Elemental associations between a set of elements and the four suits of the tarot’s minor arcana is very common these days. Mostly the associations are between the Western philosophical tradition – Earth, Air, Fire and Water, but one should also be aware that other elemental groupings exist. For example, in Chinese philosophy the elements are Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water.
In The Wildwood Tarot, the Western philosophy elements are used – Earth, Air, Fire and Water. They are explicitly related to the four Minor Arcana suits in the companion book in this way:
Stones – Earth
Arrows – Air
Bows – Fire
Vessels – Water
The Majors are also associated with the elements too:
The Wanderer – Earth
The Shaman – Air
The Seer – Water
The Green Woman – Fire
The Green Man – Fire
The Ancestor – Air and Earth
The Forest Lovers – Fire and Air
The Archer – Air
The Stag – Air
The Hooded Man – Earth
The Wheel – Water
The Woodward – Fire and Water
The Mirror – Water
The Journey – Water and Earth
Balance – Air and Fire
The Guardian – Earth and Water
The Blasted Oak – Fire and Water
The Pole Star – Earth and Air
The Moon on Water – Earth
The Sun of Life – Fire
The Great Bear – Earth
The World Tree – Fire
If we group these we have the following representing single element cards :
Air – Shaman, Archer, Stag
Earth – Hooded Man, Great Bear, Wanderer, Moon on Water
Water – Seer, Wheel, Mirror
Fire – Green Woman/Green Man, Sun of Life, World Tree
Double Element cards:
Air/Earth – Ancestor and Pole Star
Fire/Air – Forest Lovers and Balance
Fire/Water – Blasted Oak and Woodward
Water/Earth – Journey and Guardian
Although the Moon on Water and Sun of Life are accorded to Earth and Fire respectively, this is the point where they reach their zenith. The former governs the dark half of the year and the latter the light half of the year.
Use the Wheel of the Year image on p26 of the companion book to help you visualise each card’s position on the Great Wheel and ultimately assist you in remembering the Major/Elemental combinations as you pin them to the eight seasonal festivals on the Wheel. Here we have The Woodward and Blasted Oak who form the guardian pairing for Lammas or Lughnasadh that falls at the intersection of Summer and Autumn on the ritual wheel and are thus associated with Water and Fire.
