advanced tarot interpretation

The Meaning of "The Lovers" Tarot Card

The Symbolism of the Tarot Card:

A benevolent angel looks down in blessing on Adam and Eve figures in the Garden of Eden. Eve stands before the Tree of Knowledge with the serpent and the apples, and Adam stands in front of what could be either the Burning Bush or the Tree of Life. A mountain rises between them in the background.

The Meaning of the Tarot Card:

The Garden of Eden from which Adam and Eve were expelled are not the Garden of Eden depicted in this card. In The Lovers, Adam and Eve are saved by their choices rather than being expelled for them. Their appreciation for each other's spiritual and sexual selves are necessary in order to be happy on the material plane. The angel above them recognizes this and blesses their union.

Despite the name and the reference to Adam and Eve, this card is more about choice than it is about love. It is about making choices clearly, keeping consequences firmly in mind. Along with the theme of choice, it also does mean marriage and union, and commitment to the choices that one has already made, both romantically and otherwise.

Through the angel's blessing, the fruits of the Tree of Knowledge and the fruits of the Tree of Life, represented by the woman and man respectively, are joined together to form a cohesive whole. The mountain between them shows that this union takes place via sexual love.

In a reading, this card signifies the importance of love in a person's life, the kind of love which is referred to here is usually long-term. As stated, it is also primarily a card about choice, and how it affects these long-term relationships. It also may mean a slavish devotion to a relationship that is long gone, a relationship that is now given too much importance for the individual to move on. A union may yield fruitful results for the individual, particularly if it is a union that has received the sanction of friends and family.