Wheel of Fortune, meanings?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 06 Jun 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

aeonx	06 Jun 2002
Greetings all. The Wheel of Fortune has started to pop up in my readings recently, and I wanted to discuss its meanings in different positions. In Thirteens basics, she portrays this card as a lucky card bringing good fortune along. However, I get the feeling from Pollack's 78DW that it's not that great. I mean, she mentions a couple of times an end to something, i.e. a love affair. Yet she points out that the person will end up happy, no matter this end. The most difficult position for this card, is the 'Advice'-position. How can the Wheel of Fortune function as an advice? Is it time to do those changes long longed for? If you take that first step, you will make the wheel turn? Maybe the advice means that you need to take that first move, in order to affect the Universe. I've also gotten it up in the 'He feels'-position in my relationship spread. I interpret this as him feeling that things are changing for him, big things. This is a good thing, and maybe unexpected. He lets go of old things, and begins to get ready to face new ones. With the Six of Cups in the 'Hidden factors'-position, I see this in relation to him. In addition, Death was in the 'Advice'-position, and yet another indicator of shift in feelings and situations. Maybe the Wheel suggest that he is ready to start a new venture. He has matured, welcomes new things into his life and letting go of old, maybe bad, habits. As for the Wheel in the 'Outcome'-position, I see this as changes being available to one in the near future. Or that this change is unavoidable. One will learn and grow, and one will find oneself in better times. The Wheel reversed I'm not quite sure of, you need to help me out on this one! Can one interpret it to a big change having a bad outcome, for instance? Or that one fails to accept changes in life? OK. I'm exited to hear your opinions on this one. :) ~aeonx~

Kazz	06 Jun 2002
Hi aeonx, My thoughts on the "wheel of Fortune" card does vary depending on the position that it is in, but mainly for me it means a strong influence of fate "where the wheel stops no matter where" it is mean't to be , for good or for bad. so i read it as in the outcome position as a "this is fate and whatever the situation this is mean't to be for you at this time". you also can look at it as being a good card for things looking up, or getting better as it is "fate" so in this life it is "mapped out" so to speak, and you must except the hand that life sometimes deals for us for we will be better for it, and we will learn from it. If it comes up in the "he feels" position to me it indicates that he would be thinking along the lines of "if we are mean't to be together then we will " sort of feeling , or "are we mean't for each other?" is this destiny? This card also can mean "be prepared for any changes that are coming" and if you are down the only way to go is up. I think this card is very positive and i find it a relief to see it in a "question" spread (looking for answers) as when i see this card i know that whichever way i go (or the querent) it is mean't to be for a reason. Fate If it comes up in a money spread or job, it can mean sudden success or changes in fortune. Reversed (which i never get much at all) could mean "set backs" failure, things not changing. I am not much good on some of the reversed meanings so it could be wrong. Oh I have really raved on just a little too much, I didn't realize how long i was typing for sorry aeonx i should have kept it shorter. I hope you get something out of this Cheers Kazz :TQC (BTW how do you make some words bolder like they are emphesized, highlighted?)

aeonx	06 Jun 2002
Kazz: thanx a whole bunch for your input! And actually I enjoy long answers like this, because it was interesting all the way! :D (It's much better than the short ones, i.e. it means fate *lol* No offense to anyone!) I too picture a hand reaching down to us to stir things up a bit. *giggle* What an image! *God bumping his finger in someone to get them to do something* Well, then there's only that 'Advice'-position left. What does it want here? Do you guys agree on what I conclude with, or do you have anything to add? Let me know. :) ~aeonx~

Kazz	06 Jun 2002
advice??? LOL "dont' tempt fate" that is just my humour sorry :rolleyes: Seriously i would say to the client "its gonna be what its gonna be so except it and expect it" (you didn't tell me how to make my words bold and stand out?) Cheers Kazz :TQC

Kazz	06 Jun 2002
(b)never mind i think i got it(/b)

aeonx	06 Jun 2002
Kazz: Oh sorry, I didn't see the BTW! :( You got it now? Great! :) Yes, I agree with you on the 'Advice'. *s* ~aeonx~

Feisty Kat	06 Jun 2002
I've had the wheel of fortune not only mean a change in luck but also a lack of stability or a loss of stability. Just another thought to toss on the pile. B*B--Feisty Kat

Umbrae	06 Jun 2002
The Wheel. It is about good things. Big things. An abundance of luck, change, and happiness. It is also about the things that come with change (perks). When living under the influence of the wheel, things just seem to ‘happen’ around you, money drops in your lap, job offers come from nowhere; you tend to be so busy, that you tend to forget you are living on the wheel. But what takes a person up, can take a person down. Some folks fight like hell, not realizing the wheel is taking them up…surrender to the wheel and do not fight it. The wheel can just as easily crush those who fight it or stand in its way. Folks are told to count their blessings; most folks ignore them, never seeing the obvious. The Wheel reminds you that it is within your power to find your place upon the wheel; you can be at the hub, motionless, or on the edge, riding the wind of destiny. The Wheel also reminds us, if you do not play, you cannot win. Whiners are not rewarded. Reversed: Same as upright, but perhaps timing is off. Here is the heart of The Wheel, be it advice or outcome, emotion or logic; we are told that we have the power to create our own universe, that the world is our mirror. Life is about consequences to our choices (actions). If you choose to not roll the dice, nothing will ever happen. If we do not play, there is no luck. You need to make more opportunities than you find. You will find that indeed, you make your own luck; it is easiest when the wind blows in your direction. Confine yourself to observing and you will always miss the point. Life is a game whose rules you learn if you leap in and play it to the hilt. Otherwise, you are off balance, continually surprised by the sifting play. Non-Players usually whine that life passes them by. They create their own lack of luck. They struggle through life, having to live with not just poor decisions, but failure to make a decision in the first place. The Wheel is nothing more, than an invitation to the dance. Only a fool passes up a chance to dance.

Original Destiny	06 Jun 2002
:TFOOL...for me THE WHEEL is but a single point...this point is a pivot...a crossroads...it is that very small point/time when things can be changed...drastically...for good or bad...it is a singularity...pure and free from direction,,,it gives the opportunity to clear all that has gone before...it is choice and change...choose to take the opportunity...or not...you can write a new chapter...how it will turn out ...time will tell...:THERM

aeonx	07 Jun 2002
Umbrae: thank you, again, for your wisdom! :) So, one can actually be 'crushed' by the wheel? If you try to fight destiny, you will only end up hurt anyway? But if the Wheel is destiny, fighting would be useless... Hm. Have to think about that one. ~aeonx~

aeonx	07 Jun 2002
Quote: Originally posted by Original Destiny :TFOOL...for me THE WHEEL is but a single point...this point is a pivot...a crossroads...it is that very small point/time when things can be changed...drastically...for good or bad...it is a singularity...pure and free from direction,,,it gives the opportunity to clear all that has gone before...it is choice and change...choose to take the opportunity...or not...you can write a new chapter...how it will turn out ...time will tell...:THERM So you don't actually see the Wheel as fate working, but as a crossroad where you have to make a choice? Interesting viewpoint, since it seems like the general opinion of the Wheel is fate in action. How have you come to understand the Wheel like this? *s* Feisty Kat: do you apply these meanings to special positions? ~aeonx~

Original Destiny	07 Jun 2002
aeonx...The wheel spinsround and round and we can become trapped on the rim , so to speak...going around in circles...to move on we have to break these cycles... experience has altered the traditional interpretations that i learned...experience in reading for others...i find that when this card turns up in a reading you can either go with the flow. FOLLOW another cycle which means making the same choices and mistakes, perpetuating things....or...by being aware of the central point of the wheel...the axis...one has the opportunity to stop the cycle and...initiate a new direction....it is like finding the inner meaning of the card...for me it is one of the most sygnificant cards in the deck...it can alter FOLLOW into CREATE..for me it is that central point of the wheel that is important not the cycle....hope i have made sense here...writing down a concept for the first time is difficult...:TFOOL

aeonx	08 Jun 2002
Original Destiny: thank you for your insight. :) But, do you see the Wheel of Fortune suggesting a great change in life? And that you have to make that change? I mean, you are 'offered' a chance to change things in your life, and the Wheel pops up to show you this? Many interpret the Wheel as being the work of fate, that is; you cannot prevent the change. Do you see the Wheel as a choice you can make? *confused me* *l* ~aeonx~

Original Destiny	14 Jun 2002
aeonx..the Wheel traditionally means change..fate...but by experience, for me, the Wheel OFFERS the opportunity TO change..MY readings for clients are pro_active , not reactive...thus the client has the choice...to either follow fate...or!..take fate by the throat and make a real change...either for good or bad...The cards impel not compel...The way i do readings is that i empower the client to get hold of life. to drive forwards....instead of being dragged along...THE WHEEL, for me is a VERY powerfol card...:TFOOL

aeonx	15 Jun 2002
OK. Thank you all for replying to this thread, I've certainly learned much more about the Wheel now. And there's no doubt that it's a very powerful card! :) ~aeonx~

Major Tom	15 Jun 2002
Excellent answers from Umbrae and Original Destiny. :D In the advice position the Wheel can simply be an indication that it's time to 'try your luck' - to go ahead and make the changes and break a cycle.

aeonx	15 Jun 2002
Major Tom: Can one say then that it's a good time for gambling? Jump from the cliff and take a peek at the unknown... :D ~aeonx~

Major Tom	15 Jun 2002
Quote: Originally posted by aeonx Major Tom: Can one say then that it's a good time for gambling? Jump from the cliff and take a peek at the unknown... :D ~aeonx~ Yep! })

catboxer	15 Jun 2002
This is the card we happen to be discussing at the moment in the Marseilles decks study group. One striking aspect of this card is that the image it contains was well known before the card was created. During the middle ages and the Renaissance, churches throughout Europe incorporated sculpted, carved, or painted versions of the wheel of fortune. Even the illiterate and unsophisticated were able to interpret this image as a representation of life's vicissitudes -- "One day you're up, the next day, down." I've always interpreted it as representing life's inevitable cycles of ups and downs, with the attendant implication that all of us must ride the wheel, and that it never stops. Anyone who feels like he's "sitting on top of the world" better not get used to it -- he won't be there long. On the other hand, it's possible to hit bottom and stay there; on the Visconti-Sforza card an old man at the bottom of the picture has fallen off the wheel, and looks like he may not be able to get back on for another ride. In a reading, I usually take this card as an indication of a change of luck, or a sign that the trajectory the questioner's life has been following -- upward or downward -- is about to change, and that he or she is at an apogee or a nadir. If the card is reversed, it indicates a questioner who is unable to accept or deal adequately with life's ups and downs. That's my take on it anyway.

Scorpion	15 Jun 2002
Hi, Aeonx! While I agree with just about everything here, I just wanted to point up another aspect in my understanding of the Wheel which hasn't really been covered yet - that is, time. I see this as along the lines of "things will fall into place, given time" or "only time will tell", depending on the position. This does not in any way negate the "fate" or "grab the opportunity with both hands" meanings - rather, I see it as advice either to say "OK, what will be, will be" or "I don't like this, let's take another throw of the dice" whilst not agonising too much over the consequences. That's not to say that you shouldn't make the best decision you are capable of in the circumstances, but don't waste energy about whether it was the right or wrong one once you've set the wheel in motion and put it in the lap of the gods. Am I makiing sense?!

Starfish	15 Jun 2002
Aeonx - Thanks for asking the question! I have learned so much about the Wheel of Fortune and have printed out all of the comments to put into my journal. Thanks to everyone for all of there wonderful insight. I have to admit that this card is definitely one of the most confusing (to me personally) Major Arcana cards. :TQS Starfish

aeonx	17 Jun 2002
catboxer & LouiQ: Thanks for adding your comments! I've learned incredible much by having this discussion, and I've gotten to know the WF so much better. It will be much easier for me when I get this card up in readings from now on! :D Thank you! ~aeonx~

aeonx	17 Jun 2002
Quote: Originally posted by Starfish Aeonx - Thanks for asking the question! I have learned so much about the Wheel of Fortune and have printed out all of the comments to put into my journal. Thanks to everyone for all of there wonderful insight. I have to admit that this card is definitely one of the most confusing (to me personally) Major Arcana cards. :TQS Starfish Yup, me too! It's really great discussing cards on this board, the people here have so many great opinions on them! :D Hm. Wonder which card to discuss next?? Maybe Judgement? Or the Hierophant. *l* ~aeonx~

Starfish	17 Jun 2002
Quote: Originally posted by aeonx Hm. Wonder which card to discuss next?? Maybe Judgement? Or the Hierophant. Oh, I hope the Hierophant first... :TQW Starfish

aeonx	17 Jun 2002
OK, I'll have to take a look at him when I come home, and post a new thread tomorrow. :) ~aeonx~

blackmon487	08 Jun 2004
Since the basic meanings are change, cycles, luck, fate, destiny, and second chances I find instead of representing one of the basic keywords it tends to represent a behavorial issue. Meaning, their is a behavior pattern which the querent is repeating over and over and is usually unaware of. If the querent realizes the repeating pattern and confronts the issue, when the opportunity or second chance reappears, he/she is able to make a different decision allowing for a successful outcome. Since this type of behavior is found in all aspect of our lives, relationships, finances, career, etc. it allows me to inform the querent of the behavoiral issue. By doing this I have helped the querent to break away from the repeating pattern, to move on and accept change in a positive manner.

yusia	22 Jan 2005
This is an old thread, but i can`t find a better place for my small observation. Today it was the first time when i did a real reading for the other person. I consider her my friend, but we are not really close, and i am not aware of all the realities of her life. At the end of the session she asked me about some important issue - what happens, if she takes one difficult decision. I layed out a spread - all Minors, mostly wands (no wonder - it was career change question), and in the position of "advice" - oops - The Wheel of Fortune, reversed. I was already tired and just looked stupidly at the card, not really thinking even. And then - i don't know, where did it come from - all of a sudden i open my mouth and say : " Looks like decision is done already, isn't it?" And here she blushes and looks in astonishment - "How d`you know?" Well, i didn`t know at all that she has anything like that coming. But now I think that the Wheel is not only about good/bad luck or fate - it reflects the changes in the life that one can do.

rainwolf	24 Jan 2005
I like the wheel! LOL I think it is all about cycles and fate to a certian extent, maybe through example it will become more evident. In advice, i think it would signify to go with the flow adn become flexible. Also that life in that specific instance is cyclic. In 'he feels' i think it would mean he feels like things are going in circles, and the same outcome is often predictable. As an outcome, i would leave the issue to work itself out while working with it. Again, the idea of a cycle-maybe you should be able to predict the outcome and confront it with your desires and expectations. Reversals are always fun, huh? LOL Actually, i think it is rather easy with the wheel, albeit not always wanted. Basically, i would describe the wheel as slowing down. Youre getting the message to slow down and examine whats going on, and prepare yourself for the unexpected that may show itself. Also look to surrounding cards to see what it means. Hope that helps! ~rainwolf

tarotbear	24 Jan 2005
The Wheel is an odd card whose picture has changed a few times with the years. Some have figures, some do not, some have a different number of figures doing different activities. In one old, possible Marseilles variation I have, blindfolded (Fate) turns the wheel. At the top a couple seems to be dancing, but a hapless man is falling off the wheeel and off a cliff at the bottom of the card? (Any Ideas?) I different interpretation I have seen has four figures, one at each Cardinal point. They have little mottoes that say (rising) I SHALL Reign; at the top I REIGN, on the down side I HAVE REIGNED; and the figure at the bottom I AM WITHOUT REIGN. There are some interesting possiblities here, for not only do you get the upright/reversed meaning as I REIGN/AM WITHOUT REIGN, but should the card come up as the cross card (card #2) in a Celtic cross, then it has the added meanings of I SHALL/HAVE reigned! In the Wheel of the Robin Wood deck, there are eight figures whose expressions range from joy to neutral to sadness, and back, depending on how the card comes up.

judylea1	24 Jan 2005
I find this card to be a bit ominous in a way, things can go either way. Like the Wheel of Fortune on the T.V. show except this wheel rides on past karma and not luck, you reap what you have sewn in the past. Especially as an outcome card, you may want to consider how you have behaved in past romantic relationships. Unfortunately, this card doesn't tell you the outcome, even as an "outcome" card, you won't know what it is until it's there in front of you.

rainwolf	24 Jan 2005
I think it could be related to the TV show for even better understanding, as sad as that sounds. For instance, you make the decision to be one the show, build the courage to participate, and willfully 'give it a spin'. But thats the last point you have control over. Although there cannot be very much karma in the spin (well, thats another thread LOL), there were personal actions that lead up to a point where karma took over, which is possibly an interpretation: you can only do so much, but it does matter what you do...hmm, that sounds like a moral.

The Wheel of Fortune, meanings? thread was originally posted on 06 Jun 2002 in the Using Tarot Cards board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Using Tarot Cards, or read more archived threads.