Tarot 101: The Four Suits of the Minor Arcana

The Minor Arcana has 56 cards. These are divided into four suits: Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles. Each suit describes a different area of daily life. Learning the suits gives you an immediate framework for understanding any Minor Arcana card you pull.


Wands: Energy & Action

  • Element: Fire
  • Themes: drive, passion, creativity, momentum.
  • Wands show how you direct your energy and pursue what excites you. They often point to beginnings, motivation, or blocks in willpower.
  • Example: Ace of Wands = a fresh burst of energy.
  • Example: Ten of Wands = carrying too much responsibility.


Cups: Emotions & Relationships

  • Element: Water
  • Themes: feelings, love, connection, intuition.
  • Cups describe the emotional flow of your relationships and your inner world. They can reveal both fulfillment and emotional challenges.
  • Example: Two of Cups = partnership and harmony.
  • Example: Five of Cups = grief or focusing on loss.


Swords: Thought & Conflict

  • Element: Air
  • Themes: ideas, decisions, communication, struggles.
  • Swords deal with how you think, process, and express yourself. They often reveal where clarity is needed, where conflict arises, or how mental patterns shape your situation.
  • Example: Ace of Swords = clarity, breakthrough, new idea.
  • Example: Nine of Swords = anxiety, fear, sleepless thoughts.


Pentacles: Work & Material Life

  • Element: Earth
  • Themes: money, health, home, career, stability.
  • Pentacles are about the tangible side of life: resources, effort, and results. They show how you build security, take care of your body, and create foundations for the future.
  • Example: Three of Pentacles = teamwork, shared skills, progress through effort.
  • Example: Five of Pentacles = hardship, financial or emotional exclusion, feeling unsupported.


Why It Matters

Every Minor Arcana card blends its suit with its number or role. Once you know the four suits, you instantly know what area of life the card is pointing toward: whether it’s energy (Wands), emotions (Cups), thoughts (Swords), or material life (Pentacles).


The four suits of the Minor Arcana form the foundation of Tarot’s day-to-day language. Wands cover energy and drive, Cups guide emotions and relationships, Swords reveal thoughts and conflicts, and Pentacles ground it all in the material world. Once you learn these suits, you can immediately place any Minor Arcana card into context.


Next Steps

Ready to go deeper? In the next Tarot 101 guides, we’ll break down:

  • How the numbers Ace through 10 show progression in each suit.
  • What the Court Cards represent and how to read them.
  • How to combine suit meanings with Major Arcana cards in a spread.

Each step makes your readings sharper and easier to interpret.


Good luck on your Tarot journey!
-StarredSprig 💜

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