The Chariot Year: Prospective

It’s time to make things work for you

By Morgan Shelley

“It’s time to break free from the blues,” reads the keychain from my NewJeans season’s greetings package. “The Chariot is about what happens when you’ve exhausted your options and things still don’t work—it’s about trying something new,” explains Sarah Faith Gottesdiener as I listen to another episode of “Moonbeaming.” “Despite the challenges we may be facing, we all have the opportunity to achieve our goals this year, however daunting they may feel, and to move forward in the direction of our dreams,” declares the yearly tarot card blog post on the Mystic Mondays app.

If you’re familiar with tarot, wildcat, then you already know 2023 will be a big year for everyone. (And if you have no idea what I’m going on about: valid. Check out this video by Mystic Mondays creator Grace Duong, which gives an overview of tarot cards, their origins, meanings and more.)

All tarot cards hold different meanings, prejudices and histories—number seven is no exception. The Major Arcana are the first 22 cards in a tarot deck and historically the most popular. The last card in the first row of the MA is The Chariot. This is significant as it represents the end of the first cycle of the cards, the energies of our world and, therefore, us.

2022 was the year of The Lovers (two plus two plus two equals six), which was about relationships and choice. 2023 is the year of The Chariot (two plus two plus three equals seven—if only statistics were as simple as numerology), which is about change and navigating transitions. (2023 is also the year of the rabbit in many Eastern cultures!) I don’t know about y’all, but last year was rough for me. I felt like my choices were being influenced or directly controlled by so many systems and people and my relationships? Chaotic. (Please note, I use that word with nuance.)

To me, tarot, magic and astrology are intertwined. They overlap and intersect and are meant to be reinterpreted, reinvented, reintroduced every once in a while. That’s part of why I love them as much as I do. And when I started hearing whispers about The Chariot year last autumn, I got very excited for 2023. The Lovers year was rough and as I shake the last of it from my fins (this is a Pisces joke, please laugh), I’m beginning to feel the little changes in my life adding up to become something new. That’s what The Chariot is all about.

Well, that and then some.

A manifestation art panel. Credit: Pixabay

Embracing your yin & yang

(North) American society—and many others—traditionally function under an imbalance of feminine and masculine energy. Before you roll your eyes, take a moment to consider what those things mean to you. Not what it means to society, or your older sibling, or that one stranger who cut you off on the highway this morning—what do you consider masculine and/or feminine? Do you consider things this way at all? What beliefs do you hold about softness, strength and everything in between?

The answers you have to these questions are likely diverse and unique. Whatever they are, know that you may notice every flicker of light and hidden shadow related to them this year or that you could change your mind completely. The Chariot is the last card in the Major Arcana’s introductory energies and seven is a transitional number. Another keyword for The Chariot is navigation. How will you embrace your sunshine, moonlight and wildness this year? The choice is yours!

Giving my familiar (and my plants) a tarot reading. Credit: The Wheel

Can I have some extra nuance with that paradox?

Considering the energy of The Chariot is up and coming, you may feel that things haven’t changed much. There are numerous valid interpretations of when a new year commences, so one person’s beginning doesn’t have to be another’s. One thing to be aware of is the urge to stay in your comfort zone at the cost of something greater. Another is the messy relationship between paradox and nuance.

A shadow of The Chariot that you may notice this year is an impulse to resist change. Every year, every season brings transformation—how we respond to it is often one of the only things we can control. You are the expert of your own life, so I have faith that you can feel when a change is scary because you don’t know where it’ll take you and when it’s scary because the vibes are off. Also, paradoxes are things that don’t add up, while nuances are the hidden shades of gray that we tend to be unaware of. Most things (and people) are layered and complex, just as we are. As we make our way through the rest of winter and continue onward toward spring, recognize that things are messy and might get messier. Be where you are, go where you’re going, accept your nuance and allow others to do the same.

LE SSERAFIM in the “Impurities” music video. Credit: Source Music Entertainment

“I’m beautiful with my scratches, just because it’s what I am”

Let’s travel (this is an astrology joke, please laugh) back to 2022 for a moment. This was the year one of K-Pop’s rising stars LE SSERAFIM released “Antifragile” with an album of the same name. This was also the year Miss Taylor Swift released “Midnights'' with “Anti-Hero” as the magnificent lead song. In these contexts, “anti” was used in opposition to something else: LE SSERAFIM declared their strength would not fail even in the face of darkness, while Swift displayed her humanity while rejecting the pedestal many place her on. These are nuanced paradoxes in action. Cementing what you are by highlighting what you are not is creativity that not everyone can understand.

I was initially confused why LE SSERAFIM’s concept was not to be fragile, but after giving myself time, I became an enormous fan because of that concept and the type of strength they sing about displaying. Another song from “Antifragile” that I’ve come to appreciate is “Impurities.” The track is about resilience, what it means to the group members and how they are complete with all their shadows and scars because that’s who they are—all things related to The Chariot year. If you want to get in touch with this year’s energy, I highly recommend checking out these songs (and maybe creating a playlist of others that align with how you want to feel during the year if that’s your speed).

We are who we are; this year we’re becoming who we’re becoming and people may share their nuanced opinions about it with us. In the words of someone near and dear to me, “It’s your responsibility to live your life, not to be what others want you to be or do what others want you to do.”

Happy new year and keep on moving, wildcat.