The Chariot (Tarot card)
Encyclopedia
Trump Card
Trump Card was an American syndicated game show that aired from September 10, 1990 to September 6, 1991 and was hosted by Jimmy Cefalo. Debi Massey served as hostess and Chuck Reilly was the announcer. The show was produced by Telepictures Productions, Createl, Ltd., & Fiedler-Berlin Productions...
or Major Arcana
Major Arcana
The Major Arcana or trumps are a suit of twenty-two cards in the tarot deck. They serve as a permanent trump suit in games played with the tarot deck, and are distinguished from the four standard suits collectively known as the Minor Arcana...
card in most traditional Tarot
Tarot
The tarot |trionfi]] and later as tarocchi, tarock, and others) is a pack of cards , used from the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play a group of card games such as Italian tarocchini and French tarot...
decks. It is used in game playing as well as in divination.
Description
A. E. Waite was a key figure in the development of modern Tarot interpretations. However not all interpretations follow his theology. All Tarot decks used for divination are interpreted through personal experience and standards.Some frequent keywords are:
- Conquest ----- Honor ----- Victory ----- Energy
- Egocentrism ----- Self-confidence ----- Conviction ----- Anxiety
- Willpower ----- Self-assertion ----- Hard control ----- Discipline
- Inflexibility ----- Success ----- Wealth ----- Recognition
- Impulsivity ----- Command ----- Bravery ----- Pride
A powerful, princely figure sits in a swift chariot
Chariot
The chariot is a type of horse carriage used in both peace and war as the chief vehicle of many ancient peoples. Ox carts, proto-chariots, were built by the Proto-Indo-Europeans and also built in Mesopotamia as early as 3000 BC. The original horse chariot was a fast, light, open, two wheeled...
, pulled usually by two sphinx
Sphinx
A sphinx is a mythical creature with a lion's body and a human head or a cat head.The sphinx, in Greek tradition, has the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face of a woman. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless...
es or horses. There is often a black and white motif, for example one of the steeds may be black and the other white. The figure may be crowned or helmeted, and is winged in some representations. He or she may hold a sword or wand, or other masculine symbol. The Thoth Tarot deck has the figure controlling four different animals, representing the four elements
Classical element
Many philosophies and worldviews have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs...
.
Interpretation
It has been suggested the square on the charioteer's chest is a representation of the earth tattva.http://www.tarotpassages.com/old_moonstruck/oneill/7.htmAnother view is that the mood of the card may be characterized as that of conquest. It represents a battle that can be won if the Querent
Querent
Querent as "one who seeks" is derived, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, from the Latin quærēns "seeker," the present participle of quærere "to seek, gain, ask."...
has the willpower
Willpower
Willpower may refer to:*Self discipline, training and control of oneself and one's conduct, usually for personal improvement*Self control, the ability of a person to exert his/her will over the inhibitions of their body or self...
for it. The battle is usually an external one, with a clear goal and plan of action. Qualities needed to win the battle include self-reliance, righteousness
Righteousness
Righteousness is an important theological concept in Zoroastrianism, Hinduism , Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
, conviction
Belief
Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true.-Belief, knowledge and epistemology:The terms belief and knowledge are used differently in philosophy....
and plain hard work. The steeds represent powerful forces, internal or external, that can be controlled to achieve the goal.
The chariot is one of the most complex cards to define. On its most basic level, it implies war, a struggle, and an eventual, hard-won victory; either over enemies, obstacles, nature, the beasts inside you, or to just get what you want. But there is a great deal more to it.
What does this all mean? It means a union of opposites, like the black and white steeds. They pull in different directions, but must be (and can be!) made to go together in one direction. Control is required over opposing emotions, wants, needs, people, or circumstances; to bring them together and give them a single direction, your direction. Confidence is also needed and, most especially, motivation. The card can, in fact, indicate new motivation or inspiration, which gets a stagnant situation moving again. It can also imply, on a more pragmatic level, a trip (usually by car), a vehicle - in the repair shop if the card comes up reversed - or a message.
The Chariot is a fascinating card, but also frustrating. It is armored, but also cut off - a charioteer fights alone. It moves from one plane to the next (water to land and back again) - conscious and unconscious, earthly and spiritual. It succeeds by attacking from the side, rather than straight on.
On the one hand, the Chariot may indicate loyalty, faith, and motivation; a conviction that will lead to victory no matter the odds. On the other hand, however, the Chariot may signify a ruthless, diehard desire to win at any cost. The Querent should be reminded to save his energy for what comes after.
If inverted, the meaning remains the same, but the Querent is in danger of losing the battle due to a lack of control.
The Chariot has many allusions to the kabbalistic Ma’asei Merkavah
Merkabah
Merkabah is the throne-chariot of God, the four-wheeled vehicle driven by four "chayot" , each of which has four wings and the four faces of a man, lion, ox, and eagle...
. According to Waite, the figures on the charioteer's shoulders are supposed to be the Urim and Thummim
Urim and Thummim
In ancient Israelite religion and culture, Urim and Thummim is a phrase from the Hebrew Scriptures or Torah associated with the Hoshen , divination in general, and cleromancy in particular...
which were divinatory tools often used by the Israelites for guidance during times of war. Waite describes the charioteer as conquest on all planes — in the mind, in science, in progress, and thus able to reply to the riddles of the sphinx, even though he is not of priest and thus unable to answer to the High Priestess
The High Priestess
The High Priestess is the second trump or Major Arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks. This card is used in game playing as well as in divination. In the first Tarot pack with inscriptions, the 18th-century woodcut Marseilles Tarot, this figure is crowned with the Papal tiara and labelled La...
.
Mythopoetic approach
Structurally, the Chariot follows The LoversThe Lovers
The Lovers is the sixth trump or Major Arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks. It is used in game playing as well as in divination.- Interpretation :...
. After the impulse that pulls us out of the Garden, we get on our chariot and depart. At that point, we are the Hero of our own story; maybe the Hero of everyone’s story. That Hero might represent Helios
Helios
Helios was the personification of the Sun in Greek mythology. Homer often calls him simply Titan or Hyperion, while Hesiod and the Homeric Hymn separate him as a son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia or Euryphaessa and brother of the goddesses Selene, the moon, and Eos, the dawn...
, the Greek god who drives the Sun’s chariot across the sky, bringing light to the earth. The danger of this card is well illustrated by the myth of Phaëton
Phaëton
In Greek mythology, Phaëton or Phaethon was the son of Helios and the Oceanid Clymene. Alternate, less common genealogies make him a son of Clymenus by Merope, of Helios and Rhode or of Helios and Prote....
. Among other things, this story illustrates the danger of reaching too high, unprepared.
The Chariot is Key Seven of the Major Arcana
Major Arcana
The Major Arcana or trumps are a suit of twenty-two cards in the tarot deck. They serve as a permanent trump suit in games played with the tarot deck, and are distinguished from the four standard suits collectively known as the Minor Arcana...
, it represents the possibility of traveling through the mysteries of the universe. It also evokes the seven gates of hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
that Inanna
Inanna
Inanna, also spelled Inana is the Sumerian goddess of sexual love, fertility, and warfare....
passed through, required to partially disrobe at each one before finally being presented to the Queen of the Underworld, her own sister, Ereshkigal
Ereshkigal
In Mesopotamian mythology, Ereshkigal was the goddess of Irkalla, the land of the dead or underworld. Sometimes her name is given as Irkalla, similar to the way the name Hades was used in Greek mythology for both the underworld and its ruler.Ereshkigal was the only one who could pass judgment and...
.
Ra
Ra
Ra is the ancient Egyptian sun god. By the Fifth Dynasty he had become a major deity in ancient Egyptian religion, identified primarily with the mid-day sun...
from Egyptian mythology piloted the boat of the sun across the sky and back to the gates of dawn down the Nile every night. One night, Apophis
Apophis
Apophis may refer to:* Apep, an Ancient Egyptian mythological demon, in Greek known as Apophis* Apepi , a Hyksos pharaoh of Lower Egypt* 99942 Apophis, a near-Earth asteroid...
, Chaos
Chaos (cosmogony)
Chaos refers to the formless or void state preceding the creation of the universe or cosmos in the Greek creation myths, more specifically the initial "gap" created by the original separation of heaven and earth....
and Old Night swallowed the river to keep the sun from rising. Fortunately, Ra’s usual enemy, Set
Set (mythology)
Set was in Ancient Egyptian religion, a god of the desert, storms, and foreigners. In later myths he was also the god of darkness, and chaos...
, took it upon himself to save the day by slicing Apophis open, allowing Ra to escape. This story bespeaks the reversals of the night, where our deadly enemies may be our best friends.
Another famous chariot driver was the god Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
who in the Bhagavad Gita
Bhagavad Gita
The ' , also more simply known as Gita, is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the ancient Sanskrit epic, the Mahabharata, but is frequently treated as a freestanding text, and in particular, as an Upanishad in its own right, one of the several books that constitute general Vedic tradition...
drove Arjuna
Arjuna
Arjuna in Indian mythology is the greatest warrior on earth and is one of the Pandavas, the heroes of the Hindu epic Mahābhārata. Arjuna, whose name means 'bright', 'shining', 'white' or 'silver' Arjuna (Devanagari: अर्जुन, Thai: อรชุน, Orachun, Tamil: Arjunan, Indonesian and Javanese: Harjuna,...
’s chariot and gave him illumination.
The Chariot is related through cross sums (the sum of the digits) to Key 16, The Tower
The Tower (Tarot card)
The Tower is the sixteenth trump or Major Arcana card in most cartomancy Tarot decks. It is not used as part of any game.- History :...
. Much like the Chariot takes us from our womb, our happy home, our happy village, or our planet, the Tower carries us from either what we have constructed for ourselves, or what has been constructed for us.
Some authorities say that he is the God of Spring, the Son of the Queen of Heaven. The canopy of his chariot is her starry gown; he wears the waxing and waning moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
on his shoulders; the circle of the Zodiac is his belt. He channels energy from the world above (signified by the eight pointed star on his brow, eight here representing Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...
) to the world below (signified by the square on his chest, the four corners of the Earth). The star can also represent the infinite, the square the earthly spheres of time
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
and space
Space
Space is the boundless, three-dimensional extent in which objects and events occur and have relative position and direction. Physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless four-dimensional continuum...
.
He is fueled by contradictory impulses, represented by the black and white sphinxes that pull his chariot.
When this card appears, it evokes the Querent’s own path - calling, exile or random journey. The danger is getting on the wrong path - being overwhelmed and dying before our due time.
He may warn that we are in danger of being pulled to pieces by forces we do not control and do not understand.
Alternative decks
- Other names for the card are The Centurion or Victory.
- In the Vikings Tarot this card depicts ThorThorIn Norse mythology, Thor is a hammer-wielding god associated with thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind, and also hallowing, healing, and fertility...
on his chariot ride across the sky.
- In the X/1999 Tarot version made by CLAMPClamp (manga artists), is an all-female Japanese manga artist group that formed in the mid 1980s. Many of the group's manga series are often adapted into anime after release. It consists of their leader , who provides much of the storyline and screenplay for all their works and adaptations of those works respectively ,...
, The Chariot is Sorata Arisugawa.
- In the Mythic Tarot deck, the Chariot is depicted by AresAresAres is the Greek god of war. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. In Greek literature, he often represents the physical or violent aspect of war, in contrast to the armored Athena, whose functions as a goddess of intelligence include military strategy and...
.
In pop culture
- In The House of the DeadThe House of the Dead (arcade game)The House of the Dead is a first-person, light gun arcade game developed in 1996 and released in 1997 by Sega.Players assume the role of agents Thomas Rogan and "G" in their efforts to combat the products of the dangerous, inhumane experiments of Dr. Curien, a madman.-Gameplay:The House of the Dead...
, a light gunLight gunA light gun is a pointing device for computers and a control device for arcade and video games.Modern screen-based light guns work by building a sensor into the gun itself, and the on-screen target emit light rather than the gun...
game created by SegaSega, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
, the first boss of the game is called the Chariot and is a zombie encased in a huge suit of armor. Notably, the character's weakness is a wound on its chest. It should also be noted that all of the bosses in the House of the Dead are named after Major Arcana cards. - In the video game Persona 3Persona 3Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3, originally released in Japan as simply , is the fourth video game in the Shin Megami Tensei: Persona series of console role-playing games developed by Atlus, which is part of the larger Megami Tensei series of video games...
the characters of Kazushi Miyamoto and Aigis are associated with the Chariot arcana. - In the video game Persona 4 the character of Chie Satonaka is associated with the Chariot arcana.
- The Chariot is a monster card in the Yu-gi-oh!Yu-Gi-Oh!is a Japanese manga created by Kazuki Takahashi. It has produced a franchise that includes multiple anime shows, a trading card game and numerous video games...
card game, as part of a group of cards called the Arcana Force. - A main character in JoJo's Bizarre AdventureJoJo's Bizarre Adventureis a manga written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. Every main character's name in each part can be read as JoJo. The manga, published by Shueisha, first ran in the magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1987 to 2002, before being transferred to the seinen magazine Ultra Jump in 2004. The current story...
, Jean-Pierre Polnareff, has the knight-like fencing stand Silver Chariot. - In Episode 7 of the anime series Kuroshitsuji II (sequel to KuroshitsujiKuroshitsujiis a manga written and illustrated by Yana Toboso. Since its debut on September 16, 2006, it has been serialized in Square Enix's shōnen manga magazine Monthly GFantasy....
), the Chariot card is featured during the intermission slides. Ciel Phantomhive holds the card right side up, while Alois Trancy holds it upside down. - In the SNES video game Ogre Battle: The March of the Black QueenOgre Battle: The March of the Black Queenis a 1993 real-time strategy role-playing video game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, directed by Yasumi Matsuno with artwork by Akihiko Yoshida...
, the Chariot tarot card is only in name, as it doesn't have a man riding a chariot, but rather a half-naked god wearing undergarments, a cloak and a helmet and raising a mallet; the god bears some resemblance to ThorThorIn Norse mythology, Thor is a hammer-wielding god associated with thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind, and also hallowing, healing, and fertility...
, though he is mistakenly called LokiLokiIn Norse mythology, Loki or Loke is a god or jötunn . Loki is the son of Fárbauti and Laufey, and the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. By the jötunn Angrboða, Loki is the father of Hel, the wolf Fenrir, and the world serpent Jörmungandr. By his wife Sigyn, Loki is the father of Nari or Narfi...
(as a Norse god of mischief rather than the hammer-wielding god), and he can be summoned to attack all strong enemy units based on the strength of the main character when the Tarot card is used in battle. On drawing the Tarot card itself after liberation of one of the towns, it increases the characters' strength by 2 points.