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Glossary

Arcana

A tarot card understood as carrying a symbolic principle, a dynamic, or a stage of human experience.

The word arcana comes from the Latin arcanum, meaning secret, hidden thing, or reserved knowledge. In the Tarot de Marseille, an arcana is not a mere illustrated support: it acts as a symbolic structure to be interpreted.

An arcana never delivers a mechanical message. Its meaning depends on the question, the position in the spread, the neighboring cards, and the reading method being used.