Justice tarot card explained
What does Justice mean in tarot?
Life isn't always fair, is it?
You can work incredibly hard and still get passed over for a promotion. You can treat someone well and still end up getting hurt. And sometimes, people who behave terribly seem to get away with absolutely everything.
Justice is card XI (11) in the Major Arcana, and it's about fairness, truth, accountability, and the consequences of our actions. Justice encourages you to look at things objectively, even when the truth is a little uncomfortable (like, being at fault).
Start a free tarot readingThe scales and sword of Justice
Scan by Saskia Jansen · Wikimedia Commons
In the standard Rider-Waite-Smith tarot deck, Justice is illustrated as a figure sitting on a throne between two pillars, holding a sword in one hand and a pair of scales in the other.
The scales represent balance and fairness. The sword, meanwhile, represents truth and clarity. It's held upright, suggesting a willingness to face reality and make difficult decisions when necessary.
The figure wears a crown and sits in front of a purple veil, giving the illustration a rather serious, almost judicial atmosphere. Unlike some of the more emotional cards in tarot, Justice is about reasoning and examining the facts.
Justice in your love life
Let's say you've been arguing with your partner about the same thing for months. You think they're being unreasonable. They think you're being unreasonable. And somehow, every conversation turns into a competition over who's right.
Justice might encourage you to stop thinking about winning the argument and start thinking about whether you're both treating each other fairly.
Relationships involve compromise, but compromise shouldn't mean one person constantly giving up what they want. Maybe you're doing a lot in the relationship, but have you opened up that conversation? Life sometimes gets in the way of some self-awareness for our partner and us.
Now, imagine drawing Justice as what to focus on and the Five of Swords as where you are now. The Five of Swords is associated with conflict, disagreements, and the feeling of winning an argument at someone else's expense. Combined with Justice, perhaps you've been so focused on proving your point that you've forgotten what the argument was even about.
Maybe it's time to have an honest conversation, acknowledge where you've both gone wrong, and figure out a fair way forward. And if Justice appears as what to avoid, perhaps you're being too concerned with keeping score. Not every small disagreement needs a verdict.
Start a free tarot readingWhat Justice might reveal about your career
Workplaces are supposed to reward hard work and good performance. At least, that's the idea... on paper.
But anyone who's spent a few years working knows that things aren't always that straightforward. Maybe a colleague received a promotion you thought you deserved. Or your manager keeps promising a salary increase that never seems to happen. Performance evaluations—a nightmare.
Justice could encourage you to examine whether you're being treated fairly and what you can actually do about it. Could you speak up and negotiate? Also, assess whether you are being honest about your performance and where you could improve. If you're killing it, maybe the fairest thing for you to do is also think about moving on.
Now, imagine drawing Justice as what to focus on and The Devil as what to avoid. The Devil can represent unhealthy attachments or situations where we feel trapped. Perhaps you're staying in a job because the salary is good, even though you're being treated poorly. Justice might encourage you to assess the situation objectively and decide what would actually be fair to yourself. What is there to do? That's up to you and your situation.
Whatever the situation, Justice reminds us that our choices have consequences. And while we can't always control how other people behave, we can take responsibility for what we do next.
Look at things from another angle
When we're emotionally involved in something, it's easy to convince ourselves that our perspective is the only reasonable one.
Sometimes, all we need is a little distance to see things differently. Turbo Tarot offers a free online tarot reading where you can reflect.
Maybe Justice will encourage you to think about fairness or a difficult decision you've been avoiding. Or perhaps another card will bring up something entirely different. Find out today!
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