The coin - no one living artifact (and currently used physical object) holds so much history and meaning as coins do. Since the dawn of civilizations, we have seen all forms of physical currency used throughout the world. It signifies so much – it's what we work for, trade with, and use to fuel physical manifestations of our hopes and dreams. It means peace of mind, it means security, and it signals wealth.

The pentacle suit in tarot stands for every earthly thing in our lives – our homes, our jobs, our objects, and our possessions. It also stands for the mental and emotional side effects of those material things – safety, security, comfort, and practicality. This can show the new arrival of material goods or the beginning of a new source of financial income.

In the picture on the Ace of Pentacles, below us we see a verdant garden – vines, flowers, and all forms of greenery overflow the scene at the bottom of the card. Above the natural garden lies a cloud with a hand jutting out of it and the hand holds a coin in its palm. The coin has a symbol of a pentacle on it – the symbol of all worldly things.

This card represents the seed of material power. What does material power refer to? It's true that an aspect of material power is found through physical wealth, though the means of use may surprise you. One good example is when a friend calls you when her car has broken down and needs to get to work on time. You have a car, so you go and pick her up yourself. That's a great example of using your material power for the betterment of others (as well as yourself). Everything you own, from your keyboard to your oven, can be considered material wealth – we simply aren't taught to see it that way. This card asks you to see your material abundance for what it truly is.

While this card can refer to power through money or luxury, there are many other meanings besides that. Material power can also refer to the power to bring things into the physical world. You might not think of art as needing material power to fuel it, but a painting requires a canvas, paint, and the willpower to bring that art into reality. What could the Ace of Pentacles be asking you to physically manifest?

Slow and Steady Wins the Race

The Ace also begs practicality – for things to have a use and be put to that use. The people who use these tools also need to be practical with them, and not expect more to come falling from the sky. We are given what we are given on this Earth – some of us receive massive monetary wealth, and others get barely enough to survive. Even so, we often own many objects we never get time to use. This card may be asking you to pull out that old guitar from the back of the closet or fire up that old record player you used to love.

Here are a few questions to help you analyze the Ace of Pentacles. Do you ever consider yourself wealthy? Why or why not? When was the last time you took stock of your physical good fortune? Are the things you own being put to good use? How many things do you own that you never use? How practical are you? How down-to-earth?

The Ace is the true embodiment of a suit's message – any Ace card will symbolize the heart of what each card in that suite boils down to. This means, of course, that it can be hard to parallel these Ace cards against other cards in the deck. The King of Pentacles represents the full manifestation of the Ace of Pentacles so there are a lot of commonalities between the two.

What Ace of Pentacles Means for You Today

The appearance of the Ace of Pentacles today is encouraging patience and diligence. The seeds you have sown will take time to bear fruit but if you are persistent you will get results. This could be the first step of getting started with a new job or contract that will take time to get rolling. The element of earth moves slower than all the other elements but it also brings the most stable results. Think of how long it takes for a tree to grow to maturity. The strongest results often take the longest to manifest.