Up: [[Major Arcana]] Created: 2026-09-21 Updated: 2026-09-27 > [!leaf] In Brief > Rationality and instincts working together; inner courage to act in alignment with your higher self; holding steady despite challenges > [!leaf] Numbering In the *Marseille* tarot and for some makers of modern decks, Strength trades places with Justice so that Strength is card 11. The Golden Dawn organization in the *Rider-Waite-Smith* deck reversed the order because the zodiac sign Leo seemed to go better with strength and Libra (the scales) seemed to go with Justice. Leo comes before Libra in the order of the astrological signs. The majority of decks are RWS clones and have Strength as card 8. > [!leaf] What Matters The Strength card asks us to embody a quiet and compassionate resolve to outlast our fears. Sometimes this looks like walking away, doing nothing, simply enduring. Sometimes it requires understanding and conquering our inner beasts, such as [[Compulsion]]s and self-destructive behaviours. Ultimately, it’s about balancing body and mind, intellect and passion, rationality and[[ instincts]] so that we can stay true to [[the Self]]. If we can manage this, says *Light Seer’s Tarot*, we *will have inexhaustible energy and strength for everything*. > [!leaf] Shadow The shadow of Strength is to either repress all of our instincts with excessive self-denial, so that we don’t have a true identity, or to let our instincts consume us, in which case we get lost in our [[Compulsion]]s. To a lesser degree, it’s loss of focus, scattered energy, and worry that we aren’t resilient enough to handle life’s vicissitudes. | Rider-Waite-Smith | Dreaming Way | | ---------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------- | | <br>![[8- Strength RWS.webp\|160]] | <br>![[8- Strength Dreaming Way.webp\|160]] | > [!leaf] Symbolism The[[ lion]] can be the inner strength that needs to be tested in the world. Or our basic instincts. Or our compulsions. Or a sign of our creative power if we think of it as Leo, the astrological sign. In some cards such as *RWS*, the woman has her hand in the lion’s mouth. Willingness to do this can be a way of showing our vulnerability, which is its own kind of strength. There’s an interesting interpretation by *Thoth Tarot* that the relationship between th woman and the lion is representative of the myth *Beauty and the Beast*. The beauty is all that we all possess in our gifts, talents, and resources which can quell the beasts or demons within our nature. The lemniscate (infinity sign) is suggested variously as: bestial and spiritual powers integrated *Spiritual tarot*; the rope of love, untangled, results in a circle, the symbol of unity *Zillich tarot*; there’s a symbiotic relationship between raw power and the consciousness that uses it wisely *Tarot for Life* > [!leaf] Actions 1. Use curiosity, openness and self-compassion to confront the fears and feelings that get in the way of you feeling fully alive. You can’t do this from a completely rational perspective. If you try, you just create another persona. The work is to acknowledge, understand and integrate difficult emotions. 2. Trust in your strength. Tell yourself, “I’ve got this.” Repeat often. 3. Journal or freewrite responses to any of these questions or quotes: - What fears have I successfully minimized or tamed? *Tarot for Life* - Which of the [[Instincts]] do I typically try to subdue or repress? - When have I demonstrated strength or courage? What did I do then that I might be able to repeat in this situation? - What parts of myself have I tried to cage? What parts have I allowed to rampage? *Tarot and the Psychology of the Self* > [!Orbit] [[C. G. Jung]] > Too much of the animal disfigures the civilized human being; too much culture makes for a sick animal. > [!orbit] James Hollis > We are not here to fit in, be well balanced, or provide exempla for others. > We are here to be eccentric, different, perhaps strange, perhaps merely to add our small piece, our little clunky, chunky selves, to the great mosaic of being. > As the gods intended, we are here to become more and more ourselves. > [!Orbit] Maya Angelou > I do not trust people who don’t love themselves and yet tell me, ‘I love you.’ There is an African saying which is: Be careful when a naked person offers you a shirt. > [!Orbit] M. Scott Peck > The feeling of being valuable — I am a valuable person — is essential to mental health and a cornerstone of self-discipline. It is the direct product of parental love…. When one considers oneself valuable one will take care of oneself in all ways that are necessary. > [!Orbit] A.A. Milne > Promise me you’ll always remember: you are braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. > [!Orbit] Mahatma Gandhi > Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will. > [!leaf] Connection to Other Cards The [[7 - Chariot]] is outer strength and will. The Strength card is inner strength and ability to endure and overcome life’s obstacles. Both the [[8 - Strength]] card and the [[1 - Magician]] have the infinity symbol or lemniscate above their heads, perhaps as a symbol of endless energy.