Majestic in its power, the dragon in Western culture appears in myth and legend as the jealous guardian of a treasure hoard—epitomized by J. R. R. Tolkien’s Smaug, and seen more recently in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series and George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones series. But that is not the whole story—dragons are complex creatures, and the beast is usually credited with cunning and often the power of speech—it is not just a brutal, terrifying monster. Although occasionally hostile, as when an earth dragon stirs and human cities crumble, there is no personal malice.
Dragons simply operate by different laws that do not always place our interest at their center. Understanding those laws and adapting to accommodate them is one path to wisdom. This is the spirit in which dragons inspire this tarot—tarot also operates by laws that are slightly beyond our conscious grasp, lifting the veil on the spiritual undercurrent of the worlds we inhabit.
Let these primal creatures guide you through the ancient landscape of the tarot, illuminating the meaning of each exquisite card. In this traditional 78-card deck are fire-breathing dragons, winged dragons of the air, sea serpents, and earth dwellers who will reveal to you the secrets of the past, the possibilities of the present, and all the potential of the future.
