The Hermit's Tarot Court Cards

Both editions of The Hermit's Tarot portray the same personages on the court cards. The Legacy edition depicts them full-figure in traditional poses; the Luminary edition offers closer portrait-style images. More significantly, the Luminary edition uses a different system of ranks. Instead of king, queen, knight, and page, the ranking in staves and swords is patriarch, queen, hero, and maiden; in cups and coins it is matriarch, king, heroine, and youth. The tables below show how the two systems correspond, and also give elemental attributions for each card.

Suit of Staves

Luminary Edition	Elemental Attribution	Legacy Edition
Patriarch of Staves	fire of fire	King of Staves
Queen of Staves	water of fire	Queen of Staves
Hero of Staves	air of fire	Knight of Staves
Maiden of Staves	earth of fire	Page of Staves

Suit of Cups

Luminary Edition	Elemental Attribution	Legacy Edition
Matriarch of Cups	fire of water	Queen of Cups
King of Cups	water of water	King of Cups
Heroine of Cups	air of water	Page of Cups
Youth of Cups	earth of water	Knight of Cups

Suit of Swords

Luminary Edition	Elemental Attribution	Legacy Edition
Patriarch of Swords	fire of air	King of Swords
Queen of Swords	water of air	Queen of Swords
Hero of Swords	air of air	Knight of Swords
Maiden of Swords	earth of air	Page of Swords

Suit of Coins

Luminary Edition	Elemental Attribution	Legacy Edition
Matriarch of Coins	fire of earth	Queen of Coins
King of Coins	water of earth	King of Coins
Heroine of Coins	air of earth	Page of Coins
Youth of Coins	earth of earth	Knight of Coins

The new court card ranks are the most significant break with tradition in The Hermit's Tarot. One objective was to break the association of rank with sex, so that the women outrank the men in two of the suits (cups and coins). A second objective was to depict four distinct age groupings, with patriarchs and matriarchs being noticeably older than the kings and queens.

The meanings I attach to each rank are given here:

• youth/maiden (about age 20)--student; tries to live the energy of the suit, but doesn't yet have a sense of perspective
• hero/heroine (about age 35)--master; has achieved deep control of the energy of the suit; can use skills to help others and live a spiritual, balanced life
• king/queen (about age 50)--mentor; has lots of experience with all facets of the suit; acts as a role model or experienced counselor, provides needed wisdom and perspective.
• patriarch/matriarch (about age 65)--oracle; personifies the full power of the suit, is the ultimate interpreter of the suit's meaning, a link between the people and their gods and ancestors.

 For the traditional ranks in the Legacy edition, I use the following meanings:

• page--helper; a young person who lives out the energy of the suit in a simple, unexamined way and has the dedication and enthusiasm to assist others.
• knight--adventurer; a young adult who seeks challenges and new experiences, perhaps somewhat irresponsible and aggressive, but with tremendous potential to create and achieve.
• queen--caretaker; an adult who is responsible for maintaining, preserving, and nourishing the aspect of life under charge.
• king--leader; one who sets the example for others; an authority figure, someone who inspires loyalty and obedience.

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Copyright © 1998 Tom Tadfor Little