Wheel of Fortune in Tarot: Fate, Turning Points and the Cycles of Becoming

TL;DR: The Wheel of Fortune Quick Reference

Upright: Fate, cycles, turning point, destiny, synchronicity, divine timing, unseen forces, change, opportunity, karma, luck, spiritual motion

Reversed: Stagnation, resistance to change, bad timing, missed opportunity, clinging to control, karmic pattern, repetition, disorder, disorientation, fear of the unknown

The Archetype of The Wheel of Fortune in the Tarot

The Wheel of Fortune is the turning axis of the Major Arcana. It doesn’t promise clarity - only motion. This is the archetype of cosmic movement - the unseen hands, the divine intersections, the patterns we live inside but rarely perceive.

The Wheel marks a moment when control is not the answer. It invites surrender - not passivity, but deep recognition that we are inside something larger than us. When this card appears, it doesn’t say “wait” or “act.” It says watch. Feel. Trust. Align.

It’s the card of the spiral - not circle. The repetition that evolves. The chaos that reveals a pattern only in hindsight.

This is not punishment. It is participation. The Wheel spins for everyone - but those who see the rhythm can move with it, not against it.

Related Cards to Explore

The Lovers in Tarot: Union, Choice and Sacred Alignment

The Chariot in Tarot: Willpower, Movement and the Path of Triumph

Strength in Tarot: Inner Power, Sacred Patience and the Courage to Soften

The Hermit in Tarot: Solitude, Wisdom and the Light Within

Symbolism and Imagery of The Wheel of Fortune

In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, the Wheel sits at the centre of the card - golden, inscribed with the T-A-R-O letters, and surrounded by four winged creatures (The Tetramorph): the man, eagle, lion, and bull - representing the fixed signs of the zodiac (Aquarius, Scorpio, Leo, and Taurus).

On the Wheel’s edge:

• A sphinx sits at the top, holding a sword - symbolising riddles, justice, and mystery
• A serpent descends on the left - the force of involution, descent into form
• The Anubis figure rises on the right - evolution, resurrection, hidden order
  

The background is blue - the colour of the sky, the divine, and consciousness. The Wheel turns inside this void. Nothing stabilises it. No figure touches it. It turns because it does.

This card has no human protagonist. Because the protagonist is you - inside the spin.

Meaning of The Wheel of Fortune in a Tarot Reading

When the Wheel appears, something is shifting - and not by your doing. This card marks external change: a new phase, chance event, karmic rebalancing, or unexpected opportunity.

It suggests synchronicity. Serendipity. The meeting point of personal timeline and cosmic schedule. You didn’t plan this - but it’s arriving anyway.

It may also point to larger cycles you’re inside of: patterns in relationships, career, identity, or soul evolution. Sometimes the Wheel is a gift. Sometimes it’s a test. Often, it’s both.

The guidance is simple, but hard: Don’t cling. Don’t freeze. Stay in motion.

Reversed Meaning of The Wheel of Fortune in a Tarot Reading

Reversed, the Wheel can indicate resistance. You may be trying to hold a pattern that’s trying to break. Or clinging to an outcome that’s no longer aligned.

It may also reflect:

• Bad timing
• Unseen karmic loops
• Frustration at lack of progress
• Belief that you are being punished or overlooked
  

This reversal doesn’t mean your fate is broken. It means your orientation may be off. What if this isn’t a setback - but a redirect? What if it’s not luck - but alignment?

The Wheel reversed says: pause. Look again. Something is turning. The question is: will you turn with it?

The Evolution of The Wheel of Fortune Throughout History

The Wheel is an ancient symbol - found in Buddhist dharma wheels (called Dharmachakra), medieval conceptions of Fortuna (Rota Fortunae), and alchemical cycles of dissolution and rebirth. It has always represented the impermanence of circumstance - the rising and falling of kings, the turning of fortune, and the cyclical nature of all life.

Early Tarot Appearances - Fortuna and the Medieval World

In early decks like the Visconti-Sforza, the card often showed a literal Wheel of Fortune - with figures rising and falling around it. Fortuna herself sometimes appeared blindfolded, turning the wheel by whim.

The message was moral: all rise, all fall. No status is permanent. This Wheel was fate - chaotic, divine, and unmoved by personal merit.

Marseille Tarot - The Mechanism of Change

In the Tarot de Marseille, the Wheel of Fortune card retains the Wheel and its rotating figures - often animalistic or bestial, suggesting involution and evolution, but this time appears as La Roue De Fortune.

One ascends, one descends, one turns. The human is caught in a game they can’t stop.

The Marseille image carries no divine figure - only the turning. The Wheel is its own master. It serves no god - and answers to none.

French Occult Interpretation - Oswald Wirth and the Hidden Law

In the 19th century, Oswald Wirth and his contemporaries (Papus, Lévi, et al.) recast the Wheel of Fortune as a symbol of esoteric order beneath visible chaos.

Wirth’s Wheel of Fortune bore Hebrew letters and alchemical symbols - suggesting that apparent randomness conceals structure. He integrated TARO / ROTA / ORAT (Tarot / Wheel / Speaks) to imply that the Tarot itself is the language of the turning.

Rather than fortune alone, Wirth positioned the Wheel as a key to cosmic rhythm. To him, the Wheel turned not randomly - but initiatically.

Golden Dawn - The Alchemical Axis

The Golden Dawn assigned the Wheel of Fortune to Jupiter - planet of expansion, destiny, and karmic justice. They placed it on Path 21 of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life - connecting Chesed (Mercy) and Netzach (Victory).

Here, the Wheel became the force of benevolent evolution - not luck, but the divine hand moving time forward in favour of growth. The four creatures around the Wheel aligned with the four elements, four evangelists, four corners of creation.

The message: this is not chaos. This is the law of becoming.

The Wheel of Fortune in the 1900s and 2000s

In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, the Wheel becomes mystical and structured. The surrounding creatures read, write, or study. The Sphinx returns - not random, but judicial. Anubis and the serpent mirror alchemical process - descent and ascent.

The card loses its randomness. It gains a cosmic intelligence.

In the Thoth deck, Aleister Crowley reimagines the Wheel of Fortune as a rotating mandala of beings and symbols - violent, complex, beautiful. The message is clear: you are being turned - by karma, by force, by fate.

Modern Decks - Trauma, Timing and Interruption

Contemporary decks often position the Wheel of Fortune within frameworks of healing, trauma cycles, ancestral repetition, or collective fate.

It is seen as a card of momentum - but not always of clarity. The turning is inevitable. Your participation is the variable.

The core remains: change is coming. How you meet it is the lesson.

Numerology and the Number Ten in Tarot

Ten marks completion - but not finality. It is the number of closure that begets beginning. In numerology, Ten collapses back to One (1 + 0) - suggesting that every ending seeds a new origin.

In The Wheel of Fortune, Ten represents the turning point - not the end of a journey, but a change in direction. It’s the hinge. The karmic fulcrum.

Ten teaches us to move in spirals - not lines. To recognise patterns. And to begin again - but not from the same place.

Astrological Resonance of The Wheel of Fortune

The Wheel is associated with Jupiter - planet of expansion, faith, higher law, and spiritual evolution. Jupiter governs opportunity, grace, and the rewards of integrity.

This planetary energy infuses the card with movement that is purposeful - even when it seems arbitrary. It says: this isn’t chance. This is orchestration. You are not in control. But you are included.

Jupiter reminds us to trust the turn - not as blind optimism, but as participation in something larger than ourselves - I mean, Jupiter is The Great Benefic after all. FAQs About The Wheel of Fortune in Tarot

What Does The Wheel of Fortune Mean in a Love Reading?

In love, this card suggests a shift - a new cycle, a surprising encounter, or a karmic reckoning. It may indicate destiny or unexpected realignment. In established relationships, it could mark a pivot point or needed transformation.

Is The Wheel of Fortune a Yes or No Card?

The Wheel says yes - if you’re ready for change. It affirms movement, possibility, and transition. But its yes is conditional on your ability to release control and engage the moment fully.

What Does The Wheel of Fortune Mean When Reversed?

Reversed, it signals resistance to change, frustration with timing, or a pattern repeating until it’s understood. It may reflect missed opportunity or the need to surrender to a larger rhythm.

What Archetype Does The Wheel of Fortune Represent?

The Wheel is the archetype of fate, evolution, and spiritual rhythm. It’s the turning axis that weaves together karma, chaos, and grace. It reminds us: life moves. The invitation is to move with it.