These four suites each have their element, and each corresponds to a specific area of our life.
- CUPS: THE ELEMENT OF WATER; EMOTIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS, CONNECTIONS, INTERACTIONS.
- PENTACLES: THE ELEMENT OF EARTH; PROPERTY, MONEY, AND ACHIEVEMENT, STABILITY, HOME, RESOURCEFULNESS.
- SWORDS; THE ELEMENT OF AIR; OUR INTELLECT, AND DECISIONS, TRANSFORMATION, AND CHANGE.
- WANDS; THE ELEMENT OF FIRE.DESIRE, AMBITIONS, MOTIVATION, FORCE, AND CREATIVITY.
Psychologist Carl Jung used theory to sum up the meanings of the cards.
- Swords – Air – I THINK.
- Wands -FIRE – I DESIRE.
- Pentacles – Earth – I POSSESS.
- Cups – Water – I FEEL.
This is another way that I found helps me to remember the elements of the suits.
- Swords – Air – I Think – The Mind
- Wands -Fire – I Desire – The Soul
- Pentacles – Earth – I Possess – The body.
- Cups -Water – I Feel – The Heart.
There are fourteen cards in a suit: Ace through Ten and then four court cards: to add even more meaning.
- Ace -Seed, Beginning, Potential, Promise
- Two – Wisdom, Choice, Experience, Relationship
- Three- Understanding, Creativity, Synthesis, Expression
- Four – Mercy, Security, stability, Structure.
- Five – Severity, Crisis, Challenge, Transformation.
- Six – Beauty,Harmony, Integration, Moderation.
- Seven – Victory, Research, Magic, Spirituality.
- Eight – Glory, Abundance, Harvest, Manifestation.
- Nine – Foundation, Leadership, Idealism, Completeness.
- Ten – kingdom,Culmination,Ending,Beginnings.
Next, we look at the four court cards, which consist of:
- Kings – Fire
- Queens – water
- KNIGHTS – Air
- PAGES – Earth
The Underlying meaning of the court cards can be simplified into these categories:
- Kings – Stable, Stoic, Authoritative, Established.
- Queen – Expressive,Experienced,Thoughtful,Sustaining.
- Knight – Ambitious, Risky, Movement, Compulsive.
- Page – Innocence, Openness, Optimism, Enthusiasm.
For example, the king of cups can be seen as someone comfortable in his own skin. Comfortable and in charge of his emotions while prone to stoicism.
He is a person who does not necessarily express outwardly how he feels.
In contrast, The Queen of Cups is mature and feels comfortable in expressing her emotions.
The Knight is all about moving forward; they have drive and determination.
They are not quite mature enough yet to know everything.
The pages have a young playful spirit. At times they can seem almost child-like. Yet, they pose no threat or harm.