Kings in the Tarot

I think my previous post, Queens in Tarot, has inspired me to do the other court cards. As I said in that post, I have always struggled to find something to help the meanings sink into my brain, to find some point of reference. In my research, I did discover something that may have helped! Turns out that each of the court cards is associated with an element. This coupled with the suit of the court card provides the meaning for each one. The following is the elemental correspondences for each court card:

Kings - Earth

Queens - Water

Knights - Fire

Pages - Air

With this in mind, I have continued my research and have interpreted each King individually as well as the general meaning of the kings. 

General meaning of the Kings

Kings generally represent having a high regard for or great importance placed upon something. It also indicates success on the areas associated with each element. It can indicate that you are, or are being influenced by, a successful man who exhibits traits associated with each suit. As they are they are connected with the element of earth, they are also about being grounded in or practical about something. More generally, and for me, it refers to what you need to do in order to be successful. 

Specific card meanings

King of Wands: success through self-discipline and perseverance. 

As the earthy part of fire, these people embody 'practical will'. This means they are usually very passionate and have learnt how to direct this passion towards concrete results. They enjoy a physical challenge, but value the journey rather than the destination, their great patience allows them to wait until the right opportunity comes along. Relationships are usually approached in the same way and they are best suited to the Queen of Wands. They are confident, honest and straightforward in communication and their advice is to be taken on board as it is the result of their own hard work and practical effort. The lesson in the King of Wands is to harness their passion and will to create something tangible and to work on your self-discipline to gain lasting success. 

King of Cups: success through practical application of emotions and intuition.

This is the earthy part of water leading to creative discipline and the practical application of intuition and emotions. These men will feel their emotions more than the others, yet they will be very practical in the expression of them. Any emotions that don't serve them will be discarded as useless. They have great patience and sensitivity with a focus on their family. They are strong and calm, sentimental and compassionate with great perseverance and patience. They are best served in the caring profession, as they have a great depth and understanding. The lesson for this card is to have a more practical approach to your emotions and creativity for success. 

King of Swords: success through clarity of thought and having a clear plan; high regard for purposeful thought.

Someone told me once that this card indicates depression, and I used to think so but since then I have decided this is one interpretation I will rely on my intuition for, say it when I get the nudge so to speak. More specifically, the King of Swords is the earthy part of air leading to a practical application of thoughts. These people are logical and practical about their ideas and dreams and have a focus on purposeful thought - dreaming of fanciful things are not important to these people. They have a disciplined mind and combine their thoughts with practical action. They are excellent organisers and give sound advice based on personal experience and deep reflection. They long for a relationship based on intellect, as a meeting of minds, and believe that conversation is the best part of a relationship. The lesson in this card isto couple  clarity of thought with practical effort for success. 

King of Pentacles: success through slow, steady steps and practical effort.

This card is pure earth, meaning they have a focus on all things physical. They value physical action above all things and will show their emotions by buying things for those they love. Material possessions are a focus for them as they have learned that they make the journey through life easier. They are more focused on good service rather than value and will chose the silver service over the bistro every time. They are serious, conservative, reliable, grounded, hardworking and pragmatic, but can also be stubborn and territorial. Yet, they are easily rebalanced either through spending time in nature or eating good food. The lesson in this card is to put practical efforts into any project, emotional or physical, and don't give up!

This process for me has been very educational, I have realised the elemental link and connection between the cards and their suits. What is even better, I have realised my own disconnection to Earth and why that is, so yay me!! Definitely need to work with this element more......

*information based on that found in The Tarot Revealed, my own interpretations and conversations with others.