Tarot Cards

• Type: Divination tool, Magical Device
• Owners: Sybill Trelawney (known owner)
• Maker: Unknown; presumably produced by various magical artisans.

Tarot Cards used in the wizarding world are decks of cards employed for the practice of cartomancy. The only set described in the novels belongs to Professor Trelawney, which Harry Potter observes as a pack of “greasy-looking cards”. While the specific artwork on the cards is not detailed, they feature symbolic imagery and names that correspond to their divinatory meanings. One such card mentioned is “the lightning-struck tower,” which is analogous to “The Tower” card in real-world tarot decks.

Tarot Cards are a primary instrument for Divination, allowing a seer to interpret patterns and symbols to predict future events or gain insight into a person or situation. The process involves the questioner shuffling the deck, after which the seer lays out the cards and interprets their meaning based on the individual cards and their relative positions. The only detailed use of Tarot Cards occurs during a Divination lesson in the 1994-1995 school year. Professor Trelawney performs a reading for Harry Potter:

• She instructs Harry to shuffle the pack and split it into three.
• The first card she turns over is “the lightning-struck tower,” which she interprets as a sign of “Calamity. Disaster. Coming nearer and nearer.”
• The second card reveals “a dark young man, who dislikes the questioner,” which Professor Trelawney takes to mean an enemy, though Harry suspects it might refer to himself.
• She concludes the reading by foretelling great danger for Harry.

Like other forms of Divination such as reading tea leaves or scrying with a crystal ball, the legitimacy of cartomancy is frequently questioned by more logical and fact-based individuals like Hermione Granger and Professor McGonagall.

The specific origin and history of Tarot Cards within the wizarding world are not documented in the novels. They are presented as a standard, if niche, tool for fortune-telling, forming part of the curriculum for O.W.L. level Divination at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Their use by Professor Trelawney confirms their place as an established divinatory method by the 1990s.

The main narrative purpose of Tarot Cards is to facilitate foreshadowing and to develop the character of Sybill Trelawney. Her reading for Harry Potter in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire serves as a direct, albeit unrecognized, prophecy. The prediction of “the lightning-struck tower” is a clear foreshadowing of the death of Albus Dumbledore at the top of the Astronomy Tower, which is struck by the Dark Mark at the climax of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The cards also underscore the central theme of fate versus free will in the series. While the predictions are often vague and dismissed by Harry and his friends, they contribute to the sense of an unavoidable destiny that Harry must confront, particularly in relation to Lord Voldemort.

• The use of Tarot Cards in the wizarding world is a direct incorporation of the real-world esoteric practice of cartomancy, which has been practiced since at least the 15th century.
• The “lightning-struck tower” card is a direct reference to the sixteenth Major Arcana card in a standard tarot deck, known as “The Tower.” This card typically represents upheaval, sudden and catastrophic change, and the destruction of false realities, which aligns perfectly with its foreshadowing of Dumbledore's death and the subsequent shattering of the security Hogwarts represented.
• In the film adaptations, Tarot Cards are visible as set dressing in Professor Trelawney's classroom, but the specific scene where she gives Harry a reading is not included (film).