Tarot starts in the Major Arcana with the number 0, The Fool.
The fool is usually young, naive, and a little thoughtless. They’re innocent and full of potential. New beginnings are near, but things may not be easy. Courage and faith are important but avoid extravagant folly.
I could keep going like that but damn it’s hard. In simple terms the fool is just that, foolish. Sometimes this card is interpreted to mean someone is child-like, or that someone needs to reconnect with child-like wonder. Return to innocence, optimism. Tarot really relies on placement and intuition, but all 13 of my decks said something along the lines of child-like innocence or optimism, lack of thinking, and freedom.
Let’s get some practical knowledge. We’re going to go through each placement in my simple Celtic cross spread I use for general readings.
- First is the card representing self, the person getting the reading. If the fool is in this position, it’s likely that the person is childish or naive, or even freedom obsessed. There is also a change they are optimistic about.
- The next card is what crosses this person, an event or force that has a great influence. If the fool pops up here I would take it as the person is being too foolish, it’s creating a problem. Be that being too childish, too obsessive, or even too reckless.
- I do my Celtic cross differently from most others. This card stands for the conscious thoughts of the person, thoughts in the forefront of the mind. If the fool shows up here it’s likely that the person is either thinking they are being foolish, or that the thoughts they’re thinking are foolish. To know which one you’d have to look at the context of the rest of the reading and remember to trust your intuition.
- Unconscious thought, the stuff in the back of the mind. With the fool here it could, again, mean that the person is afraid they’re foolish, or that their thoughts are foolish, the difference is that in this spot the person refuses to admit the thoughts.
- This card changes based off the rest of the reading. Sometimes it’s advice, sometimes a warning. Intuition is always key with tarot. As advice stick with the freedom aspect, they need to let loose and live a little, even if it is a little foolish. As a warning they are already living too foolishly, to the point of recklessness.
- Finally, is the outcome of the current path. I’m sure you have got the idea by now.
So, there’s the fool! I hope this helps someone learn just a little bit more. If you have something to add I’d love to hear it. I know I didn’t go into reversed meanings, but there are some people (Safire) who don’t do reversed meanings, and sometimes intuition will tell you whether to reverse it or not.
