The Court Cards Reversed

Before I start in on the Court Cards, I'd like to give a general over view of how we might read them reversed.

When we readers do a spread, we usually see Court Cards as standing for a person - either one our querent knows or does not know. So we may say, "This King of Pentacles here...could that be your boss? Well-off, good at managing a business....?" Or, pointing to a Queen of Wands, "I see a dynamic woman, life of the party, energetic--" and the querent will say, "Sounds like my sister!"

What this means is that in most cases a reversed card will mean one of two things:

1) It will be the bad, opposite or negative qualities of that court and so we can offer that description when trying to figure out who this is. Example: "I see a hot-tempered woman who demands people follow her lead..." And Querent says, "That sounds like my sister!"

2) If we know who the card stands for when upright, then reversed can signal that the person is either mixed-up, in a foul mood, or just having a very bad time of it. They are not themselves. They feel "upside-down."

I'll be exploring the first (the negative qualities) as well as what the card might mean if it's not a person. But readers should keep in mind that in a lot of cases, a reversed Court Card may simply mean that someone in the querent's life is not "themselves" this week: "Your Boss is not himself this week. Something's really wrong with him."

Curious about this card when upright? Go to our Tarot Card Meanings.

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