The Fool's Journey

In tarot, the Fool’s Journey symbolizes the journey through life. Each major arcana depicts a stage on that journey a person must experience in order to reach one’s full potential. We all play the role of the Fool in life. We seek accomplishment, enlightenment, and growth. Along the journey, we have periods of ease, difficulty, and learn valuable lessons. Each time we complete a journey or learn a lesson we come full circle with more wisdom than the journey before.

The Fool

A carefree young man who sets out on a journey with his essentials in his sack, head to the sky, flower in hand, and red feather in hair. He is unprepared and unaware of what lies ahead, but he trusts his inner guidance nudging him to reach his highest potential. He first encounters the Magician.

The Magician

A powerful manifestor and instructor who teaches the Fool how to will into existence anything the Fool wants through understanding of the four elements: Fire, Water, Earth and Air; Desire, Emotion, Material and Thoughts. The Magician demonstrates his knowledge through signs and synchronicities and explains to the Fool that once you learn how the elements work together, you can manifest your heart’s desires. This information is overwhelming and confusing to the Fool, but he is still excited about his adventure.

The High Priestess

Tells us what we are not supposed to know with our own intellect. She is intuition. She is calm, mysterious, inactive, and silent. She sits between two pillars where she guards the secrets of spiritual power and teaches the Fool to trust the experience of the journey and that answers will come in divine timing.

The Empress

Teaches us that we will reap the harvest of the seeds we sow. She is a mother and nurturer the Fool meets upon leaving the High Priestess. She is the epitome of abundance. She feeds the Fool, reminds him to be kind, and wishes him well on the rest of his journey.

The Emperor

Teaches that rules, planning, and structure provide the framework necessary in attaining our deepest desires. The Fool meets the Emperor while eating the food the Empress packed for him. The Emperor is a father figure. He asks the Fool about his journey, how long it will be, and if the Fool has the means to see himself through along the way. The Fool does not have answers. The Emperor assists the Fool in sorting out his plans so that he can have the resources to last him on his journey.

The Hierophant

Focuses on change and expansion while balancing traditions such as religion and education. While with the Hierophant, the Fool studies humanity and society and understands how it feels to be part of a collective. He begins to find a sense of purpose and develops a plan for the rest of his journey and life.

The Lovers

Are associated with making choices affecting you or which will have an effect on others. The Lovers entail the choice staying on one’s original path or choosing the path of true love. In tarot, the Fool stumbles upon a fork in the road and finds a naked couple listening to an angel. The angel tells the couple they have chosen wisely by choosing one another. They embrace, leave, and a new path opens for the couple. At the fork, the Fool contemplates going back home or continuing his journey. He decides to seek more adventure, and, in doing so, a new path reveals itself and the Fool journeys on.

The Chariot

Speaks to drive, forward-movement, and moving closer to fulfillment through exploring spirituality and tempering the ego. It is a culmination of the lessons learned from the Magician to the Lovers, up to the present moment and how we should apply them in our lives. The Chariot depicts setting out on the road to self-mastery, as we are no longer seeking new adventure, but setting a more disciplined course. Here, the Fool learns how to be aggressive in order to reach his goals.

Strength

Speaks to grace under fire and teaches that strength comes from within in order to conquer adversities. Some beasts are best tamed through kindness and not force. The Fool learns this lesson when he encounters a woman calming a lion in pain. The lion is symbolic of the spirit within us that, if neglected, may act out.

The Hermit

Signals the need for solitude, soul-searching and introspection. As someone who has done the sorting, The Hermit is a reminder that everything you need is within you. As The Hermit walks the path, the lantern illuminates a short path forward, but not the full journey. The Hermit must proceed forward with faith, step-by-step, and understand that not everything will be revealed at once.

The Wheel of Fortune

Justice

The Hanged Man

Represents a time of pause in order to view choices and experiences from a new perspective. It encourages us not to struggle against present obstacles, and instead suggests we be still and trust that things are working out behind the scenes.

Death

Represents the death of old ways and making way for new beginnings. The Fool is confident, ready for the world, and changed by his experiences.

Temperance

Teaches us that anything is possible with the right balance. It asks that we invest more time and energy into other areas in life and intertwines the inner psyche with the external world. It transforms an idea into reality.

The Devil

Speaks to bondage, temptation, choices, and our inner wildness that may need taming. We are so free that we can choose to be in bondage. Focusing on the material world may cause us to lose sight of our paths.

The Tower

Acknowledges sudden changes, chaos, and transformation. While still in the Devil’s cave, the Fool sees a tower crumble. It is a shattering of illusions and revelation from the universe to course-correct and lead one back to his intended path.

The Star

Is a harmonious moment on the Fool’s journey and represents alignment, creative power, and renewal. The Star is the calm after the storm. A woman with eyes like the stars offers the Fool fruit, and in doing so, new and positive ideas are planted.

The Moon

Encourages us to closely examine the signs, dreams, and energies around us, and to honor our intuition, as truths may be hidden. The Moon sheds light on the Fool’s fears and anxieties and unconscious thoughts, but the Fool learns to overcome his fears.

The Sun

Represents contentment, joy, and positive outcomes, and brings with it a sense of enthusiasm. After the rain, the sun comes out. The Sun represents the dawning of the inner light and asks that we nurture our inner child. On his journey, the Fool comes across a field filled with flowers and notices a child riding a white horse. The child resembles the Fool and even dons the same red feather in hair as the Fool did in the beginning of his journey. The child motions for the Fool to get on the horse and then the child disappears.

Judgment

Is where the final inner work is completed. Judgment represents a time for self-assessment, examination for all that we have learned, and a time for making decisions about how to move forward. It is a rite of passage. At judgment, we reap the rewards and consequences of past actions. The Fool is at peace with his past.

The World

Signifies achievement and the triumphant completion of the Fool’s journey. When this card appears, we are asked to show gratitude for how far we have come. The spiritual journey is a cyclical one, and there will always be another journey to embark on.