Swords
Thoughts, Intellect, Strife, Mental Activity
Element: Air / Archangel: Raphael / Direction: East / Season: Spring / Letter: Vave
Master King = Responsibility
Wise protector Queen = Nurturer, ‘behind the scenes’ = delicate, precise, and extremely strong power.
Manifesting Knight = Will. Getting back on that horse. “Ready, fire, aim, re-fire”
Learning News Page or Princess = Messages, news, new beginnings, simplicity
King of Swords
Assert yourself, tell us what you feel and really think.
The King of Swords indicates that you are ready to tell people what you think and how things should be. You are asserting yourself.
Master of rational decision making. Authoritative, logical, fair, just, unemotional, lawyer / judge, level-headed, direct. Card of advice. Seek out an advisor of some sort. It could indicate that you need a specialist. Similar to Emperor card.
Queen of Swords
Inspire us by your words or actions. Shine your Light.
Wise protector of justice. Intelligent, writer, communicative yet cold - cuts through all B.S.
You feel she wants you to focus your thoughts and attention. Swords are associated with the mind, and clear thinking. When this Queen turns up in your reading, she guides you to clear away all the mental chatter and clutter, and sort your priorities out. This is a time to focus on your goal, and more importantly to put it into action
Knight of Swords
Full steam ahead, events take off at great speed now.
Striving / charging forward towards quick action and change. Full steam ahead, events take off at great speed now. Concerned with the next great thought, opinion, or plan of action. No emotional consideration. Fierce, determined, aggressively pursuing goals. Very direct, has a sharp mind, and is a natural problem solver, and debater. Words = weapons
Symbols:
Page of Swords
The arrival of news, which may be unexpected.
Learning to think clearly and communicate with authenticity. May currently be mentally unstable or intellectually immature, or act without thinking. Begin to align your verbal commitments with actions.
Symbols:
Ace of Swords
The birth of a new idea. This card is the proverbial Ace up your sleeve.
New potential of a new job, a fresh start, a sudden opportunity or idea, clarity, courage. New ideas, intellect, clear logical thought, truth, power.
From the ‘Hand of God’ or ‘Hand of an Angel’
In both the Ace of Swords and Ace of Wands, the hand is upright and the fist is closed. This is an active gesture which indicates one should ‘grab’ what is on offer, or ‘make it happen’ by taking some action. Swords and Wands represent Yang energy, and the forceful masculine elements of Air and Fire.
In the Aces of Cups and Pentacles, the palm is open and facing upwards, implying you should be open to ‘receiving’ what is on offer. Cups and Pentacles are Yin energy, and represent the receptive feminine elements of Water and Earth.
Hidden Thumb = Anything ‘hidden’ in Tarot is a symbol of mysticism, the spiritual realm, psychic and premonitions. The hidden thumb suggests knowledge gained by flashes of insight, the signature of inspiration which comes from outside you. Thus you are guided to listen and trust your instincts. Your first thought, is your best thought.
Crown and Swords = Victory. A winning idea. A proposal of something.
Palm = on right of crown is a sign of victory. The palm represented immortality in ancient Egypt and was sacred in many religions. In Christianity, the palm is associated with Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem and is celebrated on Palm Sunday.
In ancient Rome the palm was a symbol of victory, and even in Christianity, it can symbolize the victory of the spirit over flesh.
Olive = Left side of crown, represents peace.
Yod = 6 of them. Hebrew letter from the word God representing power and energy available / fate. Yods represent the flames of Spirit and the creative seeds of thoughts and ideas emanating from the spirit world.
Mountains = Obstacles to overcome. Thought this higher vantage point means we can now see the ‘bigger picture’ and thus the ideas can flow freely.
Tree of Life = Aces in Tarot connect to the Crown Sephirah, the topmost of the Sephirot and Tree of Life, known as Kether.
Angel = Metatron
Chakra = This card is associated with the Crown Chakra
II of Swords
Lord of Inner Balance
Trying to ‘listen’ for the best course of action to take.
Indecision. Remember to be unbiased in judgement. Devoid of physical sight, the figure relies solely on their intelligence. Blind yourself to any distracting noise and focus on what you truly want.
The ability to move outside ourselves and look to the Universe for answers. The woman in this card appears to be in a deep and deliberate meditation, trying to hear the Power of God, angels, the universe. She is training to listen. “The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.”
Two swords over heart = The woman crosses the swords over her heart chakra. At a mundane level, this suggests she is trying to emotionally protect herself from something
Two crossed swords pointing up = you are ready to fight.
Blindfold over third eye = Blocking out a situation. Third eye. The woman is in spiritual training, removing her earthly senses so that she can focus instead on the development of physic abilities.
Sea = Emotions are calm.
Rocks In The Water = Stepping stones, creating a path or resting points as you journey
Bench = ‘taking a time out’.Time to reflect, meditate or examine a situation in more detail.
Crescent Moon = Waxing from left to right. Subconscious and intuition. It is connected with spiritual thought and psychic abilities.
Sephirah = Chokhmah, meaning wisdom.
Archangel = Raziel
III of Swords
Lord of Sorrow
Feeling sad or disappointed. Let the tears flow.
Growth through trauma, heartbreak, betrayal, grief.
IV of Swords
Lord of Rest / Truce
Take time-out to rest.
Stability through meditation, rest, retreat, solitude, peace. Recuperation needed because of mental or physical exhaustion / or serious illness.
Take time to rest. Balance chakras. Truce is not peace. Take time to rest. Usually shows up after a difficult or dramatic time. This card marks the kind of breathing space we often need in order to clarify our view of the situation, to gather our strength and to decide how best to move forward. When this card appears in a reading, the first thing it tells us is that it is time to rest, time to stop worrying about the things that have happened.
Tomb = In Tarot, a tomb never represents physical death. Instead it indicates that the time has come to lie down and rest. It is a symbol of time-out.
Rest = this is not an indulgent rest, it is an active act of self-help.
Armor = the knight has removed most of his armor, implying he feels safe to let his guard down.
Laying down = Savasana, or corpse pose to reach Nirvana —the yogi’s pursuit of the ultimate state of soteriological release (salvation) and liberation from duḥkha (unhappiness, suffering and pain) and samsāra (endless karma and reincarnation).
Stone = cold
Stained glass = The house of God. The window to the soul.
PAX = In the window. Means peace, or a period of peace.
Three swords hanging = Three swords hang on the wall above our knight like trophies. These swords represent past triumphs, battles already fought and won.
The remaining sword = placed on the side of the tomb, represents the next battle to come. It could possibly be the Ace of Swords, a new opportunity.
Placement of swords = One is positioned over the knight’s third eye chakra (psychic insights and intuition), another over his throat chakra (communication) and the final over his solar plexus chakra (decision making).
Archangel = Tzadkiel
Sephirah = Chesed
V of Swords
Lord of Defeat
Are you feeling angry with someone?
Struggles and problems from defeat or defeating others, mind games, gloating, hostility, conflict, competing. Did not go well even if defeating others / dishonor. Lord of Defeat
In occasional really bad cases the card can indicate external treachery - somebody deliberately attempting to undermine or damage us. Especially if paired with VII or IX of swords.
VI of Swords
Lord of Earned Success
Better days are coming, and you are heading in the right direction.
Solutions by leaving, accepting help, going somewhere better, evasion, emotional baggage. Moving on, transition, starting over, leaving difficulties behind, travel over water.
If you feel stuck in a rut, this card means, now is the time to expand your horizons.
VII of Swords
Lord of Unstable Effort
Dishonesty. Something taken from you. Deceiving ourselves.
Worry. Warning something could be taken from you. Sabotage own effort due to the uncertain state you are in. Not well thought out. Efforts of someone is behaving sneakily behind your back, secret plans, abandoning ship, wanting more, lies, cheating, stealing, manipulation, deception, strategy, sneaky. Doing what is best for numero uno, serving your own needs, even if you have to use lies and manipulation. Read contracts carefully.
Can have a positive, make your own rules and don’t play the same game as everyone else. Use your wit.
Stay alert to back-stabbing in work, someone may be trying to undermine you behind your back or steal your ideas.
VIII of Swords
Lord of Shortened Force (Interference)
Blocked
Non-movement, feeling powerless and trapped / stuck, victimhood. Mental fog. Can be a warning. You need to get yourself out of this entrapment. Limiting beliefs.
Pausing
Blocks - Need to do unblocking
Blindfold: Hoodwinked
Swords: Blocking her from the castle in he mind (home / security). May be surrendering to be away from this because she knows she needs to face her blocks so she can find her true authentic self.
Note: She is blindfolded and unable to make decisions on a sure footing at the moment, but she is surrounded by a small forest of swords, hemming her in and making progress difficult. Notice that the woman is loosely bound and not suffering. Her bindings could be easily cut on the swords, so she has what she needs to escape. Perhaps she is simply afraid or lacks the confidence to help herself.
Very often this Tarot card can represent a prison of your own making – of fears that have kept you from attaining your goals. It can also represent deep guilt, even if that guilt is unfounded. Consider what you fear, and then make a plan to overcome it and move forward.
Remember: The only limits are the ones you place on yourself. Fear of failure is holding you back. Or maybe you worry too much about what others think of you? Remember, fear kills more dreams than failure ever did.
IX of Swords
Lord of Cruelty
Feeling anxious, depressed or lonely.
Saturation from worrisome thoughts, an overactive mind, anxiety, nightmares.
X of Swords
Lord of Ruin
Represents a devastating loss and the end of a situation.
Completely over and dead, self sabotage, overkill, hitting rock bottom, the end, ruin, closure, finality. Know when you are beaten, or know when it’s time to move on.
The swords on spine = Acupuncture needles, suggesting a systematic chakra cleansing, or renewal of mind, body, and spirit is taking place.
Sign of benediction = Forgive those who have bought you to this state.
The person is still alive = We know this because the benediction position can only be made with active muscular control. Yet part of our life is over.
Colors = Black is the color of mourning and death. The dark sky contrasts to the vivid yellow of the golden dawn. Yellow is a symbol of alertness and mental energy. As the black slowly dissipates, a new dawn is emerging.
Mountains = obstacles
Sephirah = Malkuth,
Archangel = Sandalphon.
1. Soul Star Chakra
This chakra is outside of your body, a few inches above your head. It is associated with spiritual enlightenment, mediumship and astral travel.
2. Crown Chakra
This chakra is at the top of your head and is associated with self-realization and faith. It is usually where energy healing enters the body from the spiritual world.
3. Third Eye
This chakra is situated between the eyes and is associated with psychic insight, clairvoyance and premonitions.
4. Throat Chakra
Located in the lower throat area, this chakra is associated with speaking the truth.
5. Thymus Chakra
Located half way between the throat and heart chakra, this chakra is associated with forgiveness.
6. Heart Chakra
Situated in the heart area, an open heart chakra helps you to feel love and compassion.
7. Solar Plexus
This chakra is located half way between your heart and sacral chakra. It is your vital energy center, and when the solar plexus is spinning in a healthy manner, you feel energized.
8. Sacral
Situated in the belly-button area, this chakra is your emotional area, and affects your mood.
9. Base Chakra
Also known as kundalini, this chakra is at the base of your spine and controls your primal life force energy.
10. Earth Star Chakra
Located outside your body, a few inches below your feet, this is your ‘grounding’ chakra. It helps you feel connected to nature, and life force chi or prana energy.