Watch the video for the Major Arcana explained in the context of the history of Tarot cards.
While the pip cards and court cards are easy enough to study and work with on their own, once we bring the Major Arcana cards into play, a bit of history is in order. The Major Arcana need to be viewed through the lens by which they were created.
Tarot Myths
First let’s start with some Tarot myths. Some of the most common Tarot myths are that the Tarot Cards came from Egypt or the Gypsies.
The whole coming from Egypt myth most likely sprouts from the 17th century European obsession with Egypt. I’ll let you read up on the details.
And while the Gypsies did and still do read playing cards to tell fortunes, they are not the origination of the Tarot.
If you look at the images on the cards, clearly they are not of Egyptian or Asian origin.
History of Tarot Cards
The Major Arcana of the Tarot began as Trump (Trionfi) cards in playing card games in Europe during the 1400’s. Wealthy families commissioned series of Trump cards to be created and added them to the playing card deck. By 1530 a specific set of these Trump card decks became known as the Tarrochi. ( https://tarot-heritage.com/history-4/italian-tarot-in-the-15th-century/ )
It’s important to remember the context of the creation of the Tarot cards. They were created pre-printing press or at the very beginnings of the age of the printing press. At that time, it took hundreds of years for innovations to take place and ideas to spread. Here in the modern world we are used to some idea, product, company etc. coming into existence, spreading and then playing out in 18 months!
Also worth considering is the role of art at the time. I am not a historian, or an art historian, but I think it is safe to say that in the 1400’s and 1500’s, art filled more of an entertainment and storytelling role than it does today.
Major Arcana Explained through an Occult Lens
So the Tarot cards stew in their own juices for a couple hundred years. Were people using them for divination? Probably so. Did the use them the same way we do for divination today? Probably not.
What’s important to understand here is that Occultists of 18th Century Europe overlayed Gnosticism, Astrology, and Cabala onto the Tarot, most specifically the Major Arcana.
“Tarot became part of this mix when occultists concocted fanciful stories of ancient mystical initiation rites performed in chambers lined with tarot imagery under the Egyptian pyramids.”
Personally, I find this information quite freeing. The reason it is liberating is because it doesn’t mean that it is necessary to study Cabala or astrology or any of these occult sciences to work with Tarot. There is no “true Tarot” out there which frees one to discover it for yourself.
And that is not to say the studying the correspondences is not of value. It most certainly is. But it is not a requirement.
The Major Arcana and the Rider Waite Deck
The Rider Waite deck, certainly the most well know and popular deck of the 20th century, was created by A.E. Waite and Pamela Coleman Smith. Waite commissioned Smith to create the images.
“Although both Waite and Smith had been members of the Golden Dawn, they did not create a Golden Dawn deck. Waite based his Major Arcana imagery on Eliphas Levi’s and Paul Christian’s Egyptianized description of the trumps, as well as Christian symbolism and Golden Dawn astrological attributions.” – tarot-heritage.com
For more details on the symbolism of the Rider Waite deck, consult the Pictorial Key to the Tarot by A.E. Waite himself.
So What is the Major Arcana?
The Major Arcana of the Tarot deck are the overarching themes and archetypes that we find in life.
Remember English class and literary themes? Also remember earlier where I mentioned in earlier times art was more storytelling than it is today? Let’s take this literary theme idea and apply it to the Tarot.
Literary themes include:
- love
- death
- good vs. evil
- coming of age
- power and corruption
- individual vs. society
- red pill vs. blue pill
How might these themes apply to the Tarot Major Arcana. What other themes are represented?
What about archetypes? Archetypes are a modern psychological version of the purist forms of something. For example the archetypal mother. We all know ideally how a mother should appear and behave and act in the world.
Here are some other archetypes:
- heroes
- leaders
- builders
- the other woman
- the wise one
- the fool
Briefly here are some categories you might divide the Major Arcana into.
More on this in upcoming posts. In the meantime, lay out all the Major Arcana cards in your deck and start grouping them in any ways that come to you. Find similar themes and opposing themes. What life happenings or lessons are represented?
Bibliography
What every Tarot Reader Should Know About the History and Myths of Tarot