7. The Chariot
i. The Nutshell
Upright
The Chariot is focused, driven, and intentional. It represents the ability to set a clear goal and stay committed to it, even when distractions or doubts arise. This archetype is about discipline that serves a directional and speedy purpose, telling you that while you can’t control every outcome, you are responsible for how you respond and where you steer. The Chariot reflects emotional resilience supported by structure. It shows the power of staying connected to your inner motivations while maintaining boundaries. Progress needs to be steady and consistent so define your direction, take action, and remember that alignment creates lasting results.
Keywords: Willpower, direction, momentum, victory, control, determination.
Translation: You are not at the mercy of the road. You are the chariot and have choice.
Reversed
When The Chariot is reversed you might be spinning your wheels in doughnuts, charging ahead with no real destination, or maybe you’ve handed the reins to someone else and then wondered why you feel like a passenger in your own life. This reversal signals a lack of direction, scattered focus, or rebellion against the discipline you know you need. You might feel burnout that looks like being busy, chasing goals without purpose, or pushing for something that isn't meant for you. Consider taking a moment to regroup and refocus on what really matters for meaningful progress, and that also means paying attention to what you may be avoiding by staying busy.
Keywords: Lack of direction, control issues, burnout, scattered energy, misalignment.
Translation: Just because you can charge ahead doesn’t mean you should. Find your coordinates before you hit the accelerator.
ii. Illus-traits
A quick glance at The Chariot’s symbolic traits in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck - what's hidden in plain sight?
Sphinxes – Oppositional forces. You steer with aligned, respectful presence.
Star Crown – Success comes from clear vision.
Square on Chest – Ethics protect us. Integrity drives us.
City Behind – Leaving safety paradoxically begins with taking risks.
No Reins – Control through will and mindset.
iii. Influences
Planetary: The Chariot, ruled by the Moon, governs tides, moods, and life overhauls. Its influence emphasises emotional navigation rather than external motion, so think of it as inner guidance. The Moon urges you to manage emotions with discernment. Mars adds thrust and ambition, but without the Moon’s depth, it can lead to recklessness.
Natal House(s): The Chariot is linked to the Fourth House, representing emotional roots and inner security, urging reflection on origins and their influence on the future. It also connects to the Tenth House, which involves public image, goals, ambitions, and legacy. The Chariot balances personal stability and professional ambition; alignment leads to confident advancement, while misalignment causes uncertainty.
Astrological Sign(s): The Chariot, ruled by Cancer, balances ease with strategy. Cancer protects what it loves, moving carefully and charging purposefully. This reflects emotional intelligence, loyalty, and stamina. Cancer's control understands that movement needs direction. Capricorn, positioned opposite, provides structure and the energy required for long-term goals.
Numerologically: Seven is The Chariot's number, bridging the material and spiritual realms. It urges trust in the process, emphasising internal reckoning before external success. Seven symbolises discipline and movement, embodying the dedicated traveller who understands the journey progresses through action. Seven is the spiritual truth-seeker, open minded and trusting of others.
Element: Water represents being and feeling. The Chariot illustrates how Water flows through life while staying on course. It’s a calm yet unstoppable force, teaching us to follow our feelings.
iv. A Day in the Life of The Chariot
Well That Escalated Quickly
You burn out by mid morning because you made a to-do list that could intimidate a military strategist, insist on pushing through despite the obvious signs from your body to slow down, and then get angry at your reflection for looking knackered. All while claiming it’s just life.
Adjusting the Knobs
You spend three hours researching productivity hacks instead of doing the one thing that matters, and set a morning intention but doubt it by lunchtime. You’re moving, technically, but where to? As clear as mud.
Unsubscribed from Self-Sabotage
You resist the urge to micromanage your entire life for five whole minutes and feel something suspiciously like peace. You get behind the wheel, put on Chumbawamba, feel unstoppable, and start to believe in where you’re going.
Writing the TED Talk
After you’ve burned all your adrenaline, you remember that discipline and self-trust are the real fuel. You move in the direction of something that matters because it aligns with who you really are, not what others say you are. You know the goal is values-led, has purpose, meaning, and you’re steering this land-ship from the inside out.
v. Working with these Energies
Moving with Intention and Leading from Within
The Chariot encourages balance, momentum and self-reflection. When reversed, it questions if we're pursuing our own goals or fulfilling others' expectations. Are we moving with purpose or just trying to keep up? Meaningful movement requires direction.
Check your coordinates
– What goal are you chasing and does it still feel true?
– Are you moving forward or avoiding standing still?
– What would happen if you stopped long enough to reassess your direction?Align effort with purpose
– Where are you expending energy just to prove something?
– What part of your life feels disciplined but disconnected?
– Are your daily actions actually taking you where you want to go?Get clear on control
– What are you gripping too tightly out of fear it will fall apart?
– Where are you outsourcing your power to people, systems, or old stories?
– How would it feel to lead with yourself instead of reacting?Let Cancer and the Moon guide your course
– Are you listening to your instincts or overriding them with logic?
– Where do your emotions offer guidance not distraction?
– Are you safeguarding your peace or trying to control things?Move forward with conscious will
– What are you ready to commit to with clarity in tandem with ambition?
– Where do you need to slow down in order to move with real purpose?
– What would it mean to define victory on your own terms and then drive toward it?
vi. Building Skills
Two Sides of the Same Coin
Pain and values are a package deal. You can’t care deeply without sometimes hurting deeply. If you never felt disappointment, grief, fear, or anger, you’d also never feel love, hope, or meaning. The only way to never feel pain is to stop caring entirely. But is that a life you'd want?
Consider this: Ask yourself who or what would you need to walk away from to never be hurt again? Now ask: would that version of you still feel like you? Would the safety be worth the emptiness?
The Chariot symbolises the integration of opposing forces, such as fear and purpose, doubts and drive, highlighting that staying aligned with what truly matters requires embracing discomfort.
vii. Embodiment
Tarot pulls you as much as you pull it. Embodiment transforms The Chariot from a card into a course correction. Before defining success, feel it. Before moving forward, find your engine: your body, instincts, unspoken choices:
Smell: If The Chariot had a scent, what would it be? The sharpness of leather and road dust? Cold morning air before a climb? The metallic trace of adrenaline just before taking the first step?
Body: Where do you hold momentum or resistance? Your solar plexus? The back of your neck? Your thighs, ready to launch but tense from waiting?
Soundtrack: What song feels like you gearing up, getting clear, or pushing past the point where you usually stop? What beat builds pressure and release in perfect tandem?
Action: What can you do today that channels your energy into something aligned, and what does it look like to choose discipline as a devotion to your path?
Nature cue: Step outside. What mirrors The Chariot in motion? The river cutting a path through stone? A hawk mid-flight, locked onto its course? The wind that changes direction but never loses force?
Notice what steadies you: The goal is sovereignty. Let The Chariot remind you that you don’t have to chase a direction. True momentum begins with the heart, and is the most powerful direction if you choose it.
viii. Your Impressions
Look at The Chariot card in your own deck if possible. Take a moment to observe without overthinking.
What catches your eye first - the armour, the vehicle, the expression, the reins? If no reins in your own card, the chariot is being driven and steered by mental energy alone.
How does this card land in your body or mood: focused, restless, determined, tense?
If this card could ask a question, what would it ask you to claim, or leave behind, in order to move forward?
ix. Intuitive Meaning
Use this space to explore what The Chariot means to you as a lived force. Let it reflect the parts of you that are stepping into self-direction, where movement becomes a mirror for intention:
When have you taken action that felt powered from within when it’s responsive?
Where are you pushing forward on the outside while feeling stuck or scattered internally?
What would it look like to pursue something with full commitment, without needing to justify or be perfect?
Applied insight with a three-card reading using The Chariot as your anchor:
What internal compass is trying to guide my next move?
Where am I leaking energy by forcing progress instead of aligning with purpose?
What strength or structure will help me move forward with clarity and conviction?
Pull or shuffle-fling your cards and note your feelings. Take your time and let the answers unfold. Write three ‘you’ words that relate to your current experience:
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x. Closing Reflection: Track Your Evolving Lens
Your relationship with each card will grow over time because it’s meant to shaped by your life. Consider the prompts below to revisit and reflect.
What I thought this card meant when I first pulled it: —————————————————
A recent experience that changed how I see it: —————————————————
How I feel about it now, in my body or life: —————————————————
What surprised me as this card kept showing up: —————————————————
One way this card is living in my life right now: —————————————————
If this card visited me today as a guide, what would it want me to remember? —————————————————
Revisit these after a week, a moon phase, or a meaningful moment. Let the card evolve as you do.
If you feel a quiet sense of recognition, curiosity and want to explore it, browse the sessions page for what feels right.