Start Today with Guidance and a Glimpse of Possibilities

The Six of Swords is represented by a deeply mysterious image: a shrouded figure and child are being poled across the water in a narrow boat, which carries the Swords themselves. The picture evokes Charon carrying his freight of souls across the River Styx. The destination that the mother and child (and possibly the man ferrying them) are headed towards is a gentle wooded island, suggesting peace, and a point at which rest may, finally, be found. 

In the Four of Swords, we see the image of a knight’s tomb in a church. The scene is a peaceful one: three of the Swords are engraved in stone on the wall behind the tomb, while the fourth makes up part of the tomb on which the figure of the knight lies. The scene depicted in the stained glass window is that of Christ healing a follower who kneels before him. This, then, is not a card of death, but one of rest and regeneration.

The Knight of Pentacles emphasizes patience and growth. The knight sits on a horse holding a gold coin in no hurry to charge forward. He is in no rush to thrust himself forward before he has thoroughly explored his options and course of action. The knight is prepared to do the heavy lifting in order to achieve his goals the right and honorable way.

In the King of Wands, we see a figure leaning forward on his throne: he does not seem as solidly planted on his seat as the Queen but, rather, as if he is about to - or very much wanting to - spring up and into action. In this way, he represents the culmination of the suit: the fiery Wands have been directed into successful, often long-term, projects, and yet still burn brightly with passion and great energy.

The Moon has long been associated with intuition, feminine mystery, and the unknown, the half-seen. And so it is in the tarot card of the same name: here we see, in the Rider-Waite image, a dog and a wolf howling at the full moon. Before them, a crayfish emerges from the waters of a pool while behind them a path leads back over the mountains, to the world beyond. This symbolizes that however fearful are the manifestations of our inner consciousness, we can be safe in the knowledge that there is a return route open for us. On such a return route we may tread with the new knowledge we have gained beneath the light of The Moon.

The Strength card traditionally depicts a woman gently opening (or caressing) the jaws of a lion, who looks up at her with complete trust. The lion can symbolize our passions, and our unconscious energy: the kind that manifests through our intuition and our dreams. In taming this, the woman in the card is allowing this side of her being to safely merge with the rational, outward-looking aspect of her core personality. Interestingly, the Strength attribute is normally perceived as being linked to the woman; however, in allowing itself to trust and have faith, it is, perhaps, the lion that more properly embodies the deeper meaning of the card.