A tarot card deck is comprised of seventy eight cards, although within that whole number there are two subsets. The first is the major arcana, which contains twenty two specialized cards without a suit. The minor arcana, on the other hand, have fifty six cards, and have suits attributed to each. Regular playing card decks are heavily influenced by the minor arcana, as this group of tarot cards has numbers from ace to nine, as well as a page, knight, queen, and king.

The amount of suits is equivalent as well, although instead of the traditional suits, more meaningful ones are present in the minor arcana. The suits are wands, cups, swords, and pentacles. By utilizing a combination of cards from the major and minor arcanas, complex interpretations can be derived.

Within the major arcana, the general meaning of a few important cards is as follows. Remember, the spread, or layout, of tarot cards has just as much an effect on the interpretation as does the cards themselves, yet of course it is still integral that one has some understanding of the characteristics of individual cards, especially in the major arcana.

The Death card is one of the most misinterpreted cards of all the tarot deck. The majority of people believe that the Death card is only negative, and once it is played, that means somebody is going to die. While it is comprehensible that this is a common fallacy, those desiring to be tarot card readers must understand what the Death card really means. Basically, the Death card is defined as a great change, and the transition can be for the better or worse, depending on the way the card is laid out.

People who are dealt this should be ready to make a change, and not be intent on holding on to the past. If the card is put out in reverse, that means that it will take more of an effort for a change to be made, and if one does not forcefully attempt to enact a beneficial transformation, it will not come, and you will be stuck where you are. As you can see, the Death card actually has nothing to do with death; instead, the key fact about it is that it relates to change, and the faster one acknowledges that, the better.

The World card is the final, twenty second piece of the tarot card puzzle. Like the Death card, it has been subject to much misinterpretation, although not as to such great a degree. Most of the time, drawing the World card is a good thing. While it does not mean that you will come to rule the earth, it does signify that all your hard work is going to pay off and you are finally going to see some rewards. The meaning is especially emphasized if it falls in to either the sixth or tenth position in a spread; if that happens, you know fantastic things are on the horizon. Also, opportunity is opened up, and you are free to make changes or push forward in your life, with confidence that you will succeed in all of your personal endeavors.

Sounds good, right? When the card is drawn in reverse, the outlook is not so positive (reverse drawings are negative for the majority of major arcana cards). A reverse drawing means that you are afraid to make changes, you have been stuck and will remain stagnant for a period of time, and fear keeps you from making the necessary changes that will advance your life. It may also be a bit of very important advice; that although you may be trying hard, you are doing so in the wrong way, and you must reapply yourself to be effective.