Why Strength is the card of Leo
The Golden Dawn tied each sign to a Hebrew letter, and Leo's letter, Teth (serpent), belonged to Strength. When the order lined the signs up in zodiac order along the Hebrew alphabet, Leo had to come before Libra. In the Marseille sequence, though, Strength was 11 and Libra's card, Justice, was 8. So the Golden Dawn swapped them, and Waite and Smith kept the new order. The Strength 8 or Justice 11 guide covers the history.
The image is pure Leo. A lion stands for fiery pride and appetite, and the woman tames it with steady, patient hands. An infinity sign floats over her head and a chain of flowers links her to the lion. Fixed fire burns steadily rather than flaring, and Strength describes that kind of lasting, warm courage.
What Strength says about Leo
Leo has presence. People notice when you walk in, and you tend to be generous with your warmth, your time and your praise. The Sun card adds creativity and a real enjoyment of being seen. Strength adds the part people miss: true Leo power is soft-handed. The woman on the card does not fight the lion. She calms it.
At its best, Leo leads by encouragement, protects people who are weaker and stays gracious under pressure. As a fixed sign you are loyal once committed and can carry a creative project for years. The inner work the card points to is handling pride and appetite with self-respect, so your confidence comes from inside rather than from applause.
Leo and Strength in love
Leo loves openly. You like romance, celebrations and the occasional grand gesture, and you want your partner to feel admired, because that is how you like to feel too. Strength adds patience and tenderness, so a Leo partner can be surprisingly tender with someone else's fears.
The trouble spot is pride. Apologizing can be hard, and a Leo who always needs the spotlight leaves a partner in the shade. Relationships work best when both people get their turn to shine and the warmth runs both ways.
Leo and Strength at work
Strength and the Sun point Leo toward work with leadership, creativity and an audience. Performing, teaching, management, coaching, design, fashion, PR, work with children, animal care and running your own business all suit fixed fire. Leo often lifts a team just by believing in it.
Strength adds resilience, so you can stay calm and keep morale up through a bad quarter. The caution is needing constant recognition or hearing criticism as an insult. Leaders who take pride in the quality of what they make, as well as the credit, tend to last longer.
The Leo shadow side
Strength's shadow is the lion off its leash: pride, temper, ego or appetite running the show. For Leo this can look like arrogance, needing to dominate the room, sulking when overlooked or turning a disagreement into drama. The Sun's shadow is a need for constant attention.
Your first decan card, the 5 of Wands, shows the scrappy competition that follows when pride goes unchecked. Try the woman's method on yourself: meet the big feeling with patience instead of force, then look for a way to let someone else shine.
Your Leo decan card
Leo rules the 5, 6 and 7 of Wands. Born about July 23 to August 1, your decan card is the 5 of Wands (Saturn in Leo, titled Strife by the Golden Dawn). About August 2 to 11 is the 6 of Wands (Jupiter in Leo, Victory). About August 12 to 22 is the 7 of Wands (Mars in Leo, Valour).
The three cards tell a Leo story in order: a contest, a public win, and then standing your ground to keep what you won. Boundary dates move by about a day from year to year.
Working with your sign card
- Around July 23, put Strength beside the Sun and settle on a creative project you want to share with other people this year.
- When your temper or pride flares, picture the woman's calm hands on the lion's jaws and take three slow breaths before you answer.
- Use your decan cards as a spread for a challenge: the 5 of Wands for what you are up against, the 6 for what winning looks like, the 7 for what you need to defend.
- Once a week, publicly credit someone else's work. It is the generous side of the Sun, and it costs you nothing.
Frequently asked questions
What tarot card is Leo?
In the Golden Dawn system, Leo is Strength, card 8 in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck. Its ruling planet, the Sun, is The Sun card, and its decan cards are the 5, 6 and 7 of Wands.
Why is Strength 8 in some decks and 11 in others?
Marseille decks put Justice at 8 and Strength at 11. The Golden Dawn swapped them so that the cards for Leo and Libra would follow zodiac order, and the Rider-Waite-Smith deck kept the change. Destiny Matrix readers usually keep the Marseille numbers. Either way, the card for Leo is Strength.
Is Leo the only sign whose planet card is the Sun?
Yes. The Sun rules only Leo in traditional astrology, so Leo is the only sign with The Sun card as its planet card. Cancer is similar: the Moon rules only Cancer, so only Cancer has The High Priestess as its planet card.