Tarot: Rider Waite Tarot and Tarot of Marseille differences

The structure

The internal structure of the Rider Waite and the Marseille Tarot, differs on several points. The Tarot, whatever the tradition to which it is related, depicts the structure of the World, that is to say, that the seventy-eight cards evoke the totality of the events that can occur there, as much on the human level as on the sacred level. The major arcana cards, made up of archetypes, depict what happens on the sacred plane of existence, while the minor arcana cards illustrate the human plane. In other words, the twenty-two major arcana cards mark the different stages of the initiatory cycle of the soul, of the evolution of the being, while the fifty-six minor arcana cards show the earthly events; those of daily life. On the divinatory level, the major arcana cards therefore reflect the important elements of life, such as the great changes, the key moments, those that are inescapable in the consultant's life, those that are put in his path by the higher planes of existence. The minor arcana cards describe the evolution of life with the four great energies that govern it. Thus, each of the four suites is associated with an element: the Wands are linked to Fire, the Cups to Water, the Swords to air and the Pence - for the Tarot de Marseille or the Pentacles for the Waite, to Earth. The major arcana cards represent the spirit.

Some differences

According to what has just been explained, we already notice a first great difference between the two traditions. This one is located at the level of the minor arcana. In the Tarot of Marseilles, the continuation attached to the Earth element is called "the Pence", while the Waite tradition opts rather for Pentacles. If in both cases the following refers to the material domain, it is not approached in the same way in the one and the other tradition. Indeed, the Tarot de Marseille emphasizes the financial aspect of the material domain, the denier being a coin, whereas with the Pentacles, the Waite is not limited to money but extends the symbol relating to this following to the whole material domain by evoking all that relates to this domain, namely the work which makes it possible to reap the fruits of what one sows, the material possessions, the structures (in particular family), and all that can be linked to the Earth. This is confirmed by the illustrations in this suite.

Major differences

This remark brings another one, always related to the minor arcana. One of the major differences between the two types of games, both visually and symbolically, is the way in which the minors are treated: while they are not illustrated in the Tarot de Marseille, each card of the Rider Waite has a sketch, symbolically illustrating all the meanings attributed to it, both on the initiatory and divinatory levels.This difference in treatment is not without consequences for the symbolic structure of each tradition and the use made of the games associated with it. In the Tarot de Marseille, there is a clear separation between the sacred plane and the profane (human) plane since there is no visual continuity between the major and minor cards. In symbolic terms, this means that these two planes remain separate and do not interpenetrate. This is why in practice we tend as much as possible not to mix the major and minor arcana, but rather to use the major ones first, then the minors, echoing the visual structure of the game. On the contrary, the Rider Waite marks a certain visual continuity between the two planes since the entirety of its arcana is illustrated. This no longer leads to the idea of separation, but of a connection between the two planes, which then become inseparable. It is for this reason that the major and minor arcana cards are mixed and used together, which makes it possible to see during the interpretation, how the one and the other plan combine and intertwine to intervene in the life of the consultant.