| World | |
|---|---|
 | |
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Other Names |
Time, The Crown of the Magi |
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First Appearance |
Tarot Card Decks |
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Created by |
Unknown |
Origin[]
The World (XXI) is the 21st trump or Major Arcana card in the tarot deck. It can be incorporated as the final card of the Major Arcana or tarot trump sequence (the first or last optioned as being "The Fool" (0)). It is associated with the 22nd letter of the Hebrew alphabet, 'Tau', also spelled 'Tav' or 'Taw'.
In the traditional Tarot of Marseilles, as well as the later Rider–Waite tarot deck, a naked woman hovers or dances above the Earth holding a baton in each hand, surrounded by a wreath, being watched by the four living creatures (or hayyoth) of Jewish mythology: a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle. This depiction parallels the tetramorph used in Christian art, where the four creatures are used as symbols of the four Evangelists.
Some astrological sources explain these observers as representatives of the natural world or the kingdom of beasts. According to astrological tradition the Lion is Leo—a fire sign, the Bull or calf is Taurus—an earth sign, the Man is Aquarius—an air sign, and the Eagle is Scorpio—a water sign. These signs are the four fixed signs and represent the classical four elements. In some decks the wreath is an ouroboros biting its own tail.
According to A.E. Waite's 1910 book The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, the World card carries several divinatory associations:
21.THE WORLD—Assured success, recompense, voyage, route, emigration, flight, change of place. Reversed: Inertia, fixity, stagnation, permanence.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of the World from before January 1, 1930 are public domain in the US.
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1910)
Public Domain Game Appearances[]
- Rider–Waite Tarot Deck (1910)
Notes[]
- In "Stardust Crusaders", the third part of Hirohiko Araki's JoJo's Bizarre Adventure series, every character's "stand" is based on a different tarot card.