Lesson 4 - The numbered cards 1-10 of the Suit of Wands

Lesson 4 now takes you on to the Minor Arcana cards which generally refer to practical issues and the more everyday or mundane events in our lives.

The 56 Minor Arcana cards can be used separately for a reading or within the full Tarot deck.

Wands

The first suit of the Minor Arcana is the Wands or Rods or Batons as they are sometimes called.

This suit is associated with the element Fire, a creative force that can illuminate and warm, or if uncontrolled will burn and destroy.

Wands represent the creative urge and imagination, and the will to bring one's dreams into reality. In a reading they refer to career, work, enterprise and ambition.

Positive attitudes associated with this suit are enthusiasm, determination and passion.

Negative attitudes associated with Wands are reckless behaviour and subsequent disappointment.

As you are no doubt starting to realise there is a lot of information to take in about the 78 cards!! So during this introductory course I'm not going to cover the positive and negative aspects of the Minor Arcana in detail, but rather focus on the key words and values associated with each of the numbered cards.

Take out from your deck the numbered cards 1-10 of Wands and keep the remaining cards wrapped in your cloth.

Like you have done in previous lessons focus on the first card, the Ace of Wands, and try and memorise some of the key words associated with the card. Make notes of any words or symbols you get from the card before moving onto the next one. Do this until you have done all 10.

Depending on the deck you are using, you may be able to see the key concepts of the card in the picture. If it isn't obvious, try to find some aspect of the imagery of the card that will remind you of the keywords. The human brain remembers pictures and symbols far better than words and numbers, so this will help you a lot. Try to get the image of the card to 'talk to you', rather than just trying to remember that ace is such and such and 2 is such and such. This will become very important when you are giving full readings using more complex spreads.

Ace of Wands

- Fire
- positive: creativity, originality, fertility, new beginnings
- negative: frustration, greed, overconfidence

2 of Wands

- Dominion
- positive: earned success, partnership
- negative: futility, pride without humility, worthless goals

3 of Wands

- Established Strength
- positive: new ventures, conviction, partnerships
- negative: lack of nerve, frustration, personality clashes

4 of Wands

- Perfected Work
- positive: satisfaction, completion, new home
- negative: decadence, snobbishness, impatience

5 of Wands

- Strife
- positive: conflict, competitiveness, struggle
- negative: fraud, defeat through devious means, acrimony

6 of Wands

- Victory
- positive: victory, fulfilment, great news
- negative: suspicion, delayed news, anxiety

7 of Wands

- Valour
- positive: challenges, courage, ultimate success
- negative: indecisivenes, lost opportunities, timidity

8 of Wands

- Swiftness
- positive: activity, travel, action
- negative: delays, impetuous action, poor judgement

9 of wands

- Strength
- positive: inner stength, self-assurance
- negative: obstinacy, avoidable delays, suspicion

10 of wands

- Oppression
- positive: pressure, over commitment
- negative: deceit, burdens, abuse of power

Practical Exercise for this week

When you've finished, extract the Major Arcana from your deck and add it to these 10 cards of the Wands suit. Shuffle well and pick 3 cards, and yes you've guessed it, practice the 3 card reading with these extra cards, and again write everything in your notebook.

Until next week,
Alison

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what the suit of Wands represents in a reading, perhaps focusing on a card or cards you are drawn to or have difficulty with.

For this weeks multiple choice test, click on the link below:

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