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JUNE 2009

THE FOOL, FLASHCARDS OF THE SELF

by Peggy Firth, Certified Tarot Master

The Robin Wood deck has a winding creek and the fool (pictured above) is dressed as a court jester.
In middle ages, the court jester assumed the role of court reporter and jokester with immunity from court politics.

The first card of the Major Arcana is the Fool, number 0, bringing the total to 22 major arcana cards. These 22 cards are the archetypal milestones, those aspects of man’s inner journey through life.

Each time we embark on a new experience or are the recipient of an emotionally charged event, we activate an inner aspect of ourselves that responds and records it. As we accumulate these lessons we begin to honor what matters to us. This theme is found in the Holy Grail and The Wizard of Oz.

The Fool reminds us to find our own way, even if it means flaunting social customs or ‘keeping up with the Joneses.’ The Fool represents our inquisitiveness and desire for adventure. This androgynous, naive, childlike person possesses a freedom. Most decks have an animal, often a pet dog, that represents a spirit guide and companion to man. The Fool has also been called “the green man” as a personification of spring. If the Fool card appears at the beginning of a reading we could read this as naively approaching an event, relationship or experience that requires adequate preparation. If the Fool card appears towards the end of a spread it may indicate the release of a rigid nature and adopt a more spontaneous approach to life, a willingness to take a risk.

Some decks show the Hebrew “Aleph” which represents the creative energy or life power we are born with and which remains until it is spent on this earth plain. The number zero, called zero key, is also part of Aleph, the no-thing or limitless light. The Fool may be assigned as the most important Major Arcana or the least, as with the Ace in a deck of regular playing cards.

The Fool is pictured as a young person with hope, vitality, and grace. Most decks portray this figure as androgynous.

The sun shown in most decks is at an angle of 45 degrees in the eastern sky which in the spiritual world never really reaches its zenith which denotes maximum spiritual energy.

Some decks, such as the traditional Rider-Waite and Paul Foster Case decks contain many symbols that are a compilation of the teachings of ancient schools of thought such as Hebrew wisdom, the Qabalah, Rosicrucianism, the Golden Door, Free Masonry and Builders of the Adytum, an old English system of tarot card study.

Here are more symbolic images with their respective universal meanings:

Green wreath worn around the head - represents growth and expansion.
Yellow sky – Western schools of occult science regard the color yellow as related to Aleph and the higher octave of Mercury.
Feather - The feather represents aspiration.
Yellow hair – Symbolizes radiant energy
White inner garment – The light of wisdom
Black coat lined with red – Denotes ignorance lined with passion
Outer coat embroidered with floral decorations – Represents repetitions of the potency of nature
Knapsack – Contains accumulated experiences
Eye on the knapsack – The Egyptian symbol of a higher vision
Waist band with 12 ornaments – 12 signs of the zodiac or time
White rose in the Fool’s left hand - indicates freedom from the lower forms of desire.
Icy peaks in the distance - represent the cold, abstract principle of science and left brain thinking.

Examine your Fool card for symbols that convey meaning to you, whether learned or felt. Your subconscious mind may immediately hone in one or more symbols which may convey impressions and answers.

READING THE FOOL CARD

Readers generally accept that the fool represents that all possibilities exist, a jumping off point in life that does not require much baggage. The image suggests being in the present without jaded or past struggles to limit one.

The “Fool” name suggests someone who plows ahead without much preparation or forethought. However, some steps appear foolish but can be either foolish or brilliant.

The trend is not to read the opposite meaning, which traditionally leaned toward a negative stance such as irrational, folly, infatuated, risk taker. (The upside-down fool who falls).

The reversal suggested by Mary Greer, The Complete Book of Tarot Reversals, is not to take a risk or make a responsible choice.

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Successful readings leave the querent empowered.