The Tarot cards have often been compared to a journey through life. Indeed, many people teach the Major Arcana in the form of a journey, starting with The Fool, who is like a newborn baby who knows nothing about the journey ahead of him, and ending with The World, which represents the completion of our journey here on earth. However, in this section of the book, we will take the simple idea of running down a country lane and see what kind of journey the cards offer us.
Here I have drawn a path that has forks and choices, and I've placed cards along the journey. The idea is simply to follow the little cartoon's trivial pursuit that is marked by arrows and look at each card that he meets along the way. Stretch your imagination to create the story of this cartoon character, and what you think is happening to him on this path that's been laid for him. There is a story there, full of choices, meaning, and consequences. I have suggested an interpretation for the course of the first of these journeys shown on page 102.
The Significator, or card that represents the traveller, is the King of Wands. This is appropriate because the Wands are adventurous, enthusiastic, and can indicate travelling.
The first cards that he meets on the way are the Three of Coins together with the King of Swords. This shows that he could end his journey here, because the Three of Coins is offering him the chance of a stable home or job at this point, but also a lot of work to be done. The King can advise him on these matters, but can also guide him on his way if he chooses to travel on.
Now the road forks and, for the moment, our traveller takes the right-hand fork. The first two cards on this road are rather good. The Knight of Cups travels with him for a while, offering him friendship and fun along the way, while the Temperance card suggests that the scenery is beautiful and the journey peaceful. However this road peters out and the Two of Swords shows that this way leads to nothing but stalemate. He must retrace his steps and try the other fork.
The left-hand fork soon brings him to the Six of Swords, which is clearly a card of travel and therefore pointing him in the right direction. With this card is the Five of Wands, which denotes a challenge that can be entered into with enjoyment and with every chance of success to follow. After this he meets the Six of Coins, which means that he will have to find money for a hotel for the night. There are travelling mendicants outside the hotel and he proffers a coin or two to help them out. They wish him good luck.
After a good night's sleep, he decides to investigate a side road before returning to the main road. This turns out to be a mistake, as he trips over a low wall and nearly falls into a waterlogged quarry. This reminds him that life is not always easy. He pulls himself back onto the main road and meets yet another companion.
This time the companion is a practical woman, as signified by the Queen of Coins. The Six of Cups denotes that she has two children with her, who remind him of the family he will be seeing again at the end of his journey.
Finally he arrives at the end of the journey. The Justice card shows that the journey was worth it. He has set things right in his life and his experiences have brought balance and understanding to his mind. He will find a sense of equilibrium and a reasonable way of life now that his travels are over.
The second pathway on page 104 is for you to play with. Give it to your friends in turn and see what each one makes of it. See how many stories you can get. This may only be a bit of harmless fun, but it will stretch your knowledge of the cards and your ability to fit them together.
