The World Major Arcana XXI · tarot card meaning
- Planet
- Saturn
- Hebrew letter
- Tav
- Yes or no
- Yes
The World upright
The World is completion that actually closes: arrival, a circle finished, a long thing done and felt as done. Look at the four corners. They hold the same creatures that guard the Wheel, ten cards earlier.
Yes or no: Yes, completely. The World answers at the close of a cycle done well.
The World reversed
Reversed, the World comes through as the circle not quite closing — an ending nobody marked. A thing finished on paper and not in the body, or a last step left untaken. Tradition reads this as delay, not failure.
Yes or no: No, while the situation remains fixed. The reversal points to stagnation or permanence, not an almost-finished cycle.
The card at a glance
- Attribution
- System
- First printed
- Themes
- ending, balance, growth
What is shown
A naked dancing figure turns inside an oval green wreath. Violet cloth wraps across the body and streams outward. One short wand points upward in each hand. Red ribbons bind the wreath above and below. A winged human, eagle, lion, and bull emerge from clouds in the four corners.
- Number
- XXI
- Yes or no
- Yes
The World upright
Le Monde places a dancing figure within a wreath held by four creatures. It represents completion, balance, connection, and achieved integration.
Yes or no: Yes. Le Monde shows completion, balance, and all parts working together.
The World reversed
Reversed, completion becomes a closed bubble or idealized self-image. Inner experience and outer life no longer move together.
Yes or no: Not yet. Reversed, the cycle looks complete but remains disconnected.
Le Monde is read in its Marseille title, image, and position; its RWS link is a structural cross-reference, not permission to replace the card's identity.
The card at a glance
- Printed title
- LE MONDE
- Printed number
- XXI
- Pattern
- Edition
- Themes
- ending, balance, growth
- Deck
- Tarot de Marseille: The World (Le Monde)
What is shown
A nearly nude figure steps inside an oval wreath tied with red ribbons. One hand holds a short baton. A human figure and eagle occupy the upper corners. An ox and lion appear below, each with a halo.
- Attribution
- Nabuchodenasor (21)
- Yes or no
- It depends
The World upright
Nabuchodenasor sits below a winged dragon enclosed within a blue circle, holding a staff across his body. Human and monstrous power occupy separate fields.
Yes or no: It depends. Nabuchodenasor can hold the greater force apart, but its influence remains powerful.
The World reversed
Reversed, containment weakens or authority identifies with the force above it. The dragon's power begins to govern the seated figure's response.
Yes or no: No. Reversed, the larger force is governing the answer.
Nabuchodenasor is read within Sola Busca's own trump order, not as a stand-in for an RWS major.
The card at a glance
- Attribution
- Nabuchodenasor (21)
- Workshop
- First documented
- c. 1491
- Themes
- ending, balance, growth
- Deck
- Sola Busca: Nabuchodenasor (21)
What is shown
Nabuchodenasor sits low beneath a great winged dragon enclosed by a blue circular field. He holds a long staff across his body. Red and white drapery spreads beneath him.
Questions
What does The World mean?
A cycle completes and becomes part of you. The World is completion that actually closes: arrival, a circle finished, a long thing done and felt as done.
What does The World mean reversed?
Reversed, the World comes through as the circle not quite closing — an ending nobody marked.
Is The World a yes or no card?
Yes upright, no reversed. Completely.
What is shown on The World?
A naked dancing figure turns inside an oval green wreath.
