Welcome to Tarot Thursdays! This week we will be exploring The Fool and how it can be used as a prompt or brainstorming in our writing.

Tarot is an interesting thing. It’s based upon symbolism and metaphors through imagery. With these images the subconscious mind is tapped into through the story provided. Not everyone gets the same thing from a piece of art. Each piece will influence each person in a slightly different way.

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Introduction of the Card

The Fool is card number 00 in the Orphalese Program, as well as in many decks, so that’s where we’ll jump to, and it’s the first card in the Major Arcana of the Tarot.

Let’s take a look at the following examples of this card below.

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Card Examples

Notice the similarities between them and take note of their differences. Do any of these move you more than the others? Take your time and allow these cards to tell you their story.

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My Analysis of These Cards

In both the Mythic Tarot and the Universal Tarot we see a young man setting out on a journey, but he’s on the verge of stepping off a cliff. Both of these guys seem to be heading for disaster.

In the Dragon Tarot and the Tarot of Dreams we see two versions of a jester.

However, please note that in the Dragon Tarot card that the details not only suggest entertainment, but also with gambling such as the dice and the cards. Notice how the cards are all aces? The dice don’t appear to be loaded, so he’s willing to take his chances.

What I find interesting about the jester in the Tarot of Dreams is that he’s holding the world in the palm of his hands and on his lapel there are medals pined to it. He’s also perfectly balanced on a floating ball with a playful kitten on it. This guy knows what he’s doing.

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Themes of the Card

Each card has a set of keywords associated with it that serve as themes for its image. These keywords will vary somewhat depending on who you ask.

According to the Learning the Tarot website, the keywords associated with the card are:

• BEGINNING
• SPONTANEITY
• FAITH
• APPARENT FOLLY

You can learn more about what this site has to say about this card here.

According to the Biddy Tarot website, the keywords associated with the card are:

• BEGINNINGS
• INNOCENCE
• SPONTANEITY
• A FREE SPIRIT

You can learn more about what this site has to say about this card here.

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What this Card Means to Me

The Fool card represents the pure potential in all of us. It’s that fresh start and a brand new beginning. It’s reaching for the stars and capturing the dream. It’s living in the moment. It’s the willingness to take a chance on ourselves and just believe.

How many of us want to do that so often, and yet we are so quick to shoot that down when we see it in others? How many of us are afraid to even get started out of fear of either failure or success? This card represents abandoning that fear the way a child does and believes in the dreams you hold dear.

I think just about every Disney movie ever released has that leap of faith moment where the lead character decides to chase their dream and reach out into the unknown. If they didn’t, there wouldn’t be a story to tell. So take your leap of faith and write your story. That’s what this card is all about.

The key phrase I choose for this card is: PURE POTENTIAL.

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Music Playlist

In this spirit of all this, these are the songs I have picked out for this card.

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The Writing Exercise

This exercise is a free write. Permit yourself to write whatever comes to mind based upon the theme of this card. Choose a keyword or key phrase and run with it to see what you come up with.

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I would love it if you linked or pinged back what you wrote so I could see where you went with this.

Happy writing!

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Mythic Tarot by Liz Greene (Author), Juliet Sharman-Burke (Author), Tricia Newell (Illustrator) © 1989
Dragon Tarot by Terry Donaldson (Author), Peter Pracownik (Author) © 1996
Universal Tarot by Lo Scarabeo (Author), R. De Angelis (Illustrator), A. E. Waite (Designer) © 2001
Tarot of Dreams by Ciro Marchetti (Author), Lee Bursten (Author) © 2015