How the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System: Changed Everything.

MLH

Let’s be honest, Tarot before the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System was like trying to read a novel where every page only had numbers. Pull the Three of Swords from an old deck? You’d get three swords. That’s it. Very helpful. Much emotion. Wow.

The real magic happened in the Minor Arcana. This is where the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System truly began to rewrite the rules. In earlier decks, like the Marseille Tarot, the Minor Arcana featured pip-style cards with symmetrical arrangements of wands, cups, swords, and pentacles—often indistinguishable except by number and suit. Without imagery or figures, interpreting the cards required rote memorization and an encyclopedic knowledge of traditional meanings. You had to know what the heck those cards meant, relying heavily on memorization or guidebooks to tease out any meaning.

But then Pamela Colman Smith got to work, interpreting the vision of A.E. Waite, who provided descriptions and symbolic direction for the cards. However, it’s widely speculated and frankly, evident that Pamela took a great deal of artistic freedom in the execution. She didn’t just follow instructions; she brought emotional depth, visual narrative, and theatrical nuance to every scene. The RWS deck replaced plain pip-style cards with emotionally charged scenes that brim with symbolism and narrative. Even the so-called “boring” cards became visual poems.

Suddenly, you weren’t just looking at Tarot. You were stepping into the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot deck.

The Five of Pentacles wasn’t just five coins floating in space; it was two struggling figures in the snow. The Nine of Swords wasn’t just nine blades; it is a person gripped with fear, grief, and sorrow, who cannot let go, which allows no rest.

Pamela made the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot deck readable because she made it relatable. This wasn’t Tarot for scholars. It was Tarot for the soul. You didn’t need a guidebook. Though you could have one, all you needed was a gut instinct. A flicker of empathy. A quiet moment where the image spoke for itself.

Pamela gave intuitive readers permission to read with their whole bodies, to trust what they saw in a slumped shoulder or a downward gaze and say, “I know that feeling.”

The Story in a Gesture: How Posture, Expression, and Point of View Reveal the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System’s Heart

Pamela Colman Smith didn’t just draw figures; she cast characters. Every tilt of the head, every stiff spine, every distant gaze became part of the visual script. These aren’t just illustrations. They’re mid-story snapshots of genuine emotion in the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) deck.

Posture: The Body Tells the Truth

Eight of Cups: A turned back, low shoulders. The feeling? Emotional departure.
Two of Swords: Crossed arms, straight spine, blindfolded. Guarded and withdrawn.
Nine of Wands: Bandaged and bracing. Defiant resilience.

Interpretation tip: Mirror the posture. Notice what it stirs in you.

Facial Expression (or… the Lack of One)

Pamela didn’t over-render facial expressions. Often, it’s the absence that speaks.

Four of Cups: Blank stare. Emotionally disengaged.
Queen of Swords: Slight expression, commanding presence. Distance with dignity.
Five of Cups: Face hidden, yet sorrow shouts.

Why it works: The subtlety lets you project. The card becomes a mirror.

Perspective: Where Are You Standing?

Pamela manipulated perspective with a filmmaker’s eye in the Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot System.

Seven of Swords: You’re witnessing a theft mid-act.
Five of Cups: You’re behind the figure, sharing in the grief.
The Lovers: You’re both a viewer and a chooser.

Reader’s tip: Ask yourself—am I a participant, witness, or outsider?

Visual Integration Idea:

Mini guide: Silhouettes of postures with keywords. Title: “What the Body Says in the Cards”
Format: Downloadable reference or journal prompt page.

Closing Thought: Pamela didn’t just draw scenes. She planted intuitive triggers in your subconscious. You’re not just decoding the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System. You’re stepping into emotional cinema through the RWS deck’s visual storytelling.

Color as a Secret Code: How the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System Sets the Mood with Hue

Color in the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System is the emotional soundtrack. You might not notice it immediately, but it shapes your entire perception. Pamela painted with emotional intent. A yellow sky? Illumination. A blue robe? Subconscious depth.

Let’s decode a few key hues in the RWS Tarot deck:

Yellow: Illumination, optimism, clarity
- Appears in: The Fool, The Magician, The Sun
- Use it to sense: mental sharpness, joy, insight
Blue: Intuition, calm, inner truth
- Dominates: The High Priestess, The Star
- Use it to feel: emotional depth, spiritual timing
Red: Passion, conflict, energy
- Found in: The Magician, The Devil, The Chariot
- Use it to read: urgency, power, temptation
Gray: Mystery, surrender, liminal space
- See it in: The Moon, Death, The Hanged Man
- Use it to explore: transition, uncertainty, quiet knowing
Green: Growth, abundance, grounding
- Appears in: The Empress, Pentacles, background landscapes
- Use it to locate: fertility, prosperity, healing

Interpretation Practice: Pull a card from the Rider-Waite-Smith deck. Ignore symbols. Just observe the colors. Ask:

What’s the mood?
Where does color guide your eye?
How does it make you feel?

Final Word on Color: Pamela didn’t color in the lines she painted moods. The result? Visual atmospheres that bypass logic and land straight in the heart of the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System. Every hue in the RWS deck tells part of the emotional truth.

Repeating Symbols That Whisper: How Small Details Tell Big Stories in the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System

Pamela Colman Smith was a master of symbolic threads. Her visual Easter eggs appear again and again, tying the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System together with unspoken meaning. Recognizing these gives you access to the deck’s private language.

Mountains – Challenge, Distance, Spiritual Ascent

Seen in: The Fool, The Lovers, The Hermit, Ace of Pentacles
Distant = ideal or unreachable. Close = within grasp.

Water – Emotion, Flow, Subconscious

Found in: Temperance, The Star, Ace of Cups, The Moon
Choppy = emotional chaos. Calm = clarity.

Paths and Roads – Choice, Movement, Journey

Seen in: Two of Wands, The Moon, Page of Pentacles
Ask: Where does it lead? Who walks it?

Animals – Instinct, Power, Guidance

Dog: loyalty, grounding (The Fool)
Lion: courage, power (Strength)
Bird: soul messages (The Lovers, Death)
Horse: force, change (Death, Knights)

Hands – Action, Giving, Receiving, Divine Spark

All Aces: hands as offerings from the divine
Magician: one hand up, one down—as above, so below
Lovers: open hands of choice and consent

Integration Tip: Ask: What’s being offered? Withheld? Invoked?

Why This Still Matters in Every Reading Today

The Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System doesn’t just show you pictures. It lets you feel them.

Through posture, color, symbols, and perspective, Pamela Colman Smith crafted a living emotional system that speaks in body language and archetype. The RWS Tarot deck democratized card reading, imbuing it with soul, and reminded us that Tarot isn’t just a system, but an intuitive art.

When you read the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) Tarot System, you’re not studying a structure. You’re participating in a human story told in gesture, hue, and symbol. The RWS deck bridges the gap between tradition and emotional insight, making each card feel alive.

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