The Ace of Swords Tarot Card
When it is time to "cut through the B.S.," one card in the Tarot deck will do the cutting for you: The Ace of Swords. This is the card that appears when communication is in need of being clarified. That is a nice way of saying that when someone is giving you a snow job about something, the Ace of Swords is with you to cut those words to shreds and find the clear meaning of them. The Ace of Swords delivers the reality of the situation to you. This is not always easy to accept, as often it is you who have been lying to yourself, denying the truth about a relationship or other intense situation in your life. This card perseveres in a quest for what is real, but your idea of what that reality might actually be is not guaranteed.
Under a light gray sky dominating a distant mountainous landscape, a glowing white hand appears from out of a wispy dark cloud on the extreme left border of the card. This hand has white rays of light emanating around its tight grip on a large silver sword. The sword points directly upward. Near its tip hovers a gold crown. On one side of the crown hangs a laurel leaf, on the other a long, dropping palm frond.
The Tarot Deck's four Ace cards (Ace of Cups, Ace of Wands, Ace of Pentacles and the Ace of Swords) are all simple illustrations, often the most minimally designed cards in a Tarot deck. But these cards carry a maximum punch. Each Ace speaks the loudest for its suit and carries the most impact over the things that are under its influence. The hand and cloud are indicators of a divine influence. The landscape assures us that this influence is being meted out here on Earth. The crown represents absolutes. When a king or queen wears a crown, it makes certain who is the ruler. The laurel leaf is what the ancients wore as a crown of victory. The palm branch references Christ's entry into the city on Palm Sunday, less than a week before he made the ultimate sacrifice. The crown and this hanging greenery are the simplest of illustrations but they represent the ultimate in absolutes. Swords are the suit of ideas, words and the cerebral plane. Communication done under the auspices of this card is communication that is most definite.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Each Tarot reading has positions for the cards to land. They are designated to represent your past, your present and your future. This changes the meaning of some cards. It also focuses the influence on different parts of the personal narrative of your life.
When the Ace of Swords is in the past position, you made a great realization at some point leading up to today. You can define your life by the before and after of this moment of clarity. Perhaps it was in seeing the lies that were holding together a relationship that was not what you believed it to be. Maybe you ended a cloudy period of partying too hard too often and have enjoyed the results of your decision in favor of clarity. Regardless of the personal details, your discovery of what was being obscured was a defining moment in your past and is part of the foundation of where you are now in your journey.
In the present position, you are clarifying an absolute in your life under which you have been serving. Perhaps you sought a Tarot reading specifically to find a better way to describe what is going on in your life. The Ace of Swords is especially empowering in this position because you are able to confront vagaries and inaccuracies in your life that are not adding up. The Ace of Swords gives you the strength to confront situations that do not mesh with your understanding of things and the presence of mind to articulate your position.
The future position is a great place in your Tarot reading to have the Ace of Swords land. This is a beacon of coming courage that will strengthen your resolve to get to the heart of the matter. Of course, the downside to this may be that your present life is actually not in synch with reality and the longer you wait to deal with issues of the present in order to move toward your future, the longer it will be until you have a clear indication of what is really going on with the life you have built for yourself.
Card Combinations
The Tarot reading is always a spread of cards. No card stands out individually in the group free of influence from the cards around it. This makes each Tarot reading a unique amalgamation of influences tailored to your situation.
When the Justice card appears in a reading accompanying the Ace of Swords, not only will your situation soon be clarified, there will be an absolute and finite outcome related to your discovery of the truth. Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.
Next to Justice, the card that best augments the Ace of Swords is Strength. The results of what the Ace of Swords reveals will make you a better, wiser person. Speaking of wisdom, The Hermit and The High Priestess cards bring a philosophical perspective to the revelations that the Ace of Swords indicates are on the way. With the Hermit, you will be able to incorporate these truths into your everyday life, but have a difficult time relating them to anyone else around you. These are deep, personal truths. With The High Priestess, you will reach a higher level of consciousness than your social group and may slowly drift from those with whom you were once so close. Your friends may be staying children as you become an adult and move on.
The Ace of Swords works well with The Magician card, as it clarifies that the magic experience you are feeling lately is not an illusion, but the excitement of finally having a grip on reality. The Magician can obfuscate as easily as he illuminates. The Ace of Swords assures that a vision of the world as it really is will come to you in all of its raging beauty and truth.
The Two of Swords Tarot Card
Have you been avoiding a decision? Do you have some great rationalizations as to why you should wait? Are you impatient for change but holding yourself back out of either fear or apathy? Are you withholding affection from a spouse, friend or child out of selfishness or spite? Are you trying to make someone earn your trust but in your heart you know you will never grant it? Expect the Two of Swords to appear in your Tarot reading if these descriptions hit too close to home. This is the card of turning your back on love and sticking with a stalemate.
A crescent moon is rising over a rocky shore. A stone bench rests on a flat gray foundation. On it sits a person wearing a full-length robe. He or she is blindfolded with a cloth of the same color as the robe. This person holds two gigantic metal swords, one in each hand. Their arms are crossed and the swords angle upward and off the sides of the card's illustration. Many decks illustrate the person's shoes as matching the color of the Moon.
The central facet of this card is the blindfold. Without it, the crossed arms are a simple defensive position. With it, the ability to attack or defend is impossible. This impasse is the core of the Two of Swords. The matching colors of the blindfold and robe indicate that there is a choice in the wearing of the blindfold. The swords point off the card, indicating that no goal or definition of a goal is in sight. The rocky waters indicate that no ship can dock; more than any other card in the deck, this one illustrates best the concept that nothing can happen. Swords represent thoughts, ideas and intellect. Meanwhile, the Moon gives a clue as to the basis of the situation: the Moon is the Tarot's indicator of intuition. At its core, this card represents a refusal to let your intuition inform your intellect. You know what is going on, but you either do not want to believe it or are in denial over what to do about it.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Every Tarot reading has sections covering your past, your present and your future. The cards landing in each of these positions paint a picture of this particular time in your life. What was, what is and what shall be … all are revealed in your Tarot reading.
When the Two of Swords is in the past position it recalls a stagnant time. Perhaps your stubbornness last month has led to an unexpected setback. Maybe your childhood was colored by a withholding of love as punishment and an insistence on higher achievement in order to earn a reward. As a result, your current situation has a cool avoidance at its core.
When the Two of Swords is in the present position, there are too many things you are willfully ignoring for you to make a decision. Your current outlook is one of either stubborn apathy or obtuse denial. You may be getting a Tarot reading to find an answer and will probably be upset to see the stalemate of your own creation dominating your day.
If the Two of Swords is in the future position of your reading, consider this a blessing from the Tarot. This puts control of your future squarely in your own hands. This indicates a developing ability to rise up against manipulative people, users and others who want to tell you what to do. You will be firm in keeping your own affairs under your absolute control even if it means adopting a standoffish demeanor. All of the stubbornness and fear from this card disappear when you know the Two of Swords is on its way – allowing you the power to keep your cool and maintain control.
Card Combinations
When your Tarot reading begins, a few cards are drawn and placed before you to be read. These cards do not stand alone. They each have individual meanings that combine and contrast with the other cards in the reading. This way, no two readings are alike.
The Two of Swords is the lower echo of The High Priestess (card #2) and The Hanged Man (card #12). Both of these cards put a premium on passivity. The High Priestess knows all but only tells when asked. The Hanged Man holds himself back despite the wisdom he may have actually accrued that should propel him ahead. The Two of Swords retains both of these tense traits. If either of these cards accompanies the Two of Swords in your reading, you are likely controlling a situation through passive-aggressive behavior that will alienate you from friends and family in the long run.
When The Magician is in your reading along with the Two of Swords, you are refusing to make decisions as a way to manipulate others. When The Emperor is present, the refusal to make decisions is part of a master plan to maintain your power. If the Three of Pentacles is present, your plan to gain control is well thought out and should work better than you imagined.
Some cards challenge the fence-sitting that is inherent in the Two of Swords. The Tower is an indicator that a major upheaval in your life is in the works. If you are comfortable playing both sides now, circumstances will force you to take a stance sooner than would be convenient for you. The Two of Swords is challenged by The Chariot card; an irresistible goal may come within reach while you are concentrating your efforts on another area of your life. This dilemma will challenge your intransigence with an intense force. The Devil card appearing with the Two of Swords means that a deep character flaw of yours will be pulling you towards resignation. You are your own worst enemy when an addiction or a bad habit propels you to take your ball and go home rather than play a supportive role in the game of life.
The best card to see in your reading with the Two of Swords is Temperance. This card represents a mastery over your life and a conscious effort to avoid negatively impacting things around you. This sitting-out process insures that your words and ideas (your swords) are not attacking anyone.
The Three of Swords Tarot Card
Oh dear. Are you feeling alone? Abandoned? Betrayed? Have irreconcilable differences divided a once healthy relationship? The Three of Swords is a card that represents your pain. But this is also a card that appears to warn you that you may be inflicting cruelty upon others. Are you prepared to accept a neutral opinion of your contributions to an abusive or volatile situation?
A symbolic red heart floats before us. It is pierced by three swords, two on either side of it making an X as the blades go in at the top and penetrate through the bottom, and one stabbing from the top straight through the center and exiting out the bottom. All of this takes place with a backdrop of a cloudy gray sky; sleet streaks from the clouds with nowhere to land.
This card is defiantly dour with no apparent upside, save for the fact that it confirms the reality of your misery. The pierced heart stands alone, symbolic of love and not attached to any grounding – far greater than any physical damage, it is a concept that has been permanently altered. Swords represent words, ideas and attitudes that we express. It is important that the heart is a symbolic shape and not representational of the human heart muscle. Because words can pierce and hurt, the altering of the symbolic heart is a rejection of someone's view of love in the world. Someone has set the heart out and someone else has pierced it. The sky behind it assures the Tarot reader that salvation will have to come in another card spread out somewhere on the table. The Three of Swords exists beyond redemption.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Every Tarot reading sets cards out in locations representing your past, your present and your future. The meaning of each card is different depending on where it lands in your reading.
If the Three of Swords happens to land in the past position of your Tarot reading, you can look back on a foundation of sadness that may have led to your current situation. Many people still recovering from heartbreaking loss see the Three of Swords land here even years after the passing of what was. The card here reminds us that the emptiness lingers. Often, people in prison find this card here to remind them that their cruelty to another person in the past is inextricably linked to their present incarceration. But you do not need a jail to imprison you for some of the deeds out of your past that were insensitive and have come to bury you in guilt.
The present position is a somber place for this card to land. Seeing the Three of Swords appear here as confirmation of your current heartache is not the worst thing. What does it mean to see this card when you are feeling stable and emotionally satisfied? The Three of Swords indicates that you may be oblivious to the cruelty you are inflicting on someone. Your life may be going great but perhaps you have no comprehension that playing your loud music late in the night is ruining the health and well-being of a neighbor. You are obliviously accruing much bad karma and the Three of Swords is demanding that you take a deep personal inventory of all aspects of your daily behavior that could be causing pain to others directly from your unintentional actions.
The future position is not where you want to see the Three of Swords. The best-case scenario of this card appearing in the future position is that your reading serves as a wake up call to analyze your relationships. You can work to ensure that nobody is capable of delivering heartbreak to you. You can scrutinize some possible cruelty toward someone regardless of your intent and mitigate it now before it does any karmic damage. Do not let the presence of the Three of Swords in the future position ruin your reading. It is fundamentally a weak card and can be influenced by the presence of other cards in your reading.
Card Combinations
Every Tarot reading is like an orchestra where no card dominates, just as no instrument dominates the performance of a symphony. The Three of Swords belongs in the Tarot's Minor Arcana and is subordinate to the two cards in the Major Arcana which carry the number three: The Empress (Tarot card #3) and Death (Tarot card #13). The Empress represents love and the power that desire has to control us even as it comforts us. The Three of Swords echoes this sentiment as an exact opposite: the complete absence of love only reminds us of its infinite, awe-inspiring power. The Death card represents the finality of complete transformations that are impossible to fight against. The Three of Swords confirms the loss of love as a permanent situation. If either of these cards appears in a reading with the Three of Swords, these themes dominate the reading. Learn more about the connection that the Three of Swords shares with the other cards numbered three in the Tarot deck.
If The Magician card accompanies the Three of Swords in your reading, your are more in control of the destiny of the betrayal or loss of love than you may realize. The Magician assures you that you are not a passive victim. If the Justice card is drawn in a reading with the Three of Swords, the pain of loss will be administered by outside forces, be they law enforcement or the courts.
When The High Priestess is involved in a reading with this card, someone who was manipulative and responsible for the pain of this situation will avoid having to take responsibility. Likewise, The Tower card indicates that innocent bystanders may suffer more than the parties directly involved in this absence of love.
One card that mitigates the sadness surrounding the Three of Swords is Strength. This is a card that allows you to recover from the cruel actions of people in your life and to befuddle them with your ability to go about your daily business. Stay strong; the Three of Swords, too, shall pass.
The Four of Swords Tarot Card
Is it time for a nap? When you see the Four of Swords in your Tarot Reading you might ask this. The Four of Swords is the card of retreat, rest, re-energizing and escapism. If you have started a program of meditation recently, expect the Four of Swords to appear in your readings. While the card is not an indicator of either health or legal affairs, this card has been linked to hospital stays and incarceration. For such a quiet card, in fact, there sure is a lot going on around the Four of Swords.
The scene on the card is a well-lit basilica. Ordinarily the basement of a church that houses the deceased of noble birth or heroic accomplishments, these large chambers were traditionally lit by the lowest frames of large stained glass windows on the exterior of the cathedral. The tomb of a fallen warrior is memorialized on top of the casket with a life size marble replica laying in repose, hands folded in prayer. By his side, a horizontal sword is emblazoned across the tomb; on the wall next to his tomb are three swords hanging. One points to his head, the other to his heart, the third to his gut. To the left of the three swords is a stained glass window with a distant colorful domestic scene.
There are many open-ended interpretations in every Tarot Card. The gender of this honorable person is likely a man, but many Tarot decks illustrate the gender with nothing notable that would prevent it from being interpreted as a woman - hence the person in the card is most definitely the person who is receiving the Tarot reading. The color of the tomb is always different from that of the wall and the dominant colors of the stained glass, indicating isolation beyond just a peaceful rest; this is an internal isolation from the things closest to us.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
The location of the Four of Swords in a Tarot card spread does not necessarily change the meanings of this card, but it does indicate the relationship between you and a time period of rest. If the Four of Swords is in the past part of your reading, this indicates an idyllic childhood or a time of healing in your past that has been completed. It is good to understand when the healing has finished, as many Tarot readings are about knowing when to move on. In the present position, the card indicates that you are currently at repose. This could be an indication that you are escaping life or certain responsibilities, or simply that you are on a well-deserved vacation or are listening to your body and slowing down to avoid stress. When this card is in the future portion of a Tarot Spread, you are looking at a peaceful time coming up. You may get domesticated in a hurry. You may have children about to leave the nest. One business executive who got this card in this position soon had two new administrative assistants hired and found his workload was easier than ever even as sales were increasing.
Card Combinations
The Four of Swords may represent passive activity, but it is anything but a passive card. The Swords cut things in your life away that are getting in between you and your rest, relaxation and/or recuperation. If there are other cards from the suit of Swords in your reading, chances are arguments and sharp words will separate you into a period of retreat. A lot of Pentacles on other cards indicate that some money coming your way will bring you needed rest, isolation or a relaxing vacation. If you are experiencing some relationship trouble, a reading with this card and many others from the suit of Cups indicates a breakup, but if your love life is fine, this can mean a new level of peace and passion with the right partner. When the Four of Swords appears in a reading with many cards bearing the suit of Wands, you may go into a retreat to work on a creative project. If you have been thinking about building your own website or to learn about blogging, this is a combination that predicts success with the isolation that comes along with the creative period. It is said that Pablo Picasso painted his masterpiece Les Demoiselles D'Avignon with the Four of Swords affixed to his studio door.
Like all suited cards bearing the number 4, the Four of Swords is related to two of the Tarot Deck's Major Arcana: The Emperor and Temperance. The Emperor is the ultimate card of self-control. The Four of Swords is a card that echoes this in its isolation from being bothered by what other people are doing. The affairs of others may as well just be a pleasant stained glass window. Temperance is the card of eschewing the pleasures of the world for a physical and spiritual peace. The Four of Swords represents an isolation that is often self-imposed as a step toward a saner lifestyle.
If the Four of Swords is paired with The Devil Tarot card, look for a domineering parent, boss or lover to make you long for loneliness. But if the Four of Swords is paired with The Lovers card, prepare for a sublime and satisfying season of the soul mate. When your Tarot reading includes The Star or The Moon and the Four of Swords, isolation is as inspiring as possible. Your intellectual or artistic development or other experiments may actually be transformed under the influence of such a reading. Justice and Judgment are two powerful cards that add finality and a sense of stress being gone when they pair up with the Four of Swords. If you are in litigation or a tense business negotiation and see a combination of these cards, look for a pleasant resolution to bring you the peace you so seek.
No matter the cards in your reading, the Four of Swords has a silver lining: The control over the situation, as represented by the Swords in the illustration, is all yours.
The Five of Swords Tarot Card
Have you been looking out for yourself? Has this come at the expense of others? Has this come at the expense of your reputation, your integrity or even your relationships? Have you had to stick up for yourself after some violation of trust? Whether your recent selfish actions have been out of self-preservation or a bullying need to have more than your fair share, the Five of Swords is a card that you may be encountering soon in a Tarot reading. The disenchantment of selfishness looms large.
A man with a rather ugly expression is gathering up discarded swords. He has two over his left shoulder and is grabbing the handle of a third. Before him lay two swords on the ground and two men walking away from him. His hair blows in the wind, mimicking the sharp grey clouds blowing over a blue sky above him. Beyond the retreating men is an ocean of choppy waves.
What you see is what you get in this card. These two men are obviously done with whatever was involving them with this lead character. The swords are unscathed, and nobody is beaten or bruised. Swords symbolize words, thoughts, theory and arguments. This lead character has won the argument but lost the people in his life. His smug expression is the ignorance of one who does not yet understand the term "Pyrrhic Victory." The chaotic, windy landscape underscores the changes that this card brings about. There are many things we keep to ourselves, often out of a sense of self-respect or self-preservation. The Five of Swords is a card of consequences that arise from unleashing our thoughts into hostile verbal assaults without consideration of consequence.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Every Tarot reading is divided into past, present and future sections and each card landing in a section tells a story about you with that specific time frame in mind.
When the Five of Swords lands in the past position, this brings up a certain selfish action that you took in the past – be it last week or years ago. This action is the foundation of where you stand now. If your life is in shambles, you can understand that compromising your integrity may have been the undoing of your reputation and cost you opportunities. On the positive side of this card, if you were in a bad relationship or being forced to submit to an unhealthy person, the Five of Swords in this position would assert that your standing up to an abuser in your past has led to a healthy present. The intensity of this justifiable confrontation was a breakthrough. You learned to put yourself first when enough had become enough and continue build your life on that foundation to this day.
The darker side of this card dominates the present position. This is showing your current activity to be quite selfish. The Five of Swords is not a card you will be proud to see in the present position of your reading. Perhaps you have let someone down. A spouse who is pursuing the pleasures of an affair and neglecting his or her family would see the Five of Swords in this position. A boss who has fired some employees from the company he or she oversees in order to receive an exorbitant pays raise would see this card arise in this position. When it appears here, your Tarot reader may gloss over the dark side and discuss themes of self-assertion and independence, but you will still be confronted with how you are putting your reputation on the line with an ongoing series of self-centered activity.
The Five of Swords is both a beacon of hope and a dire warning when it is in the future position. A situation that at present seems to be controlling you will soon be crushed by your assertion of independence and righteousness. If you are succeeding and in control at present, this card in the future position demands that you conduct yourself with integrity or to expect a scandal to become public knowledge when you least expect it and when it will do the most damage.
Card Combinations
A Tarot reading places cards next to each other in order to add a dynamic power to each card. This lets a Tarot card influence the cards around it and to simultaneously have its meaning affected by those cards appearing in the reading as well.
The Five of Swords is related to two Major Arcana cards: The Hierophant (card #5) and The Devil (card #15). In many ways, the Five of Swords is the perfect combination of both. The Hierophant sticks to the established way of doing things with no regard to whether or not they are offensive, as his actions are protected by the reputation of the larger order. The Devil is the card representing a pursuit of pleasure no matter what the cost. The Five of Swords submits to the status quo for gain or acts on behalf of individual desire from a position of unchecked power. When either of these cards appears in a reading with the Five of Swords, you are in for a greater isolation from responsibility, but the inevitable consequences of your selfish ways are adding up even faster. Slow down your pursuit of power.
When the Three of Wands is present in a reading with this card, you are starting a big project with such focus that the other facets of your life that do not work with it are falling away. This could be your own business or a new creative endeavor. With the Eight of Cups combining with the Five of Swords, your selfishness has roots in an emotional abandonment or other loss of love. With The High Priestess present, beware the resentment of those around you over your share of an inheritance or other prize.
When the Five of Swords is in a reading with the Temperance card, your quest to assert yourself has at its core a righteous cause and you should be advised to take it slow and steady. When paired with The Empress or The Fool card you will see less consequences for your selfishness as it will not create enemies as the Five of Swords is so prone to do.
The Six of Swords Tarot Card
When you are grieving over a loss, the Six of Swords confirms this by appearing in your Tarot reading. When you are moving away into an unknown place and feel lonely, detached from all that you know and love, the Six of Swords will be revealed as the cards are dealt in your Tarot reading. This card confirms that you are in a somber state, but it is a card that signals the bottom has been reached and that the slow process of healing has begun.
Under a gray sky, a ferryman steers his small boat toward a distant landscape. On board a woman, completely shrouded, sits, hunched over, next to a small child. Six Swords are stuck into the boat, pointing down, however there is no leak. The guide stands behind them with a large oar, stirring up the still water as he slowly moves the boat nearer to that far-off shore, seen colorless out in the horizon.
The boat is central to the card's meaning – it is going somewhere, it is going away from where you are now. There is finality in this journey as not a single passenger even hints at turning around – the future is not yet visible but the past is definitively over. The swords are not affecting the boat even though they are stuck in the base – this is a metaphor for taking what you have learned with you as you go through life. This might not necessarily be a positive development as these Swords can represent past hurts you are carrying with you. This is a somber and serious card, but not an inherently negative one. The transition through which you are going is something to be taken seriously. A candid personal inventory is something that can assure this journey will have a positive impact.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Every Tarot reading is divided into your Past, your Present and your Future. Cards have different meanings depending on where they are dealt. If the Six of Swords is dealt in the past position, your Tarot reader will be able to understand the pain and sorrow you carry from incidences in your past. Be it a glum childhood or a recent period of unemployment, the best thing that can be said for this placement is that you have sailed on from a dull time in your life. The worst that can be said, though, is that you are carrying around low self-esteem or other afflictions of the imagination that manifest as neuroses.
When the Six of Swords appears in the present position in your Tarot Reading, you are probably seeking out this reading in the first place as a way to make things a little livelier. Boredom, the weight of leaving a relationship or a lingering grief over a loss from a while ago may be conspiring to keep you drifting slowly in the still waters of life instead of pushing you forward or inspiring you to row faster toward a specific goal.
This card in the future position is often a good sign that your present situation will have a calm, undisturbed future ahead. There is a consistency in the slow and steady ride on the boat depicted in this card. Landing in the future position may indicate that the current tumult in your life may cause you to ponder relocating or to change your career.
Card Combinations
When the Tarot cards are spread out, they are integrated into one reading. This means that they influence and inform each of the cards around them. All the cards combine to sing in harmony.
Cards that combine with the Six of Swords detail more precisely what kind of journey you are on – is it physically moving or mentally raising your consciousness? Are the doldrums that coincide with this card related to lost love or not living up to your potential? The Six of Swords is a weak, neutral card. The cards nearby will guide your Tarot reader to best describe the journey.
Two important cards that are higher echoes of the Six of Swords deeply impact any reading in which either of them appear: The Lovers and The Tower. The Lovers is the Major Arcana's Number 6 card. It represents all things associated with passionate interpersonal partnerships. When present with the Six of Swords in a reading, the subjects of separation and loneliness come to the front of the discussion. The Tower is numbered 16 in the Major Arcana. This is the card that indicates big changes are ahead. When it is revealed in your Tarot reading that also includes the Six of Swords, you are definitely relocating and the change is going to be a great adjustment for you.
When there are other cards from the suit of Swords in your reading, this indicates that harsh words or new ideas are at the core of your current passive shift away from the past. The suit of Pentacles is an indicator of material wealth and when a few cards of this suit appear in a reading with this card, it foretells that lack of money in your life may be inhibiting your development or making you feel sorry for yourself. It can also indicate that having all of your material needs met and money in the bank are combining to make you lazy.
When there are many cards in your reading from the suit of Cups alongside the Six of Swords, your emotions are keeping you isolated. This can be from a breakup or from a stubborn refusal to take back hurtful words. The Six of Swords is a card famous for not being able to forgive, let alone forget. Many a Tarot reader will advise you to try this and it may sound to you like fingernails scratching a chalkboard.
The suit of Wands represents creativity. When many cards from the Suit of Wands appear along with this card, isolation can be a good thing if you are working on a creative project. Be it for work, school or your own development, great breakthroughs occur when you slowly move toward completing a goal, undisturbed. Winning business plans come out of a disciplined, thoughtful isolation. Masterpieces of art are painted when these cards appear together in a Tarot reading for a talented artist as are great symphonies of music composed when a genius of rhythm and melody receives Wands and the Six of Swords in a reading.
The Seven of Swords Tarot Card
The Seven of Swords is a card that appears in your Tarot reading to reveal issues of breaking free, doing things your own way and abandoning group ideals. The Seven of Swords is seen as a card of saving yourself; this can have positive elements to it, as in many personal transformations, but it can be negative as well, revealing the core selfishness present in many of our decisions. There is also an element of haste in this card, an indicator of moving fast in a decision making process.
Under a cloudless golden sky, the card depicts a man tip-toeing away from some desert tents. There are two swords stuck into the ground by the entrance to the closest tent. The man has five swords in his arms. The man is stealing the swords belonging to whoever is in the tent and he is making a quick getaway. The thief manages to be stylish, though, always depicted in a fez-style hat, with some Tarot decks making sure his quick-footed boots are colored red to match his hat. In most versions of Tarot decks he is scampering across the desert vista, in plain sight for us to see. The most important part of this illustration is the plain fact that, even with his hands full, the thief has not taken all of the swords.
The thief is not necessarily a negative character. Everyone operates in secrecy and to their own advantage on some occasions. In relationships, we sneak around to find out information on the men we love. In office politics, we are often forced to act behind the back of someone to ensure our job security. Anyone who is self-employed knows that going out and doing it on your own means using any bit of information that can be acquired about your competitors.
The Seven of Swords is a card that demands you look inward and examine your own behavior. If you have been secretly sabotaging a group at work in order to get ahead, you cannot immediately assume that the card represents a friend or lover sneaking around behind your back.
Examine the location of the Seven of Swords in your reading and the cards nearby in order to understand if independence and duplicity are traits that will be serving you well.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
If the Seven of Swords is in the past part of your Tarot reading, the foundation of your current situation stems from your independence. Perhaps you are still suffering from a break-up. Women who once cheated on their lovers and got away with it see this card in the past as a confirmation that they will be loyal from now on. The card of course can indicate that someone cheated on you, a fact you might still not really be sure of.
If the Seven of Swords is in the present part of your Tarot reading, someone may be cheating on you. A spouse or a business partner may be getting away with stealing your trust. Just as likely, though, this card could show that your recent crafty moves are paying off at work and in love. When a cute guy flirts with a friend and you make a move on him when she goes to the restroom, you are the clever thief pictured in the Seven of Swords.
If the Seven of Swords is in your future position in a Tarot reading, this is a card showing that you must resort to some sort of trickery to get where you are going. You will have to survive on your wits alone at some point in the near future, so plan now to be quick to improvise and evade scrutiny. The Future position is one place in a Tarot reading where the Seven of Swords is about you and you alone. Embrace the chance to get ahead and get away with it.
Card Combinations
If some of the other cards appearing in your reading are also Swords, the Seven of Swords represents verbal sneakiness. Perhaps you have been talking behind someone's back.
If there are lots of Pentacles in a reading with the Seven of Swords, someone's personal belongings may have been stolen recently – perhaps you are a suspect! If there are many Cups in the reading with this card, a sneaky love affair is more likely. With a few cards from the suit of Wands, this card brings great advances in business. In fact, paired with the Ace of Wands, this is one of the best omens for succeeding in your own business that the Tarot has to offer.
Tarot readings with Major Arcana cards indicate deeper situations in one's life. Major Arcana cards paired with the Seven of Swords indicate that your independence from group situations is a driving factor in your current journey.
The Seven of Swords paired with The Hierophant indicates your break with a group will lead to personal transformation and was a good decision. Paired with The Devil card and you may be breaking a cycle of drug, alcohol or relationship co-dependency addictions. With The World card paired to your Seven of Swords, you might be missing out on a lot of what life has to offer out of a sense of alienation or fear. Paired with The Fool and your escapist tendencies are taking you further and further from the traditional life's path – but if you are abandoning traditional society and embracing the bohemian lifestyle, this could be a good thing. The Seven of Swords paired with Strength is the "rogue agent" combination where you use your insider knowledge as a member of a group to go beyond its intended aims. The Justice card paired with the Seven of Swords is even more powerful, bearing fruit in an attempt to see litigation carried out. If your lawyer knows about Tarot, he or she will love to hear that these cards appeared in your reading.
The strongest two cards for the Seven of Swords to be paired with are The Chariot and The Star. A pairing with the Chariot reveals that you can cut in line for a professional promotion or seduce a prize catch in the game of love. Paired with the Star and your consciousness is about to expand as you set out on a quest for knowledge and growth.
The Eight of Swords Tarot Card
When you have put yourself in a bind from which there seems no escape, when you are lonely and might only have yourself to blame, when you adamantly refuse to take any responsibility for a bad situation … you are drawing the Eight of Swords in a Tarot Reading. This is a card that demands you investigate your status as a victim and acknowledge your own role in any possible downfalls that may be occurring around you.
A woman in a flowing robe is blindfolded and her torso bound. She is standing, not tied to anything and not tied up by anyone. Behind her off in the distance is a castle on a hill. At her feet are murky puddles of water in the mud. There are 8 swords behind her, buried with their points in the ground. The desolate landscape is under a dreary and cloudless gray sky.
Swords represent words. A sword that is buried represents words that dug deep. The gloomy nature of the scene depicted on the Eight of Swords Tarot card underscores that a long period of criticism has caused a person to turn into an withdrawn, stuck being. Be it harsh words that were lessons from your past or more recent verbal exchanges in your professional world or love relationship, the ideas expressed have caused you to shut down.
There is nobody around the tied-up victim, she has her shoes on and could begin walking away from all those swords. There is nobody stopping her from slowly removing that which binds and blinds her. But at the present, she stands amidst the swords. A closer contemplation could make one wonder how much of the negative criticism that they represent she has begun to believe about herself.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Each Tarot reading occurs at a unique moment in time. The cards are placed in past, present and future positions. The position the Eight of Swords lands in is important as this card is weaker in different places.
In the past position of a Tarot Reading, the Eight of Swords indicates that you have been trapped in a hurtful relationship. Perhaps it was in your childhood or prior to a recent breakup. The Eight of Swords is weak here, it is never a card to serve as the foundation of the reading. The lasting effect of the card may be as minimal as low self-esteem, but could also point out that unresolved issues from childhood are creating a self-destructive response to your current situation.
When the Eight of Swords is dealt out into the present position during your Tarot reading, it is at its strongest. This is a card that is confronting you with the stagnant aspects of your current situation. Often, Tarot readers will tell a person receiving this card during a reading that the Eight of Swords in the present position represents denial. Oftentimes, the querent will then deny that there is any of that behavior going on. The Eight of Swords in the Present position lets you know that you may not be the person who put the blindfold around your eyes, but you are the person keeping it on.
This card is a strong warning when it appears in the future position. The Eight of Swords indicates stagnation, a loss of passion, apathy and an otherwise general malaise concerning your enthusiasm for the things you enjoy. When it is in the future position, consider that you may be on a path that leads to disappointment, perhaps even one that traps you into a life of casual comfort from which you lose all hope escaping because the lack of stimulation has left you with no imagination.
Of course, there is free will and spotting this card in the future position is a good way to take heed of a warning from the Tarot deck and not get too comfortable with how things are going. You can stand up to an abusive spouse even if he is supporting the two of you. You can get help if you are taking pain medication rather than pursuing physical therapy to mend an injury. All of the things that you are putting up with in the present can lead you into a position where suddenly you are kept from all the possibilities of life outside a narrow scope. Seeing the Eight of Swords in the future position warns you that current comforts may become tomorrow's ties that bind.
Card Combinations
The cards around the Eight of Swords will describe what led you to apathy and self-doubt, as well as indicating what you can do to break free of the bondage illustrated in the card.
When there are other Sword cards in the reading, the verbal warfare is heightened and you may need to speak up once and for all. When there are many cards from the suit of Cups with the Eight of Swords, emotional confusion is keeping you stuck somewhere. The suit of Pentacles represents money problems when the Eight of Swords appears amidst a few cards of that suit. Many wealthy people are surprised to find this card in their readings, but their lifestyles are making them so comfortable that they are hardly living and avoiding reaching anything close to their real potential.
When there are many Wands cards in a reading with the Eight of Swords, you have a natural creativity and business savvy that is being thwarted by spending your time in frivolous pursuits or a destructive relationship.
The Eight of Swords is a card that is stronger and more intense when it is in the company of cards from the Major Arcana. There are few classic "good" combinations. The Moon or Strength cards appearing in a reading indicate that you will find a way out of your mess. Other than those two, the Eight of Swords brings out the worst entropy-like energy from Major Arcana cards. But it is always up to you to unwrap yourself, lift the blindfold and move on from those old swords buried behind you.
The Nine of Swords Tarot Card
When you experience a realization of just how horrible a situation has become, the Nine of Swords will appear in your reading. This is the card of waking up from a nightmare. But all too often, it is the card that reveals our miscalculations and vices have made this nightmare all too real in our waking life.
A person is sitting up in bed in the dark of night. Let's suppose that this is you. Your hands are over your face. Your legs are covered by a quilt, which is decorated in a checkerboard floral arrangement. On the black wall of the bedroom float 9 swords. Their handles line up above the pillow of the bed and they all extend beyond the frame of the card. None of their points are visible.
It is as if the scene has captured the moment this person woke up from a bad dream, sat up and threw her hands over her face in the realization that she was living a nightmare. The checkerboard pattern of the quilt implies that the person has been playing a game, covering herself in a strategy that has obviously failed. The flowers of the quilt alternate with squares that feature symbols of the zodiac. The metaphor of the quilt covering this person was the certainty that she could see the future when she did not even understand her own nature.
The swords are floating above her consciousness and the fact that they do not have their points illustrated in the picture indicates that the trouble this person is in has not yet been resolved. This is the card that underscores one's state of hysteria regarding just how bad things are about to get and knowing one's actions are to blame. There is no way to nicely say it: The Nine of Swords is just about as bad a card as you can draw from the Tarot deck. It is a card that confronts you to accept responsibility for your actions even as it refuses to divulge the impact these sins will have.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Each Tarot reading covers the past, the present and the future. This is a chance to see the flow of events and choices you make reinforcing particular energies. Cards land in each of these categories and allow you to see these time periods in a new context. This frame of reference is a way to isolate the confusion of mixed signals and see where you have been, where you stand now and where you are going in a single vision.
When the Nine of Swords is in the past position, there are deep issues of having been responsible for something terrible or for feeling guilty about an old tragedy. This card carries tension wherever it goes and you will be forced to reassess your role in a long-forgotten tribulation. Perhaps this reflects a bad childhood or particularly sad moment that led you to where you are now. Understand that there is no right and wrong in this card; the Nine of Swords just shows the effects of choices you made and emotions that resulted from actions that may or may not have been your responsibility.
In the present position, the Nine of Swords underscores the stress under which you are currently afflicted. A recent death or loss can bring this card about as a manifestation of your inner pain. The swords pointing off the card here reinforce that no firm direction is known when one is lost in agony.
The Nine of Swords is most unwelcome when it is drawn in the future position. What are you doing now in your life that you may soon regret? If there is one silver lining in receiving this card in your reading it is that it speeds up the reading's "future." Many readings deliver a forecast for a future that is years, perhaps even decades off. The Nine of Swords speeds up the reading's future to be more likely in a 48-hour window. If the reading has been about your economic situation, the Nine of Swords in this position would indicate a foreclosure, a layoff or an unexpected loss on an investment. A love reading that has the Nine of Swords show up in the future position almost always indicates a breakup, separation, a terrible argument or a discovery that you or your partner have been unfaithful.
Card Combinations
More than one card is drawn in a Tarot Reading and each card that is included informs the others, just as any one card gets influenced by those other cards placed around it.
The Nine of Swords is related to The Hermit card and emphasizes the loneliness aspect of this powerful Tarot card. If The Hermit or The Sun (card #19) are in a reading with the Nine of Swords, the loneliness and responsibility aspects of your miasma are amplified.
When the Nine of Swords is in a reading that features The Empress card, look for a shopping spree or lack of financial responsibility to cause you much anguish. If The Hanged Man card is drawn, you definitely took too long to decide or held out in a negotiation for more that never arrived.
Sword cards are generally indicative of words and expressing ideas. When the Ace of Swords is in a reading with the Nine of Swords you are suffering under the weight of what was said publicly; either by yourself or by someone about you.
The good news is that there are a few cards in the Tarot deck that greatly reduce and minimize the effects of the Nine of Swords on your reading. The Fool is a card that says your worries in the middle of the night are a waste of time and that there is no impact beyond your self-inflicted guilt. The Wheel of Fortune card ensures that the pain you suffer will be short-lived and should prove to be something that brings about success in an unexpected way. The Magician card does not take away the pain that has been caused, but gets you exonerated from any blame in the tragic matter at hand. The Queen of Swords understands the trouble you have gone through and sees to it that your suffering will be short and a recovery of what you had prior to your unfortunate choices is coming soon.
The Ten of Swords Tarot Card
Are you at the point where it cannot get any worse? Are you running on empty? Did you make a big sacrifice and end up with nothing? Is your only power in making self-deprecating remarks? Has someone recently walked all over you? The Ten of Swords is the Tarot's card of bottoming out. But this card is a blessing in disguise, as the darkest hours in which you suffer are about to give way to a new dawn. Indicating that you have reached bottom, there is nowhere to go but up when your Tarot reader draws the Ten of Swords.
It ain't pretty. There is a man's body laying face down in the soil. Ten Swords are stabbing him in the back from the base of his neck to his thighs. Each stands erect, having been plunged deep into him. All of his blood has drained out, covering most of his torso and legs. Out past the earth on which his body lays is a vast body of water and far away a hilly landscape. The sky above him is blacker than night, but on the horizon, a golden yellow sky is bursting forth.
Death is seen as a gateway to another plane in the Tarot, a metaphor for change. The key to this card is the golden dawn rising above the eastern hills. The death taking place at the forefront of this card is placed literally at the bottom of the illustration. The Ten of Swords is actually a clarion for achievement. Many people start their marches toward success when the old way of doing things has died. As swords are representations for ideas and words, the Ten of Swords can represent needing to talk an idea to death before inspiration on a new way of doing things suddenly arises.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Your Tarot reader will choose one of many Tarot spreads for your reading. When the cards are laid out, each one will fall into a position representing the past, the present or the future. The meaning of a card is subtly different depending on the position in which it lands.
When the Ten of Swords is in the past position, the worst is over. Perhaps a few years ago you went through a horrible breakup with someone you assumed was a soulmate or maybe you recently left an abusive relationship. Your childhood may have had some trauma from which you have long since moved on. It is great to have this card in the past position as it provides a definitive assurance that the worst is all behind you.
In the present position, this card is a confirmation that you are turning a corner and leaving behind one of the worst chapters in your life. Keep a mental image of that golden sky rising … your world is about to get brighter, as it hardly could ever be any darker than some recent dramas you have encountered. As you might guess, the future position of your reading is not exactly the best place to find the Ten of Swords. This indicates that you are headed toward a bottom. Whether or not your future will be a slow descent from your present position or a rapid fall remains to be seen. There are many ways the Ten of Swords combines with other cards in your reading, but the silver lining of this card remains. Even when you bottom out in the future, play martyr for a cause, or are forced to put yourself down, the golden dawn brings an end to the trauma in the light of a new day.
Card Combinations
Every Tarot reading features cards laid out. In the act of setting them down next to each other, your Tarot reader can inform you of how the energy of each card blends with those around it. Core meanings can be influenced and a more distinct Tarot reading emerges when the combination of all the cards in the reading are considered.
The Ten is the lower echo of three cards in the Tarot's Major Arcana: The Wheel of Fortune (Card #10), Judgment (Card #20) and The Fool (Card #0). The Wheel of Fortune is the card that that reminds us that all circumstances change, that the rich could be poor tomorrow and vice versa. This is recalled by the beautiful heralding of a new tomorrow amidst the abject violent end illustrated on the Ten of Swords. Judgment is a card of deciding a new path to follow and sticking to it no matter the cost. The Ten of Swords echoes this absolutist position. The Fool is a card of heaving one's fate straight into the unknown, which is mirrored by the Ten of Swords by underscoring that once one has reached bottom, the true adventure of living, recovery, has just begun. If any of these cards is in your reading that includes the Ten of Swords, these themes are the centerpiece of your reading.
When The Hermit card is in your reading, your bottoming out period will be a lonely one, most likely caused by your own vices. If The Tower card is in your reading, at least you will be able to blame your fall on some influence of the outside world that mitigates your responsibility. When Strength and the Ten of Swords are in a reading, your valiant fight was a losing battle, but you will get up to do battle again.
When The Hanged Man is present, the Ten of Swords represents your martyrdom for a cause. Perhaps you will get fired from a job in order to help your friends there keep their jobs. When Temperance is in the reading, there has been a pattern of avoiding pleasure and not taking credit that has led to your current state of misery. Realizing your own role in avoidant behavior will bring the golden light of sunrise into your life much faster.
The Page of Swords Tarot Card
Have you ever spoken truth to the powerful and did not even realize the challenge you had presented them? Are you learning the complex jargon of a new field and comprehending what a new you could look like when you master this language? Have you looked at the reasons you should stay or leave a relationship? Is an employment situation requiring you to be less than honest about what the company can or cannot do? All of these circumstances bring about a Tarot reading that includes the Page of Swords laid out before you.
Page cards represent a fresh, demanding challenge to your position in the world. The Page of Swords exists to remind you that your integrity is the sharpest weapon in your arsenal. No matter how experienced you are in the world, from time to time, problems arise that are truly novel situations. When your policy is sticking to the truth, these conundrums are simple to resolve.
A young man stands alone on a grassy, craggy landscape under billowing clouds amidst a blue sky. He is dressed efficiently and sports a short ponytail that blows in the wind. Looking in the direction that the wind blows from, he holds a large sword with both hands elevated so that the handle of the weapon aligns with his shoulder. The sword points up, angling slightly away from him and in most Tarot decks, at least the top one-third of the sword is not in the picture, emphasizing the Page's place in the foreground of the Tarot reading.
Swords are cards of words and ideas. Truth and justice are the highest ideals. We all politely nod in their direction and live up to them when it is easy, but the Page of Swords shows a challenging wind blowing towards you in a new way. Court cards (Pages, Knights, Queens and Kings) all depict an individual alone. You will be isolated in your moment of deliberation. The Page of Swords is a card that can underscore your character through your actions for years to come. The outcome may not be pretty, but the strength to your personhood that the result of this challenge brings is unmistakable.
Court Card Pairings
When there is more than one court card in your Tarot reading, your psychic or Tarot reader may be looking to determine if one of these cards represents someone else in your life. You may get a few probing questions that seem out of synch with an ordinary reading, but understand that there is a need on the part of your Tarot reader to determine just who is who in your reading.
A Page card represents a novice, so if you are close to a teenager or are dating a younger man, the possibility exists that the Tarot deck is using the Page card to bring this person into the discussion of what is going on in your life.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
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Share ThisEvery Tarot reading is divided into the past, present and future. The cards are dealt to tell a story that is the whole story of where you have been, where you are now and where you are going.
The Page of Swords in the past position represents a moment in your past when it would have been the right thing for you to speak the truth. Did you? This is not a passive card and you can usually relate to one instance from your childhood or recent past when it was up to you to operate with integrity and tell the truth in order to have justice granted. The card in this position can also indicate an overall foundation of integrity as part of your character, a truth-teller no matter what the risk or social conventions may be.
In the present position, the Page is at his most challenging. You are alone in a decision and the truth is almost too terrible, or costly, to tell. But your character and integrity are on the line. You might not get caught, but the Page of Swords is insisting you take the righteous path because next time there might be someone watching as you feel comfortable operating on the other side of the integrity line.
The Page of Swords is most likely to represent another person when it appears in the future position. This could indicate a pregnancy with a child on its way soon. A new love interest that is younger than you could be giving you some important news when you least expect it. If your lover is much older than you, the Page of Swords most definitely represents you with something to tell him.
Card Combinations
When a reading commences, the cards mingle, adding meaning to each other as they are dealt in front of you. When the Page of Swords is in a reading with lots of other Sword cards, the discussions will be endless and perhaps even philosophical. Everyone will have an opinion to share and someone may be making things murky by twisting their tale.
When there are lots of cards from the suit of Wands present with the Page of Swords, you will be experiencing truth in the form of some artistic experience. Perhaps you will attend a concert that serves as your own personal Woodstock, or see an exhibit at a museum that changes your perception of the world for good. If you are the creative type, this is a great card combination to make an artwork that explains your world-view beyond the limitations that verbal expression has – a universal declaration can be produced.
A reading that features the Page of Swords with many cards from the suit of Cups is telling you that speaking up might actually be a great emotional relief. Are you bottling in your feelings to win the approval of someone? You have underestimated what speaking up on behalf of a good cause can bring! The suit of Pentacles is a great one to combine with the Page of Swords. This is the suit that influences material wealth. A reading such as this indicates that you will get rewarded for performing an honorable act. Justice will be done!
The Knight of Swords Tarot Card
Are you avoiding the cold reality of a situation? Were you too blunt with someone who needed to be told some news in a more gingerly fashion? Is it past time for some plain talk between you and a lover? Were you so insulated from criticism that you developed a thin skin and are now having it pinched at the most casual comments from friends and strangers alike? Have you been dealing with a boss who seems to assign jobs that can never be delivered fast nor perfect enough? Look for the Knight of Swords to appear in your Tarot reading. This is not a card of bad news, so much as a signal of information arriving at an inconvenient time and delivered in an inelegant manner.
A man on horseback rides against a windstorm; he is on a white stallion and clad in armor. His cape blows up and his horse stretches for speed. The wind is blowing trees and clouds with great force right at him, but his only response to this opposition is to raise a sword even higher as he charges on.
Knights are the Tarot's way to deliver something. Swords represent ideas, words and thoughts. When the Knight delivers his words to you, the idea behind what is being said becomes apparent quite rapidly. The white horse indicates that the message being delivered is pure. There is no intent to harm with these thoughts and words, but the person speaking them may not be aware of how they sound or the disruption they cause to the daily routine. Someone who is sensitive about his or her belief system will feel trampled by the Knight's horse when challenges to these core beliefs are expressed.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
In every Tarot reading, the cards are dealt into positions that represent your past, your present and your future. The meaning of a card can and will change depending on which of these positions it occupies in your Tarot spread.
In the past position, this card describes a recent argument that you had which led to your current state of mind. It could also go deeper and be describing your childhood. Were you told that your dreams were unreachable? The foundation of your current situation could have been established in a climate of criticism. This card in this position asks you to ponder what your reaction to blunt words in the past might have caused you to do.
The Knight of Swords in the present position is an indicator that you are getting some unwanted news. Perhaps your very Tarot reading is not going as planned! The Knight of Swords has a pinpoint focus and stays on topic. There may be plenty you are avoiding in your life, perhaps that you have become quite good at avoiding. The Knight of Swords assures you that suddenly you are no longer able to avoid things and that confrontation can and will commence.
This card is quite powerful for you when it is dealt in the future position. The Knight of Swords is at his most powerful when his visit is a surprise. When his arrival has been announced and prepared for, you, the receiver of his visit, are in charge. This card here lets you know that a critique is coming. It warns you of unreasonable demands in a negotiation that will soon commence. It lets you know that those closest to you will not finesse words when their interests are challenged. Use the knowledge of this coming communication to protect yourself from the damage that ordinarily arrives with the Knight of Swords: damage we cause to ourselves by being unprepared.
Card Combinations
When a Tarot reading is dealt, the energy of the cards intermingles. Cards influence each other in unique ways that cannot be reproduced. Your reading is unique as cards combine to form a singular vision of your future.
When other Knight cards are dealt, the words delivered by the Knight of Swords take on a form that is not exclusively verbal. The Knight of Cups would bring out a surprise "I love you" from someone. When the Knight of Wands accompanies the Knight of Swords, art or song express an idea and do it in a shockingly powerful manner. Pairing up with the Knight of Pentacles could mean a surprising bill arrives in the mail. Pentacles are about money and it may be time to collect what you are owed in order to pay what you owe.
The Tarot's Page cards represent new experiences and youthful vigor. The Knight of Swords paired with the Page of Pentacles means a harsh lesson in a new field of investing or otherwise risking your money. The Page of Wands is liable to make a big mess when paired with the Knight of Swords, as you will explore a creative field in which you have no experience. The Page of Swords indicates that a coming criticism will be weak and ineffective. The Page of Cups paired with the Knight of Swords assures you of a new admirer who will surprise you with an innocent proposal.
The Queen cards mix well with the Knight of Swords as it is often difficult for the internally-focused queens to express themselves. The Queen of Swords paired with this card allows you to express ideas that may be in conflict but still work toward resolution. The Queen of Wands will deliver the right words to describe a complex creative project that may not be within the realm of your vocabulary. The Queen of Cups indicates a strong declaration of love is coming your way. The Knight of Swords combines with the Queen of Pentacles to beckon as a tempting investment opportunity.
The Knight of Swords brings out the brutal and imperious side of the Tarot's King cards. The King of Pentacles delivers a financial ultimatum to you that is impossible to ignore when he is paired with the Knight of Swords in your reading. The Knight speaks the words of emotional absolutes when he joins the King of Cups. Prepare for a demanding lover to ask for more than you may be willing to give. The King of Swords and the Knight of Swords combine to put a new idea into your head that changes the way you think about everyday things. The Knight of Wands combines with this card to master a creative way of expressing yourself.
The Queen of Swords Tarot Card
Have you been direct and honest in your dealings lately? Are you quick to understand the way things are done in any new environment? Have you been there and done that? Are you happy to share your expertise but still excited to learn the new ways of doing things? The Queen of Swords is a pleasant card in the way it reveals that you have plenty of experience from which to draw, but are genuinely interested in always learning more. When this card appears in your Tarot reading, the worst that someone could say about you is that you are a bit jaded. But the positive possibilities are overwhelming in a card that tells it like it is with kindness and self-assurance.pg
The queen is viewed in profile. She sits on a stone throne. In her right hand she holds a large sword pointing straight up. Her left hand beckons for someone in front of her to approach. The queen's throne has a butterfly motif carved into it and she wears a gold crown with a matching design. The silver of her sword is contrasted by a bright blue sky. Near the horizon, billowing white clouds loom low. She wears a robe illustrated with cotton ball clouds on a sky blue background. The landscape about her is simple; the world around her is neither lush nor barren.
This card's illustration contains many metaphors for the engagement with the world that comes with wisdom. The viewer cannot see the person whom the queen is calling forth. What the queen sees, has seen and understands is vast beyond what those on the outside can comprehend. Nobody can know all of your experiences, and how you put them together to form a world-view speaks of your intellect and emotional maturity. The butterfly is a metaphor for having risen out of a cocoon to soar to heights previously unimagined and to look quite beautiful in all your freedom to explore the world from a variety of perspectives. Swords are the Tarot deck's suit that signifies ideas and communication. The Queen of Swords is cerebral and intuitive, and exercises good judgment based on a wealth of experience and intellect: the epitome of wisdom manifest.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Every Tarot reading involves dealing cards into specific locations within a pattern. As the cards are dealt out, they land in positions representing your past, your present and your future. The meaning of any card can change based on where it lands in this pattern, known as the Tarot spread.
When the Queen of Swords lands in the past position, the foundation of your current situation is rooted in a choice you made that seemed wise at the time. This is not a card of impulse. Your thoughtful decisions from a time gone by got you on the path to where you are now. This card could represent a nurturing upbringing, and having taken advantage of the opportunities to give you a head start in life. If the card is speaking about the recent past, you can be reassured that a big decision you made was the best choice based on the information you had at the time.
In Tarot lore, it is believed that this card is actually an illustration of a vision of the past. The queen is pictured in profile precisely because we all rely on our specific versions of the past, ignoring inconvenient details and facts. She is looking at something you cannot see … that would be your future. Even though the future is not illustrated on the card, it is still part of it, and the same is true of the present … you looking at the queen in profile is the card's present. If this card is drawn in the past position, you complete the circle it is meant to illustrate. The card tells you that you made decisions based on what was to be had in the future and that if you seek guidance from the Tarot, relying on the wisdom you have accrued over time will be enough to get you to where you want to be.
In the present position, the Queen of Swords may indicate that a certain jaded state has overtaken your life. You may be seen as a bit of a drag as you offer unsolicited advice to friends and family. The Queen is weak in the present position, as her profile indicates a definite looking elsewhere instead of at the situation.
This card is a hopeful beacon in the future position. If you are getting a Tarot reading to find out what type of decision you will be making in the future, the Queen of Swords indicates you will make the right, mature choice. This card here also indicates that you may be achieving a mark of education that lifts you above a group of people with whom you associate in the present.
Card Combinations
When your Tarot reading is dealt, each card's meaning and message is altered by the cards nearby. A card in one reading can mean different things than in another reading simply due to the presence of different cards dealt into the spread.
When the Queen of Swords is accompanied by the King of Swords, your wisdom will have influence with some powerful organizations. When the Justice card is present, your ideas and decisions will have an impact among many people.
The Two of Pentacles is a card that combines with the Queen of Swords well and if you can afford to take a financial risk, this combination indicates that a small investment you make will have a big payoff.
The Fool is a card that does not seem to go with the Queen of Swords. He is ignoring all worldly wisdom while she is the paragon of analyzing things for best results. But these two combine to produce a classic case of succeeding by not conforming to established traditions, and learning higher truths on the path few follow.
When the Ace of Swords is in the reading with the Queen of the same suit, your reading is a call to a higher purpose. Have you found meaning in your life? You will soon, and a chance to contribute to the good of the human race will be yours to take.
The King of Swords Tarot Card
Is there a new authority figure in your life who has a mastery of language? Have you arrived at a place in your life where you are the expert to whom people turn to for advice? Are issues with words your father told you surfacing? Is the advice of an old friend reassuring you about your life's path many years later? The King of Swords is one of the most serene and certain cards in the Tarot deck.
Upon a stone throne sits the King. He is alone, wearing his golden crown and is staring straight at you. In his right hand is his sword that rises far beyond his head. He has a cape and wears a long robe. Behind him is a lush landscape of trees and birds, foliage and a blue sky with a few bubbly gray clouds all behind him.
Many Tarot decks adorn the King of Swords and his throne with interesting decor. A centuries-old French deck dresses him in a fashionable coat with smiling faces on the shoulders that form the shape of the moon. Some contemporary decks illustrate the crescent moon and monarch butterflies. The moon is a representation of wisdom and monarch butterflies are a play on words; something the King of Swords is best at. Do not get into a verbal tussle with the monarch of Swords.
Meaning in Past, Present and Future Positions
Every Tarot reading sees the cards dealt into positions representing the past, present or future. Wherever a card lands allows the story of the person receiving the Tarot reading to be told with that specific card illustrating a piece of that time frame.
When the King of Swords is in the past position it describes a person in your life, perhaps your childhood or some other formative time that made you who you are today. This person would have been great with language, a master of using words to get what he or she wanted. If the King of Swords represents you, here it would be you as a student or perhaps prior to emigrating from your native land, mastering a mother tongue that you no longer use.
In the present position, the King of Swords is especially potent. Women who are developing a crush on one of their teachers inevitably see the King of Swords in this position. When he stands in front of the class and effortlessly lectures with expertise it is as if he rules all language and guides your mind in one direction as he guides your imagination somewhere else. This can also be a person with whom you work closely who is assisting getting you through a tough time by offering sound advice. Many times we ignore the analysis of a well-intentioned friend only to regret not having followed a few wise words. The King of Swords lands here to remind you to respect the answers from an authority in your midst. If the King of Swords is actually you this indicates that what you have to say is important and you must speak up. No matter if you are a computer programmer with the right code to perfect a system's architecture or an activist who knows how to speak truth to power, the King of Swords has the words and is compelled to use them.
In the future position, the events of the present may be steering you toward an encounter with a person whose word is law. Perhaps the King of Swords is the judge who will be overseeing your child custody battle. In the future position, this card can represent a spouse or partner delivering an ultimatum in regards to some negative behavior of yours. If the King of Swords represents you when it is in this position, you are becoming a person to whom many people turn for advice or guidance.
Regardless of the position in which this card lands, there is both power and status that comes with being the King of Swords, but the responsibility of it all makes for a heavy crown. This king wears no jewelry, his garments are plain; there is no glamour besides the power of his poetry.
Court Card Combinations
In the Tarot deck, there are Kings, Queens, Knights and Pages for each suit. They are called the Court Cards. When more than one Court Card appears in your Tarot reading, they instantly combine to tell a story even if they are placed far apart in different positions. The presence of two Court Cards allows the Tarot reader to find out which Court Card represents you. If the King of Swords is you, the other Court Card represents the person on the receiving end of your silver tongue. If the King of Swords is most definitely the other person, the character embodied by the Court Card representing you will most definitely be affected and influenced by the words and ideas of that person.
Other Card Combinations
When the King of Swords appears in a reading that features many other cards from the suit of Swords, the words of the King carry angry and confrontational overtones. When there are many Cups in a reading with this card, the balance of logic and emotion gives a sense of hopefulness about resolution. Pentacles are cards representing material issues and money; surrounding this card indicates a discussion about money will be a memorable conversation. If you are going to see a financial advisor when a reading like this transpires, take very detailed notes. When the suit of Wands is prominent in a reading that features the King of Swords, a creative project you are working on is destined for great reviews.
There are a few Tarot cards that amplify the power of the King of Swords into an unstoppable force of nature. The High Priestess, The Emperor, The Hierophant, Justice and The Devil make the most potent combinations. These cards take the articulate words of the King of Swords and empower them with deep, lasting influence for good or evil. If this is the result of your Tarot spread, understand the essence of that power before you speak, or prior to acting on an influential person's request.
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