The INDIAN TAROTS

Soma is the moon god as per Vedic scriptures. His mentions are dominant in the first Ved, which should not come as a surprise because initially people focused on worshipping the natural elements. In the Rig-Ved, Soma has 3 types of praises. The aadhyatmik praise says that Soma gives immortality. In terms of aadhidaivik, Soma is mentioned as the king of all herbs and indicated as ‘Amrit’, which again refers to immortality. From aadhibhoutik perspective, Soma is an herb with many qualities. Now, there is an herb called Soma for real. It has been heavily popular in the Vedas. Somaras (nectar of Soma) is referred to as a divine elixir which if consumed, would give sensation. Consider this as the god-level of coffee that gives spiritual ecstasy. This plant of Soma would only mature its nectar in the presence of moonlight. Now, there are also theories that there is no such herb and the Vedic hymns simply praise Soma as the creative bliss of life.

Spiritual Vedic meaning of the Moon is that the Moon in nature is implementing the processes of both puling and pushing (using the simple words). Moon is pulling the roots of plants deeply into the soil during the night and cold time to get the power and warmness (life) from the inside of the earth to / for the body of plants, closer to the surface of existence. At the same time, the Moon is pushing the underground parts of plants to reach the outer existence on earth to grow into the open space. By other words, Soma settles the life from the inside out.

The parallel with a human being is that, Soma is settling the human spirituality from the inside out. As the Soma is the life supporter, life giver, so also Soma is human spirituality supporter, spirituality giver. Soma is related with 1) water (life fluids – sup, lymph, blood, milk), 2) fire and warmness – inner earth and human fire and warmness (life energy and spirituality power), and 3) movement – physical movement into the existence, and 4) light – Sun which gives life from the top, pull from outside to life. In nature, Soma works on homeostasis on earth, in humans also but furthermore, in humans it works as a vehicle for spiritual experiential growing in to the spiritual maturity. Naturally then that Soma is treated also like medicine. “Miraculous” medicine; both cosmic and spiritual medicine. The darkness and coldness of the night time is like to be without life but contrary to that the Soma / Moon is doing its hidden miraculous life supporting work – invisible for us, under surface of the earth. In case of human spirituality, a human being is working on his/her spiritual growing towards the life experiential maturity. At the beginning it is a hidden, invisible but real hard work until the first experiences – offshoots / offsets / sprouts of spiritual life come to life.

As per the Rig-Ved, there are three main gods (at least used to be) – Agni, Soma, Indra. Agni is said to be equivalent of consumption. Soma is equivalent to consumable. And Indra is the relationship between these two. These are like the Trinity before Brahma-Vishnu-Maheshwar came in late Vedic period. In all yagnas, Soma receives an offering just like Agni and Indra. It is also possible that the offering itself is Soma as it is a consumable. Soma is also one of the Nabagrahas (9 planets) as per astrology.

The Moon/Chandra/Soma indicates our emotions. It signifies our intuition, imagination, feminine side, curiosity, rejuvenation etc. Though Soma is mentioned as a fluid in the Ved, it is also mentioned that materialistic humans can’t get their hands on them. And it is true, we haven’t been able to identify which herb it is biologically. We have to understand that the Vedic scriptures are often written as riddles. I mentioned before that Soma is the creative bliss in our life that offers spiritual ecstasy. It means, when you create something, that gives you a certain divine pleasure- that is how you experience the Somaraas. Personally, I may say that this is a dopamine rush-type thing!! Those who create something, be it a product, an artwork, a business or even another human- they experience this bliss because they usually don’t create thinking of materialistic gain. Creation is often a spiritual process.

I have kept Soma as ‘The Moon’ because any creativity is about taking some level of risk. All creators face some dilemma while creating. Thus, there is fear and anxiety related to it. A creator often experiences an illusion that his creation is the best or his creation will never succeed (polar opposite feelings). But also, there is this urge to overcome all these aspects for the pure sake of attaining the bliss.

Upright meaning

In tarot, the Moon card is often associated with mystery, illusion, and the unconscious mind. When the card is upright, it generally signifies negative traits such as confusion, anxiety, and a sense of being lost. The upright Moon may represent a person who is struggling with confusion or anxiety, or it can indicate a need to confront and explore the unconscious mind.

Reverse meaning

On the other hand, when the Moon card is reversed, it may indicate positive traits such as clarity, intuition, or a breakthrough in understanding. The reversed Moon may represent a person who is gaining clarity and insight into their situation, or who is tapping into their intuition to find answers. It could also suggest a need to confront and overcome fears and illusions in order to move forward.