The Queen of Wands is a

court card A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance w ...

in the

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set of the

Tarot The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots, ...

. Tarot cards are used throughout much of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

to play

tarot card games Tarot games are card games played with tarot decks, that is, decks with numbered permanent Trump (card games), trumps parallel to the Playing card suit, suit cards. The games and decks which English-speakers call by the French name Tarot are cal ...

. In

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

-speaking countries, where the games are largely unknown, tarot cards came to be utilized primarily for

divinatory Divination (from Latin ''divinare'', 'to foresee, to foretell, to predict, to prophesy') is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic, standardized process or ritual. Used in various forms throughout histor ...

purposes.

Divination usage

Its keywords include the following: attractive, wholehearted, energetic, cheerful, and self-assured.

Symbolic components and composition

The Queen of Wands combines the properties of the

Suit of Wands The Suit of Wands is one of four suits in tarot, collectively known as the Minor Arcana. Like the other tarot suits, the suit of wands contains fourteen cards: ace (one), two through ten, page and knight (sometimes referred to as princess and princ ...

, associated with elemental fire, with the figure of the

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

, which embodies nurturing, feminine, inwardly-focused and embracing personality. This combination results in a card which represents a vivacious and warm personality, full of a fiery passion put to the service of encouragement, assurement, attraction, esteem, and enthusiasm. The back of her throne doesn't have a top, indicating endless possibilities. The lions on the back of her throne are associated with the element fire. Her golden attire shows that she is strong and her fire is burning with great intensity. The desert behind her is another indicator of fire. The rocks on the right side of her throne can show toughness, a hard soul, her independence. The sign of Leo is strongly associated with this card due to the lions adorning her throne, as well as the lion pendant clasping her cape. She is holding a

sunflower The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a large annual forb of the genus ''Helianthus'' grown as a crop for its edible oily seeds. Apart from cooking oil production, it is also used as livestock forage (as a meal or a silage plant), as ...

, which may represent a fertile and joyous life, but may also further suggest a connection to Leo. In their bud stage, sunflowers face and track the

sun The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...

in its motion across the sky, a behavior called

heliotropism Heliotropism, a form of tropism, is the diurnal or seasonal motion of plant parts (flowers or leaves) in response to the direction of the Sun. The habit of some plants to move in the direction of the Sun, a form of tropism, was already known by t ...

. The sun in astrology is considered to be the ruling planet of the sign of Leo. The black cat at her feet shows that luck favors her, as black cats are viewed as bringers of good or bad luck. The nature of cats may also show that she has tamed her darker impulses yet understands and follows her own instincts, thus representing her self-aware and independent nature. Black cats are also commonly associated with

occultism The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism an ...

and the dark arts, suggesting

intuitive Intuition is the ability to acquire knowledge without recourse to conscious reasoning. Different fields use the word "intuition" in very different ways, including but not limited to: direct access to unconscious knowledge; unconscious cognition; ...

understanding of the world.

Interpretation

The Queen of Wands is said by some to represent one's basic instinct. Her strength and task are providing initial inputs. She says to you that you must think of the consequences of what you do, but that you must be sure to focus on what will get you moving and how to do it. Directness, spontaneity and independence are very special talents that others admire, as long as you accept that others may be your polar opposite. Don't get tricked into becoming impatient. If the sun "shines" in your heart, you can overcome your fears and walk your own path. "Approach your tasks as steps and take every one of them with assurance." (quote of Evelin Burger and Johannes Fiebag) One possible interpretation is that the card represents a sincere, friendly, chaste, or loving woman who might become influential or is currently present in the querent's life. The Queen of Wands can indicate a woman who is very helpful and kind. She may be the querent or she may stand for a woman in the querent's life who is older than the querent, has hair on the lighter end of the spectrum, and who is considered to be a very supportive, giving person. She could represent a mother like figure.

Reversed interpretation

The card reversed could represent qualities such as good, economical, obliging, serviceable and hospitality. It can also signify opposition, jealousy, and even deceit and infidelity.

Key meanings

The key meanings of the Queen of Wands:Trusted Tarot (2010
Queen of Wands
/ref> *Career-oriented *Hard worker *Honest *Independent and home-loving *Thoughtful

References

Tarot Basics: By Evelin Burger and Johannes Fiebag. 387 Park Avenue South, New York, N.Y. Sterling publishing company inc, 2006. {{Minor_Arcana Suit of Wands Fictional queens