Tarot and the zodiac · Taurus
Taurus in the tarot: The Hierophant, keeper of what lasts
The steadiest sign of spring gets the card of tradition and teaching. Underneath sit three Pentacles cards about money, worry and patience.
Urania's Mirror, London 1824 · Library of Congress
At a glance
The Taurus tarot card is V The Hierophant. Its decan cards are the 5 of Pentacles, 6 of Pentacles and 7 of Pentacles, and the Sun crosses them Apr 20 to May 21, 2026.
- Major Arcana
- V The HierophantHebrew letter Vav · Thoth: The Hierophant
- Decan cards
- 5 of Pentacles, 6 of Pentacles, 7 of Pentaclesruled by Mercury, Moon, Saturn
- Court cards
- King of Pentacles (0° to 20°), Knight of Swords (20° to 30°)Book T's spans
- Sun in Taurus, this cycle
- Apr 20 to May 21, 2026enters Apr 20, 2026, 01:39 UTC
- Ruler's card
- III The EmpressVenus rules Taurus
Find your exact decan cardBirthday in, five Golden Dawn cards out.
The card
Why Taurus is The Hierophant
Try this today
- List three habits you have kept for more than five years. Which still serve you, and which are just familiar?
- Ask an older relative for one recipe or tradition you would like to keep. Write it down properly.
- If Venus is in Taurus in your chart, read The Hierophant there too: love that grows through ritual.
Taurus zodiac sign: dates and traitsTaurus myth and constellation
Taurus is the friend with a favourite mug, a favourite café order and a ten-year-old sweater they refuse to throw out. They are not stubborn, they will tell you. They just know what works.
Book T gives Taurus to V The Hierophant, "The Magus of the Eternal," with the Hebrew letter Vav. It surprises people at first. Why does a sensual, earthy sign get the card of a robed priest?
Look at what the two have in common. Both care about things that have proven themselves over time. The Hierophant hands down rituals, teachings and rules that worked for the people before you. Taurus collects habits, recipes and relationships the same way. Vav means "nail" or "hook" in Hebrew, the thing that fastens one piece to another, and Taurus energy is all about holding on to what matters.
The sky behind it
Book T calls The Hierophant "The Magus of the Eternal" and gives it the Hebrew letter Vav. Its number, V, never moved: Marseille, Waite-Smith and Thoth all agree on it.
On the 1909 card
What The Hierophant shows, and what it asks a Taurus
A priest in a triple crown seated between two grey pillars, one hand raised in blessing, two crossed keys at his feet and two tonsured ministers kneeling before him.
For a Taurus, the Hierophant is about trust earned slowly. The two kneeling figures are students, and the crossed keys at the priest's feet are the classic image of access: the knowledge is there for whoever is patient enough to learn it.
In a Taurus reading this card often asks whether you are following a rule because it is right or because it is comfortable. It can also point to a teacher, a mentor or a formal path, the kind of slow apprenticeship Taurus does better than almost anyone.
The three decans
Taurus's three minor cards: the 5, 6, 7 of Pentacles
As an earth sign, Taurus takes Pentacles. As a fixed sign, its decans are the middle numbers of the suit: the 5, 6 and 7. They make a little story about resources: trouble, help, then waiting.
5 of Pentacles, Lord of Material Trouble · Mercury in Taurus, 0° to 10° Taurus · Apr 20 to Apr 30, 2026
Two ragged figures trudge through snow past a lit stained-glass window, one on crutches. Mercury's decan is named Material Trouble, which sounds grim for a sign that loves comfort. Read it as the worry Taurus feels about losing security, and the reminder that help is often closer than it looks: the window is lit.
6 of Pentacles, Lord of Material Success · Moon in Taurus, 10° to 20° Taurus · Apr 30 to May 10, 2026
A merchant holding scales drops coins into the hands of two kneeling people. The Moon's ten degrees bring Material Success, but the card is really about flow: giving and receiving, being the person with enough to share or the person brave enough to ask.
7 of Pentacles, Lord of Success Unfulfilled · Saturn in Taurus, 20° to 30° Taurus · May 10 to May 21, 2026
A farmer leans on his hoe and looks at seven pentacles growing on a green vine. Saturn closes Taurus with Success Unfulfilled. It is the most Taurus card in the deck: the harvest is coming, but not today. Patience is the work here.
The sky behind it
5 of Pentacles: 10.3 days. 6 of Pentacles: 10.3. 7 of Pentacles: 10.4. Longest this cycle, the 7 of Pentacles; shortest, the 5 of Pentacles.
The court cards
The King of Pentacles and the Knight of Swords
The King of Pentacles ("The Prince of the Chariot of Earth", 20° Aries to 20° Taurus, Sun Apr 9 to May 10, 2026) holds Taurus's first twenty degrees; the Knight of Swords ("The Lord of the Winds and the Breezes", 20° Taurus to 20° Gemini, Sun May 10 to Jun 10, 2026) has the last ten.
The King of Pentacles, Book T's Prince of the Chariot of Earth, holds the first twenty degrees of Taurus. He is the person who turns effort into lasting comfort: steady income, a good home, a garden that feeds people.
The last ten degrees belong to the Knight of Swords, the first Air card of the court sequence and a preview of Gemini. After weeks of slow building, the end of Taurus season often brings a rush of ideas and conversations.
The ruler
Venus, Taurus's ruler, and The Empress
Try this today
- Put The Empress beside The Hierophant and plan one evening that is both a ritual and a pleasure: same time, same place, something delicious.
- Find your Venus sign. Astrologers read it as what you value and how you show love.
Venus rules Taurus, and Venus' Major Arcana card is III The Empress. If The Hierophant is the structure of tradition, The Empress is the abundance it protects: a woman seated in a field of ripe wheat, a stream running past, the Venus symbol on her heart-shaped shield in the Waite-Smith card.
Together they make one of the gentlest pairings in the zodiac. Taurus has a rulebook, yes, but the point of the rulebook is pleasure that lasts: good food, a body that feels cared for, people you have known for years. When Taurus feels too rigid, The Empress is a reminder of what all that structure is for.
Find your card
Which Taurus card is yours?
The Hierophant belongs to every Taurus; the 5 of Pentacles, 6 of Pentacles, 7 of Pentacles split them three ways. Your birthday picks one.
Clock: UTC.
First decan · 0° to 10° Taurus
5 of Pentacles
Lord of Material Trouble. Mercury in Taurus. This cycle: Apr 20 to Apr 30, 2026.
Second decan · 10° to 20° Taurus
6 of Pentacles
Lord of Material Success. Moon in Taurus. This cycle: Apr 30 to May 10, 2026.
Third decan · 20° to 30° Taurus
7 of Pentacles
Lord of Success Unfulfilled. Saturn in Taurus. This cycle: May 10 to May 21, 2026.
A three-card Taurus reflection
The Hierophant · 5 of Pentacles · King of Pentacles
Lay out V The Hierophant, the 5 of Pentacles and the King of Pentacles. One question:
Which tradition am I keeping out of love, and which out of habit?
More to read
Shorter reads. Each opens in place.
When it comes up hard
The Hierophant reversed, or on a bad day
Reversed, The Hierophant can mean following rules nobody believes in anymore, or a rebellion that throws out the good with the bad. For Taurus the shadow is usually a rut dressed up as loyalty. The question to ask: if you were choosing this habit for the first time today, would you?
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Either side
Between The Emperor and The Lovers
Aries hands over IV The Emperor; Gemini picks up with VI The Lovers once the Sun leaves Taurus, on May 21, 2026, 00:37 UTC.
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Plan ahead
Taurus's cards in the 2027 cycle
Apr 20, 2027, 07:18 UTC: Taurus opens again. The 5 of Pentacles runs Apr 20 to Apr 30, 2027, the 6 of Pentacles Apr 30 to May 10, 2027, and the 7 of Pentacles May 10 to May 21, 2027.
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Taurus tarot cards and their dates
Both cycles, all seven Taurus cards.
| Card | Book T title | Span | 2026 cycle (UTC) | 2027 cycle (UTC) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| V The Hierophant | The Magus of the Eternal | 0° to 30° Taurus | Apr 20 to May 21, 2026 | Apr 20 to May 21, 2027 |
| 5 of Pentacles | Lord of Material Trouble | 0° to 10° Taurus | Apr 20 to Apr 30, 2026 | Apr 20 to Apr 30, 2027 |
| 6 of Pentacles | Lord of Material Success | 10° to 20° Taurus | Apr 30 to May 10, 2026 | Apr 30 to May 10, 2027 |
| 7 of Pentacles | Lord of Success Unfulfilled | 20° to 30° Taurus | May 10 to May 21, 2026 | May 10 to May 21, 2027 |
| King of Pentacles | The Prince of the Chariot of Earth | 20° Aries to 20° Taurus | Apr 9 to May 10, 2026 | Apr 10 to May 10, 2027 |
| Knight of Swords | The Lord of the Winds and the Breezes | 20° Taurus to 20° Gemini | May 10 to Jun 10, 2026 | May 10 to Jun 11, 2027 |
| Mark | 2026 cycle | 2027 cycle |
|---|---|---|
| 0° Taurus | Apr 20, 2026, 01:39 UTC | Apr 20, 2027, 07:18 UTC |
| 10° Taurus | Apr 30, 2026, 08:04 UTC | Apr 30, 2027, 13:45 UTC |
| 20° Taurus | May 10, 2026, 15:50 UTC | May 10, 2027, 21:23 UTC |
All times are UTC. In the Americas the local date can be a day earlier; in Asia and Australia a day later.
Quick answers
Why is The Hierophant the Taurus card and not The Empress?
Book T assigns signs and planets separately. Taurus, the sign, takes The Hierophant through the Hebrew letter Vav. Venus, the planet that rules Taurus, takes The Empress. So The Empress is the Taurus ruler's card, not the sign's own card.
What does The Hierophant mean for a Taurus?
Usually tradition, learning and trust built over time. For an earthy, steady sign it can point to a teacher, a long apprenticeship or a family custom, and sometimes to a rule you are keeping only because it is familiar.
What is the Taurus decan card for mid-May?
From about May 10 or 11 until the Sun leaves Taurus around May 20 or 21, it's the 7 of Pentacles, the Saturn decan from 20° to 30° Taurus. The switch moves by about a day from year to year, so the table on this page gives the computed dates, and the finder works for any birthday.
Is the Hierophant a yes or no card for Taurus?
Readers who use yes or no cards often treat The Hierophant as a cautious yes: yes, if you go the established route. Tarot traditions differ, so treat that as a reading habit rather than a rule.
When is Taurus season in 2026 and 2027?
Apr 20, 2026, 01:39 UTC to May 21, 2026, 00:37 UTC, then Apr 20, 2027, 07:18 UTC to May 21, 2027, 06:18 UTC.
