The Fool – Meanings & Interpretation – Major Arcana

The Fool’s Meaning In A Tarot Reading

The Fool, at its core, represents the unfettered soul. Free of experience and prejudice, they are also free of fear and therefore come into new events without the trepidation often experienced by those who know what they might expect.

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This is both a benefit and a detriment to the Fool; their eyes are on the path ahead or the sky, but not on what is right in front of them. This can make the Fool easy to trick, persuade, or to the sideline.

But they also do not know what others believe is ‘NOT’ possible, which makes them capable of greatness, new ideas, and innovation. They do not know a thing cannot be done, so they merrily set about to do it anyway. Sometimes they succeed.

Below, we will discuss the elements of the Fool Card from the Major Arcana in various positions and its orientation. (Upright or Reversed) Some sorts of decks do not use this form of orientation. Others come with round cards that seek to utilize the subtle orientation from ‘upright and center’ to determine the influences. The majority of tarot decks that I have seen and experienced all used the upright/inverted orientation types, and so shall I.

The Fool Tarot Card Meanings – Upright

Overview:

Open-minded, moving into the future blissfully unaware, not just disorganized, but lacking any form of plan whatsoever. This is a powerful place to be in one’s life, as it leaves all doors open to you.

In general, the Fool in the upright position indicates that you are free of presuppositions about a given situation and can move freely through it.

Past Events:

The meaning is largely unchanged from the above, except it indicates that you have moved beyond this state and into a new one.

Whether it has worked for you or not will be determined by your view of the situation and further revealed by the tarot card in the present position.

Present Events:

Your current path forward is open to you, and you are carrying the bright, optimistic view of the universally untried. You find every position open to you, every option and the future is almost blindingly bright. In this position, the card is neither beneficial nor detrimental. It is merely a statement of where you are.

Future Events:

In this position, it represents a new, unfettered beginning coming down the pipe. It may be a heads-up to keep an eye open for a new path. Also, it may represent freedom from an existing stressful situation as you are set free into childlike innocence.

It is unlikely this is talking about any situation you are currently aware of, as that would imply foreknowledge and some modicum of planning, both things being antithetical to the overall meaning of this card.

The Fool Tarot Card Meanings – Reversed

Overview:

Sometimes we wander into things foolishly, and blindly. Taking no heed of the warning signs or the perils of the road ahead. This is the downside of the Fool, a fool-hardy movement into an area, putting ourselves in danger’s way, and generally being irresponsible and blind to the perils of life.

Past Events:

The meaning of this tarot card in the past means that we have been traveling a dangerous road without caution or care. It is a potential warning to observe your current circumstances and see if you are still on this path.

Present Events:

You are at the beginning of a path you are proceeding on recklessly. Take time to examine your situation and determine how you can prepare or avoid the path altogether.

It is important to realize that at this moment, the cards are stating that you are unaware of the totality of your current situation. It’s time to reassess.

Future Events:

This signifies that something is coming down the path that will have hidden dangers. Be aware of it coming. It will try to slip beneath your radar and seem harmless on the surface.

If something comes along, that seems too good to be true. If you’re aware and cautious, you can divert this before it becomes an issue.

Associated Colors:

White for Purity and Youth

Associated Incense:

Rosemary for Youth

Meditation For The Fool – Upright

Feel yourself falling into this tarot card, and you will find yourself with the Fool. He will be in the middle of a journey through uneven terrain, but his eyes will be on the sky. He will seem utterly unprepared, wearing the wrong clothes.

Also, he will have none of the proper things one might take with themselves for a long journey. He will be happy. And, he might have his little dog with him. This dog represents the fortune of naïvety, dancing around his feet and guiding him away from dangers he scarcely noticed.

Greet him, but do not be surprised if he does not answer. His eyes are on the future ahead, and you will find him daydreaming with every step. Walk along with him, and try to share his simple optimism and fearlessness.

Tarot Fool Card Upright Meditation Techniques:

He does not know that they say that what he does is foolish and impossible, but in this, he finds strength. For him, all things are possible because no one has told them they are not. Just as when we were children, the future lay wide open to him, and all things are possible.

In this Fool tarot card meditation, you may feel fear or challenged by the surroundings and perils of what’s to come. The lesson of this meditation is to let that go, to allow yourself to know that the future is open to you.

Know that many things that have been said to be impossible are now a fact. More often than not, it was all because some Fool started down a path heedless of what others tried to tell him.

Know that we are all Fools at points throughout our lives. The Fool is the beginning, the start of our journey into the future. The Major Arcana is often interpreted as the path the Fool takes through life, gradually changing and growing with experience.

What Should You Know?

We are fortunate to be here with him at the beginning of his journey, as perhaps it is the beginning of ours. Continue the meditation as long as it seems appropriate, experiencing the sensation of newness, the beginning of his journey, and yours.

If you have a tarot journal, make notes, record what it felt like to be carefree, or if you could not reach that carefree state, try to examine yourself and see if you can decide what kept you from reaching it.

Associated Colors:

Black for Protection, Red for Discord

Associated Incense:

Opium scented, for the dreamlike state, inattentiveness.

Meditation For The Fool – Reversed

Feel yourself falling into the Fool Tarot card, and you will find yourself with the Fool. Beware the surroundings, for they will be perilous. You will see the Fool wandering throughout this meditation, ragged, torn, exhausted, but seemingly unaware of all the damage he has taken.

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His attendant dog is mangy, weary, care-worn, and has long since ceased trying to warn or guide the Fool out of danger. The Fool has kicked him for his cautioning, and now the dog no longer has the strength or will to warn his once-loving master.

Throughout this tarot meditation for the Fool in the reversed position, you will see the warning against not heeding life’s lessons.

The Fool has gone beyond his simple, optimistic view and has hardened his mind to learning and experience.

Tarot Fool Card Reversed Meditation Techniques:

He started his journey with a broad mind and a hopeful demeanor. Now it is sheer stubbornness and disregard that keep him going.

When one powers on because one refuses to learn, they have moved past wisdom and into foolishness. There is nothing to be gained through willful ignorance, and the path of this Fool shows that.

While you travel, look around for familiar faces and goals, experiences that you may have had and not learned from. The lesson of this Major Arcana card is the repercussions of inattentiveness.

It may be a useful meditation when fearlessly charging on but constantly getting harmed when we have lost our way.

When everyone tells us to stop and their warnings hold out. Sometimes it isn’t bravery that drives us, but fear of failure and stops.

Be Aware

Be aware of the coming end of this meditation. Pay special attention if you are in this state yourself. You may continue trying to find some validation that you are not this Fool.

You will try to prove that your position in life is not related. Know that if you must keep searching for this, you likely are indeed this Fool.

Once you have reached the end of this meditative path, rise and extinguish the candle and incense. Write what you have observed in your tarot journal while you are still fresh with the meditation experiences in your mind.

Once you have completed writing, give yourself a few moments to come back to yourself. Take special care with the lessons on this card. They can deter one from much hardship.

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