Major vs Minor Arcana

A standard tarot deck has 78 cards, divided into two parts: the Major Arcana, with 22 cards, and the Minor Arcana, with 56. Knowing the difference helps you read a spread with more confidence.

The Major Arcana

The 22 Major Arcana cards, from The Fool (0) to The World (XXI), show the big themes and turning points of life: beginnings, love, change, endings, hope and completion. Many readers see them as the Fool’s journey, a story of growth from innocence to wholeness. When several Major Arcana cards appear in a spread, the situation is often significant or part of a larger life lesson. The Lovers, Death and The Star are examples.

The Minor Arcana

The 56 Minor Arcana cards deal with everyday matters, such as relationships, work, money, thoughts and daily choices. They are split into four suits of 14 cards each:

• Wands (fire): passion, ambition and action
• Cups (water): emotion, relationships and intuition
• Swords (air): thought, truth and conflict
• Pentacles (earth): money, work and the material world

Each suit has ten numbered cards, from Ace to Ten, and four court cards: Page, Knight, Queen and King.

The court cards

Court cards often describe people, personalities or approaches to a situation. Pages are learners and messengers, Knights are action and pursuit, Queens are inner mastery and care, and Kings are outer mastery and authority. Sometimes a court card is a person in your life, and sometimes it is a quality you are being asked to bring to the situation.

Why the difference matters

A spread full of Minor Arcana cards suggests that the matter is practical and within your power to influence. A spread with several Major Arcana cards suggests a bigger, more fated theme. Neither is better. Together they help you judge how much weight to give the situation.

Explore the full list in the card meanings, or learn how to read a three-card spread.