Tarot Card Meanings of the Swords in Relationships – Part 2
Posted By Amanda on August 18, 2009
When you are looking at relationships and the meanings of different tarot cards, the suit of swords will frequently come ups when there are challenges and stressful situations.
The next three cards that come up very frequently when someone is having difficulties in relationships are the 8, 9, and 10 of Swords. I have often had people look straight at any of those cards cards and say “that is exactly how I feel!” – usually without me saying anything at all.
All 3 cards are quite dramatic and usually quite accurately reflect the intensity of thoughts, feelings and emotions that are going on for the person concerned.
8 of Swords
The 8 of Swords is a card of restriction, of feeling stuck and trapped and unable to move forward. There is a real sense of powerless with this card. This may be self- imposed or more frequently, the questioner will feel that the restrictions are being imposed on them by someone else.
When the 8 of Swords comes up, the dominant thought will often be ” I can’t because….” . However the important thing with this card is that the figure could wriggle out of the bandages and move forward, which suggests that the restrictions are probably not as bad as the person perceives them to be and there will be some actions that the questioner can take to move themself forward.
9 of Swords
The 9 of Swords is another card of intense pain. The figure is sitting in bed at night, with her head in her hands in total despair, really not knowing what to do or how to go forward. Things often seem worse at night and it is a time when worrying catches up with us. There is upset, pain, maybe loss, perhaps grief (or similar intense emotions), crying, worry and stress.
It may be that is what is needed at the moment, however it does also need a more constructive approach of “what can be done to let go of this pain and to move forward?” which is often much easier said than done.
10 of Swords
The 10 of Swords can also be a very dramatic card to see in a spread and its meaning can as equally dramatic. It can mean that someone has badly let you down or stabbed you in the back, or you feel that they have. This is a card of endings and has a very similar meaning to the Death card. However, with the dawn in the background, this is also a card of silver linigns and new beginnings, although that may be very difficult to see at the moment.
With 10 swords stabbing one person, this can also be a card of a bit of an over-reaction and things may not be as bad as you perceive them to be.
When there are a lot of Swords cards in a reading about relationships, there are a lot of challenging feelings and emotions. It is a time to re-evaluate what is going on and to see how those thoughts and emotions are serving you and if they are not, they can be very valuable pointers for areas to consider for change.
It is the area of thoughts, head stuff and our communication with ourselves and others that needs careful attention when there a re lots of swords in a relationship spread.
With abundant blessings.
Amanda Goldston
About the author
Hi Amanda, I have a serious question I need help with. If I got ten of swords at the ‘block’ position and my question is if I will be able to reconcile with my ex boyfriend. Is it telling me no? Or if there is a more optimistic way to look at it? Do I still have to power to change it? I’ll appreciate any answers/suggestions you can give me.