This post might contain affiliate links. If you choose to purchase through these links, we may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. By using these links you are directly supporting our ability to share our mystical musings, thank you!

The Empress Card

The third numbered Major Arcana Tarot card is The Empress, representing abundance, creation, and growth. It is a figure of generation, of fertility and fecundity in every sense of the word, and of nourishment. It represents the maternal archetype, the nurturance we need, give, and receive.

The Empress is a lusciously rich and pregnant card of potential and presence. It is about revelling in life’s simple pleasures, the natural cornucopia of Mother Earth, and the necessity of filling our cups up, and divine right to do so.

Read on more for the meaning of The Empress Tarot card in various situations:

The Empress Tarot Card Meaning

The Empress Tarot card meaning is one of pure sustenance. It is connection, fulfilment, and the luxury of the land. In the Rider Waite Smith Tarot deck, the figure sits in an overflowing wonderland, full of beauty and resource.

It is a card of reaping what has been sown, of harvest and satiety. She is enthroned in a field of golden wheat springs, symbol of fertile abundance and natural wealth. Behind her a winding stream surround and a waterfall of nourishment cascades, symbols of emotional fulfilment and connection the self and body.

She holds a sceptre and wears a crown of twelve stars (one for each of the Zodiac Signs or months), connection to the divinity of the Universe. The roses on her dress are a symbol of love and beauty.

She is comfortable sitting on plush cushions, symbol of indulgence, in red- symbol of power. When we completely taking care of ourselves, when we rest, refuel, and re-parent; we can enter a state of true comfort and pleasure.

These are all symbols of the intrinsic potency between mysticism and the mundane. A reminder that the portals between life and death and other worlds literally exists in the womb space. That all of life is in a constant state of growth, change, plenty, mutation, death, decay, and renewal. There is fertility in the compost.

To learn more about the world of Tarot, enrol in my Intuitive Tarot Course!

Astrology of The Empress Tarot Card

Astrologically, this is a Venus card. One cushion features its glyph, coloured in green— the colour of Venus, nature, and the Heart Chakra. Some view it as a shield which implies that in this nurturance, we are also defending and protecting ourselves, being our own advocate. Only we can know when our well is empty.

Venus is the Planet of romance, relationships, sweetness, balance, diplomacy, resources (such as money), and the finer things in life. This correspondence is a reminder of the essential concept that first we must connect to the self, before we can harmoniously connect to the other.

Numerology of The Empress Tarot Card

Numerologically, the number 3 is a symbol of creation, creativity, harmony, teamwork, and belonging. It is the initiation into the greater collective, the magic that comes from a greater whole than the sum of its parts. The Empress encourages co-creation and embrace of feminine energy.

Historically in the old Italian Tarot cards, the Empress card had a more monarchical role, a more similar counterpart to The Emperor. In this, we can see the need to govern with empathy and from the heart, while not eschewing our own self-sovereignty and agency; which can in return better serve others. It can be a reminder that your body is a temple to be revered.

Overall, when we pull The Empress in a Tarot reading, it can symbolise a call to take care of ourselves, to stop and smell the roses, to indulge in the pleasures of life- because otherwise what’s the point? We won’t get very far running on fumes. When The Empress appears in a reading, nurturing and tending to our bodies, energy, and emotions is key now.

An upright Empress represents a portal, a liminal time of in-between, the womb stage when something is gestating and waiting to be birthed through us (either literally or figuratively). It can be the sacred pregnancy of something coming to life, whether that be a project, a new identity, or an actual baby.

The Empress Tarot Card Reversed

The Empress reversed can indicate a need to not resist re-mothering ourselves, of giving our body and inner child the care it needs right now. It can be an invitation to allow what wants to come through us to do so. Birth can be scary, if we trust in our capabilities and the natural timing, treating ourselves with nurturance we need through such a process, we can allow our cups to fill up.

A reversed Empress can be a reminder that perhaps we have been neglecting the body, the simple pleasures in life, or our own natural states. Sometimes, it is a message that what we are embarking on is not in our best interest or that we need more care of it, a shift is needed to remove the creative block and spark that new idea.

The Empress Tarot Card in a General Reading

When The Empress shows up for us in general Tarot readings, it is a beautiful reminder of the natural abundance within and without, and an invitation to slow down and revel in the pleasures of the body and life. It can be a call to embrace what is wishing to be birthed through us and to heed to our needs with care. Whatever you are wishing to create in the world, allow it to come through; and don’t forget to tend to yourself in the process.

two-wander-mystical-guidebook-bundle-save-now

The Empress Tarot Card Love Meaning

In a love Tarot reading, The Empress is a beautiful card to receive! Of course, as with every single card and placement, it all ENTIRELY depends on the Tarot spread and question it is answering, the surrounding cards, and the nature of the querent and the situation, as well as your immediate instinctive reaction- this will ultimately show you its correct significations, as with all Tarot card meanings. Often, it can be an invitation to whole-heartedly step into and enjoy the relationship or new dynamic.

The Empress Tarot Card in a Career Reading

In a career reading, The Empress can be a call to question what new projects, ideas, directions are ready to come through us. It is an indication that we are at a fruitful stage and to indulge in the abundance of its offerings. It can symbolise the need for more care to be given or received on the workplace, or of an invitation to check in that all our needs are being met.

So those are some of the significations of The Empress Tarot Card, let me know if you have any questions or anything else to add in the comments section below.

If you would like me to interpret the cards for you instead, book in a personalise reading with me :)

For a free Tarot pull weekly, subscribe to my newsletter below!