Table of contents
Keywords
Upright: joy, affection, accomplishment, confidence, vitality.
Reversed: temporary sorrow, delayed success, pride, diminished energy.
Read the image
The main image
The child's open posture expresses innocence recovered through experience. Maturity need not exclude playfulness.
The surrounding scene
The Sun's face suggests consciousness and shared understanding, in contrast with The Moon's hidden depths.
A telling detail
The rays carry light into the whole scene. Their straight and wavy forms join action with sustaining energy.
Archetype: ability and triumph. Astrological association: the Sun.
Overview
The Sun predicts success, joy and a clearer understanding of your situation. What was hidden becomes visible. Its warmth brings confidence, energy and the freedom to enjoy life.
Card 19 is generous and outward-looking. Family, friendship, physical vitality and material abundance can all express its blessings. Reversed, the light may be temporarily clouded, or pride may make it harder to recognise what needs care.
A closer look at The Sun
Description
A child rides a white horse beneath a large, radiant sun. The child wears a red feather and carries a flowing red banner. Four sunflowers grow behind a low wall.
The child is naked and the horse has no saddle or reins. Openness and spiritual strength appear together, with no need for a guarded display. The straight and wavy rays convey active, sustaining energy.
Meaning
Upright
The upright Sun foretells abundance, achievement and the pleasures of sharing life with others. It favours health, strength and recovery. Enjoy your abilities and recognise what has gone well.
Its summer energy brings warmth to family, friendship and love. Success can be celebrated without hiding it or diminishing someone else's contribution.
Reversed
Reversed, The Sun warns against arrogance or misplaced boasting. Success may be delayed, energy reduced or happiness temporarily obscured.
Slow down where necessary and attend to your body and emotional needs. A bright appearance does not remove the need for care.
The symbolism of The Sun
- The child's open posture expresses innocence recovered through experience. Maturity need not exclude playfulness.
- The Sun's face suggests consciousness and shared understanding, in contrast with The Moon's hidden depths.
- The rays carry light into the whole scene. Their straight and wavy forms join action with sustaining energy.
- The red feather conveys vitality. It also appears in The Fool and Death.
- The flowing banner expresses life and joy made visible.
- The white horse represents purity and spiritual strength. Its freedom from reins suggests confidence without force.
- The wall gives the scene a boundary. Even in happiness, reasonable limits have a place.
- The four sunflowers connect the image with the four suits and elements. Light and shadow together make their forms visible.
The Sun as Feelings
In a question about someone's feelings, The Sun can describe warm, open affection. Its orientation and position help explain how that emotional pattern is expressed.
Upright feelings
Warm, open affection
The Sun can indicate happiness, genuine warmth and pleasure in the connection. Someone may feel comfortable being seen and expressing their interest. Affection is open, and the bond can bring confidence, enjoyment and a sense of shared vitality.
Reversed feelings
Warmth temporarily diminished
Reversed, affection can be affected by a passing disappointment, diminished confidence or pride. The person may find it harder to show their happiness even when the connection still matters. Read whether the other cards describe a temporary difficulty or a wider problem.
A hypothetical relationship reading
In a feelings position, the upright Sun can show uncomplicated delight in being together. In a future position, it can foretell a happier phase, with the present and challenge cards explaining how that phase may be reached.
Read these feelings through the question and the card's position. The full love and relationship interpretations below explain how the same emotional pattern can affect a connection.
The Sun in a reading
Imagine asking about a presentation after weeks of preparation. Upright, The Sun predicts a successful result and recognition for the work. Reversed, it may show a delay, a confidence dip or pride that prevents you from accepting useful feedback.
The Six of Cups shares the childlike warmth of this card. The Ten of Cups concentrates on shared emotional happiness, while The Sun brings broader clarity, vitality and achievement.
Love and relationships
Upright
The Sun favours meeting someone whose company brings laughter and confidence. For a couple, it predicts an enjoyable period of closeness, shared pleasures or a holiday together. Give one another room to remain free within the connection.
A relationship with a child or younger relative may also renew your sense of play and humour.
Reversed
Distance or repetition may have dimmed the relationship's warmth. You may be noticing only the difficulties. Old wounds need attention before enjoyment returns.
If you are single, discouragement can make love feel distant. The clouding is temporary; remain open to an unexpected connection.
Career
Upright
The Sun predicts success, recognition or an exciting job offer. Confidence grows as your work produces results. Share credit with the people who helped you and let your experience encourage others.
Teaching, childcare, celebration, farming and work that inspires people are among its career associations.
Reversed
A job may feel repetitive or fail to use your imagination and abilities. Look for a way to restore interest and direction. A temporary loss of enthusiasm does not mean your talents have disappeared.
Health and well-being
Upright
The Sun is favourable for recovery and renewed vitality. Its energy encourages enjoyable movement, play and time outdoors. Make room for pleasure in ordinary life as well as major celebrations.
Reversed
Reduced energy or anxiety may be affecting your well-being. Seek answers about a concern rather than allowing fear to magnify it. Spiritual or energy-based support may also have a place in the card's reading.
Finances
Upright
The Sun predicts material success and the easing of financial problems. Help may arrive from an unexpected source. Receive the improvement gratefully while continuing to manage money with care.
Its spiritual meaning connects abundance with generosity: resources can flow onward to do good.
Reversed
Review a plan that no longer fits your circumstances. A setback may be temporary, and worry can make it seem larger than it is. Adjust the approach and use what you have learned.
The Sun and Other Cards
A neighbouring card can emphasise, complicate or change the direction of a reading. Compare what each card contributes before deciding how they connect.
The question gives the pair its context
The Sun brings joy, affection, accomplishment into the reading. The Moon adds uncertainty, dreams, intuition. In a spread, identify which card describes the situation and which describes a response, influence or outcome.
If either card is reversed, compare its reversed interpretation too. A reversal can alter whether a quality is available, obstructed or expressed in a difficult way. The meanings are connected through the question rather than simply added together.
Practise those connections with How to Read Tarot Card Combinations and a three-card spread.
Timing
The Sun predicts a significant event within the next 30 days.
Yes or no
The answer is yes. The Sun favours success, joy and a confident move toward the result you want.
Number and astrological correspondence
The Sun has the direct solar correspondence, supporting its themes of vitality, clarity and visible success. Its reduced One links it with the Magician’s purposeful effort and the Wheel’s changing conditions, without turning all three into the same forecast.
The printed number is 19. Under digit reduction it belongs to the 1 family: Magician, Wheel of Fortune and Sun. Read the Major Arcana number-family guide for the complete groups and the method used to calculate them.
The Sun assignment comes from the Golden Dawn’s Book T. Our tarot and astrology overview explains how the planetary, zodiacal and elemental assignments differ. A correspondence adds to this card’s established meanings; use its position and orientation to decide whether it describes a condition, advice or a forecast.
