I have been reading tarot for others in person and online since 2008. In 2014, the Noxporium website fell into the world with short descriptions and expositions of each tarot card. Since then, the website has served as a public repository for cartomancy readings from simple one-card readings to elaborate fifteen-card readings. Over time my understanding of the card meanings changed as I started to incorporate more decks into my stable and as I went about experiencing the cards and watching other people’s experiences of the cards.
When I wrote the fiction book A Light in the Darkness in 2019, which followed one person’s experiences through the Major Arcana, I realized that I wasn’t in agreement with my original posts and that an update was needed. Some of the posts for the Major Arcana were updated during the writing of that book, but otherwise the overall presentation remained in the place that I had started from.
The second book in the series, A Deeply Planted Seed, is taking much longer to write than I had anticipated. The pandemic has not been kind and at several points I thought I was going to lose everything. However, I came through, and so is the draft of the second book. As the main character of the first book is now walking through the experiences brought about by one of the Minor Arcana suits, I am reminded once again that the deck meanings on this website are not in alignment with how I am actively reading the cards now.
A refresh of the posts is needed.
What follows is a current retelling of what each tarot card means to me. Gone are descriptions of a deck that was introduced to me as The Default and Standard Tarot Deck™ as I have found the images and style of the deck to be garnishes and sprinkles of flavor over a mostly prepared dish. There are times when the visual aspect of the card can help explain or clarify a reading, but for the most part, they are not necessary.
What is expounded now is how the chosen card could work with others. A card by itself may indicate a negative response to the question, but if paired with certain other cards, may indicate an intense positivity instead. As I read some decks with reversals and others without, so do the ideas of “dignified” and “ill-dignified” become overlapping. A reversed “positive” card may be more beneficial because of supporting cards than that same card laid upright but lacking in support.
The beginning of the answer is framed by the question. There will be no categorical esoteric references, as one person’s magic is another person’s mush, and I am the last person to be telling what this or that means when my personal magic system is already a pot of simmering gumbo. It is up to the person holding the deck of cards if and how to incorporate magic into their tarot, after all.
Let the hand that deals the cards, trace how they fit.
Please note that card links will become active as the relevant post is updated.
The Major Arcana – Trumps
- XXI – The World: “The Epilogue and the Introduction.”
- 0 – The Fool: “Emerging Revelation and Recalcitrant Ignorance.”
- XX – Judgement: “It’s not about being proven right, it’s about being proven.”
- XIX – The Sun: “Regardless of what is happening here, the Sun is always there.”
- XVIII – The Moon: “It is only inconstant when you aren’t getting what you want.”
- XVII – The Star: “Certain truths, like certain stars, require stillness and clarity to perceive.”
- XVI – The Tower: “Coming through will hurt, but coming through is how you survive.”
- XV – The Devil: “You always had a choice. You just chose not to choose.”
- XIV – Temperance: “Whatever you need to be, to be yourself.”
- XIII – Death: “All things come to an end, and from that new beginnings arise.”
- XII – The Hanged Man: “To gain everything by letting go.”
- XI – Justice: “What is right is not always what is best.”
- X – The Wheel of Fortune: “Fortune favors the brave, because the brave are often prepared.”
- IX – The Hermit: “The answer is in the form of a question.”
- VIII – Strength: “Face yourself first. Master that, and you can face everything else.”
- VII – The Chariot: “Before you worry about taking the right exit, you have to get going first.”
- VI – The Lovers: “The pen marks the page. The decision marks the soul.”
- V – The Hierophant: “Know what you were so you can change what you are.”
- IV – The Emperor: “Your opinion is optional. Your obedience is required.”
- III – The Empress: “I care for what I care for, at my discretion.”
- II – The High Priestess: “You can ask any question, but the answer will be your next question.”
- I – The Magician
The Minor Arcana – Coins
- 10 of Coins
- 9 of Coins
- 8 of Coins
- 7 of Coins
- 6 of Coins
- 5 of Coins
- 4 of Coins
- 3 of Coins
- 2 of Coins
- Ace of Coins
- Page of Coins
- Knight of Coins
- Queen of Coins
- King of Coins
The Minor Arcana – Swords
- 10 of Swords
- 9 of Swords
- 8 of Swords
- 7 of Swords
- 6 of Swords
- 5 of Swords
- 4 of Swords
- 3 of Swords
- 2 of Swords
- Ace of Swords
- Page of Swords
- Knight of Swords
- Queen of Swords
- King of Swords
The Minor Arcana – Cups
- 10 of Cups
- 9 of Cups
- 8 of Cups
- 7 of Cups
- 6 of Cups
- 5 of Cups
- 4 of Cups
- 3 of Cups
- 2 of Cups
- Ace of Cups
- Page of Cups
- Knight of Cups
- Queen of Cups
- King of Cups
The Minor Arcana – Wands
- 10 of Wands
- 9 of Wands
- 8 of Wands
- 7 of Wands
- 6 of Wands
- 5 of Wands
- 4 of Wands
- 3 of Wands
- 2 of Wands
- Ace of Wands
- Page of Wands
- Knight of Wands
- Queen of Wands
- King of Wands