Interpreting Court Cards in Tarot Readings

Court cards (Kings, Queens, Knights, and Pages) in tarot readings can be confusing to beginner tarot readers because the meanings are often cryptic and don't seem to make sense in the spread positions they fall in.

Have you ever had a Queen appear in the Goals position of your tarot spread? Or has a Knight come riding into your Health sector with sword drawn? It can be maddening when this happens because our first impulse is to take the card meaning literally, which makes no sense at all.

There are many possible interpretations for court cards in tarot readings, but there are a few that seem to be most widely accepted amongst readers.

Court Cards Can Represent an Aspect of You

Court cards in a tarot deck most often describe a certain type of person. The Queen of Staffs is warm, refined, and compassionate, while the Queen of Swords can be a bit more brash and aggressive. The King of Staffs is a soft-spoken, behind-the-scenes type of guy, while the King of Cups is very scientific-minded and analytical. (These meanings may vary from deck to deck.) When a court card appears in your tarot reading, it may be indicating one of your personality traits or qualities that you need to be aware of. Sometimes these qualities may be important to the dynamics of the reading, while other times they are simply punctuation in the grander scheme of things.

Court Cards Can Represent Someone Else in Your Life

Court cards will often represent an authority figure or someone who has had a big influence in your life. Parental figures, spouses, bosses, mentors, and even close friends can often be portrayed with court cards. This usually happens when the person is involved with the situation you are doing a reading about, but they can also appear when they may be hindering or helping a situation that doesn't involve them. For example, if you are considering a career change but your husband thinks it's a bad idea, the King of Swords might pop up in your Obstacles position to indicate opposition from a male figure in your life.

Court Cards Can Reveal Qualities You Need to Embrace or Release

Remember that court cards in tarot readings usually point out a certain type of person. They reveal people who are calm, compassionate, fiery, stubborn, closed-minded, curious, and so on. If it doesn't seem to make sense that a court card represents you or someone you know, the character traits themselves might be the true message. Using an example from above, what would it mean if the Queen of Swords showed up in your Goals position? The Queen of Swords can signify aggression and forcefulness, which might mean you should be more aggressive about pursuing your goals. However, if she appears in your Health position, it might mean your aggressive attitude is causing stress, which could result in illness.

Truly, there is no right or wrong way to interpret court cards in your tarot readings. Keep the above possibilities in mind, but listen to your intuition. If you're not sure about what a particular court card might mean for you, ask for clarification and do a separate reading about it. Ask insightful questions, and you will usually get clearer answers.