Justice is very similar to ᛏ (Tiwaz), but is more formal. Whereas Tiwaz is a Rune of doing what’s right even at your own expense, Justice is a card of the law. It has been my experience that the law and what’s right don’t appear to have much to do with one another.
Notice that the man in the card still has two hands. That is another way that Justice is different from Tiwaz. This is not a card of trauma or sacrifice. The man in this card is wearing expensive robes and is smirking at us.
The Fool’s Journey
Most would say that Ragnarok is where Odin’s justice will be met. Justice for his deceit in binding Fenris. Justice for the way he stole The Mead of Poetry from Gunlodh. Justice for all of the lies and pettiness and burning Gullveig at the stake and tying Loki up with his own son’s entrails. All of it. His justice comes when Fenris eats him whole before his son can use his magic boot to kill the wolf.
Justice has two main symbols, and the first is the scales. Many people think of ᛏ (Tiwaz) as a Rune of justice in part because the Rune looks like a pair of scales. Tiwaz is also a just god, unlike the Oathbreakers of Dunharrow mentioned in the Lord of the Rings Tarot above (right).
The other primary symbol of Justice is the sword. While Skadhi isn’t shown holding a sword in the Giants Tarot (left), we all know how she behaved when she came to avenge her father Thjazzi. She is definitely a goddess who bears a sword.
Despite the Waite-Smith deck using a man, many many decks show a woman as Justice. This is fitting, given that the most common statue of Justice shows a blindfolded woman. She sits or stands in a position similar to The Magician: her sword is his wand, and her scales droop as his left hand points downward. This similarity is most notable among my decks in The Darkwood Tarot (right).
