“It’s the bad cart wheel that squeaks the most.”
The name of this card is called “le chariot” in French. It can be translated as “the chariot” in English. If you notice any translation errors in this article, please let us know for our entire community. You can leave your comment at the bottom of this page.
Epic arcana of the Marseille tarot, this card is often associated with success and travel in many areas. The chariot also has its hidden side. If at first glance, the man represented on the cart seems to be in good configuration, appearances are sometimes deceptive. In neurolinguistic programming, the gaze, directed towards the bottom right, activates the idea of constructing an imagination, while the gaze towards the bottom left would be more linked to an event actually experienced. This would imply that the man on this cart is potentially uncomfortable in this posture or this imposture. This lying position is unlike him. With this look that says a lot, it reminds us of certain political debates where the man looks away in contempt from the person observing him. We can also notice that one of the wheels of the cart does not have the wheel in its axis and that the 2 horses are different and do not appear to be pulled towards the same place. strong> Nevertheless, they are complementary. If one is white and stable, the other is black and seems fiery. The cart that does not hold reindeer is driven by the force of the spirit of its roommate. The fall can happen at any time. The mind wavers.
Beyond these aspects, the chariot shows flattering trappings of success, dominance and material success. balanced strength is necessary for its direction. We could say that the man who takes care of his mount comes at the right time. If the path to success is strewn with pitfalls, maintaining your success is too.Notoriety can take time, it is a journey requiring several stages. If the goal of the journey is to accumulate wealth, the man on board this cart does not seem particularly happy. In our societies, we are regularly asked to obtain different objects. Indeed, happiness is to have. So what does it mean to succeed in life? What is the meaning of this path, this quest, this journey? We have often heard that alchemists sought to transform or should I say to transmute lead into gold!But once the operation of lead into gold finished, it no longer made sense for the alchemist to obtain gold.And if happiness was not in having, but in being. We frequently talk about“well-being”. But when we “are”, we are “good”. The distinction is made between these two auxiliaries of the French language, “being” rather than having”. But when you have nothing, it’s not happiness either. We lack everything, including the essential. So, the solution is perhaps simply to be modest in the face of life and to find gratitude wherever you can, without excess. In life, we only appear like the man on this cart. Triumph is happiness. That is, at the right time. Here and Now.
For alchemists, the chariot can also representthe vehicle of alchemical work.Alchemical work is an inner journey, which can lead to the completion of a cycle. This is where the paradox lies! It is when we thought we had arrived that we really begin the journey. These are the teachings of the chariot. I remember an old man, after having lived his whole life at work, accumulating a lot of wealth, sheltering his children and his grandchildren from a material point of view, saying to his son: “I ‘I don’t understand anything about life’. Many of us think of money as a pursuit of existence. This confusion of the verb “to have” and the verb “to be”, saying to oneself “I have, therefore I am happy” is an illusion. The happiness of having is not the happiness of being. Besides, when you have equipment, it ends up aging, breaking, going out of fashion, or even becoming useless.
A see responds to a material need, a need for security, a need to appear, hubris, not a need for happiness. We have all already noticed that when we offer a toy to a young child , this one has more fun with the packaging cardboard and paper than the toy itself. For what ? Because it is not yet formatted for social codes. If we deprogram ourselves, that happiness is not in having, but in being, then life changes. Thus, the quest for the gold of spiritual alchemy responds more to a participation in being, than obtaining gold. We will remember that the arrival is less important than the quest for arrival, if a destination is defined. It might be very pretentious to reach the end of this quest. Life is bohemian.
Being in the cart does not mean rushing to finish your quest but enjoying every moment. The quest is inherently infinite and will never end. Lead takes more than a lifetime to transform, to transmute into gold. The chariot is the appearance. It is seeking to please and not displease, but to whom? to one’s self ? to others ? whose ? The character of the cart is a puppet of “I love you if…” I love you, if you are rich, if you are strong, if you are tall, if you are successful, if… It is a quest for love given by others. The chariot invites us to look for love within ourselves.
Triumph
Futility
Happiness
Everyday magic
Have
Be
Direction to his life
Lead
Be leading
Hubris
Present moment
Vain
Lose the controls
Get your life back on track
Deceptive appearances
Courage
Quest
Direction
Fresh start
Steps
