TAROTFour of Wands
Upright
The ‘social’ card. A Celebration, often amongst close relations or close social circle.
A new-found sense of freedom and excitement.
A return home after a long journey.
Intuition
The image depicts Maenads or female followers of the God Dionysus (The Hanged Man).
The term literally means ‘the raving ones’ and relates to reaching a state of ecstasy via dance and intoxication.
By reaching a sense of extreme joy that freed the soul from the body via a trance state, the soul was said to be able to commune with the divine.
Reversed
A lack of appreciation of what exists back home.
A failure to appreciate the bonds of family, close friends or home.
Neglecting the home for other goals.
Astrologia
Passionate love and spontaneity. A desire for exciting and adventurous experiences in love or creative pursuits. Courage to move forward to fulfil goals, perhaps as a group or couple. Can be jealous and possessive leading to conflict in relationships.
Four of Wands
After the victories of the Two of Wands or the travels of the Three of Wands, the Four of Wands represents a coming home and celebration of the gains and strides you have made so far.
The fruits of your previous labours will now bear fruit. This will be either through material gains or a better, more rounded you (and probably both).
The card is not so much about just celebration. It is also the social card.
It denotes a time for family, recuperating in familiar surroundings, or going away with your close ones.
It may also be a time for making gains closer to yourself: strengthening existing relationships and friendships, or making new ones.
There may also be a sense that you have transformed yourself to get to this point by moving up in your social hierarchy through success or fame. You will be now making inroads into a new circle of acquaintances and friends, especially in career.
In any case, this card’s main message is celebration, and there was one circle of people who seriously knew how to celebrate.
The Maenads
The Maenads were adult women who followed the God Dionysus. They would dance into a state of intoxicated frenzy, causing an ecstatic state of mind that brought them closer to the God Dionysus. Within this state the Maenads were said to have massive strength (and myth tells us a few unfortunate characters were torn to death by them!) and the ability of prophecy.
There was also quite a bit of passionate love going on; Venus in Aries!
The cult of Dionysus was widespread in Ancient Greece with different customs in each area, although the Maenads were a common theme. They first appear in myth as nymphs but are later referred to as human followers of Dionysus.
Such women may have joined together to perform the rites as celebrations of life, away from cities and within nature, and return to their normal lives afterwards. There were also a few permanent Maenads (there is evidence it was a profession or title).
The cult of Dionysus itself is thought to be ancient and may have roots in prehistory. A central part of it is the drinking of undiluted wine (or in earlier times, mead) with the express aim of intoxication. This is significantly different to the normal drinking of wine that was mixed with water to avoid intoxication, as per the Temperance card.
The cult was more prevalent outside the cities, and may have been more popular amongst the agrarian parts of society and used there as a celebration of life and a pause from the constant drudge of life. Dionysus is said to have given mortals wine because as a twice-born (or resurrected) God, he knew what it was to die and took pity on our short, hard lives – wine gives us something to enjoy and make the hard parts seem a little easier. Partying hard also helps!
Description and Symbology
We see a group of Maenads engaged in dance underneath a structure with 4 posts. This represents the 4 corners of the home or could be an alter to Dionysus himself (especially given that Dionysus was the god of Festivities and was said to be present at every good party).
The top is decked with garlands of flowers representing fertility, growth and a celebration of life.
Below the garlands we see the Maenads dancing in a celebration of life.
The Four Wands and Garlands
The four wands form the four corners of a structure representing the 4 corners of the home or alter.
The structure is topped with flowers, representing fertility, growth and celebration of life.
The Maenads
Below the garlands we see the Maenads dancing in a celebration of life.
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
A cause for celebration in relationships. A new relationship, engagement, anniversary, or wedding.
It can also symbolise a period of happiness within the relationship, causing stronger bonds.
Outside of family, now is a good time to suggest a reunion or catch-up or get-together with your wider social circle.
For the single the card suggests a new relationship may occur through social events.
Although this card still denotes success through promotion or prosperity, it may be occurring at the expense of the family or close social circle.
The person may be failing to appreciate their close group, taking them for granted or simply assuming ‘they will always be there’.
Continuing to neglect your close social world may not have immediate repercussions but it will in the longer term. Some reassessment of what is important may be in order.
This card signifies the completion of major project or milestones within career. This may have occurred through solid teamwork or support from your social network.
It also points to a greater balance between career and more personal matters and especially a work-life balance.
This card denotes success at the expense of your social ties within the workplace or wider family.
You may be driven at the expense of feelings of your co-workers or are taking a competitive or charged work atmosphere home.
Success may be propelling you into new social circles and you may be guilty of discarding your old circle for no good reason.
Your success will continue in the short term but may unravel with time unless you either choose your priorities carefully or keep a better work-life balance.
A positive period of health caused by a sense of happiness and a contented home or social life.
It may point to a period of rejuvenation at home after completing a major task or returning home after a journey.
You may be seeing success in other areas of your life but it is coming at the expense of your health.
The card suggests considering your work-life balance.
Denotes a sense of fulfilment in life. This may increase by engaging in communal aspects such as attending congregations or social events you might otherwise avoid.
You may be having material success in your life but it is coming at the expense of your social life and specifically your close family and close friends.
Make sure you are not losing your support systems in the pursuit of material or career goals. You may be assuming they will always be there (which may be true) but you may find them far weaker later when you have to rely on them.
Previous hard work will soon pay off and be a cause for celebration. Solid gains, a windfall or simply greater prosperity is finally coming your way
Previous hard work will soon pay off but you may have neglected close family and friends in the process.
This is a time for personal celebration but don’t forget the people who got you there in any celebration, especially friends and family, and make routes towards them.
Yes through teamwork and support within your social network.
Yes, but make sure you are considering close family and your social circle in your question. The card suggests some level of neglect or taking them for granted.
Reading the Card
Both the upright and reversed card represent an event that is cause for celebration. How you came about this success and how you view it against your family and social circle is decided by the card orientation.
The upright card
The upright four of Wands represents harmony and stability within your family and close social circles.
It denotes the fruits of previous success being used to create happiness within your social life. This positive effect will ripple throughout your relationship, the wider family and close friends.
The card can also suggest a period of rest within familiar surroundings after a period away or completing a long project or task. It can also signify a time away with your significant other.
It can point to a positive family or social event such as engagement, wedding or birth. If the question is asking about any of these then this is a very lucky card.
The reversal
The reversed card is unusual in that it does not change the successful outcome but suggests you are putting your success and its cause about your family and friends.
Although this will not change your success, you may be assuming your family and friends will remain or are treating them as less important. The card warns that this route is not sustainable and may leave you unhappy and rootless.
You may also be miscalculating the extent of your success and simply want more at the expense of everything else. This is a dangerous situation. You may burn out down the line and have nobody left to support you when this happens!
Card Design Process
Although the Four of Wands is often thought to show a man and woman, the Rider-Waite-Smith deck actually shows two women. This led to some research into women only celebrations and leading to two: the Thesmophoria festival and the Maenads.
The Maenads were chosen as they were more part of a celebration-of-life ritual.
Final Words
The Four of Wands is the social card. It denotes success and its effects on family, close relationships and friends. The card orientation tells you if the success is helping or hindering your social life.
