What each card answers, upright and reversed, and why.
0
The Fool
Go, before you feel ready. The ground holds for the ones who actually step.
The leap is right; the timing may not be. Work out which one you’re unsure about.
You have what this needs. The only missing piece is the decision to start.
The ability is there, but it isn’t being aimed. Nothing lands until it is.
You already sense this. It won’t come from asking again – it comes from sitting still.
Something is being talked over. Until it’s heard, no answer here will hold.
III
The Empress
The conditions are right. Tend it rather than rushing it, and it grows.
Something here is running on empty. Feed that first; the answer changes after.
IV
The Emperor
With structure, yes. Set the terms, hold them, and this holds too.
Either nobody is steering or someone is gripping too hard. Fix that first.
The established way works here. Someone has done this before you; follow their route.
What you were handed may not fit. Examine it properly before keeping or dropping it.
VI
The Lovers
Choose it fully and it works. Half-hearted gets nothing from this card.
Something has stopped lining up. Not yet, and not while the gap is still there.
VII
The Chariot
Push. This yields to whoever holds their direction and refuses the detours.
Effort without direction. Not until you know where you’re actually driving.
VIII
Strength
By patience rather than force. The steady hand gets this; the hard one doesn’t.
Something has worn thin. Restore it before trying again – not in this state.
IX
The Hermit
The answer exists, but not in company. Go quiet first, then ask it again.
Too much noise to read this clearly. Not while that’s the case.
Circumstances are turning your way. Move while the opening is actually open.
The cycle is against you now. Force it and it costs more than waiting would.
XI
Justice
It turns on what was actually done. This one answers honestly, not kindly.
Something here isn’t square. No, until the imbalance is named and corrected.
XII
The Hanged Man
Suspended, not decided. Look at it from somewhere else before you call it.
The pause has outlived its use. No, while nothing is actually moving.
XIII
Death
Something is over. The answer is no, because the question belongs to what’s ending.
Something finished is being kept alive. Nothing new arrives until it is let go.
XIV
Temperance
It turns on the measure. Too much or too fast, and the answer turns with it.
Something is out of proportion. Not until it is brought back to the middle.
XV
The Devil
Something has a hold here, and the terms are worse than they look.
The grip is loosening and the old pull is still there. It turns on which wins.
XVI
The Tower
This is coming down. What survives it was the only solid part anyway.
Something failing is being held up. No, and the holding costs more daily.
XVII
The Star
The worst is behind this. Yes – quietly, and slower than you would like.
The light is there; the looking has stopped. It turns on whether that changes.
XVIII
The Moon
Not everything here is as it appears. Check the facts before taking an answer.
The fog is clearing. What surfaces will be smaller than the fear around it.
XIX
The Sun
Yes, plainly. There’s no catch in this one and no hidden cost later.
The good is here but not landing. It turns on what is standing in the way.
XX
Judgement
Yes – and it asks something of you. Answer honestly and the rest follows.
Something is being avoided. No, until the honest look has actually happened.
XXI
The World
Yes. This is finished, or close enough that finishing it is the only task left.
Almost, but not closed. It turns on the one piece still missing.
You hold one question that can be answered yes or no, draw a single card, and read its answer. Each of the 22 Major Arcana carries a verdict for each orientation: yes, no, or it depends. It’s decided from what the card means that way up. Reversed does not automatically mean no.
Upright, 13 cards answer yes: The Fool, The Magician, The Empress, The Emperor, The Hierophant, The Lovers, The Chariot, Strength, Wheel of Fortune, The Star, The Sun, Judgement, The World.
Upright, 3 cards answer no: Death, The Devil, The Tower.
Upright, 6 cards hold the answer open: The High Priestess, The Hermit, Justice, The Hanged Man, Temperance, The Moon. For these, the card’s line tells you what the answer turns on.
No. A reversed card is read from its reversed meaning. Many reverse to no, some to “it depends”, and a few keep a yes. The table above gives every card both ways.