Major Arcana · XIX
The Sun Tarot card meaning
Warmth, joy and clear success; one of the brightest cards in the deck.
- Arcana
- Major Arcana, card XIX
- Astrology
- The Sun
- Upright
- joy, success, vitality, clarity
- Reversed
- dimmed joy, overconfidence, delays, temporary sadness
- Yes or no
- Yes
What The Sun means
The Sun is card XIX of the Major Arcana and one of the brightest, happiest cards in the whole deck. It speaks of warmth, joy and clear success. After the uncertain night of The Moon, everything is lit up and easy to see. It invites you to enjoy life, feel confident and let yourself shine.
The Sun upright
The traditional picture shows a joyful child riding a white horse, arms open, holding a red banner. Above shines a huge golden sun with a smiling face, and tall sunflowers lean over a stone wall toward its light. The child stands for innocence and freedom, the banner for vitality, and the sunflowers for life turning toward what nourishes it. In its upright position, this is the card of happiness, energy and days when things simply go well.
In everyday life, this can look like a sunny weekend with friends, good news about an exam, or simply waking up feeling glad to be you. It may show clarity after confusion, when you finally know what you want and why. The card invites you to share your warmth, celebrate small wins and approach life with a playful, open heart. Joy is allowed here, without needing a reason.
The Sun reversed
Reversed, The Sun is still a positive card, only with clouds passing over it. Joy may feel dimmed or delayed. Maybe a plan is taking longer than expected, or you feel a little low even though things are going fine on paper. The warmth is still there, just harder to feel right now.
This position can also point to overconfidence: assuming everything is sorted and skipping the details. The card invites a balanced view. Be kind to yourself on grey days, reach for simple pleasures like fresh air or good company, and keep showing up. The sun has not gone anywhere.
The Sun in love and relationships
Upright
In love, The Sun often shows a happy, warm and open relationship. There is laughter, affection and a feeling of being truly seen. It can describe a joyful milestone or simply a bond that feels easy and bright. If you are single, it may point to feeling confident and attractive, enjoying life in a way that draws people in.
Reversed
With a cloud across this sun, a good relationship may be going through a flat patch, or small worries may be dimming the joy for a while. It invites you to bring back playfulness, talk openly and remember what made you both smile.
The Sun for career and money
Upright
Under this much daylight, a performance review, a finished portfolio or a team win can bring success, recognition and a clear sense of progress. Your efforts may be paying off, or you may simply feel energised and confident. It invites you to share your ideas, enjoy what you do and let your natural enthusiasm guide your choices and habits.
Reversed
Reversed, it may point to delays, a lack of recognition, or getting a little too sure of yourself. Stay grounded, check your details and keep a positive attitude. Things are still moving in a good direction, just more slowly than you hoped.
The Sun as feelings
Someone shown by The Sun is likely genuinely happy around you, turning toward you the way the sunflowers turn toward the light. They may find you warm, uplifting and easy to be with. Their feelings tend to be open and sincere, with no games, and they may feel more confident and alive when you are near.
The Sun: yes or no?
Yes The Sun is one of the clearest yes cards in tarot. It points to joy, success and a positive outcome.
As adviceLet yourself shine. Enjoy what is good right now, and share that warmth freely with the people around you.
Symbolism and imagery
What is pictured on the traditional Rider-Waite-Smith Sun card, and how each part is usually read:
- A joyful child on a white horse: innocence, freedom and pure joy
- Sunflowers over the wall: growth and life turned toward the light
- The red banner: vitality and energy
- The bright sun with a face: clarity, warmth and success
What Waite wrote in 1910
Arthur Edward Waite created this deck with the artist Pamela Colman Smith, and gave its meanings in The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1910, revised 1911). His words come from the old fortune-telling tradition and can sound stark or puzzling today. They are here so you can see where the modern meanings above come from.
The naked child mounted on a white horse and displaying a red standard has been mentioned already as the better symbolism connected with this card.
Material happiness, fortunate marriage, contentment.
The same in a lesser sense.
Source: A. E. Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (London: William Rider & Son, 1911), public domain. Read the full text.
The Sun in the Fool's Journey
Chapter XIX · The Sunflower Bed
In the Emberlune app, the Fool's Journey is a story game with one chapter for each card of the Major Arcana, guided by Nox, Luna's black cat. Joy, warmth and the inner child. Wake three beds of sleepy sunflowers: every flower you wake flips its neighbours too, so plan a little, and turn the whole bed to the sun.
After the long night, the path comes out into a warm garden. A huge golden sun is smiling down. Everything is bright and gold and green.
Nox Card number nineteen: the Sun. One of the happiest cards in the whole deck. No tricks, no shadows. Just joy.
Nox The kind of joy you had when you were small, running in the grass for no reason at all.
The Fool's Journey opens with the app. Get one email when it does.
Journal prompts
Questions to sit with when The Sun appears:
- What brings me real, simple joy?
- Where am I holding back my light?
- How can I celebrate what is already going well?
Spreads to draw The Sun in
Questions about The Sun
Is The Sun a good card?
Yes, The Sun is one of the most positive cards in tarot. It speaks of joy, success, vitality and clarity. It is often a welcome sign of happy times.
What does The Sun mean in love?
In love, The Sun points to warmth, happiness and an open, joyful connection. It can show a relationship full of affection or a time of feeling confident and loveable.
What does The Sun reversed mean?
The Sun reversed usually means joy is delayed or dimmed, not gone. It may point to a passing low mood or overconfidence. The underlying energy is still positive.
Explore The Sun in a reading
Ask what is on your mind and draw your own cards. The free reading shows each card's meaning in its place.
Tarot is a tool for reflection, not a prediction, and never a replacement for medical, legal, financial or mental health help.
