Introducing The Chariot VII
We see a man standing in a parked chariot, in front of which sit two Sphinxes. The man wears armor and ceremonial symbolism. Behind him are water, nature, and a city. The Chariot is the 7th card in the Tarot Deck, and symbolizes the ability to pull your own load.
The Chariot represents you, your body, and your mind. Who is in control of you? You? Or something else: food, work, relationships, belief systems, your emotions? When you pull your own Chariot, making decisions are easier and goals are within reach. The Chariot can be your friend leading you to great places.
Symbols & Systems
driver
He appears focused; we can imagine he needs to get somewhere. He is determined to succeed in whatever he does and has the confidence to do so.
body posture
He stands upright, back straight. He looks like a muscular warrior, ready to go into battle and achieve his aims. He is powerful and he knows it.
facial expression
He is not what you’d call relaxed, but neither is he uptight. He has goals/destinations to reach. Not the type of person we want to get in the way of. This is someone with a balanced ego. He knows who he is, where he’s going, and how to get there.
garb
There’s a lot of symbolism on his garb. Let’s take a closer look.
His skirt has symbols of ceremonial magic on it.
His belt has 8 sections with symbols of ceremonial magic in each. The Magician also has will and determination, and here we see the connection between the two characters. As magician Eliphas Levi said, ‘All magic is in the Will’.
On his breastplate is a square, symbolizing the Kabbalistic concept of the Four Worlds.
shoulder plate
They are moon-shaped, reminding us of the High Priestess and the fact that the Moon rules the astrological sign of Cancer. The Moon also represents the unconscious. In order to be in control of our everyday life and habits, we must understand and work with our unconscious. The faces on the shoulder plates are happiness and sadness, the two sides of our emotions. They remind us to take into account how we feel when we move forward to reach our goals.
magic wand
The Charioteer holds a wand in his right hand. Unlike the Magician, who holds his wand above him in order to get help from above, the charioteer holds his wand at his side, signifying that he is in control of his destiny, and uses his will and determination to get what he wants.
headgear
The Charioteer wears a laurel wreath, representing victory, as well as an 8-pointed star, symbolizing ascension to higher levels.
canopy
The canopy over the chariot is covered in stars, signifying that we are connected to the higher divine energies. The veil behind the charioteer also reminds us of the veil behind the High Priestess. In the Chariot, nothing is hidden; there is awareness of all levels of consciousness.
green in background
When we control our own Chariot, we see the possibility of fertility: We can grow what we want, when we want it. It also reminds us of the Empress card and her abundance. Abundance and rewards comes to us when we focus on our goals.
city in background
The man is driving away from a city/castle, indicating that he is cultured and educated: Decisions that he makes will be calculated, not spontaneous.
water in background
The water in the background reminds us that while we can be emotional and intuitive when we pull our Chariot, it should not control us. It also reminds us of the High Priestess, where there is also water in the background behind her veil. We should remain grounded and practical to achieve goals. While often routine is the best way to achieve goals, we should not become so rigid and goal oriented that we ignore our emotions and intuition.
chariot
The Chariot is made of stone and is stationary, rendering it heavy to pull. The charioteer seems to actually blend into the chariot as if he is one with it. This might be a message not to get too locked up in our Persona, the Jungian psychology term for the mask we wear to present to the world. We can get too caught up in our image and who we think we are, and “become” that image, but we need to remember that we are so much more than that.
On the front of the chariot is the red symbol Lingham/Yoni, an Indian symbols representing male and female, Shiva and Paravati. Together they become one. The wings above the Yoni show that the joining of male and female within bring us closer to the creator.
sphinxes
The black and white sphinxes represent our conscious and unconscious: The black sphinx is the moon, the feminine, and the unconscious. The white sphinx is the sun, the masculine, and the conscious. Together they create harmony and balance. Because they are pulling the chariot, they can pull it in any direction they wish – BUT – the Charioteer controls them with his will power and determination. His focus and ability to control his emotions and thoughts means the he reaches his destination when he wants.
number
The number of The Chariot is 7. In many traditions, 7 is a special number. In the Bible / Torah, God rested on the 7th day, which became known as the Sabbath. The number 7 is also one phase of the eight-phase lunar cycle. 4 x 7 = 28 days, which is just under a lunar cycle, and this card is ruled by the the astrological sign of Cancer. Cancer is ruled by the heavenly body, the Moon.
gods / goddesses
The Chariot is ruled by all the Gods and Goddesses that are and were strategic, intelligent, and strong. As the Chariot also represents victory, deities of war can be represented here.
Female: Astarte, Tanit, Inanna, Ishtar, Anat, The triple goddess Morrigan (Nemain, Badb and Macha), Freyja, Bast, Pakhet, Athena, Nike,
Victoria, Durga, Kathyayini
Male: Kokou, Maher, Huitzilopochtli, Belus, Teutates, Woden, Odin, Thor, Horus, Sobek, Aries, Mars, Hanuman, Murugan
Astrology
The astrological sign Cancer rules this card. Just like the crab with the hard shell but the soft interior, the Chariot can also be hard on the outside. Sometimes in order to reach goals, we have to be disciplined and focused. If I want to lose weight I can’t eat ice cream, I need to steel myself against temptation. As the Moon rules Cancer, the Moon will also come up in this card.
Kabbalah
The number 7 in Kabbalah means Victory. The Chariot has the ability to achieve victory. Being the 8th card in the deck, The Chariot corresponds to the eighth letter of the Hebrew alphabet, Chet ח, which in turn represents a fence. While our mind is our protection (fence) from the outside world when we have a strong, healthy ego, the mind can also fence us off from great things if we stay narrow minded.
The Chariot on The Tree of Life sits at the 7th Sephirah, Netzach, which represents Victory.
Speech is the main sense associated with The Chariot. Speech can help us expand upon and explain complicated ideas. Speech, however, can limit us, as we cannot always convey experiences through words. Speech therefore can liberate us, or bind us. So too with the Chariot: We can have too much control, or too little; the trick is to find the balance.
Merkabah Mysticism (an earlier version of Jewish mysticism) taught that the goal was to reach God’s chariot / throne by ascending through the 7 heavenly halls. The name of The Chariot is ‘Intelligence of the House of Influence’. Intelligence influences our life through our decisions.
The message from The Chariot VII
The Chariot wants you to know that victory is possible and every goal is attainable with the right mindset, focus, and will power. When we say, ‘…but I can’t’ we’re not utilizing the power of The Chariot.
The Bhagavad Gita says, ‘The Self is the rider in the Chariot of the body, of which the senses are the horses and the mind, the reins’. To me this quote, sums up The Chariot in its totality: Be the mistress of your mind and senses.
We also see symbols in this card representing all the cards that came before it:
Fool – ability to move forward
The Magician – the wand
The High Priestess – the water, sphinxes, and the veil
The Empress –green fertility
The Emperor – the stone chariot and the city
The Hierophant – the shoulder plates
The Lovers – the lingham and yoni
It as if the Charioteer has integrated all of the past lessons, and now uses them to achieve his goals.
Ask yourself these questions:
• How do I drive my Chariot with balance?
• Do I know what my current goals are? What goals do I need to reach in the next six months?
• Do I feel I am in control of my life? If not, how can I take control of my life?
• Do I know where I want to go in life?
• Am I feeling confident in reaching my goals? What do I need to do to get there?
• Have I the ability to reach my goals by controlling my passions?
• Do I believe that I’ll succeed?
Allow yourself to focus on the power that sits within your mind. The mind has the ability to control, and sometimes this is exactly what we need in order to move forward.
The Chariot VII reversed
When I see a reversed card, I simply see the energy blocked or inhibited in some way. How would The Chariot be inhibited? Imagine feeling stuck, unable to move forward, with an inability to reach goals. Imagine failing over and over again to reach your goals and the utter frustration that can bring.
If you get The Chariot reversed for yourself or someone else, some questions to ask might be…
• Am I failing to reach my goal / destination?
• Do I feel stuck? If so, where do I feel stuck?
• Is my energy scattered?
• What habits that are holding me back do I need to break?
• Do I feel confused, pulled in many directions?
• Do I feel unfocused and “all over the place” in regards to my goal?
• Do I make plans and lists, but fail to implement anything?
• Is my ego is?
• How can I reach my goals? What steps forward do I need to take today?
• Am I pushing myself too hard, and not allowing some gentleness into my life?
If you get The Chariot reversed, it is a message to wake up and see how your life is being controlled by your emotions, habits, and outside influences.
To sum it all up
The Chariot invites you to understand that when you do not make conscious decisions, decisions will be made for you. If you really want something, then go for it! Don’t wait for permission or an “easier day”. Start now! We only have the now.
Do you want a relationship? Do you want a child? Do you want a promotion at work? Do you want to lose weight? Do you want to run that marathon, or earn a degree?
So start now to do WHAT YOU CAN. Yes, we might need outside help along the way, but at least make the choice to reach your goals, even on the hard days.
Victory is possible when we use our will, determination, and passion with focus.
