Upright Meaning
The Six of Cups often connects to how we relate to our past, and the comfort that this can offer us. It speaks of happy memories, and how these may act as resources to help us get through more challenging times. It sometimes points towards a tendency to view our past ‘through rose-tinted glasses’ and how this may result in our not engaging fully or realistically with our present.
The Cups in the card are filled with flowering plants and the gift of one from the older to the younger child can represent a relationship or connection that is blossoming, particularly a friendship or romantic partnership in which we find ourselves able to both give and receive without expectation or pressure.
The sense of cozy security inherent in the scene also suggests that this is a great time to connect with our own inner child and to allow ourselves to connect to the playfulness, curiosity, and simple open-mindedness that form children’s natural state of being.
Reversed Meaning
When the Six of Cups crops up reversed in a reading it usually indicates a shift away from a mindset focused on the past and towards a greater concern with the future. We are now prepared to use the gifts of the past to move forwards with our lives. Where our relationship with the past is a troubled one, the Six suggests that now is the time to make a concerted effort to resolve this and heal: perhaps by speaking with a trained therapist or using self-nurturing techniques such as meditation and yoga to assist us on this journey.
The reversed card can also suggest that we may have lost touch with our inner child, and counsels taking some time out to find her again: make space for fun, dance like no one’s watching, enjoy simply being silly!
In its gentle evocation of childhood, the Six of Cups is a gentle yet powerful reminder of the strength of memory and the importance of recognizing that we all sometimes need a safe space - both mentally and physically - in which to allow ourselves to be a child again.
