The tarot suits

A tarot deck has 78 cards. Twenty-two are the Major Arcana. The other 56 are the Minor Arcana, split into four suits, each tied to an element and a side of life.

Major Arcana

The 22 big cards, numbered 0 to 21. Turning points, lessons, and the long arc of a life. They sit outside the suits and outside the elements.

All 22 cards

The four Minor Arcana suits

Wands

Fire · 14 cards

Passion, creativity, willpower, and the spark that gets things started. Wands show up around work, projects, and ambition.

All Wands cards

Cups

Water · 14 cards

Emotions, relationships, intuition, and what the heart wants. Cups show up around love, family, and how you feel.

All Cups cards

Swords

Air · 14 cards

Thought, communication, truth, and the clarity that sometimes cuts. Swords show up around decisions, conflict, and hard truths.

All Swords cards

Pentacles

Earth · 14 cards

Money, work, health, and the patient business of building a life. Pentacles show up around career, finances, and the body.

All Pentacles cards

How a suit works

Each suit runs from Ace to Ten, then four court cards, the Page, Knight, Queen, and King. The number carries the stage of a story, from a beginning at the Ace to a completion at the Ten, and the suit says which part of life that story is happening in.

That is why the suits matter more than memorizing 56 separate cards. Learn what Fire, Water, Air, and Earth each stand for, learn the arc of the numbers, and any Minor Arcana card becomes readable on sight.