an array of dewy stars across the threads.
weaver weave a pattern:
weave a dream of summer musk;
weave the drape of autumn dusk.
weaver weave a fate:
weave a life’s frail anchored line;
weave the pale moon’s waxing signs.
weaver weave a web:
craft each silky precious thread,
artist’s inhibitions shed.
Eight of Swords
- Restriction
- Confusion
- Blindness
- Powerlessness
- Feeling trapped
- Wasting energy on the trivial
- Frozen in crisis
The Brambles Crone lives among the blackberry hedges where the fruit is tempting and sweet, but even the leaves have wickedly curved thorns to catch and hold. The little hummingbird may flit and navigate with ease among such treacherous tangles, but the noble and grand elegance of the Swan with the arcing spread of her wings is not for such tangled and thorny corridors.
Five of Cups
- Loss
- Bereavment
- Regret
- Suffering
- Dissapointment
- Rejection of Pleasure
- wishing for what might have been
Eight of Wands
- Quick action
- News
- Communication
- Conclusion
- Travel
- End of stagnation
- Journeying towards a goal
- A great undertaking,
- Speeding to reward with hope and momentum.
With but the puff of a breath, she sends the seedlings on their way. It is the ending of the lovely flower that blooms so delicately into elaborate spheres of ethereal beauty, but the beginning of a new growth. The seeds spin away on the wild winds – at the mercy of entropy, but sailing with purpose on their gossamer filaments. Sail away and beyond, and then set down to grow to become a mighty tree!
Five of Pentacles
- Hard Times
- Ill Health
- Insecurity
- Spiritual poverty
- material troubles
- neglecting the body’s needs
- ostracized and excluded
Five of Swords
- Self Interest
- Open Dishonour
- Discord
- Empty Victory
- Concentrating narrowly on one’s own self-interest
- Power play, battle
- Sacrifice of integrity.
Five of Wands
- Disagreement
- Hassles
- Competition/Contest/Rivalry
- Fighting against the flow
- Strife
- Rising to challenges.
Four of Cups
- Self-Absorption
- Apathy
- Losing Interest
- Internalizing
- Being unaware and self-absorbed
- isolated and seeking within
- disengaged from the world
- dreamy
- contemplative
Four of Pentacles
- Possesiveness
- Control
- Holding on
- Refusing change
- adversity to change
- obstructing
- denial of weakness.
Four of Swords
- Rest
- Contemplation
- Quiet Preparation
- Inactivity
- Exhaustion
- Solitude and rest from strife
- Inner contemplation
- Exile.
Four of Wands
- Celebration
- Freedom
- Excitement and jubulation
- Family
- Happiness
- harmony, prosperity
- Peace
- Letting go of limitations
King of Cups
- Wise
- Calm
- Diplomatic
- Caring
- Tolerant
- He is wise and understanding. He knows the meaning of patience. Like the sea turtles that swim at his side, he guides the way with a steady calm through the ever-shifting uncertainties of the vast ocean depths. He reads the knowledge of the centuries that has been etched into the patterns on their shells, and drinks in that gift with every breath taken of the water that flows in and around them all. The waters grow still and peaceful in his presence.*
- The seahorse is a symbol of the power of Poseidon, and is imbued with the tireless strength of the sea. He is a patient creature, swimming through the swells at his own fluid and graceful pace. That grace is armored by the spines of its exoskeleton, and the male seahorse is the protector of the young.*
King of Pentacles
- Enterprising
- Adept
- Reliable
- Supporting
- Steady
- The King of Pentacles bears a seed in his hand. It gleams golden with an inner light, and it pulses as if it contains a heartbeat that speaks with a humble promise to sprout. The leaves strain forth to bask in that radiance. The branches offer ripe honeyed fruits, each luscious globe swelling with tantalizing sweet juices.*
- This king is an enterprising individual, a man possessing of multifarious talents. He has the golden touch of Midas, gilding everything around him with a sumptuous gleam. When he lays his hands upon a venture, it is bound for success. When he sets his mind to an idea, it becomes polished brilliance. He is reliable, and adept at what he does. He is steady and a solid support should you need someone to lean on. The eternal strength and stability of the trees and roots are his to draw from, and he stretches branches, and arms, and aspirations to the stars.*
- He is generous, and shares his wealth. Partake of the fruit he offers. He knows that wealth will be shared, and from those fruits, new seeds will sprout and grow to be mighty trees.*
King of Swords
- Intellectual
- Analytical
- Articulate
- Just
- Ethical
- Like the vertical sword he holds at the ready, he is a pillar of strength and morality. He holds power over life and death. He is a warrior king, sword always drawn and prepared to spring to action should the need arise. He carries through with his actions, following the path of truth that the blade lights for him. He is led on by the silent wisdom of the owl, and the shadowy ravens that trail him like Hugin and Mugin, Odin’s twin ravens Thought and Memory. They fly away to seek out truths and bring their findings back to be whispered in his ear. The balance of night and day is embodied in those avian companions.*
- The shadows of the night descend upon his shoulders, a living mantle of porphyry, a color the ancient Greeks associated with royalty.*
- And the base of the throne is etched with da Vinci’s Vetruvian Man, symbolic of the blend of art and science; of the symmetry in the human body, and in the whole of the universe.*
King of Wands
- Creative
- Inspiring
- Foceful
- Charismatic
- Bold
- He holds his staff aloft, like a torch, a beacon of flame and light. Or perhaps he himself is that beacon, gleaming as he does with the fire that burns within his chest and as a searing crown upon his brow. He lifts the fiery torch up to illuminate the path and strides forward. The ground shifts, and the denizens of the woods step back. The trees part before him, lifting their branches to make way for his passage. The environment shifts to his will, and obeys his unspoken desires and commands.*
- The King of Wands is charismatic. The force of his charm is irresistible, such that the very world seems to mold to his desires and bow to his will. He is a source of inspiration, and bears his mantle of authority with an ease as if he were born to it. It is his natural element, burning bright within him*
Knight of Cups
- Romantic
- Imaginative
- Sensitive
- Over-emotional
- The Unicorn is a child of the sea - born of foam and restless waves, surging with the wild abandon of the surf. The Knight of Cups is her companion on the eternal quest.*
- He is the knight of the Round Table on the grand quest for the Grail. He is the romantic who seeks where his heart and emotions lead. He is the artist and the musician and the poet whose eyes see into the unseen nether-realms of imagination. He is the idealist who will not let physical laws stop him from riding with reckless abandon across the wavetops on his journey*
Knight of Pentacles
- Unwavering
- Cautious
- Thorough
- Hardworking
Steadfast, conservative, and stubborn; he is set in his ways and on his path, locked onto his goal, with almost a tunnel-vision mentality. The foliage parts for him in a narrow path, and he has eyes for none of the temptations around him; only for the light that is his goal. The Knight of Pentacles is methodical, thorough, and unwavering. He rides upon the crest of an earth dragon, grounded, slow but undeniable in its progess – where he sets his sights will be reached.
Knight of Swords
- Charming
- Direct
- Knowledgable
The Knight of Swords is the brave hero who rushes headlong into conflict to defend his beliefs. He is blunt and comes directly to his point. He is domineering, a seeker, slicing through the skies with his sword and his wings. A storm gathers in his wake, borne of the turbulence his winged army creates, and he is lifted high above it all to pierce through the chaos. The sword is a beacon.
He calls out to the night’s abyss:
Lift me up spirits of Sky
grant me keen sight of Hawk
swiftness of Sparrow
grant me insight of Raven
brave heartbeat of Hummingbird
bear me up with grace on wings of Swan
guide me with visions of wisdom from Owl
Knight of Wands
- Adventurous
- Passionate
- Daring
- Self-confident
The Knight of wands is an individual full of daring and passion. He is on a journey for adventure. He does not necessarily seek it but his presence invariably spurs rivalry and conflict, perhaps because of his cocky and assured attitude, and self-confidence. He is a knight with a lion’s heart, and the cleverness of foxes, though not always the wisdom to match it.
Nine of Pentacles
- Discipline
- Self-Reliance
- Refinement
- Material comfort
- Independence
- Material well-being and refinement
- Discipline in order to attain such
- relying on oneself.
Her spiritual being is in communion with the material aspects of her life. She strives to make that connection musically through such an elaborate and mechanical instrument as a piano. This piano however is no pure man-made one, as it is tuned to the world around it, inextricably entwined into the fabric of nature. She is alone, in solitude and self-sufficiency. The snail shell she sits on and the spirals in the branches of the trees are a physical representation of the Golden Mean ratio, a continuum that approaches the Infinite, approaches balance, approaches the Ideal.
Nine of Cups
- Wishes Fulfilled
- Happnies
- Contment
- Pleasure of the senses
- satisfaction
- success
- assured future
Nine of Swords
- Worry
- Guilt
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Fear
- Suffering from anguish
- Uncertainties in the night
Stormcrows herald impending dissolution
with voices cawing raucous absolution
round and round and spiraling ever near one future sought - one future feared
The funnel of the sky stretches up to the heavens; an ominous tower of storms with but the hope and glimmer of light high above at the eye of turmoil. “Come to me, come with me,” the voice of the Stormcrows whispers to him from nearby. “Let me guide you through.” With anxious eyes, he gazes upwards, away, oblivious to the proffered guidance through the night of the soul. He clutches sheathed sword close for security, rather than grasping bright blade aloft to light the way!
Nine of Wands
- Defensiveness
- Perseverence
- Stamina
- Vigilance
- Strength in reserve
- Being prepared.
The Sentinels keep watch from above, ever wary, ever vigilant, the Eternal Guardians. They defend against the unknowns that lie hidden in the abyss – perhaps it is just light and mist and the edge of the world, but they have not ventured beyond. They know only that they have been charged to watch, eyes to the west, from where the light fades each dying day.
Page of Cups
BE:
- Emotional
- Intuitive
- Loving
- Intimate
- Sentimental
- Romantic
- Sympathetic
Page of Pentacles
- Have an effect
- Be practical
- Trusting/Trustworthy
- diligent
- Bearer of messages
- Reflection,
- Practicality
- Effective.
Page of Swords
- Use your mind
- Be truthful and just
- Have fortitude
- Vigilance
- Scrutiny of beliefs
- A strong sense of purpose.
Page of Wands
BE
- Creative
- Enthusiastic
- Confident
- Courageous
- Passionate
- Assured and assertive
- A messenger
Queen of Cups
- Loving
- Tender-hearted
- Intuitive
- Psychic
- Spiritual
Her very being is a creative nexus, she is poetry in motion, imagination incarnate. She can dance upon the swells of the ever-shifting, ever-changing seas, in unison with the dance of life that engages all the world and its creatures around her. Guided by instincts, she is attuned to that otherworld and finds joy in that communion of kindred spirits. For another who did not comprehend her synchronicity, a mistep from her position would mean a plunge into unfathomed depths, but not so for the Queen of Cups. She dances on, embraced by the endless azure ocean and heavens, and where the sea meets the sky there is no seam.
Queen of Pentacles
- Nurturing
- Big-hearted
- Down-to-earth
- Resourceful
- Trustworthy
- Nurture and care of others, generosity, and possessing a warmth of spirit. The fan of branches arrayed around her figure are reminiscent of the ten-armed Hindu Goddess Durga, embodiment of feminine creative energy. She is dedication, a protector, and one who is reliable and trustworthy. She is secure in her material possessions and her position in life.*
- The Queen of Pentacles will lend her support to any who asks. She has strength, that she draws from the very Oak tree that she is a part of (or that is a part of her?) She is willing to share that strength that is drawn down from the golden power of life and warmth of the sun itself, and into her branches, and transmuted into purest energy. “Carry this as a token and a reminder that I am always here,” she says, taking a leaf from the boughs that whisper a singing susurrus from around her. They sigh in a hundred voices, an eerie harmony of the secrets that they hold for her.*
Queen of Swords
- Honest
- Astute
- Forthright
- Witty
- Experienced
- With her blade the Queen of Swords slices through lies and deceptions to the heart of truth. She is honesty and inner knowledge, sending forth her winged seekers into the world. They are an extension of her being and her soul.*
- The blinding white is the color of purity, honesty, clarity, uncompromised balance; but also of distance, and sometimes death, for sometimes to get to truth one must cast off the old to discard pretense and guile.*
- The Queen of Swords is an intelligent woman, loyal, witty, and humorous in her forthright way. She is valued for her accurate perceptions of the world around her, and her experiences.*
- In the language of flowers, purple dragon lilies are symbols of inner strength, and white chrysanthemums of truth.*
Queen of Wands
- Attractive
- Whole-hearted
- Energetic
- Cheerful
- Self-assured
The denizens of the forest are drawn out by the singing of the harp. The Queen of Wands’ fingers dance across the strings, and she embraces the tree that is her audience of dryads, her instrument, and her living wand. She is dedicated, engaging, and attractive. Her presence exudes confidence, and the knowledge that she can handle anything and anyone. It is not arrogance, but a simple understanding and truthful assessment of her skills and abilities. Mesmerized by this, the world hushes at her entrance to hear her, see her, bathe in her radiance. Her exuberance in life sings out as her hands dance across trills and runs and glissandos upon her living harp.
Seven of Cups
- Wishful Thinking
- Imagination
- Indulging in fantasies, having too many options to chose from. Too many desires, some within the realm of reality, others…not so much. Unlimited possibilities.
Her head is lost in the clouds. She has stars in her eyes as she looks to the castle in the sky, unaware of their precarious perch. Meanwhile, he is a little more grounded, eyes on the castles that are on the ground and within reach, however obscure the arcane symbols on his map may be.
Seven of Pentacles
- Assesment
- Reward
- Direct change
- Inspiration
- Change
- Reaping reward for effort and work
- a calm moment of consideration of alternatives and different approaches.
She stands in a verdant garden that she has lovingly tended, guardian dryad the wood. The peaches are ripe – a magical energy writhing in each lush globe. Peaches are a fruit of summer, of long days of relaxation. Their nectar is honeyed longevity. To pluck them or no? Will they still sparkle with that living glow once taken from the tree, or will they just become dull as the normal fruit in her basket? The tattooed waves churn on her body with her speculation.
Seven of Swords
- Lone wolf
- Hidden dishonour
- Running away
- Mistrust
- Escaping responsibility
- Making away with that which is not yours
- Uncertainty
- Keeping something to yourself
- Being two-faced.
He hides his face behind a mask, shrouding his true nature, and he smirks in a rather satisfied way that he has managed to steal one of the swords that the Swan Guardian oversees. He thinks the Guardian is oblivious, but she is in fact watching him with one eye. “What have you got there? Shiny bauble! Shiny bright!” the blackbirds demand, drawn to the sullen gleam. He turns his back to them as well; for he is the cleverest Blackbird to have been able to draw this Sword from the Stone.
Seven of Wands
- Aggression
- Confiction
- Defiance
- Taking a stand
- Defending what you believe in
- Strife and stiff competition
- Courage in facing difficulties.
The Vixen faces off against a Badger, while her kits watch from beneath the protective curl of her tail. They circle and circle, sizing each other. The bamboo of the wands signify strength and fortitude – slender supple tenacity that sways in the winds and does not break.
Six of Cups
- Goodwill
- Innocence
- Childhood Innocence
- Memories
- Nostalgia
- simple joys and pleasures
Six of Pentacles
- Charity
- Sharing and Receiving
- Knowledge and Power
- Support
- The extremes of those that have and those that have not
Six of Swords
- Gateway
- Travel
- Recovery
- Turning point
- Passage away from difficulties
- Recovery after tribulations
- Experiencing change
- Dispondancy.
Six of Wands
- Triumph over obstacles
- Triumph
- Acclaim
- Pride
- Arrogance
- Self-importance
Ten of Cups
- Joy
- Peace
- Harmony
- lasting success and happiness
- attainment of the heart’s desires
- family support and bonds
- enjoying the blessings of life.
Ten of Pentacles
- Financial Prosperity
- Firm foundations
- Enjoying affluence and financial security
- Luxury
- Good fortune
- A traditionalist
- Rooted to convention and to rules.
Her silken attire and golden adornments indicate that her social status is relatively comfortable, curled up as she is against the hoarding Dragon. The winds whisper ancient secrets to the trees. The trees curl and coil their roots around their own nuggets and then with a brush of leaves pass it onto the Dragon. And he in turn sings those words to her, for he has seen much in his centuries and has been steeped in what was. The world is a stained glass masterpiece - a world of art and wealth; and she holds clasped tight a Peach of Immortality and Auspiciousness.
Ten of Wands
- Burden
- Struggle
- Workaholic
- Being held accountable
- Doing things the hard way.
This Dryad bears the weight of what seems a miniature world upon her back. The support and welfare of the beings who inhabit those towers are hers to nourish with the flow of life’s sap through her branches and leaves. Their soul is the song that spirals up through the foliage from her heart.
Ten of Swords
- Bottoming out
- Victim mentality
- Final Resolution
- Misfortune
- Burdens to bear
- Ruin
- The end of delusions
- What seems to be a spiraling and uncontrolled plunge
- Sacrificing self
- Desolation and sorrow.
- She falls. The birds do not aid her – their wings are like blades and their feathers are knives that slice skin and cloth alike. Even their raucous cries seem hostile in the gray and indifferent night. The trees below reach out bare-branched claws to the sky; their trunks rotting from within. The End! she cries out to the sky.*
- Or is it just the curtain falling upon an act of melodramatic martyrdom?*
Three of Cups
- Exuberance
- Celebration
- Community and Team Spirit
- Friendship
Three of Pentacles
- Teamwork
- Planning
- Competance
- Skills
- Talents
- Abilities
- Experience
- achieving beyond the expected
Three of Swords
- Heartbreak
- Loneliness
- Betrayal
- Loss
- Dissapointment
- Receiving little solace
- Isolation
Three of Wands
- Exploration
- Foresight
- Leadership
- Success
- Seeking out the uncharted
- Expanding horizons
- Taking a long view
Two of Cups
- Harmony
- Connection
- Truce
- Attraction
- Friendship
- Love
- The Potential for Bonding
Two of Pentacles
- Balancing Act
- Flexibility
- Adaptable and changing directions easily
- high spirits.
Two of Swords
- Blocked emotions
- Stalemate
- Denial
- Avoidance of and not seeing the truth
Two of Wands
- Personal power
- Boldness
- Originality
- Influence
- Authority
- Courage
