Tarot de Marseille: The Picturebook of Fate: The Sevens Part 1

This article continues my series examining the trumps of the Tarot de Marseille, adapted from my unpublished manuscript, Tarot de Marseille: The Picturebook of Fate. As throughout this series, the emphasis is placed upon the traditional eikōn of the card, its historical context, and the practical significations I have found useful through divinatory practice. The interpretations presented here reflect my own experience of working with the Tarot de Marseille and should be understood as a working method rather than a definitive authority.

The Sevens: The Charioteer and the House of God

Trump VII, Le Chariot, or the Charioteer, is an intriguing and often misunderstood figure. Does he signify the successful mastery of opposing forces? Why do some associate him with fame and public recognition? Perhaps he is instead a symbol of triumph achieved through persistence, determination, and effort. Whatever interpretation one favours, the Charioteer is fundamentally a card of advancement and success earned through action.

The traditional eikōn depicts a male figure standing within a canopied ceremonial chariot. He carries a large sceptre and wears armour together with an open coronet. Particularly striking are the crescent-faced pauldrons upon his shoulders and the pair of horses that draw the vehicle. Curiously, the horses appear to possess no hind legs, lending the image a dreamlike quality whilst emphasising movement and progress over practical considerations.

The essence of the Charioteer is advancement; his function is to propel. The card concerns forward progress, momentum, and the successful movement of a project, ambition, or undertaking towards its desired conclusion. Unlike the Wheel of Fortune, whose movement is cyclical and uncertain, the Charioteer’s movement is directed and purposeful. He knows where he is going and intends to arrive there.

Even in his fine armour, however, the Charioteer does not appear to be going to war. His equipment is ceremonial rather than practical, and the vehicle itself seems designed for display rather than battle. The image is better understood through the Roman triumphus, a civil and religious ceremony celebrating victory. Victorious generals processed through the city in a ceremonial chariot, receiving public acclaim whilst offering thanks to the gods. In the modern world, graduations, promotions, awards ceremonies, and similar honours fulfil much the same function. The Charioteer therefore represents not the struggle itself, but its successful conclusion.

When the Charioteer appears in a reading, it is usually a sign that matters are moving towards a favourable outcome. A long effort begins to bear fruit. Discipline, perseverance, and determination receive their reward. Frequently, the card follows a setback or disappointment. One passes an examination after a previous failure, secures employment after a lengthy search, or succeeds on a second attempt where the first proved unsuccessful. The victory may not be spectacular, but it is deserved, and therefore all the sweeter.

For this reason, the Charioteer is an encouraging card. It reassures us that persistence, self-reliance, and disciplined effort are capable of producing tangible results. Progress is made, barriers are overcome, and achievements are recognised. The card often carries an element of public acknowledgement, explaining its association with reputation, honours, and occasionally fame. Others take notice of what has been accomplished.

Naturally, the Charioteer is associated with vehicles of all kinds, including cars, bicycles, motorcycles, and horses. It frequently signifies travel and journeys, although these tend to be local or domestic in character. Unlike the World, which broadens horizons and crosses frontiers, the Charioteer usually operates within familiar territory.

An intriguing aspect of the card is its relationship with destiny and Providence. Success seldom arises through effort alone. Ability, determination, and discipline are important, but so too are circumstance and opportunity. The doctrine of Divine Providence teaches that the world is not governed by blind chance, but ordered towards its proper ends according to a wisdom that often exceeds our understanding. The Charioteer reminds us that whilst we must provide the effort, favourable circumstances may also play their part. We steer the chariot and hold the reins, but the road itself is not entirely of our own making.

General: Successful progress through effort, perseverance, and self-reliance. The card signifies advancement, achievement, and tangible results following sustained endeavour. It often indicates the influence of Providence, whereby favourable circumstances assist one’s efforts. Awards, honours, promotions, and public recognition are common manifestations. The Charioteer is also associated with sport, competition, and vehicles.

Love: After a period of difficulties, uncertainty, or important decisions, a relationship is able to move forward once more. The Charioteer frequently appears when one partner has previously prioritised personal ambitions or concerns over the relationship itself. If so, the card suggests that lessons have been learned and that both parties are now prepared to work together towards common goals. Milestones such as engagements, moving in together, or other significant developments often occur under this card. For those who are single, the Charioteer may signify meeting someone whilst travelling or in transit, or a partner whose profession involves driving, transport, emergency services, or the armed forces.

Career: The Charioteer possesses strong connections with the armed forces, military service, and professions requiring discipline and determination. It also governs sport, fitness, and competition, making it relevant to athletes, coaches, and personal trainers. Other associations include mechanics, blacksmiths, metalworkers, engineers, and occupations involving vehicles or transport. In career matters, the card generally promises advancement, promotion, and recognition for hard work.

Finance: Financial circumstances are improving as previous mistakes are left behind and valuable lessons learned. The card indicates a stable income, though one requiring careful management and long-term planning. It commonly appears when the querent is considering a significant purchase, particularly a vehicle. Whilst the purchase may be achievable, the Charioteer advises caution regarding borrowing. Delaying gratification in favour of financial prudence is often the wiser course.

Health: Anatomically, the Charioteer is associated with the head, face, and ears. It may point towards headaches, migraines, vertigo, tinnitus, rosacea, acne, hair loss, and, in women, conditions such as hirsutism. When accompanied by cards such as the Devil or the Tower, it can indicate injuries arising from sport, physical activity, or accidents involving vehicles. More generally, however, the card signifies recovery through perseverance and the determination to overcome adversity.

Essence: Advancement.
Function: Propel.
Polarity: Positive.
Astrological Association: Aries.
Timing: April.

Tarot Cards: Jean Dodal Tarot via Wikipedia Commons. Public Domain.

Featured Image: Ancient Tarot Major Arcana © BP Grimaud/John Waddington Ltd, Leeds & London, Les Tarot de Marseille Jean Noblet, 1650 © Editions «letarot.com» (2001 [hand stencilled trumps]). Les Tarot de Marseille Jean Dodal, 1701 et 1715 © Editions «letarot.com» (2002 [hand stencilled trumps].

14 August, 202613 August, 2026

Tarot de Marseille: The Picturebook of Fate: The Sixes Part 3

The Sixes: The Lover and the Devil

Let us now turn to another example and, in doing so, introduce a different variation of the classic Cross Spread.

One of the principal reasons for this spread’s enduring popularity is its ability to provide a clear and decisive response to a question. Indeed, where appropriate, it may even yield a simple affirmative or negative answer.

In this instance, however, we shall employ an older variation, one often likened to a court hearing. It is perhaps fitting that the querent in this example was herself a barrister, for the structure of the spread closely resembles a legal proceeding.

The twenty-one trumps and the Madman are shuffled and cut, after which four cards are dealt in the form of a cross.

03
01 – 05 – 02
04

Card 1 (Left): The card arguing in favour of the matter, including helpful influences and supporting evidence.
Card 2 (Right): The card arguing against the matter, including obstacles and hostile influences.
Card 3 (Above): The judge, who weighs the evidence and clarifies the question.
Card 4 (Below): The outcome or verdict.
Card 5 (Centre): The synthesis.

Unlike the first four cards, the fifth is not drawn but calculated. One adds together the numerical values of the four cards already laid, using the numbering of the Major Arcana, and reduces the result to a number not exceeding twenty-two.

For example, should one draw the Star (17), the Madman (0), Temperance (14), and the Charioteer (7), the calculation is as follows:

17 + 0 + 14 + 7 = 38

As this exceeds twenty-two, one reduces it further:

3 + 8 = 11

The resulting number corresponds to Fortitude, which serves as the synthesis.

It should be evident that this synthesis card is not to be read as an additional outcome; that function is already fulfilled by the fourth card. Rather, the synthesis reveals the underlying dynamics of the matter, the deeper currents and governing principles operating behind the question.

Oswald Wirth, who was the first author to document this spread in print, advocated reading the synthesis before interpreting the other cards, regarding it as the key to understanding the reading as a whole.

A brief note should be made regarding the Madman. When it appears amongst the first four cards, it is assigned the numerical value of zero for the purposes of calculation. However, the matter is treated somewhat differently in the case of the synthesis. Should the final total reduce to twenty-two, the Madman itself becomes the synthesis card.

Example

This reading was conducted in 2008.

Janine was in her late forties and enjoyed a successful career as a barrister. Three years earlier she had divorced her husband, Ben, following an infidelity. Since they shared two children, Ben remained a regular presence in her life. Recently he had approached her with a proposal that they attempt a reconciliation.
Her question was:

“Should I give him another chance?”

The cards drawn were:

Position 1: Temperance (14)
Position 2: The Devil (15)
Position 3: The Wheel of Fortune (10)
Position 4: The Madman (0)

Let us calculate the synthesis:

14 + 15 + 10 + 0 = 39

As this exceeds twenty-two, we reduce it further:

3 + 9 = 12

The synthesis is Trump XII, the Hanged Man. The essence of the Hanged Man is dishonour and advises that past problems—and the loss of trust—still have an influence on the relationship.

The card arguing in favour of reconciliation was Temperance.

Temperance suggested that a genuine degree of harmony had already been achieved between Janine and Ben. Through considerable effort, clear boundaries, and mutual concern for their children, the former couple had established a workable relationship. Communication had improved, conflict had subsided, and they had learned to co-operate effectively as parents.

In short, the card acknowledged that something valuable had been gained since the divorce. A degree of peace and balance had emerged from what had once been a difficult situation.

Arguing against the proposal was the Devil.

The Devil suggested that the unhealthy dynamic which had contributed to the breakdown of the marriage had not truly disappeared. Old patterns of control, dependency, and imbalance remained present beneath the surface.

The card did not necessarily imply malice on Ben’s part. Rather, it questioned whether the underlying nature of the relationship had genuinely changed. Ben appeared eager for reconciliation, but the Devil raised doubts about his motives and, more importantly, about his ability to escape familiar patterns of behaviour.

The judge was the Wheel of Fortune.

This is where the reading became particularly revealing.

The Wheel asked a simple question: what has actually changed?

Relationships often end because the same patterns repeat themselves. The Wheel is not concerned with promises, intentions, or hopes. It is concerned with cycles.

Every previous attempt at improving the relationship had followed a recognisable pattern. Things improved for a time, old difficulties resurfaced, conflict returned, and both parties eventually found themselves back where they had started.

The Wheel therefore reminded Janine that cycles tend to repeat unless something fundamental alters their course.

The outcome was represented by the Madman.

The Madman did not suggest liberation or adventure. Rather, he represented a return to uncertainty, instability, and lack of direction. The card suggested acting without sufficient evidence that the circumstances had materially changed would be a mistake.

One is reminded of the familiar observation that people often repeat the same behaviour whilst hoping for a different result.

From the perspective of the spread’s judicial structure, the verdict was clear. Revisiting the relationship would place Janine back upon an uncertain road whose destination was already largely known.

The synthesis was the Hanged Man, and it confirmed this interpretation.

The Hanged Man revealed the deeper dynamic underlying the question. Janine remained suspended between the past and the future. Part of her still felt the pull of what the marriage had once been, whilst another part recognised the life she had built since the divorce. She still couldn’t forget Ben’s betrayal and loss of trust.

The synthesis therefore suggested that reconciliation would not resolve this state of suspension. On the contrary, it was likely to prolong it. Rather than moving forwards, Janine risked becoming trapped once again within circumstances she had already spent years trying to escape.

My conclusion was that Janine should not give Ben another chance.

The cards did not suggest that reconciliation was impossible, but they strongly indicated that the conditions necessary for a successful reconciliation were absent. Temperance showed that a healthy co-parenting relationship had already been established. The Devil suggested that unhealthy dynamics remained unresolved. The Wheel of Fortune questioned whether anything fundamental had changed, whilst the Madman warned against returning to uncertainty and repeating familiar mistakes.

The Hanged Man ultimately revealed that revisiting the relationship would leave Janine suspended between the life she had left behind and the future she was attempting to create.

This example illustrates an important principle of the Cross Spread. The verdict alone is not the whole answer. The judge explains why the verdict is reached, whilst the synthesis reveals the deeper principle operating beneath the entire matter. Here, both the verdict and the synthesis pointed away from genuine progress. The Madman offered movement without direction, whilst the Hanged Man offered suspension without resolution. Together, they suggested that the cycle was far more likely to repeat than to change.

Tarot Cards: Jean Dodal Tarot via Wikipedia Commons. Public Domain.

13 August, 20269 August, 2026

Tarot de Marseille: The Picturebook of Fate: The Sixes Part 2

The Sixes: The Lover and the Devil

Trump XV, Le Diable, or the Devil, is one of the most confronting cards in the Tarot and one that inevitably divides opinion. Surely belief in the Devil belongs to a less enlightened age? Is this card merely a warning against materialism, excess, and worldly temptation? Or does its disturbing imagery point towards something deeper and more unsettling: the malignant forces that can overwhelm both individuals and communities?

The origins of this trump remain the subject of debate, and the card is absent from some of the earliest surviving examples of the Tarot. The traditional Marseille eikōn depicts a grotesque bat-winged Devil standing upon a pedestal and holding a staff. The figure combines both male and female characteristics. A second face appears upon its abdomen, whilst its knees possess eyes. On either side stand two horned and naked figures loosely bound to the pedestal by ropes. The image is deeply unsettling and deliberately so. Nothing about the card conveys harmony, balance, or order.

The essence of the Devil is blind force; its function is to enslave. Unlike the Pope, who guides through wisdom, or Temperance, which governs through reason and proper measure, the Devil represents power divorced from reason and directed without regard for the good. It is force for its own sake: primal, destructive, and indifferent to consequences.

Pope Francis¹ has spoken of the Devil more frequently than many of his recent predecessors. Significantly, he teaches that the Devil has little need to possess people in the dramatic fashion popularised by films and folklore. Instead, the Devil works through hatred, envy, resentment, vice, desolation, and despair. These become the instruments by which individuals, communities, and even whole societies are poisoned. It is an apt description of the necrotic energy contained within this powerful card. The Devil rarely appears openly. More often, it operates through those forces that gradually distort our judgement, weaken our resolve, and separate us from what is good.

At its most obvious, the Devil appears through addiction and compulsion. Whether the object of dependence is alcohol, drugs, gambling, food, sex, or something less tangible, the pattern is the same. A force that initially appears manageable gradually acquires mastery over the individual. Freedom diminishes, relationships suffer, and life becomes organised around satisfying the appetite. The two figures chained to the Devil’s pedestal illustrate this condition perfectly. Their bonds are slight, yet they remain captive all the same.

The card also manifests through coercion, abuse, and domination. Here the enslaving force is not a substance but another person. Physical abuse, emotional manipulation, coercive control, exploitation, and intimidation all belong to the Devil’s domain. Under such circumstances, the victim’s freedom is gradually eroded until fear, dependency, or despair take its place.

Yet the Devil’s operation extends beyond the individual. Blind force can seize entire groups and societies. Hatred, fanaticism, ideological extremism, prejudice, and collective hysteria all demonstrate what happens when reason is overwhelmed and people surrender themselves to destructive passions. The card therefore warns against those influences which encourage unquestioning conformity, demonisation of others, and the abandonment of conscience in favour of dogma or tribal loyalty.

On a collective level, the Devil may also manifest through ideologies (the far right), movements (imperialism), and systems of thought that subordinate truth to power, loyalty to the group (like the Freemasons), or passion to reason. In the Neoplatonic and Christian traditions, human beings are called towards freedom through participation in the Good, which ultimately finds its source in Divine Love. The Devil represents the opposite tendency: the reduction of the human person to appetite, compulsion, tribal identity, or domination. Whenever individuals become willing to sacrifice conscience, charity, and reason in service of an abstract cause, charismatic leader, or collective identity, the influence of the Devil may be discerned. The card therefore warns against any doctrine or movement that encourages bondage where there should be freedom, division where there should be communion, or power where there should be love.

To some extent, the concept of Hell may be more illuminating than the Devil itself. Traditionally, Hell is understood not merely as punishment but as separation from God, the source of all goodness and truth. The Devil card depicts the misery that arises from such separation. Its grotesque central figure towers over its followers, feeding upon despair, division, and suffering. The further one moves from reason, wisdom, and the good, the stronger its influence becomes.

In practical divination, the Devil frequently heralds periods in which the querent feels trapped or overwhelmed. Temptations are stronger than usual, unhealthy attachments become difficult to break, and circumstances seem to exert an almost oppressive weight. It is not uncommon for the card to foreshadow illness or a deterioration in health. At first glance this may appear unrelated to the image, yet illness itself often reflects a body whose natural defences have been overcome. Severe illness can isolate, restrict, and diminish a person’s independence, mirroring the card’s central theme of bondage.

Finally, the Devil is the card of temptation itself. We are often persuaded that we can indulge without consequence, compromise our principles without cost, or remain in control of forces which are gradually mastering us. The Devil reminds us that such confidence is frequently misplaced. Every temptation carries a price. The question posed by the card is simple: are we truly in control, or have we become one of the figures at the foot of the pedestal, mistaking our chains for freedom?

General: A powerful and overwhelming influence operating within the querent’s life. The Devil signifies domination, compulsion, and circumstances which are difficult to escape. The card often appears where there is manipulation, deceit, coercion, or the abuse of power. Freedom is restricted, whether by external forces or by the querent’s own weaknesses and attachments.

Love: Under the Devil’s influence, relationships frequently develop unhealthy dynamics. One partner may seek to control, manipulate, or dominate the other, leading to emotional, psychological, or even physical abuse. Co-dependency, jealousy, obsession, and self-destructive behaviours can undermine the relationship and erode trust. For those who are single, the Devil often heralds the beginning of a passionate and intense affair. Attraction may be immediate and overwhelming. However, the card carries a warning: there are likely to be strings attached, hidden complications, or consequences that become apparent only later.

Career: The Devil is less concerned with particular professions than with working conditions. It often appears when the querent feels trapped in an unrewarding role, unable to leave a job they dislike, struggling with long-term unemployment, or working under exploitative conditions. Workplace bullying, coercive management practices, unreasonable expectations, and employers who take advantage of staff frequently fall under the Devil’s domain. The card asks whether the price being paid is truly worth it.

Finance: Extreme caution is advised in financial matters. The Devil often signifies debt, financial dependency, losses of income, or obligations that become increasingly difficult to manage. It may also indicate scams, fraud, predatory lending, or exploitation by those seeking to profit at the querent’s expense. Financial problems can quickly become self-perpetuating cycles unless decisive action is taken.

Health: The Devil is fundamentally a card of sickness, particularly conditions in which the body’s natural defences have been compromised or overwhelmed. It is strongly associated with autoimmune disorders, including lupus and Type I diabetes, as well as chronic illnesses that diminish vitality and independence. The card governs addictions and compulsive behaviours of all kinds, though unlike the Lover, it typically indicates that those compulsions have produced tangible physical consequences. Anatomically, the Devil is associated with the elimination system.

Essence: Blind Force.
Function: Enslave.
Polarity: Negative.
Astrological Association: Scorpio.
Timing: November.

Tarot Cards: Jean Dodal Tarot via Wikipedia Commons. Public Domain.

For example, see Gaudete et Exsultate ↩︎