What’s the Tarot Card for Aries?

Many people born under the sun-sign of Aries ask, “What’s the tarot card for Aries?”

The first thing to understand is that there’s really no single-card, easy answer. There are a few different methods to link the two fields of tarot and astrology, but the most well known and widely used method is the one proposed by the minds at The Golden Dawn, over 100 years ago.

According to this system, there are actually 5 different cards which can relate to each of the 12 zodiac signs.  But, to make things a little easier, each sign only has one Major Arcana card.

The tarot card that represents Aries

In the Major Arcana, the tarot card which most represents Aries is “The Emperor“.

For many readers this may seem like an obvious choice as it’s the card in the Rider-Waite tarot deck that most prominently features Aries-like rams. There are four rams’ heads adorning his throne — with 2 at the top and 2 on the arms.

If you look closely at the Emperor’s crown, you’ll also notice a small Aries symbol at the top.

It’s also worth noting that Mars is the ruling planet of Aries, and the Emperor tarot card bears clear visual cues to the red planet, with red skies and craggy red mountains in the background.

Lastly, the primary element associated with Aries is fire. While fire isn’t directly shown in the card, the yellow, orange and red coloring of the tarot card is a subtle reference to the Emperor’s relationship to the element of fire.

Minor arcana tarot cards associated with Aries

As well as the Major Arcana association above, there are also 4 Minor Arcana tarot cards associated with Aries. These 4 cards are:

• The Two of Wands
• The Three of Wands
• The Four of Wands
• The King of Wands

The reason these Minor Arcana cards are associated with Aries has to do with the primary elemental association of fire, and the Cardinal modality of the 2, 3, 4 cards, and the King card. If you’re interested in understanding exactly how the system of assigning certain tarot cards to zodiac signs works, see our full article on the Astrology and Tarot relationship.

Why is it important to know which tarot cards represent Aries?

Most tarot readers keep astrology and tarot separate, and don’t draw many connections between the two fields. For those who do take the time to understand how tarot and astrology are related, they often find their tarot readings taken to a new level of understanding. Knowing that a card may represent a sign, a time of year, or a person born under that sign, can add an extra dimension to any tarot reading.

Now that you understand the connection between these 4 Wands cards and Aries, try applying that knowledge to your next free tarot reading.