Tarot Numerology: How Numbers Help You Read the Cards

What Tarot Numerology Covers (and What It Leaves Out)

People use the phrase "tarot numerology" in two very different ways. Some systems calculate life-path or birth cards from a calendar date. This guide focuses on the second, card-centered approach: how the numbers printed on the cards help you study and compare them during a reflective reading.

In a standard 78-card deck, numbered cards appear in two places:

• The Minor Arcana: Each of the four suits—Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles—runs from Ace (1) through 10.
• The Major Arcana: Twenty-two trump cards are numbered from 0 (The Fool) through XXI (The World).

Historical tarot texts, such as A. E. Waite's The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, examine numbered cards and court cards individually and show that sharing a number does not give cards an identical meaning across different suits (Waite, Part 3). Because traditional interpretations often vary by card, any one-to-ten number list works best as a memory prompt rather than a universal law.

An Optional 1–10 Study Method for the Minor Arcana

When you first study the forty numbered cards of the Minor Arcana, an editorial mnemonic can help you remember where a card falls between the beginning and end of a suit. The ten words below are optional study prompts—not quotes from Waite or fixed meanings—that you can test against a card's illustration:

Use the prompt only to open your observation. Once you name the number's general stage, let the card's actual picture and your spread position take over.

Why the Picture and Question Override a Simple Number Rule

If numbers worked like rigid equations, every Four would feel identical and every Five would describe the exact same problem. In practice, the suit and the illustrated scene change how that stage plays out.

Comparing Fours: Structure as Celebration vs. Discontent

The optional prompt for 4 is structure—something established or held in place. Look at how differently two Fours in Waite's Minor Arcana express that idea (Waite, Part 3):

• Four of Wands: Four upright staves support a suspended garland while two figures lift bouquets nearby. Here, stability looks open and celebratory, like a shared milestone or a welcoming space.
• Four of Cups: A figure sits beneath a tree with three cups resting on the grass in front of them, while a fourth cup is offered from a cloud. Here, holding a fixed position looks like withdrawal, boredom, or overlooking a new option.

If you ask, "How can I improve my weekly routine?", the Four of Wands might prompt you to build in a shared reward at the end of the week, whereas the Four of Cups asks you to notice what you have tuned out because your schedule feels stale.

Comparing Fives: Friction as Competition vs. Grief

The optional prompt for 5 is friction—a complication that tests the earlier stability. Again, the visual details in Waite's descriptions separate the cards (Waite, Part 3):

• Five of Wands: A group of youths brandishes staves as if in a mock struggle or sport. The friction is active, noisy, and competitive—many voices or efforts colliding at once.
• Five of Cups: A cloaked figure looks down at three spilled cups on the ground while two cups remain upright behind them, with a bridge in the background. The friction is quiet and inward, centering on loss, regret, and what still remains intact.

Even other low numbers shift sharply by suit: while some Threes show early growth, the Three of Swords depicts a heart pierced by three swords under clouds and rain (Waite, Part 3). Always read the drawing in front of you before relying on a keyword.

How 0, Major Arcana Numbers, and Court Cards Fit In

Not every card fits a neat one-to-ten ladder. Keeping three exceptions clear prevents confusion when you lay out a spread.

Zero (The Fool)

In the Major Arcana, The Fool carries the number 0, standing outside the one-through-twenty-one progression. Rather than representing a fixed stage of development, 0 marks an open starting point before a set structure is chosen.

Major Arcana Roman Numerals (I–XXI)

The remaining twenty-one cards of the Major Arcana carry Roman numerals from I to XXI (Waite, Part 2). Sometimes you can spot a loose echo between a Major Arcana numeral and a Minor Arcana study prompt, as long as you treat it as a reflective comparison rather than a rule:

• The Magician (I) stands beside a table holding the emblems of all four suits, with roses and lilies below and a figure-eight symbol above his head (Waite, Part 2). You can connect I to the prompt start—having the tools on the table to begin a deliberate effort.
• The Emperor (IV) sits on a throne decorated with ram heads (Waite, Part 2), echoing the structure and authority often explored in Fours.
• The Hermit (IX) holds up a lantern containing a star (Waite, Part 2), which fits a quiet review of where you have been before taking the final step.
• The World (XXI) sits at the end of the twenty-two-card sequence, where Waite discusses themes of completion and perfection (Waite, Part 2).

Court Cards

Each suit also includes four court ranks—Page, Knight, Queen, and King—which Waite discusses separately from the Ace-through-Ten sequence (Waite, Part 3). Because court cards carry no printed number, you do not need to force them into a one-to-ten chart. Instead, read them as roles, attitudes, or ways of handling the suit's theme.

Worked Example: Using Numbers in a Three-Card Reading

Suppose you pull three cards for a hypothetical reflection question: "How can I finish my current creative project without burning out?"

1. Position 1 — Current situation: Four of Cups.
   • Number prompt: 4 (Structure). You have settled into a steady routine, or things have paused in place.
   • Image check: The figure sits under a tree looking past three cups on the grass while a fourth cup appears in a cloud (Waite, Part 3).
   • Application to your question: Your current structure has turned into creative fatigue. Before forcing new output, write down which part of the project feels repetitive and which fresh idea you have been ignoring.
2. Position 2 — Obstacle: Five of Wands.
   • Number prompt: 5 (Friction). Something is disrupting your rhythm.
   • Image check: Youths wave staves in mock conflict (Waite, Part 3).
   • Application to your question: Instead of one catastrophic problem, you are dealing with competing priorities or too many minor tasks fighting for attention. Pick one task for today and set the rest aside.
3. Position 3 — Helpful next step: Six of Wands.
   • Number prompt: 6 (Adjust). Move forward from the friction of the Five.
   • Image check: A laureled horseman rides forward surrounded by figures on foot (Waite, Part 3).
   • Application to your question: Share a finished milestone with a colleague or friend rather than waiting for the entire project to be perfect.

Notice how the numbers 4 → 5 → 6 trace a clear narrative—from a stalled routine (structure), through scattered effort (friction), into visible progress (adjust)—while the specific images tell you what kind of pause, friction, and progress to look for.

Sources

• A. E. Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, Part 3 (Wikisource)
• A. E. Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, Part 2 (Wikisource)