The Justice card is all about balance and fairness. You may not like it, but the universe is playing fair. You’ll know that things are working out for the greater good when you see this card, not just for your own benefit.
This card also represents decisions and it’s about accepting the consequences for your behavior. Some people see this card as representing a legal judgment, but it can be taken much less literally. If you see the Justice card upright, it will remind you to play fair and find balance in your relationships.
The Justice card hinges on cause and effect. For instance, if you deal with a situation with fairness and respect, you will be dealt with in the same way. The Justice card encourages you to be open and honest, and to seek a middle ground when possible.
When the Justice card is reversed, it can mean that you’ve done something wrong, and you need to face the consequences. If you’ve acted unfairly or dishonestly, you have the choice to own up to it or to keep it hidden. This reversed card can inspire you to be open about what you’ve done and accept the results, so you can move past it.
Reversed Justice can also mean that you’re being very judgmental of yourself and others and help you to see how you can be more flexible. The reversed Justice card will also remind you to keep a balance in your life and help you see where you’re being too rigid or unrealistic.
Reading this reversed card using the “blocked/restricted” meaning
Okay, so let’s jump into the different ways you can read your reversed Justice card. First, you can use the “blocked/restricted” card meaning. When you read your reversed cards like this, you’re looking for an obstacle in front of the upright meaning of the card. So, for the Justice card, this means something is blocking the fairness or honesty in your life.
Imagine you pull the reversed Justice card when thinking about your family. Maybe you have a brother who has asked you for money several times, and you always bail him out. When your parents ask, you tell them that he’s paid you back, but he hasn’t.
There is dishonesty surrounding all sides of this situation. Here, the reversed Justice card can tell you that you’re the one standing in the way of fairness and honesty. It is admirable to help a family member in need, but you can’t let them take advantage of you. Not only will this come back to haunt you, but you’re misleading others by not telling them the situation. If you get everyone on the same page, together you can decide how to help your brother get to a point where he’s self-sufficient.
Reading this card using the “opposite” reversed card meaning
You can also read your reversed Justice card using the “opposite” reversed card meaning. When you read your cards like this, you’re looking for the opposite of the upright meaning of the card. For Justice, this could indicate injustice or dishonesty. You aren’t just lacking fairness, you’re getting blatant lies and false judgments thrown at you. Or, perhaps, you’re being unjust or unfair yourself.
Say you pulled the reversed Justice card when thinking about your career. Maybe you’ve taken up a part-time job to help supplement your normal income. It’s something simple that you’re very comfortable and familiar with – such as customer service.
You’re good at this, and it’s not really a challenge for you. However, you’re getting feedback from your manager that you’re too slow and not smiling enough. Your manager is extremely critical, even judging your overall style and personality. They tell you you’re not good at your work, even though you know it’s not true.
Here, the reversed Justice card can remind you that sometimes people can be petty and may not want you to succeed. They might even cut you down and feed you lies. Your manager could be jealous of the fact that this is just a part-time job for you and you have other ambitions. They may hate that you’re more charming and friendly than they are, so they feed you lies to pull you down. Don’t listen to these lies! Keep your head high and don’t tolerate any comments from others that cross your personal boundaries.
Reading this card using the “worse” reversed card meaning
You can also read your reversed Justice card using the “worse” reversed card meaning. When you read your reversed cards like this, you take the upright meaning of the card and put it in a negative light. Here, this means there is fairness and honesty on the horizon, but it might be a tough pill to swallow. Perhaps those consequences you’ve been fearing have arrived, and you’re going to have to deal with them.
For example, you pull the reversed Justice card when thinking about your finances. Perhaps you’ve been out of work for a few months, and you haven’t been monitoring your dwindling bank account closely because it’s scary and you feel like you don’t have any control over the situation.
It may be difficult to accept your financial situation when it’s not pretty, but avoiding it will only make things worse. Take back a bit of control by looking at your numbers and accepting the truth of what’s really happening. The reversed Justice card can remind you that, even if you ignore your financial problems, they’re not going away. You must deal with them. Accepting responsibility for your situation is the first step, and it can empower you to make changes that will keep things from getting worse.
Reading this card using the “no/not” reversed card meaning
You can also read your reversed Justice card using the “no/not” reversed card meaning. When you read your reversed cards like this, you put a “no” or a “not” in front of the upright meaning of the card. So, for Justice, this means “no justice/fairness” or “no honesty.”
Here, you can look at how you’re lacking honesty. You might not be lying, but you could be omitting the truth. On the other hand, “no fairness” could mean that some aspects of the situation aren’t being handled in a fair and just manner. It may indicate that you should look at the situation for any underlying deception or hidden truths.
Or, it could indicate that now is not the time for blunt truthfulness and honesty. While it doesn’t indicate that you should be unethical or dishonest, it may be telling you to keep the full, unvarnished truth of the matter to yourself for now.
Let’s say that you’re at work and a few of your good work-friends invite you to go out for drinks. They’ve invited a woman from accounting who you just can’t stand. You don’t want to make it awkward by explaining why you don’t want to hang out with them, and you don’t want to create any drama within your friend group.
The reversed Justice card guides you to say something like “Thanks, but I can’t because I have other plans,” instead of the real, full truth that you don’t want to be around this person. They don’t need to know your other plans involve re-watching all of season four of Preacher by yourself. Sometimes the greater kindness is a tiny bit of dishonesty.