Tarot Prompt: The Fool

In an effort to improve my tarot skills, I've been reading Silvia Hill's Tarot for Beginners: A Simple Guide to Reading Tarot Cards, Basic Spreads, and Psychic Development. I LOVE this book! I will do a proper review of it once I have finished it, but one thing I am enjoying is the tale of The Fool's journey through the Major Arcana, and the questions/prompts which are given for each card. So once a week I'm going to post one of the prompts on Instagram and write a blog post with my thoughts on that question/prompt. For the first card in the Major Arcana, our 'leading man' The Fool, our two prompts are:


How might The Fool's journey differ if he were aware of the danger he was in?

What do you think The Fool represents for people in different stages of life?


The Fool is the first card of The Major Arcana and represents new beginnings, innocence, and potential. But what if he knew the dangers he faced? What does he represent for people in the different stages of their lives? Below are my thoughts.

If The Fool had known the dangers he would encounter before he set off before his journey, things may have been very different. He may not have started out at all for fear that where he ended up would be worse than where he started from. And even now, with him having been through that journey and through profound change, do we know for certain he is happier and better off?


If he did still decide to start out on his journey, he may have been a lot more cautious, trying to avoid those dangers. It might have changed his experience completely. But again, can we say for certain that it would have been a better or worse experience than the one he would have experienced if he hadn't known what his original journey would hold?


Or maybe The Fool's journey was set to follow that path no matter what he did? Maybe, no matter whether he had stayed behind or started on his journey, no matter what he did along the way, he would still in some form experience the themes of the Major Arcana on his path, just in different ways? Maybe the themes and opportunities of the Major Arcana are unavoidable in life in some capacity or another (big or small, life changing or life progressing), and it is the attitude of The Fool rather than his physical actions which determine whether he will come out better or worse for the experience?


Would I have the guts to leave everything I have behind for the possibility of something better? I'll be honest, I'm very content with my life, so probably not. Would I look for the positives and the learnings in all of the themes of the Major Arcana if I had no choice but to experience them, rather than trying to avoid them or pretend they aren't happening? Yeah, I like to think I would.



As for The Fool in different stages in life, I touched upon it briefly above. I own a flat, have a decent job, friends, I have published a couple of books and generally don't want for anything. I am very content with my life. With The Fool's journey being unknown and the end consequence of it still a mystery, I probably wouldn't set out on it. If I were in a different position, if I were struggling to make ends meet, didn't have much to my name and little responsibility, then I would be much more open to the journey.


In terms of 'stages of life' I don't see these stages as being age defined, but comfort defined. The happier and more satisfied you are with your life, the less likely you are to want to do anything which could risk it. I know that is how I personally feel anyway. And as discussed above also, sometimes we have no choice but to go through this journey - let's say the death of a loved one, losing your job, etc. In this case, at this stage of life, it becomes more about preserving what you already have rather than chasing something new. It isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it changes the nature of the fool's journey and his attitude towards anything 'new', 'unknown', or potentially 'life changing'. Again, is this worth risking when you are comfortable with what you have? For me personally no, not if the reward is not guaranteed.