This is often treated like the first card of the Major Arcana. When the other cards were traditionally numbered, the fool was not, leading some to call it “card zero”. Similarly to the Joker of a normal playing deck, the card was part of the deck, but not part of it at the same time. Often the card’s meaning is held to be the querent or client of the reader. The reading then tells the client’s relationship to the forces of fate by the fool’s relationship to the other cards. The common layout had the fool at the end of the trumps until recently. You can see this in Eliphas Levi’s work where he attempts to work the symbol of an Aleph (the first letter of the Hebrew Alphabet) in the Magician’s arms, showing he believed the Magician to be first; not the fool. This changed with the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, as did the layout of many cards putting them in places that seemed sensible, but most relevant the fool became zero and the first card around the late 1800s and we see that in Smith-Waite-Rider’s deck published in 1909.
Up to this point, the fool had most frequently been drawn as a carnival jester. It is often depicted with a cat biting his thigh or tearing his trousers.
The work of Pixie and Waite has far more symbolism.
Meaning of the symbolism
The Sun and 0 – Aleph
The sun at the top of the card represents the astrological sun; the identity of the querent uninhibited. This is the mind and true self of the querent unclouded by clouds or thoughts. The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn continued the 1800s tradition of associating each trump with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet and being the first card this card is associated with Alpeh the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In the qabalistic text Sepher Yetzirah this letter is associated with the origin of air; this could be the mind of the querent not yet cluttered with thought. The origin of his intelligence.
Aleph is one of 3 “mother letters” as they are called in Sepher Yetzirah. These letters represent elements. Other letters represent heavenly bodies (astrology planets)or divisions of heaven (zodiac signs). This as I have said is the origin of the element of air and the force that created air when the world formed.
The red feather
The red feather is an unusual symbol and it appears on three cards in the Major Arcana. The Fool, Death and the Sun. The first is a “mother card” and the other two are next to mother cards. Death is next to the hanged man which also features death and the third is the Sun, which is next to a mother card “The Last Judgement”. This makes me wonder if the cards the Sun and the Last Judgement are the wrong way around and the Sun is intended as a mother card which symbolises fire and the Last Judgement is associated the astrological sun representing resurrection, something which features in the Last Judgement card. Then perhaps the hangedman and death are the wrong way around as well. Meaning that Death has the association of water and the hanged man with Scorpio. However, this is not how the completed desk has been rendered.
It is also possible that the red feather is a marker of life, death and rebirth as it features on the Sun which could be symbolic of rebirth. However again I wonder why this feather does not feature on the Last Judgement instead, a card which symbolises resurrection. If it is symbolic of life, death and rebirth then its appearance on the Page of Wands makes sense, a card which features pyramids in the background.
The colour red is frequently associated with alchemy in which there are commonly 3 phases described: Negrido, Albedo and Rubedo. In the phase of negredo, which is commonly associated with death, the chemical is separated into its component parts and according to the Analytical Psychology of Jung, the initiate faces the dark night of the soul. This would neatly align with the Death card. The white phase is where the separated parts are burned until they turn white and through toil the initiate is freed of their ego. This does not feature neatly on any of the cards, however, the toils could be the difficulties the Fool is about to walk into. Jung refers to the Rubedo phase as a sunrise, the first part being a yellowing phase, “a golden dawn”, and then a reddening phase as a new individual is born and reunited body, soul and spirit. It is possible that these cards together mean body, soul and spirit. It could also be held that the fool is the albedo phase where all are integrated and the person or compound is exposed to the heat of calcination or the toil of the struggle for individuation.
Early decks such as the Visconti-Sforza deck show the fool with many white feathers in his hair, but the meaning of these is unknown. Perhaps the fool wishes to achieve the status associated with one feather in one’s hat but has done it many times over with no hat and missed the point, therefore ridiculing himself.
The Knapsack
The bag on the end of his staff indicates that this is a long journey that he intends to take. Many of us who grew up on cartoons will remember at least one scene where such a bag is constructed and frequently it symbolises someone leaving with no intention to return. Perhaps this card symbolises the soul’s journey through our world with little concern for the route. Waite’s book which was circulated with the Tarot deck, reads as follows:
“Other Descriptions say that the bag contains the bearer’s follies and vices which seems bourgeois and arbitrary.”
A. E. Waite – Key to the Tarot
Some say that the bag is symbolic of the physical needs of the body held in a contained way while the initiate is entirely enraptured in his spirituality and has repressed and contained his bodily needs, but cannot let them go. This is probably related to spiritual materialism where the person tries to feed their materialistic needs, but with spiritual development instead. Spiritual development is achieved not for spiritual aims, but to fill a hole.
The design on the front of the bag is actually Pixie’s signature which is hidden somewhere on every card I think. Though I can’t always spot it!
The sack or wallet as Waite calls it is on the end of a long straight wand.
Outfit
I believe the outfit is coloured with a pattern of pomegranates. The pomegranate is a common symbol used in Kabbalah and Jewish. Some people may be aware of a book called Garden of Pomegranates by Israel Regardie which was written based on Cordovero’s Pardes Rimonim (Orchard of Pomegranates). Also, some ancient Israeli priest staffs have been found by archaeologists featuring a tiny dried pomegranate.
The Pomegranate contains fruit hidden in many different compartments. I feel that this represents the fruit of the Qabalah hidden within the law/scripture. Note that the pomegranates are represented as closed with a star on them being the opening of the stem. Compare that to the veil behind the High Priestess which seems to feature pomegranates cut in half exposing the fruit.
The sleeves of said garment are rough and unfinished suggesting this outfit is like an untended garden with the potential for fruit, but unworked.
The white undergarment could resemble purity.
His yellow boots are the colour most commonly associated with air which is the element associated with aleph the Hebrew letter for this card.
The White Rose
We already wrote about the alchemical phases and here we have the white rose. The Rose is symbolic of the Albedo phase. The initiate is freed of his base concerns and refined but has not yet received the golden dawn or the individuation of the Rubedo phase.
Looking up and Precipice
The Fool is looking up in a state of rapture of spiritual things. However, he is about to walk over the edge of a cliff and seems totally unaware. This card warns about the dangers of spiritual rapture without awareness of the gross as well. Both need to be embraced to prevent peril.
The white rose appears on Death’s flag later in the Tarot Trumps. It is possible that this simply symbolises death or the potential death of this character as a result of his foolish attitude.
The White Dog
Readers are inconsistent regarding the dog. Some claim the dog jumps for joy and some claim he seeks to warn the fool of the danger. In early cards, the dog is a cat or tiger and either bites the fool or tears his pants. The dog is the colour of the rose and the undergarment, suggesting the dog has purity and freedom from base desires.
Background
A small edifice on the right suggests to me that the fool has walked away from the walls of society into the wilderness where he is unsafe. Leaving behind and ignoring his association with the material world which puts him on a perilous journey.
The yellow sky has the colour of air which is most commonly associated with the element of air. This interpretation however should be taken with a pinch of salt since about 50% of the card which feature an open sky also use the colour yellow and not all of them are associated with air.
The razor-sharp cliff edge in the background also reminds us of the magnitude of the journey and the dangerous nature of this journey.
Bouffon
Often this clown is depicted as a jester. The jester inspired the modern Bouffon school of clowning where the clown forms themself into a caricature of their audience. While this card can resemble the querent, it might actually be the negative and shadow aspects of the querent. The card might represent our weaker and more foolish side when it comes out.
What does this card mean?
When you’re laying cards as you deal tarot I tend to tell myself the little stories of the card and see what part of the story comes alive for me given the circumstance. Each card has a story which has feelings associated with it, each feeling is like a letter of the alphabet, bring enough of them together and a full message may be spelt out.
For me, this card has the story of someone who, in a state of rapture, has walked away from the safety of normal society and normal society’s expectations. However, the journey they have taken on is full of dangers of which they are unaware. Their actions are foolish, negligent of their responsibilities and motivated by vanity. They are so involved in their rapture which could be spiritual, delusional or drug-induced that they will not be able to avoid the dangers that they are about to come across.
Having thought about that story there will often be a part of it associated with the reading which stands out and that becomes what is presented to the querent.
Tarot
This is part of the Tarot Section.