A plain-language glossary of the key terms used across tarot, saju (the Four Pillars) and western astrology.
〔Tarot〕 Major Arcana: A set of 22 cards that symbolize life’s broader themes and turning points. They are seen as cards that invite reflection on larger patterns in your journey.
Minor Arcana: A set of 56 cards divided into four suits that touch on everyday situations and feelings. They help explore the larger themes of the Major Arcana in more concrete detail.
Upright: When a card appears facing the reader, often taken as a starting point for its core meaning. Any interpretation is treated as a prompt for reflection rather than a fixed answer.
Reversed: When a card appears upside down, inviting a different shade of meaning or a more inward angle than the upright. It is understood as another point of view, not a bad omen.
Spread: A way of laying out cards in set positions, where each spot represents a different aspect of the question. It serves as a framework for organizing thoughts and viewing a situation from several angles.
Celtic Cross: One of the best-known spreads, usually arranging ten cards in a cross-and-staff shape. Its many positions let you explore a situation’s background, influences, and possibilities in a broad way.
〔Saju〕 Day Master: The heavenly stem of your birth day, taken as the symbol of the self in a Four Pillars chart. It serves as the reference point from which relationships with other characters are read for self-reflection.
Five Elements: The five energies of wood, fire, earth, metal, and water, forming a framework that explains nature and people through cycles of mutual support and restraint. It is used as a tool for reflecting on balance.
Ten Gods: Ten types of relationships that other characters form around the Day Master, describing life themes such as wealth, ties, and talent through metaphor. They serve as a language for reflecting on tendencies and connections.
Great Luck: A concept describing the broad current of life that shifts in roughly ten-year stages, highlighting the texture of energy that stands out in each period. It is approached as a way to understand flow rather than to fix the future.
Heavenly Stems: Ten characters representing the energies of the sky, carrying the five elements and yin-yang to form the upper row of a Four Pillars chart. They are read as symbols reflecting a person’s outward disposition.
Earthly Branches: Twelve characters representing the energies of the earth, linked to the twelve animal signs and forming the lower row of a Four Pillars chart. They are read as clues to time, season, and the energies hidden within.
Tojeong Secret: A Korean tradition of yearly fortune reading rooted in the Joseon era, turning the birth date into numbers that point to short verses about the coming year. It is enjoyed as a custom for reflecting on the new year and steadying the heart.
〔Astrology〕 Sun Sign: The zodiac area where the Sun sat on your birth date, often called your star sign. It is a starting point for reflecting on your core temperament and sense of self.
Moon Sign: The zodiac area where the Moon sat at your birth, seen as a symbol of emotion and inner rhythm. You can use it to explore how you feel and find comfort.
Rising Sign: The sign rising over the eastern horizon at your birth time, also called the ascendant. It can prompt reflection on first impressions and how you meet the world.
House: One of twelve divisions of a birth chart, each symbolising a stage of life such as work, relationships or home. It offers a frame for considering where to focus.
Transit: The angles that planets moving through the present sky form with your birth chart. It can be a cue for savouring the current season and finding room for reflection.
Mercury Retrograde: A period when Mercury appears to move backwards as seen from Earth, often spoken of as a nudge to slow down with messages and plans. It can be a prompt to review and breathe.
Compatibility: A way of comparing two charts to sense the texture and rhythm of a relationship. Treat it lightly, not as a verdict but as a cue for understanding and dialogue.