“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.” – Helen Keller
In this part of the journey, The Chariot appears ready to move forward with inspired action, providing structure around an intuitive decision.
The Chariot in Tarot: A Card of Forward Motion, Progress, and Determination
In the last post, we met The Lovers, who challenged us to look to the heart when making decisions and tend to the relationships in our lives.
Now, The Chariot challenges us in a new way: to move forward, overcome obstacles, and cultivate the determination required for triumph.
If The Lovers represents heart-centered decision-making, The Chariot reminds us to put those decisions into motion – to face our fears and summon the courage required to overcome them.
We used our intuition to arrive at a decision.
Now we must use our will to guide forward action.
Our hero now encounters The Chariot, moving from the fertile garden of The Lovers into a world of structure, symbolism, and departure.
Symbolism of The Chariot in the Rider-Waite-Smith Deck
In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, The Chariot is card number seven: a number associated with spiritual integration and inner mastery.
Seven echoes the classical seven visible planets and the seven days of creation. It's a number of completion through effort, and the idea of “don’t give up.”
It is also the sum of The Empress (3) and The Emperor (4) — the union of feminine and masculine principles now unified and mobilized. It's essentially the child of The Empress and the Emperor.
It also calls us to draw upon past experiences and the wisdom gathered throughout the journey to find success:
Being a traveler, the Charioteer echoes The Fool.
The crescent moons recall The High Priestess.
The crown echoes The Empress.
He sits upon a throne like The Emperor.
The pillars reference The Hierophant.
And he departs from a landscape reminiscent of The Lovers.
The Chariot does not emerge in isolation.
It is built upon everything that has come before.
The Sphinxes represent opposing forces brought into unity. Traditionally depicted as black and white, they symbolize polarity: light and shadow, instinct and intellect. They're held together through disciplined will. Here, in my version, abstract forms stand in their place, representing unity even within difference.
The stars in the canopy symbolize hope and divine guidance: a connection to the celestial realm above.
The square on the chest represents stability, structure, and the four corners of the earth. It's the grounding of spiritual will into material reality.
The wand represents power, initiative, creative force, and the focused direction of intention.
The Chariot teaches us the importance of focus. Of resolve. Of refusing to give up.
It reminds us that triumph is possible, but only when we cultivate determination after a decision has been made.
Willpower moves us forward.
Discipline creates departure.
And momentum carries us toward success.
The Chariot in a Tarot Reading
If The Chariot appears in a reading, it often signals that it is time to focus and take decisive action.
It suggests movement – a departure – a forward surge of energy after clarity has already been established.
Since The Lovers required a heart-centered decision, The Chariot now urges you to act upon it: to execute a plan and move closer toward your goals.
As you move forward, you may need to overcome internal conflict, emotional turbulence, or self-sabotaging thoughts. The Chariot reminds you that these forces can be guided, not suppressed, but directed.
This requires discipline. Focus. A willingness to stay the course.
And when you do, this card promises triumph — not because the road is easy, but because you refuse to abandon it.
Opportunities open…sometimes in ways that feel almost magical, when intention meets sustained effort.
My Personal Journey with The Chariot
One powerful way to deepen your understanding of the Tarot is to apply each card to real moments in your own life.
My story of illustrating The Chariot involves the decision to move forward with my tarot and spiritual business.
It would be easier not to pursue this path. Tarot is often misunderstood. Throughout history, divination practices have been met with suspicion and even persecution. Even in modern times, legal and cultural barriers have made it difficult for intuitive practitioners to openly offer their work.
And yet, this calling is of the heart.
After a series of intense life events compelled me to integrate and share what I had learned, it was like the decision was made for me.
I studied.
I practiced.
I cultivated my intuition.
And I took inspired action.
Along the way, I’ve had to overcome fears: fear of being seen, fear of misunderstanding, fear of how this path might affect my professional life.
And still, I move forward.
The personal development that comes from building a business, especially a heart-centered one, has become a profound point of departure in my life.
The Chariot has appeared in my readings again and again, reminding me that progress requires perseverance.
As long as I do not give up, I know I will accomplish what I am meant to accomplish.
Chakra Connection
The Chariot primarily connects with the solar plexus chakra: the center of personal power, motivation, and will.
The dominant yellow in the Rider-Waite-Smith card reflects this energy of confidence and forward movement
Secondarily, The Chariot connects with the third eye chakra. The blue tones, the stars, and the celestial canopy remind us that action must be guided by vision and intuition.
Movement without awareness becomes chaos. Awareness without movement becomes stagnation.
The heart chakra also plays a role. The square on the chest symbolizes grounded embodiment, where spiritual awareness meets lived reality.
The lower chakras rise upward; the higher chakras guide downward.
The heart integrates them both.
The Chariot teaches us to act from love: love of self, love of purpose, love of life…guided by conscious awareness.
Your Story + Invitation
The Chariot represents focus and progress, personal development, and overcoming our shortcomings.
To support your tarot journey, I’ve created a simple Tarot Cheat Sheet with key meanings for every card.
And if you’re standing at your own threshold – ready to leap – a personal tarot reading can bring clarity. Book a 1:1 tarot reading with me, and we can explore the cards as they show up for you in the past, present, and future.
When has The Chariot shown up for you?
“Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what is still possible for you to do.” – Pope John XXIII
