Strength
The strength tarot card speaks of self control, compassion, and the kind of personal power that comes from inner strength rather than brute force.
When the strength card appears in a tarot reading, it suggests facing life's challenges with self assurance and balance, using confidence and emotional intelligence to overcome obstacles.
Whether upright or strength reversed, this major arcana card reveals the deep harmony that comes when you lead with both courage and heart.
Key Takeaways
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Represents inner strength, self control, and compassionate power
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Upright meaning: confidence, harmony, and overcoming challenges with grace
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Reversed meaning: self doubt, fear, or misuse of personal power
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Encourages balance between instinct and discipline for complete success
Upright Strength Meaning
The upright meaning of the strength tarot card centers on harmony between your raw emotions and higher self. Depicting a woman gently holding the jaws of a lion, it's a reminder that true control is not about force but about trust, patience, and understanding. This is why it's sometimes called Fortitude — a quality that blends courage with compassion.
The strength card encourages you to act with self belief and self confidence, even when fear arises. It points to good health, resilience, and the ability to lead yourself and others through challenges. In tarot card meanings, this is a moment of complete success born from aligning instinct with wisdom, proving that personal power thrives in calm rather than conflict.
Reversed Strength Meaning
Strength reversed can reveal moments when self doubt or loss of self esteem undermines your natural abilities. In the reversed position, the strength card suggests overcompensating with control or, at the other extreme, letting fear dictate actions. Sometimes even disgrace can result if personal power is misused.
This card in reversed form may also highlight vulnerability, suppressed raw emotions, or a struggle to balance spirit and body. It's a call to rebuild self assurance, regain confidence, and approach life from a place of inner stability.
Strength in Love Readings
In love, the strength tarot brings a message of patience and emotional maturity. For those in a relationship, it suggests balance between passion and understanding, with the lion representing desire and the woman showing compassion. In a love tarot reading for singles, it may signify developing self control and self worth before beginning a new relationship.
Reversed, it can indicate a power imbalance, self doubt affecting emotional connection, or fear of vulnerability.
Strength in Career & Finance
In career contexts, the strength card represents steady progress, confidence in your abilities, and the persistence to overcome obstacles. It's a favorable sign for leadership roles, managing challenges, and even starting new projects that require both skill and emotional intelligence. Financially, it points to self control in spending and making decisions that lead to stability.
When reversed, it warns against allowing fear or a lack of self belief to hold you back from opportunities.
Strength Leo Connection
Strength is astrologically associated with Leo — the lion — symbolizing courage, vitality, and leadership. Leo energy encourages self expression, resilience, and the confidence to stand in your power without dominating others.
Strength and Emotional Control
This major arcana card emphasizes emotional control as a form of mastery. The wild beast within each of us can be guided, not by suppression, but through understanding and harmony. The image of the woman and lion is a timeless reminder that true strength comes from integrating instinct with awareness.
Strength: Energetic Calibration Between Instinct and Discipline
For advanced practitioners, the strength tarot can be interpreted as a process of energetic calibration, balancing primal urges with disciplined thought. This alignment allows for sustained personal growth, spiritual insight, and the ability to lead without force.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Strength Card
What does the Strength card represent?
It represents inner strength, courage, and the ability to meet challenges with patience and compassion.
Is Strength a yes or no?
Yes — particularly for questions about personal power, confidence, and positive outcomes.
How to connect with the Strength card's energy?
Meditate on the imagery of the woman and lion, reflecting on moments where you can lead with compassion rather than control.
Is the Strength card connected to any zodiac sign?
Yes — it is linked to Leo, symbolizing courage, creativity, and vitality.
What does Strength reversed mean in a relationship?
It may point to self doubt, lack of emotional control, or fear creating distance between partners.
Can Strength indicate good health?
Yes — in some tarot readings, it suggests vitality, healing, and resilience of both body and spirit.
Want to deepen your tarot journey?
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Learn about all tarot cards
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Discover different tarot decks
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Expand your skills using various tarot spreads
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Discover how the Strength card connects with The Chariot in mastering willpower
- Try our tarot reader online, it's absolutely free to use.
"Spiritual awakening is the process of recognizing our essential goodness, our natural wisdom and compassion"—Tara Brach, Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life with the Heart of a Buddha.
References
The Way of Tarot | Alejandro Jodorowsky, Archive.org
The Marseille Tarot Revealed A Complete Guide to Symbolism, Meanings & Methods | Yoav Ben-Dov
The Pictorial Key to the Tarot | Arthur Edward Waite
Disclaimer
Tarot is a tool for self-reflection and should not replace professional medical, psychological, or financial advice. The interpretations offered here are for educational and entertainment purposes only. Your free will always shapes your path.
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