King and Jack - an Old Friend Comes Back

Many students of cartomancy struggle with the court cards. I know I did when I first started, and I still do from time to time. I think it’s natural because there are so many court cards in the deck, and it’s not always easy determining who is who in a reading. Luckily when two face cards fall side-by-side, they can be combined to indicate a single meaning.  One of the most common and useful combinations is the King and Jack.

The combination of King and Jack can predict the return of someone from the past, or the return to a situation or location from the past, such as returning to a former job, or moving back home.

In relationship readings, this combination can predict a loving re-connection with someone from the past. There is a well-known tarot and Lenormand reader in the online cartomancy community who also works with playing cards. She had this combination predict the arrival of a man from the past who has turned out to be the love of her life!

When this combination refers to a person, the King will generally describe the person (man), and the Jack will describe the dynamics of the prior relationship.  Likewise, the Queen and Jack would describe a woman returning the querent’s life, and that prior relationship.

It's important to keep in mind that these combinations represent a single person, so the directions of the figure's gazes are not part of the consideration when interpreting these cards. Card order and Suit interactions are the keys to an accurate interpretation.

For example…

The above combination would predict an old lover returning.  The King of Clubs describes someone with medium coloring, brown hair and brown or hazel eyes. Alternately, you could use the characteristics associated with the King of Clubs to describe him. He’s ambitious, he has good business sense, he’s practical and organized, he can be stubborn, but always sensible, etc. The Jack of Hearts would show that the dynamics of the prior relationship were romantic in nature.

It’s important to use your intuition in choosing an appropriate description based on the suit symbol because of course not all brown-haired men are practical and organized, and not all practical and organized men have brown hair.  For more information on the traits and characteristics associated with the court cards, please see my article on The Court Cards as People.

Here are some suggestions for interpreting the dynamics of the prior relationship based on the Jack suits…

Jack of Hearts: romantic relationship, family connection, close friend
Jack of Diamonds: professional relationship, colleague, family connection through marriage, acquaintance
Jack of Clubs: friendship, co-worker, classmate, team mate
Jack of Spades: enemy, rival, relationship that ended badly

What follows is an example of an actual three-card combination that was part of a larger spread that predicts a relationship developing with a woman from the past. The querent is a single male who was hoping for a new love in his life.

The Queen of Spades shows a woman with very dark hair and dark-brown eyes.  We might also describe her as strong-willed and sensual.  Intuitively, I felt that the Spade represented her marital status as divorced. The Jack of Clubs tells us that this woman is someone the querent already knows from the past. She is an old  friend, or perhaps an former co-worker. The 3 of Hearts shows a romantic relationship developing with this woman. Six months later the querent was re-acquainted with an old school-mate of  his sister, a lovely blonde lady who is sensual, strong-willed and divorced. A  romantic relationship ensued.

When the King Does Not Represent a Person

The querent is freelance contractor who is asking about potential business contracts during the next three months. In this case the King of Clubs can represent a business rather than an individual person. The Jack of Diamonds shows a prior professional relationship with the business. The Two of Clubs is an upcoming offer. The cards indicate that the querent will receive a contract in the next three months from a business that he worked with previously.

Jack and King?

When the Jack comes first I don’t generally read it as a return to the past. Instead the Jack will often represent a child, and the King or Queen will denote the gender. As before, the Jack will define the relationship of the young person to the querent, and the King or Queen will describe the person.

For example…

These cards could represent a young girl or female child. The Jack of Hearts denotes the relationship as a family member, and the Queen of Diamonds describes the child as intelligent, independent, talkative, unpredictable, temperamental, etc.

It’s important to note that all of these combinations are merely suggestions. As always, you’ll need to rely on the context of the reading and your intuition to determine the best interpretation. For example, the Queen + Jack might also represent a mother and son, the Jack and King might represent a boy and his father, etc.