Justice ⚖️
I recently had jury duty.
I know jury duty is one of those things people complain about and want to get out of, but I was excited and looking back, I'm glad I did it. It was fascinating to see how the court system works from that perspective. I think if you're called to do it and it fits your schedule, you definitely should. Plus, you know, you're supposed to 😉
Jury duty got me thinking about the Justice card. It's #11 in the major arcana.
Justice is all about balance, harmony, and equilibrium. It can symbolize things like legal proceedings, decisions, and the sense that justice will prevail. It's associated with Libra, an air sign characterized by its sense of fairness, an appreciation for beauty (thanks, ruling planet Venus!) and the ability to see both sides of an argument.
Let's break it down.
There's a lot going on in Justice. (Well, there's a lot going on in every tarot card 😆) Let's look at her hands first:
Traditionally, the right hand is considered the "giving" hand and the left is considered the "receiving" hand. To put this into action, you might choose to pull cards from your deck with your left hand, since you're receiving their messages, and light a candle with your right hand to give the candle whatever intention you're setting.
Justice has the scale in her left hand and a sword in her right. Right away, we can see Libra's influence here: the scales, its literal symbol, and the sword, the suit associated with the element of air.
With the scales in her left hand, you can interpret that as her receiving all the details about the issue she's ruling on. Think about the symbol of the scales of justice. Before we went into deliberations, the judge emphasized the importance of nuance and thinking in terms of the scales of justice to us—very few cases are open-and-shut, and the case I served on certainly wasn't one of them.
So, like your Libra friend who takes forever to make a decision, Justice carefully weighs the information she's presented with.
But she can't deliberate forever. Eventually, Justice needs to reach a verdict and make a ruling, and the sword in her right hand symbolizes that. In tarot, swords are objectivity and truth. They're thoughts and the positions we reach through reasoning, rather than emotion or the opportunity for personal gain. Whatever ruling she makes, we can be confident she reached it through carefully examining the evidence and considering all possible outcomes.
Tarot Disassembled is a really great deck for breaking down and understanding cards because it shows each element in isolation:
from Tarot Disassembled
Other important symbols in this card include her crown, a symbol of her authority, and the white shoe peeking from beneath her robe, a symbol of her humanity. Her ruling will affect her too, so she needs to reach a verdict she can live with.
Then there are the pillars on either side. You see this imagery a lot in tarot: behind the High Priestess, behind the Hierophant, on the Moon, and in the background on Death. Pillars are a gateway. They're a clear demarcation between before and after, here and there, spiritual and tangible, above and below, all of those gateways we pass through on this thing called the Fool's Journey.
You can also read into the colors present in this card, such as Justice's red robe that symbolizes her power and the purple cloth hanging between the pillars. Purple is the color of spirituality, which can indicate that although logic and reasoning are at the forefront in this card, spiritual connection is operating in the background.
On my deck, the cloth looks more red than purple. So I'll split the difference and call it maroon.
So…what does it mean when you pull Justice in a reading? That's the part everybody wants to know. What does it mean??
Well, depending on the context, it could mean:
Justice will prevail because whoever is tasked with serving it will do so with integrity
You are tasked with serving justice, and you've got the wisdom and knowledge to do so with integrity
They're pretty similar, but one has you in the driver's seat and the other has you at the mercy of an institution or another person. This is where the question you ask is important—if you ask your tarot cards whether you'll get the job you interviewed for last week and you pull Justice, you can trust the interviewer took you seriously and will make their decision carefully. If you ask them what you should make for dinner and you pull Justice, take that as a sign you should think carefully about whether it's really a good idea to order takeout again or if you've got better options in the fridge.
