“Regardless of what is happening here, the Sun is always there.”
The Sun at the center of our planetary system is a massive ball of superheated plasma that does what it does without thought, without emotion, without consciousness, without planning. This does not stop people from ascribing to it personal characteristics based on how the Sun’s light and heat are affecting them as they go about their work and play. As such, the Sun of the tarot can be impersonal and disconnected from the Querent while also being a personal adversary and/or support in their life and endeavors.
In a reading, the Sun card can represent the physical star if the query provides context for such an answer. Readings for outside activities such as farming, picnics, gatherings, maintenance of building exteriors, and even travel can provide for this card to be interpreted as the literal Sun having some influence on the matter. The other cards in the reading will provide modifiers to tell if the Sun’s influence is overbearing or clouded, and if needful or baneful. The painter that needs a clear sky to complete their work will view the Sun differently than a farmer that needs the rains to come in season.
As an abstraction, the Sun’s physical qualities become adjectives and modifiers to the Querent’s situation. It is known that the light of the noon sun is the brightest and it is said that sunlight is a disinfectant. Thus, in a reading, the appearance of the Sun card can herald a revealing and inspection of the Querent’s concern to the point that deficiencies are revealed and dealt with in a proper manner. To a person who has been in a metaphorical darkness, the Sun card can signify the beginning of resolution and a harbinger of joy to come.
When the context for interpretation is positive, the Sun card can be as supportive to the Querent as a warm hug from a friend. It can be encouraging as the dawn after a long night. It can vindicate the Querent and reveal potential problems that the Querent can avoid rather than suffer through. But when the context is negative, or against the Querent, that same noon light can become a heated environment requiring protection to endure. It can be the withdrawal of light as if at sunset or during a solar eclipse, and now the Querent must move carefully through their concern lest an unseen obstacle turn an unpleasant journey into a hardship. It can signify an unfair trial by their enemies and the deliberate shadowing of their works and achievements.
In a one-card reading, the Sun card often indicates “Yes, Go”, “Agreement”, “Success”, or “Joy”. As a response to a query about timing, it can mean “Now”, “Noon”, “Daytime”, or “Summer”. While the card can indicate the presence of children, I have found that this is dependent on the deck used for the reading. However, the card does often indicate a child-like joy, regardless of the age of the Querent.
The context of the question may reverse the meaning if the presence of the Sun card is not desired. As such, or with decks that are read with upside-down or reversed cards, the one-card answer can become “No, Don’t”, “Irreconcilable Differences”, “Incomplete Success or Critical Failure”, or “Self-Deception”. The response to timing can become “Too Soon”, “Delayed”, or “Worst Timing for the Endeavor”.
The Sun card can refer to the inner life of the Querent. It can represent the lantern of their thoughts and the process by which they reason their way through life. Along with a child-like joy, the Sun can represent their resolve and commitment to a thing, and the fire of their passion to see reach that goal. If they allow their passion to rule their actions, is that not like summer arriving too early and withering the crop in the field? But if they don’t acknowledge their inner life, or if they deny their desires and wants, then the Querent has occulted themselves and this internal eclipse of their personality can prevent them from growing as a person. The steadfast nature of the physical Sun is such that we always have to modify what we do to either take advantage of its nature or to ameliorate its effects. It cannot be reasoned with or influenced. It is to the Querent’s benefit to treat the Sun card as the same. Take delight or take warning, but take it as is.
Next Card: XVIII – The Moon – “It is only inconstant when you aren’t getting what you want.”
Noxporium’s Tarot Card Masterpost: 78 Tarot Cards
Previous Card: XX – Judgement – “It’s not about being proven right, it’s about being proven.”