What is the Meaning of the Tarot Card Known as The Fool?
http://www.faithinreligion.net/articles/7868/1/What-is-the-Meaning-of-the-Tarot-Card-Known-as-The-Fool/Page1.html
Tenzin Pemo
Learn the world's MOST ancient oracles for BETTER decisions, BETTER Relations! Free Tarot Reading for your and your loved ones. Free i ching online which you can use to understand yourself and your life. By Tenzin Pemo
Published on 07/28/2011
Traveling along the road, his satchel slung over one shoulder, the Fool is often considered the main character of the Tarot story. He is on a journey, but he does not know where he will end up. Maybe it is a new romance, or a new job, or a desire to make a big change in life.
Traveling along the road, his satchel slung over one shoulder, the Fool is often considered the main character of the Tarot story.
He is on a journey, but he does not know where he will end up - he almost always represents the person asking the Tarot's advice, and usually shows up to indicate that the subject is at the beginning of a new adventure. Maybe it is a new romance, or a new job, or a desire to make a big change in life.
Each of us is, at some point in our lives, the Fool. That does not mean that we are foolish - the Fool is free of worldly cares, ready to enjoy whatever new opportunities comes his way.
The problem is that the innocent and childlike fool can be overly optimistic. The Fool is who we are when we first fall in love, or when we start fantasizing about how a new business venture will make us rich.
When the Fool comes up in a reading, it means that we are in danger of wandering mindlessly into danger, because we are so preoccupied with our daydreams of success that we are not paying enough attention to practicalities.
Unfortunately, in this childlike state the person is likely to be overly optimistic or naive. A Fool can be a Fool. This is the card likely to turn up when a Querent is thinking of investing his money in a new, 'sure fire' business. Or when the Querent is sure that it's "love this time!" Like the Fool, they are so busy daydreaming of what might be that they're ignoring what is. They are about to fall right off a cliff.
Time for them to listen to that watchful little dog, which might be a concerned friend, a wise tarot reader, or just their instincts.
The Fool also represents the need to be watchful and analytical. Significant change is on the horizon, and the subject should do some soul-searching and discover what their true goal is. On many versions of the Tarot, the Fool is accompanied by a little dog, who represents the more pragmatic voice - an ally who reminds us when we're not paying close enough attention to the road ahead.
In some spreads, the card can be interpreted as an action that has been taken where the outcome is still unresolved - the subject may need to confront their fears and assess the risks in the choices they are making. In some version of the cards, the Fool is seen to be walking off a cliff, which can be taken one of two ways; either he's about to plunge off the edge because he is not paying attention, or he is deliberately taking a risk, a "leap of faith," as it were.
Early versions of the Tarot portrayed the Fool less as an innocent soul as one who was out of touch with his spiritual side, a person driven by his own hunger and needs, and has lost all worldly connections because of it. In other Tarots, the Fool is shown to be a traveling entertainer, or a decrepit old man who's been ground down by his repeated mistakes and follies. It is only the more modern versions, most notably the Rider-Waite deck, that show the Fool that we now know, a cheerful innocent tripping along the road to who knows where.
As most modern takes take their cue fro Rider-Waite, the imagery usually pays tribute to that deck, and the Fool is seen outdoors, looking upwards - not watching his step - with his worldly goods slung over his shoulder and a little dog trying to get his attention. But when interpreting the card, it is valuable to remember the original Fool, who had fallen to his lowest point and, as a result, forsaken material desires, and was now beginning a new journey with just the pack on his back and an open heart.
At its essence, the Fool represents our need to fulfill our own destinies, and the unknowable journey that we undertake whenever we begin a new venture.
Inverted, the Fool may be a signal that a decision may be unwise, or that the subject is about to start a venture that will fail. It's a warning that the subject should weigh the risks carefully, for it is possible that the decision they are making may be undertaken too lightly, and that they need to give it more serious consideration.
That cliff that the Fool is about to step off of is a steep one - it is best to look before you leap, the inverted card says, because you may not be ready for the sudden fall.
He is on a journey, but he does not know where he will end up - he almost always represents the person asking the Tarot's advice, and usually shows up to indicate that the subject is at the beginning of a new adventure. Maybe it is a new romance, or a new job, or a desire to make a big change in life.
Each of us is, at some point in our lives, the Fool. That does not mean that we are foolish - the Fool is free of worldly cares, ready to enjoy whatever new opportunities comes his way.
The problem is that the innocent and childlike fool can be overly optimistic. The Fool is who we are when we first fall in love, or when we start fantasizing about how a new business venture will make us rich.
When the Fool comes up in a reading, it means that we are in danger of wandering mindlessly into danger, because we are so preoccupied with our daydreams of success that we are not paying enough attention to practicalities.
Unfortunately, in this childlike state the person is likely to be overly optimistic or naive. A Fool can be a Fool. This is the card likely to turn up when a Querent is thinking of investing his money in a new, 'sure fire' business. Or when the Querent is sure that it's "love this time!" Like the Fool, they are so busy daydreaming of what might be that they're ignoring what is. They are about to fall right off a cliff.
Time for them to listen to that watchful little dog, which might be a concerned friend, a wise tarot reader, or just their instincts.
The Fool also represents the need to be watchful and analytical. Significant change is on the horizon, and the subject should do some soul-searching and discover what their true goal is. On many versions of the Tarot, the Fool is accompanied by a little dog, who represents the more pragmatic voice - an ally who reminds us when we're not paying close enough attention to the road ahead.
In some spreads, the card can be interpreted as an action that has been taken where the outcome is still unresolved - the subject may need to confront their fears and assess the risks in the choices they are making. In some version of the cards, the Fool is seen to be walking off a cliff, which can be taken one of two ways; either he's about to plunge off the edge because he is not paying attention, or he is deliberately taking a risk, a "leap of faith," as it were.
Early versions of the Tarot portrayed the Fool less as an innocent soul as one who was out of touch with his spiritual side, a person driven by his own hunger and needs, and has lost all worldly connections because of it. In other Tarots, the Fool is shown to be a traveling entertainer, or a decrepit old man who's been ground down by his repeated mistakes and follies. It is only the more modern versions, most notably the Rider-Waite deck, that show the Fool that we now know, a cheerful innocent tripping along the road to who knows where.
As most modern takes take their cue fro Rider-Waite, the imagery usually pays tribute to that deck, and the Fool is seen outdoors, looking upwards - not watching his step - with his worldly goods slung over his shoulder and a little dog trying to get his attention. But when interpreting the card, it is valuable to remember the original Fool, who had fallen to his lowest point and, as a result, forsaken material desires, and was now beginning a new journey with just the pack on his back and an open heart.
At its essence, the Fool represents our need to fulfill our own destinies, and the unknowable journey that we undertake whenever we begin a new venture.
Inverted, the Fool may be a signal that a decision may be unwise, or that the subject is about to start a venture that will fail. It's a warning that the subject should weigh the risks carefully, for it is possible that the decision they are making may be undertaken too lightly, and that they need to give it more serious consideration.
That cliff that the Fool is about to step off of is a steep one - it is best to look before you leap, the inverted card says, because you may not be ready for the sudden fall.