Cards of the Major Arcana
0 - The Fool Looking before you are leaping; not paying attention. Also can mean having not a care in the world; being free from any constraints. In the decks that I have seen, there is a dog tugging at the ankle of the young man; he doesn't even notice. Reversed: Can mean cautiousness; could also mean taking a chance that didn't or will not work out for you.
1 - The Magician To me, this card signifies someone who can take what they are given and mold it to suit them. Being able to control the forces around you. Reversed: being clumsy; unable to get anything to go right.
2 - The High Priestess A wise woman or person; able to make good decisions. Reversed: cloudy decision-making; unable to see where you are going.
3 - The Empress Fruitfulness; personal growth and fertility. The woman in this card is very resourceful and providing. Reversed: no growth; stagnation. Unable to acquire something you need.
4 - The Emperor Power, being in control or in a position of authority. Reversed: a loss of a powerful position; a weakening of some sort.
5 - The Heirophant This card suggests to me someone looking for spiritual guidance. Can also mean a pattern; something someone does even when it doesn't always make sense. Reversed:Breaking out of the mold; finding ones' self and one's niche in society.
6 - The Lovers Love; a partnership or union. Pretty self-explanatory card. Reversed: The loss of someone; a break-up of some sorts.
7 - The Chariot Resolve to do something; power. Triumphing over an obstacle. Reversed: The loss of some sort of battle; fear to do something you have wanted strongly to do.
8 - Strength Another self-explanatory card; having resolve and strength. Reversed: Weakness; inability to accomplish something in the face of an obstacle.
9 - The Hermit Solitude and introspection; a card that has deep meditative meaning. Retreating to find something within yourself. Reversed: Retreating inwardly to escape reality; fear and withdrawal.
10 - Wheel of Fortune No this is not the game show -- this card signifies Fate and luck. Taking chances and seeing where it leads you. Reversed: Luck isn't with you; everything is going the wrong way.
11 - Justice Balance and harmony; everyone gets what they need. Reversed: bias, injustice. Unfairness.
12 - The Hanged Man A spiritual quest; this person is seeking knowledge and spiritual gain. In the Norse tarot, this card is represented by Odin hanging from the tree of Yggdrasil and grasping the runes, which signify knowledge and wisdom. Reversed: Not seeing the spiritual side of a situation; maybe not realising how important something is. This is a difficult card to give a general interpretation to; it is different in every reading.
13 - Death This card will probably never really literally mean death (see Notes on the Death Card). It means a transition of some sorts; a changeover. A very powerful card, this generally means a life altering transition. Reversed: Stagnation; not going anywhere. The querent may have an opportunity to make a positive change in his or her life and is not taking it or not seeing it.
14 - Temperance This is not temperance in the sense of toleration; it means temperance as used in the art of metallurgy. Temperance means to be able to mold and shape something the way you want it. This card could mean being able to take a situation and make it your own. Reversed: Out of control; not able to control the situation your in; feeling powerless.
15 - The Devil This is not an "evil" card a some may see it. The meaning I often get in this card is a sense of powerless and feeling indebted to something or someone; possibly an addiction or vice that is causing problems. In the Rider-Waite deck, this card shows what many would picture as the Devil; however, I believe the interpretation Robin Wood decided on in her deck is best -- two people in a dark tunnel trying to drag a heavy treasure-laden chest to the end, but they can't make it, yet they are unwilling to let go of it. In the Norse deck, this card portrays Loki's punishment by the gods of Valhalla -- he is chained to a rock while a venomous snake drips poison onto him. His wife catches the poison in a bowl, but eventually the bowl fills, and each time she must empty it, causing the poison to momentarily drip onto Loki. You get the picture now of what this card represents. Reversed: freedom from pain and suffering; the ability to defeat that part of yourself that holds you back or hurts you.
16 - The Tower This card usually represents some sort of setback or possible disaster in the querent's life; perhaps an irretrievable loss. Reversed: Perhaps loss with something left over. Something terrible may have happened, but there is still something to gain from it.
17 - The Star This is a difficult card also to give a general interpretation to; it usually signifies for me darkness with a hint of light; possibly the querent is totally in the dark about something, but they have a little glimmer of an idea of what would be goin on. This also could be interpreted as meaning that the querent sees that they are in a bad situation right now and don't think they could get out of it; this card would suggest that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Reversed: Could suggest that the querent has the wrong idea about a situation. Again, this is hard to say definitely; you will get a feeling for what it means in each reading.
18 - The Moon I often find that this card is usually closely allied with the Star. This usually means secrets that are hidden from the querent. If you are Wiccan like myself, however, this card can sometimes take on a more spiritual meaning. Reversed: Something hidden from the querent that could be hurting them; possibly lies or someone cheating them out of something.
19 - The Sun This card suggests happiness and luck, that maybe the gods are smiling on the querent. Also suggests good fortune. Reversed: Bad luck maybe following the querent; things don't look so good right now.
20 - Judgement Having to account for all the things one has done, good or bad, is what this card usually represents. I find that with many who consider themselves Christians, this card takes on a spiritual meaning for them. This also means taking stock of your life and taking responsibility for your actions. Reversed: Not taking responsibility for yourself and your actions. Not realising that everything that you do has far-reaching consequences.
21 - The World This is another hard-to-generalise card. It usually means coming full-circle; maybe a completion of some sorts. Could also mean something very important to the querent and everyone surrounding him or her. Reversed: Not finishing what you started; feeling like there are loose ends that need to be tied up.