Astrological Attributions of the Tarot

The divinatory meanings of the card tell the reader what is happening, while the astrological attributions, when appropriate, tell the reader when it will happen.

As well as the divinatory meanings for each card, there is also an association with the signs and decanates, which is very useful for when making predictions. The associations are based upon the letter attributions in the Sepher Yetsirah. There are several versions, but we use the Golden Dawn system for consistency.

The Table below is divided into three main sections. The Zodiac column has the signs in the usual order starting with Aries. The 'Major' column gives the twelve Major cards associated with sun signs. The Court column shows how the attributions of the court cards (not the Kingsses which rule around the Pole Star) are 'offset' by ten degrees, which equates to around ten days. The 'Minor' column lists the Minor cards in the astrological order, not the sephirotic sequence; the Aces are omitted as they rule the quadrant around the Pole Star with the Princesses. Note that the column starts with Ten of Cups, which is part of the end of the sequence, not Aries. The Decanate column gives the degrees ruled by each card. The 'Dates' column has a multifunction, depending on what card you are looking at. For example, Aries/Emperor rules from 0 Aries to 30 Aries, while the Queen of Wands rules from 20 degrees Pisces to 20 degrees Aries.

The Elements

The astrological order of the four elements is: Fire, Earth, Air then Water, which is repeated three times. The YHVH sequence is hidden within the astrological order, if the direction is reversed, for example starting with Leo we have:

Leo: Fire
Cancer: Water
Gemini: Air
Taurus: Earth

The astrological attributions of the Tarot cards need to be memorised. The dates are not so important to begin with, but do try to remember them as you work with the system.

Tarot Astrology and Dates
	Zodiac	Major	Court	Minor	Dec	Dates
01	Aries	Emperor	Queen of Wands	2 of Wands	0 - 10	Mar 21 - 30
02	Aries	Emperor	Queen of Wands	3 of Wands	10 - 20	Mar 31 - Apr 10
03	Aries	Emperor	King of Pentacles	4 of Wands	20 - 30	Apr 11- 20
04	Taurus	Hierophant	King of Pentacles	5 of Pentacles	0 -10	Apr 21- 30
05	Taurus	Hierophant	King of Pentacles	6 of Pentacles	10 - 20	May 1 - 10
06	Taurus	Hierophant	Knight of Swords	Seven of Pentacles	20 - 30	May 11 - 20
07	Gemini	Lovers	Knight of Swords	Eight of Swords	0 -10	May 21 - 31
08	Gemini	Lovers	Knight of Swords	Nine of Swords	10 - 20	Jun 1 - 10
09	Gemini	Lovers	Queen of Cups	Ten of Swords	20 - 30	Jun 11 - 20
10	Cancer	Chariot	Queen of Cups	Two of Cups	0 -10	Jun 21 - Jul 1
11	Cancer	Chariot	Queen of Cups	Three of Cups	10 - 20	Jul 2 - 11
12	Cancer	Chariot	King of Wands	Four of Cups	20 - 30	Jul 12 - 21
13	Leo	Strength	King of Wands	5 of Wands	0 - 10	Jul 22 - Aug 1
14	Leo	Strength	King of Wands	Six of Wands	10 - 20	Aug 2 - 11
15	Leo	Strength	Knight of Pentacles	7 of Wands	20 - 30	Aug 12 - 22
16	Virgo	Hermit	Knight of Pentacles	Eight of Pentacles	0 - 10	Aug 23 - Sep 1
17	Virgo	Hermit	Knight of Pentacles	9 of Pentacles	10 - 20	Sep 2 - 11
18	Virgo	Hermit	Queen of Swords	10 of Pentacles	20 - 30	Sep 12 - 22
19	Libra	Justice	Queen of Swords	Two of Swords	0 - 10	Sep 23 - Oct 2
20	Libra	Justice	Queen of Swords	Three of Swords	10 - 20	Oct 3 - 12
21	Libra	Justice	King of Cups	Four of Swords	20 - 30	Oct 13 - 22
22	Scorpio	Death	King of Cups	Five of Cups	0 - 10	Oct 23 - Nov 2
23	Scorpio	Death	King of Cups	Six of Cups	10 - 20	Nov 3 - 12
24	Scorpio	Death	Knight of Wands	Seven of Cups	20 - 30	Nov 13 - 22
25	Sagittarius	Temperance	Knight of Wands	8 of Wands	0 - 10	Nov 23 - Dec 2
26	Sagittarius	Temperance	Knight of Wands	9 of Wands	10 - 20	Dec 3 - 12
27	Sagittarius	Temperance	Queen of Pentacles	10 of Wands	20 - 30	Dec 13 - 21
28	Capricorn	Devil	Queen of Pentacles	2 of Pentacles	0 - 10	Dec 22 - 30
29	Capricorn	Devil	Queen of Pentacles	3 of Pentacles	10 - 20	Dec 31 - Jan 9
30	Capricorn	Devil	King of Swords	4 of Pentacles	20 - 30	Jan 10 -19
31	Aquarius	Star	King of Swords	Five of Swords	0 - 10	Jan 20 - 29
32	Aquarius	Star	King of Swords	Six of Swords	10 - 20	Jan 30 - Feb 8
33	Aquarius	Star	Knight of Cups	Seven of Swords	20 - 30	Feb 9 - 18
34	Pisces	Moon	Knight of Cups	Eight of Cups	0 - 10	Feb 19 - 28
35	Pisces	Moon	Knight of Cups	Nine of Cups	10 - 20	Mar 1 - 10
36	Pisces	Moon	Queen of Wands	Ten of Cups	20 - 30	Mar 11 - 20

The attributions of the Major cards to the planets are:

Fool

Uranus

Magician

Mercury

High Priestess

Moon

Sun

Judgment

Pluto

World

Saturn

Exercises

Working with a partner, take turns to hold up a card. The other person should state the dates or periods of time represented by the card.

One person calls out 'Leo', for example, and the other person should state the cards associated with this sign (the answer is Lust, partly King of Wands, partly Knight Pentacles, and 5, 6, Seven of Wands.

Advanced Exercise

One student calls out a day of the year, and the other student has to announce the cards associated with it.

Points to Ponder

The system of Elemental Dignities does not apply when looking at astrology, nor do we need to look at the divinatory meanings, such as Ruin for the Ten of Swords or Love for the Two of Cups. The important aspect is that of time, the number of days associated with the cards. This system is very useful when the querent asks about a partner, and if they know their sun sign (they usually do), you can scan through the spread to find the associated cards. The advantage of this system is that you do not have to rely on hair colour etc from the traditional tarot system. Knowing and expressing the astrological attributions where necessary in a reading usually impresses the querent, and gives them confidence in your abilities.