TAROTThe Chariot
Upright
Success through aligning both emotions and inner values with your goals and to the exclusion of everything else.
Success through uncompromising and complete self-control.
Managing opposing forces within oneself through determination and skill, allowing movement quickly towards the goal.
Intuition
The Goddess Artemis is associated with wild nature and the moon; two forces whose common factor is both are uncontrollable.
She is drives the Moon chariot, a feat that, like driving the Sun chariot, requires great skill and constant attention.
She is known to be totally uncompromising to the point of being cruel to get her way.
Reversed
Lack of control or out of your depth. Too much to take in, resulting in failure.
Failure through lack of purpose or lack of belief in the goal. Lack of skill causing a crash-and-burn.
Struggling with direction.
Excusing failure by pointing to external factors rather than taking responsibility
Astrologia
Emotionally sensitive, protective and nurturing, all centred on the home and family. Can become moody and introverted when under pressure.
The Chariot
The chariot follows on from the Lovers card; the two halves are in perfect accord. They now concentrate on a single goal or passion.
They might want the same thing but their preferred way of attaining it may be very different...
The horses represent two strong and totally opposing forces within us. Their exact nature may be defined by the question asked, but they are often our passions, instincts and base desires vs our spiritual self and moral compass. The charioteer – our emotional-self and goal-setter - has a difficult job ahead of her because controlling the chariot requires complete mastery of two very different and opposing horses.
But if we have that mastery then it is obvious the chariot will absolutely fly because it is driven by the two most powerful forces in the human psyche!
Care should be taken because once started such a chariot becomes very difficult to steer or often even stop. The charioteer has to be completely concentrated on driving the chariot and will need to forgo other tasks until this one is complete. In getting to its destination the chariot may also trample over other things the charioteer may hold dear unless they are vigilant.
Notice that the Chariot in many decks is stationary. In this deck it is not, and rather than being rooted to the ground or moving along a road, it is literally flying upwards. Also notice that the charioteer is female. This is because the two possible charioteers (the soul-charioteer or Goddess of the wilderness, as described below) are both feminine.
Description and Symbology
The Chariot image in this deck has two distinct symbolic meanings.
Artemis and the Moon Chariot
Artemis was a major deity in the Greek pantheon; the twin of the god Apollo and just as powerful. She was widely worshipped in ancient times but is arguably less know than her brother today because of what she represented to early monotheism; the archetype of the irrepressible and powerful feminine. This is especially true when this is not feminine power through intuition or soft skills but power through strong (but totally controlled) emotions, tenacity, guile, skill, independence and self-reliance. Oh and vengeance; very swift vengeance when provoked or wronged!
Artemis almost certainly comes from a much earlier nature goddess representing animals that early humans did not normally hunt but was hunted by, such as bears, large felines, or simply as a ‘mistress of animals’. She was worshipped as much to appease her as to praise her.
As well as her nature aspect, she was also protector of girls and women in childbirth.
More importantly, she also controlled the Moon Chariot (her brother Apollo rides the Sun Chariot). We see the Moon Chariot on the card, with Artemis in the chariot and the moon behind it. Although it looks like the chariot is keeping up with the moon, it actually the other way around; the moon keeps up with the chariot.
The Moon Chariot’s horses, represents the two sides of the moon:
- The dark side of the moon; the often hidden and submerged moonlight world of the Wild, the beasts it contains and the raw power they symbolize.
- The bright side of the moon; the world of inner intuition, emotion and the nurturing side of nature.
These two sides can also represent more modern psychological terms such as the Jungian self and shadow self.
Both horses are powerful yet opposites, and only controllable by a charioteer such as Artemis as the irrepressible feminine archetype. She needs no reins but instead controls the horses with the force of raw emotion and will.
Plato’s Soul-Chariot
The Allegory of the Chariot (Plato, Phaedrus) describes the human soul as consisting of three parts; a charioteer (representing reason), pulled by two flying horses that raise the chariot upwards towards the divine.
One of the horses represents our divine spark. This horse follows the direction the charioteer wants to go; upwards. The other horse represents our base instincts. This horse wants to return to earth and enjoy the many delights and vices there. The chariot is unstoppable because the two horses represent the two most powerful urges within us, but their cross-purposes make the chariot difficult to control.
Thus, the horses pull in different directions. A good charioteer manages to control the horses and reach sufficient height to see the divine. A poor charioteer will not rise enough, or be too busy struggling with the horses to see anything.
The charioteer is each of us, trying to follow our virtuous nature whilst keeping out vices in check such that we can guide the chariot towards our destination. Life is often a difficult, bone crunching ride specifically because this is a very difficult chariot to control!
It is worth noting that Plato calls the charioteer her. This is not a modern use of language where her is simply used half the time; that did not happen 2500 years ago, as the ‘universal he’ was used instead. Plato uses her because he considered the soul to be feminine.
The image on the card now shows the soul in its three parts; soul-charioteer and two opposing horses, careening upwards in search of the one true goal of all; the divine.
Symbol for The Chariot
The symbol consists of either a bow and arrow (Artemis’s bow) or an arrow representing the direction of the Soul Chariot as it crosses the crescent moon on its way upwards (and noting that forces in motion are usually represented via such an arrow, called a vector).
Artemis/The Soul-Charioteer
The charioteer has to be up to the task of riding the difficult to control chariot; the horses will go in completely different directions without anything other than masterful guidance. Since both horses are driven by different aspects of the moon, the best charioteer will be one who has dominion of the moon; the archetype of the irrepressible feminine.
Opposing horses
The chariot is pulled by opposing horses, symbolizing either the bright vs dark side of the moon, or the higher soul vs base desires, or Jung's self vs shadow-self.
The Moon / chariot as a bow and arrow
The Moon giving the chariot it’s massive forward motion is symbolized by the moon crescent resembling a bow, with the chariot being its arrow.
The charioteer needs no reins
The charioteer does not use reins. Instead, she has her eyes closed and controls via pure force of emotion. This emotion is extremely strong but also itself under total control, making for an unstoppable journey... or a spectacular crash if the control slips!
Daybreak in the distance
The moon chariot is a powerful motive force, but that power has a limit; time. It will only exist until the sun rises. After that, the power in the sky changes hands to the sun. Make use of the Chariot for as long as it exists, because its motion cannot carry on forever; it is seriously punishing and draining!
Tips for Readings
The following table shows the upright and reverse meanings for general questions. The last row ('Yes/No') is useful when you are picking a single card to decide a yes or no decision.
Upright
Reversed
This card denotes harmony through experience, skill or maturity.
External problems do not affect the relationship, and neither does the fact that the two parts are completely different. This happens because they both drive in the same direction, or have a strong common outlook or goal.
Lack of control of emotions and base desires that may lead to a breakup or crash down the road, through infidelity or differences of opinion.
Partnerships will suffer by having different goals or through growing apart over time.
Success through knowing the job well and flexibility and skills required to meet difficult and often conflicting tasks.
Capable of working under pressure.
Promotion and progress through competence and drive to achieve.
Conflicts of interest or lack of professionalism through becoming emotionally attached.
A reversed Chariot is often seen as a message to stop unless you are sure you are ready. The task ahead will be difficult so make your preparations earlier rather than later, making sure you are ready before you start. Even a moment of doubt will cause a crash with this chariot!
Health through emotional stability and self-discipline; promoting the good and avoiding the bad.
The two horses represent your good and bad sides, and flying the chariot along a straight path represents control and balancing the needs of the two.
Lack of health through phases of good health followed by phases of poor health are far worse than taking a more balanced approach where you engage in both such that your life remains both healthy and engaging to your senses.
You need to take more control of your lifestyle and avoid periods of abstinence and over-indulgence.
Enlightenment by force and purity of mind and strength of direction.
You will gain more self-control, losing vices and strengthening virtuous behaviors.
Be careful though; keeping on a straight line is a fine balancing act!
Lack of balance; either too much emphasis on the next world, or succumbing to vices in this world.
Extreme self-control if often not maintainable. Make sure you are not punishing your spiritual wellbeing by going on far reaching crusades or causes.
Good investments through deep analysis of alternatives and rapid growth.
Having a strong financial plan based on goals that include both material and spiritual goals.
Constantly switching investments, lack of clarity.
Wastage through always being in two minds, or betting everything on one investment and then quickly switching to another.
Yes, through determination and self-control.
No, through lack of control of the situation or unreadiness to take up the task
Reading the Card
The Chariot card is one of the most difficult cards to read well. A simple way of using it would be to just add ‘…with perseverance and unity of thought…’ to whatever the other cards say for an upright card, and ‘…feelings of lack of control…’ whenever you see the reversal. That doesn’t really cover it though.
The upright card
The upright Chariot refers to the irrepressible feminine archetype in total control of her emotions and higher self. She is neither intuitive nor anyone’s wild side; she understands both of those and will use them, but she is separate to either. She is the one who guides them towards her aim; female emotion and unforgiving drive.
The upright Chariot refers to the irrepressible feminine archetype in total control of her emotions and higher self.
She will not control or be the master, she is the one who will guide through mastery. She is not boiling anger; she is cold vengeance. And she will not use intuition. She will see through you. And she will certainly not mother anyone. She is the wild bear protecting her cubs. Cute, yes. Beautiful, definitely. But no sightseeing please. You just need to get out of her way quickly, because she moves fast.
The Chariot is a motive force that can turn a stagnant situation into one with direction and movement, or start a project with a massive surge of effort. Success will come but there is always a cost with such drive.
The chariot gets you success because it pushes upward and onward. You’ll get there, but will you push others out of the way you might live to regret? Or will you push yourself so much that you lose something back on earth as you reach for perfection in the sky?
The Lovers card was all about a duality making space for each other and coming together, but the Chariot is all about opposites who want to shoot off in separate directions and will always have different goals. The chariot makes them move together in the same direction long enough for victory, but that victory takes energy and constant perseverance, and there might be losses and friction along the way.
The reversal
Whilst the Upright card is about moving forward whatever the risk, succeeding then licking your wounds after the bone-crunching ride to hard-won success, the reversal is about crashing and burning.
A reversed chariot is often seen as a bad card, but if heeded it can be a very good card; it tells you don’t start. You don’t have the staying power or mastery of a many faceted problem. Better to delve deeper, do your research, or hone your skills. Revisit starting when you are better prepared.
Your plans are in danger of failing because the journey requires guiding total opposites, and you need more practice or knowledge in dealing with them. Do you understand all the parts of the problem? Do you understand your diverse team? Are there any niggling problems you are ignoring?
The task is difficult and it is easy to point the finger at places other than between your eyes. Better to admit you can’t do it at the start!
Once you have started, the time the chariot will careen forward and upwards is limited; it is not a meandering ride, it is a race against time. Can you make it before daybreak?
Card Design Process
Although the Moon is associated with the masculine in some cultures and feminine in others, confusion occurs if both masculine and feminine are used at the same time. This happens in some decks. For example, the moon symbology in some decks conflicts with the male charioteer for people from a western tradition.
There were reasons for this in the past but they are no longer good reasons for a more modern Tarot deck (not least because it confuses beginners for no good reason!), so for this deck the decision was made that the moon is always feminine and the sun is always masculine.
Thus, Artemis immediately comes forward as a good Archetype for the Chariot card, with the Moon card taken by Selene.
For those wanting to see how the card would have turned out if the design had focused on the archetypal visionary male leader rather than the irrepressible feminine chosen in Torch-Tarot, check out the King of Wands card. It even has the missing sphinxes!
Final Words
This card symbolizes mastery over basic desires and higher self. It can also mean getting disparate teams to work well together. Unlike the Lovers card, this is a short lived truce to meet a goal rather than a permanent state, so use the Chariot’s energy wisely.
