Wheel of Fortune (Tarot card)

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Wheel of Fortune (X) is a Major Arcana Tarot card.

Contents 1 Description and Symbolism 2 Interpretation 2.1 Mythopoetic Approach 3 References 4 Trivia 5 External links

[edit] Description and Symbolism

A. E. Waite was a key figure in the developement of modern Tarot interpretaions.</ref> Wood, 1998 However not all interpretations follow his theology. Please remember that all Tarot decks used for divination are interpreted up to personal experience and standards.

Some frequent keywords are:

• Turning point ----- Opportunities ----- Possibilities

• Destiny ----- Fate ----- Superior forces ----- Movement

• Development ----- Activity ----- Surprises ------ Expansion

• Quick happenings ----- Speed ----- New events ----- Life cycles

The most common versions of The Wheel of Fortune shows a wheel floating in the sky inscribed with the letters TARO and alchemical symbols representing the elements underlying the four suits of the tarot, Fire (Wands), Water (Cups), Earth (Discs) and Air (Swords). This recalls the emblems of the four suits of the tarot actually laying on the table of The Magician.

Winged creatures are in the four corners of the card, a man, an eagle, a bull, and a lion, each with an open book. Depending on the tradition, they represent the four seasons, the four gospels, the four fixed signs of the zodiac, and the four angels of the apocalypse. The four creatures have their roots far deep in ancient Hebrew tradition as being the four corners of the divine throne of God.

[edit] Interpretation

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Changes in station. Rich become poor, poor become rich. Sudden reversal of fortune. Strong Buddhist associations with the Karmic cycle.

[edit] Mythopoetic Approach

The Wheel of Fortune is the intersession of random chance on The Fool's journey through the Major Arcana. It represents the forces that can disrupt, destroy, or bless the Querant.

It also represents the underlying order that the Magician attempts to master. The letters on the wheel have been read to mean "Rota Taro Orat Tora Ator," which can be translated (if you don't mind syncretic translations) to: "The Wheel of Taro[t] speaks the Law of Ator [Hathor, or Love]." The tension between the two basic meanings (chance and structure) can be useful to explore with the Querant.

Through its cross sum (the sum of the digits), it is closely connected to The Magician, Key 1 and The Sun, Key 19. Each represents a rupture with the previous order; the Magician starting the journey; The Wheel of Fortune introducing random chance; The Sun reborn from the underworld.

When it appears in a tarot throw, it typically signals the insertion of a random forces, the start of something new, or a need to understand the underlying structures. It may carry a warning that The Querant needs to accept the gift or curse that's coming and learn from it.

To the right is Anubis (Good) ascending and to the left is Typhon (Evil) descending.

[edit] References

• A. E. Waite's 1910 Pictorial Key to the Tarot
• Hajo Banzhaf, Tarot and the Journey of the Hero (2000).
• Juliette Wood, Folklore 109 (1998):15-24, The Celtic Tarot and the Secret Tradition: A Study in Modern Legend Making (1998)

[edit] Trivia

• A boss character in The House of the Dead III is named after this Tarot card (as Wheel of Fate).
• In the X/1999 Tarot version made by CLAMP, The Wheel of FOrtune is Kakyou Kuzuki
• Tarot cards are used throughout much of Europe to play Tarot card games such as French Tarot and Austrian Königrufen. In English-speaking and Spanish- speaking countries, where the games are largely unknown, Tarot cards came to be utilized primarily for divinatory purposes.

[edit] External links

• "Wheel of Fortune" cards from many decks and articles to the iconography
• The History of the Wheel of Fortune Card from The Hermitage.

Major Arcana
0 The Fool	I The Magician	II The High Priestess	III The Empress	IV The Emperor	V The Pope	VI The Lovers	VII The Chariot	VIII Justice	IX The Hermit	X Wheel of Fortune
XI Strength	XII The Hanged Man	XIII Death	XIV Temperance	XV The Devil	XVI The Tower	XVII The Star	XVIII The Moon	XIX The Sun	XX Judgement	XXI The World
Tarot • Minor Arcana