Major Arcana and the Planets #
Eight Major Arcana cards correspond to planetary energies rather than zodiac signs. These cards channel pure archetypal forces—the same energies that astrologers read in planetary positions. Understanding these correspondences adds astrological depth to your Tarot practice.
The Classical Seven Planets #
The Magician — Mercury #
The Messenger’s Power
The Magician embodies Mercury’s domain: communication, skill, and the power of directed thought. Like Mercury, this card represents the capacity to connect above and below, translating spiritual impulse into practical action.
Astrological Resonance:
- Natal Mercury placement influences how you channel Magician energy
- Mercury transits activate themes of skill, communication, and manifestation
- Mercury retrograde invites review of how you use your magical capacities
In Readings: When The Magician appears, consider Mercury’s role in your chart. Those with strong Mercury (Gemini/Virgo emphasis, Mercury angular) may find this card particularly significant.
The High Priestess — The Moon #
The Keeper of Mystery
The High Priestess holds the Moon’s mysteries: intuition, the unconscious, and cyclical wisdom. She sits at the threshold between worlds, reflecting rather than illuminating, knowing through feeling rather than thought.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your natal Moon sign colors how you experience High Priestess energy
- Moon phases influence readings featuring this card
- Lunar transits and eclipses amplify her themes
In Readings: Consider your Moon sign when The High Priestess appears. Water Moons (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces) may find her particularly familiar; Fire Moons might be called to develop her receptive wisdom.
The Empress — Venus #
The Creatrix
The Empress channels Venus: fertility, beauty, sensual pleasure, and the creative power of love. She is nature’s abundance personified, the magnetic attraction that draws life toward itself.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your Venus sign and house color how you experience Empress energy
- Venus transits activate themes of creativity, pleasure, and abundance
- Venus retrograde invites reflection on values and what you love
In Readings: Consider your Venus placement when The Empress appears. She may indicate themes related to your Venus house—creativity, relationships, or material abundance.
The Wheel of Fortune — Jupiter #
The Great Benefic
The Wheel of Fortune carries Jupiter’s expansive, cyclical energy: opportunity, growth, philosophical understanding, and the turning of fate. Jupiter’s optimism meets the wheel’s reminder that all things change.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your natal Jupiter shows how you experience expansion and luck
- Jupiter transits often correlate with Wheel of Fortune themes
- Jupiter return (every 12 years) may bring major wheel-turning moments
In Readings: Consider Jupiter’s position when this card appears. Is Jupiter transiting a significant point? Are you in a Jupiter return year? The Wheel’s opportunities may be specifically Jupiter-flavored.
The Tower — Mars #
The Awakener
The Tower channels Mars at its most explosive: sudden disruption, breakthrough energy, and the destruction of what no longer serves. Mars here functions not as aggressor but as liberator, breaking structures that have become prisons.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your natal Mars shows how you experience disruption and breakthrough
- Mars transits (especially to sensitive points) can correlate with Tower moments
- Mars retrograde may internalize the Tower’s breaking-down energy
In Readings: Consider Mars in your chart when The Tower appears. Strong Mars placements may handle disruption more readily; those with challenged Mars may need to work consciously with breakthrough energy.
The Sun — The Sun #
The Illuminator
The Sun card embodies the solar principle: vitality, consciousness, success, and the radiant core of being. It represents life at its fullest expression, the self shining without shadow.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your Sun sign is your core identity—this card speaks to that essence
- Solar return charts (birthday) carry Sun card themes
- Sun transits illuminate the houses they pass through
In Readings: The Sun card often indicates that your solar essence—your Sun sign qualities—are being called forward. Consider how your Sun sign might express in the reading’s context.
The World — Saturn #
The Master Builder
The World carries Saturn’s mastery: completion, integration, earned achievement, and the wisdom that comes through time and discipline. Saturn’s lessons, fully learned, become The World’s cosmic dance.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your natal Saturn shows where mastery is being developed
- Saturn return (ages 29-30, 58-60) often brings World-card completions
- Saturn transits indicate where integration work is happening
In Readings: Consider Saturn’s role when The World appears. Have you completed a Saturn cycle? Is Saturn transiting a significant point? The World’s completion may relate specifically to Saturnian themes.
The Modern Outer Planets #
The Golden Dawn predates the discovery of the outer planets, but modern practitioners have assigned them to cards that resonate with their energies.
The Fool — Uranus #
The Awakener
The Fool carries Uranian electricity: sudden liberation, breakthrough, the willingness to leap into the unknown. Uranus disrupts stagnation; The Fool steps off the cliff trusting that the air will hold.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your natal Uranus shows where you need freedom and originality
- Uranus transits correlate with Fool-like leaps and liberations
- Uranus opposition (around age 42) may bring major Fool moments
The Hanged Man — Neptune #
The Dissolver
The Hanged Man embodies Neptune’s surrender: letting go, altered perspective, the wisdom that comes through yielding rather than forcing. Neptune dissolves ego boundaries; The Hanged Man hangs peacefully in that dissolution.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your natal Neptune shows where surrender and transcendence are themes
- Neptune transits dissolve structures and invite spiritual opening
- Neptune’s long transits create extended Hanged Man periods
Judgement — Pluto #
The Transformer
Judgement channels Pluto’s rebirth energy: the call from the depths, resurrection after symbolic death, transformation that cannot be denied. Pluto destroys what must die; Judgement is the phoenix rising.
Astrological Resonance:
- Your natal Pluto shows where deep transformation is your work
- Pluto transits (especially to personal planets) correlate with Judgement themes
- Pluto generations share collective transformation patterns
Working With Planetary Correspondences #
In Readings #
When a planetary card appears:
- Consider the planet’s current transit: Where is Mercury/Venus/Mars now?
- Check your natal placement: How does this planet express in your chart?
- Note planetary aspects: Is the planet being triggered by current transits?
- Use planetary timing: When will this planet station or change sign?
For Deeper Understanding #
To develop fluency with these correspondences:
- Study your planetary placements alongside their corresponding cards
- Track planetary transits and notice when these cards appear
- Meditate on cards during their planet’s day (Sunday=Sun, Monday=Moon, etc.)
- Use planetary hours for card study
Affirmation #
I recognize the planetary powers that move through the Major Arcana. The celestial forces that pattern my birth chart also animate these sacred images. I deepen my understanding of both languages through their connection.
The planetary correspondences remind us that Tarot and Astrology speak the same archetypal language through different symbolic vocabularies. Mastering both enriches your understanding of each.