The Walk with Numbers in the Tarot

What is a Number?

Numbers are terms considered as relative to it’s context. Most of us use it to count certain values and define quantities. This can be seen throughout history and was mainly used to determine the value of an object. Although we may think as a number to be insignificant in our everyday lives, we are sorely mistaken.

Everything around us, is defined by numbers. Our lives are divided into numbers-your date of birth, ID number, Telephone number, in short EVERYTHING. To everything is a scale, the length of a person’s body is counted as 8 “heads” long. In biological development we find a scale, step-by-step to completion. A cycle, which once started will end in it’s own time. This, a simple 1-9, to start again from 10, nine steps to 18, and start at 19, and upward until we end at 27.

The innocence and simplicity of numbers is seen in creation, described in most Holy books and certain numbers are attached to the stages of development. To disregard the importance of numbers, is to disregard the essence of creation and our evolutionary cycle. As important as numbers are, almost no alphabet attach it’s value to a letter. Most languages use it purely to count and determine values. If we should talk about the total number of a certain Item, using letters, people will look at you as if you have gone a bit nutty? We can’t say, I need 1 unit of J, saying “I need 10 “A’s”, as a “J”?—no sense at all, we don’t count “A’s” and “J’s”, we count 1,2,3,4………., or “I need a dozen of eggs”, dozen is a scale to describe the quantity of something.

It is also impossible for us to try and speak a “numbers” language, you will most definitely land in an institution. The alphabets known to most of us, is what we speak in, the numbers known to us, is what we count with. These are separate and can’t be used in any other way.

However, numbers is a map, it’s a simple walk you do between certain “archetypal” influences and how it influences a person to higher levels of existence.

The Tarot and Numbers.

To most people encountering a Tarot deck for the first time, we find a confusing “concept” of the count on the deck. The Minor Arcanum numbered 1-10 in a more “mundane” or simple way of understanding. Yet we also have the four Court cards. To a degree these cards are “removed” but “attached”. Their main purpose is to determine “people”, but may describe a situation as well. In the Sola Busca and older decks, these cards were numbered: 11---Page, 12---Knight, 13---Queen, 14---King.(The significance of this will be discussed in the discussions on each card).

The initial importance of the numbering in the Tarot was purely to indicate cards trumping others, and counting higher in a hand played in Tarot card games. This was changed at the onset of Tarot becoming a tool for divination. The Major Arcanum was attached to a letter of the Hebrew Aleph-Bet. Each letter describing a influence or a “level” of development. This changed the entire importance of Tarot and it’s development until today.

The importance of numbers as a mere scale to count with, changed the way in which Tarot is described and understood today. As a mere measure, it became a map of development to each person.

One to Nine.

Why do we refer to the numbers as one to nine? Ten counts to be the completion of numbering one to nine, ten is therefore one step beyond “single numerals”, however it can be reduced to one again, by omitting the Zero or “wild one”. Can this be “The Fool”, should we consider Zero to Nine as counting ten numerals, or ten Alphabetic letters? Start debating this with yourself and you will spend your entire life trying to find the right answer.

The most profound numbers we are working with is One to Nine, these are found in the Tarot Deck, in all the Minor Arcanum suits, as well as the Major Arcanum. However, the Major Arcanum continues to complete in 27. Now, we need to discern the Alphanumeric road of One to Nine.

There are three levels of existence:

1) 1-9 Archetypal,
2) 10-18 Existential,
3) 19-27 Cosmic.

At this point in time, we will only discuss the One to Nine road. Hopefully we can describe this road in understandable terms.

I'm going to basically restate some of this so that I'm positive I'm understanding. If this becomes too...cluttered, feel free to delete the comments and have me move it to PM.


(keys 0-9) Archetypal - Because I've only vaguely understood this term, and am looking for something a little more specific to work with so I'm positive in what I know that I know, I looked it up. Wiki explained it as:

An archetype is a universally understood symbol or term or pattern of behavior, a prototype upon which others are copied, patterned, or emulated. Archetypes are often used in myths and storytelling across different cultures.

With examples enlisted by Carl Jung, such as:
The Child
The Hero
The Great Mother
The Wise old man or Sage
The Wise Old Woman/Man, or archetypes of the collective unconscious

The list could go on and on, however, within literature, I found the following:

William Butler Yeats completed an automatic writing with his wife (Georgie) Hyde-Lees. This book A Vision contains an interesting mapping and list of 28 archetypes by these characters' will and fate. Tarot cards depict a system of archetypes used for divination of a persons' fate or story.

and go on to discuss other locations where these items are useful and helpful in society's different arts and locations throughout the world.

These grouping of cards are going to be referencing people's placement within their lives based on which of these archetypes they happen to be falling into, and to ad an extra twist by lining it up to HOGD work, they are also aligning themselves with specific work on the Tree of Life.



(key 10-18) Existential - This is the term applied to the work of a number of philosophers since the 19th century who, despite large differences in their positions, generally focused on the condition of human existence, and an individual's emotions, actions, responsibilities, and thoughts, or the meaning or purpose of life.

So basically, these are going to be telling us about people as humans, their feelings, throughts, mental patterns, actions and activities. This would be the 'nitty gritty' of the reading, so to speak, as if it's a question about a person, then the emotional and active information is going to be all in these kinds of cards, no matter where they may fall in the reading. This could show any condition of the human being within the reading, or a reflection on a situation based on the people involved. There are many ways to look at this, but it's the condition of being human that comes under the mircoscope on this one. I'd consider it almost a microcosom of the next section, so to speak.

(key 19-27) Cosmic - This is usually anything pretaining to the cosmos.
Wiki: In the general sense, a cosmos is an orderly or harmonious system. It originates from the Greek term κόσμος (kosmos), meaning "order" or "ornament"[1] and is antithetical to the concept of chaos. Today, the word is generally used as a synonym of the word Universe (considered in its orderly aspect). The word cosmos originates from the same root.

I'm not yet sure how to concisely organize this group into a direct meaning or a shorter clincher sentence to summerize it exactly. I hope to manage this at a later date.




While all of that generally and basically makes sense to me, what I'm not getting is *why* these are numbered other than for game playing and being easily organized.

You briefly mentioned:

"However, numbers is a map, it’s a simple walk you do between certain “archetypal” influences and how it influences a person to higher levels of existence. "

But that's the only real reference or clear reasoning I'm getting here other than it's simply a part of the tarot. Is there something I'm missing in this meaning, because that statement is very unclear and doesn't seen to really explain how or why the numbers are used other than to say that we have numbers and they can be their own language, as its been previously stated.

All in all, I'm kinda missing your point entirely on this. I'm sorry. Can you please help me clear it up a little?