Two cards

The Eight of Swords is commonly known as the card of victimization.

This means that you are currently going through a phase where you are completely bound by your circumstances. You feel as though you are not capable of getting yourself out of the destructive phase that you are in and that in fact if you were to try, devastating repercussions would follow. You fear pain and restriction, yet that which you fear is exactly what is blocking you the most. You are going through a season where you do not trust anyone and you worse you are constantly doubting your own abilities. You are perpetuating this cycle by trying to battle more than one issue at a time and that is part of what is causing you debilitating indecision.

You need to stop thinking that your emotions make up who you are entirely. Drowning in your emotions, which are as fluid as the tides, is not an appropriate way to work on your goals. The 8 of Swords can at points be harsh to take in because there is a level of personal responsibility that you must recognize on the role that you play in your own life’s miseries. The maiden that is depicted in the card is blindfolded as well as tied up. She is surrounded by swords and for all intents and purposes is indeed stuck. However on closer inspection you can see that her binds are only loosely wrapped around her, and there is a clearing in the swords behind her which would make escape possible if only she allowed herself to try. The key to this card is the lack of the desire to try, exemplifying where you are right now. You have complete control over your circumstances at this moment but you have allowed yourself to get addicted to the way things are even though the way things are causes you to be a complete stress case.

You are absolutely consumed by a victim mentality. And up until this point it was working for you. Now you are seeing the issues that can arise from this lack of decision making and a belief in your own ineptitude. It may be a way to survive, but it is most certainly not a way to live. The only opposition that is holding you back is your mental training, the habit from the practice of victimization and a certain level of blind acceptance or even ignorance to this very fact. Perhaps this was how you were raised, or you developed a habit due to a series of negative experiences, however now the 8 of Swords is giving you a warning, letting you know that it is time to improve your circumstances, and if you choose to ignore this warning, life will get worse for you.

The way out of this cycle is to balance your mind and your spirit. Recognize that you are actually an extremely creative individual who is absolutely capable of handling their life and can have anything that they want. The mind is going to open for you to include the extensions of your personal self with a partner and children as well as the necessity to widen your circle of close friends. You must stretch passed your comfort levels. The first response that you have to new situations is to close your eyes and hide because there is so much to do. But you must meet these challenges head on should you hope to escape death by swords.

The Eight of Swords in Love

When the Eight of Swords has appeared in a reading regarding love and relationships, you will find that you feel as though you are completely stuck in your situation. This card often comes up regarding the potential end of a marriage. Usually there is a deep level of unhappiness that has been going on for a long time, but the lack of deciding to leave the marriage is what creates a situation that is not easy to simply resolve. Many in love are afraid to change their circumstances because they have grown so comfortable with the unhappiness and worse, are afraid to be alone. Question yourself at this time; are you perpetuating something that makes you unhappy so that you do not have to be alone? How are you keeping yourself in chains? How are you behaving as if you are a victim? How could you better strengthen yourself and take control of your life?

The Eight of Swords in Health

The Eight of Swords in a reading about health is referencing a hypochondriac nature. That of a person who is constantly saying they are sick enough that they actually become sick. These are the people who are overindulging in medication that is prescribed by a doctor and who have a million ailments. In essence these issues that they have are self-created and self-perpetuated, and if you find yourself stuck in this kind of situation then you are going to need to learn how to live without believing that you are just a sick person.

Consider learning how to break the habit of indulging in these medicines so that you can perpetuate your own health. Some medications are important to survival, this is true, but some take medication just to dull out life. If this is you, seek substance abuse health. The Eight of Swords makes this recommendation so that you can gain control over your life before matters get worse.

The Eight of Swords in Work and Wealth

When the Eight of Swords shows up in a work and wealth reading, there is a feeling of being victimized by coworkers or supervisors. You feel as though you are entitled to have more than what you have received thus far. Sometimes you are being overlooked for promotions because there is nowhere to go in your position or money issues with the company. Other times you are being looked over because you are not working hard enough. When the Eight of Swords is influencing a work reading, the latter is more probable. If you are struggling in your work environment, consider how much time you actually spend working and see if there is a gap or you are taking too many breaks and the like. See how you can become a better employee.

The Eight of Swords in Outcome / Future Position

The eight of swords in an outcome/future position is connected to our own limitations in life. In a positive spread, the outcome can indicate that their have been emotional upheaval and that you will not give up and that you need to face the truth of the matter. There is also a focus on over-analyzing elements and this becomes a cycle of problems. In the future, it is likely that you still will not see things that you don’t wish to see. If she actually could see what has happened in the past there is no reason for her to continue. In terms of an analogy, it is telling you to open your eyes in the future to all the things that tried to hold you back.

Reversed Eight of Swords in a reading

The 8 of Swords reversed is blessing you with the energy of freedom. You have done the work to improve your circumstances and you are now able to take off the blindfold of victimization and you can see clearly what is going on around you. Now you can truly use all of the creative energy that you have inside of you, freely. You are able to focus on wonderful ideas that set you apart from everyone else. You are no longer backed in a corner, so make sure not to fall back in old habits. You also might be so excited by your new found freedom that you may preach too strongly this message to others and this could prove to alienate yourself. Expressing gratitude and thankfulness for your healing is one thing, trying to recruit others against their will is something else. Keep this in mind. 

Upright Eight of Swords Meanings in Keywords

• Limited by obstacles
• Mental barriers
• Feeling trapped
• Wrongly accused
• Seeking for freedom
• Confusion and anger
• Feeling lost

Reversed Eight of Swords Meanings in Keywords

• Inner strength
• Awaiting salvation
• Escaping problems
• Being the victim
• Feeling comfortable
• Carelessness
• Avoiding issues

If you have received the Nine of Wands in your reading you will be receiving a strength of vision that you never thought was possible in the past.

This vision is going to be equally balanced with emotions, spirit and physical health. You are making the right choices for yourself. You have gained much knowledge from what you have been through and now you must establish a certain level of mastery. As a part of this mastery over your reality, you must hear what others have to say so that you can gain multiple perspectives which will help you make better decisions, choose better roads to cross and will teach you a tremendous amount about yourself.

In the Rider Waite Deck, we see again, the fellow that has been fighting all along the Suit of Wands. His wounded head indicates that he has been through a struggle in order to protect what he loves and even though he is tired he is prepared to fight some more. He is protecting a boundary made of the previous 8 wands. This means that right now you are in an intermission as far as the struggles you have been pursuing to get through to your initiatory phase, so you must regain your strength after resting and regrouping and speaking to others about what you should do. There are those in your life right now that have excellent advice to offer you. You must not be stubborn in this moment because you will benefit greatly from the help should you choose to accept it. The 9 of Wands says that you should accept as much help from genuinely helpful people as is possible. Remember this is a card of fire, but consider this moment as a time to gather more fuel so that you can burn brighter than ever.

The Nine of Wands is a card of self respect. The man depicted in the card is not afraid of losing, instead he has enough faith in himself and in his cause that he is willing to die for it. Obviously the card does not suggest that you go the lengths of having to die for a cause, but in this case, the willingness to be uncompromisable about your values is an important aspect of developing a strong sense of self. In this fiery phase a sense of self is extremely important to the overall success of your battle. If you are going through a hard time right now where you feel that you can’t go on, please know that the Nine of Wands is saying that you have already come far, that you have done well and you only have a little bit farther to go.

One of the best ways to prepare and win a battle is to give your body a chance to develop its muscles. In this you should consider your emotions, your physical state and your spirituality all separate bodies whose muscles need to be tones and strengthened. You have a huge amount of charm and attractiveness to both sexes, so you won’t have to worry about or fear not getting attention, but you need to focus on yourself, on your personal journey and on the work that you have yet to do.

The Nine of Wands in Love

In love, the Nine of Wands portrays you as someone who is very attractive to both sexes. Anyone who has fought as hard as you have, will have a certain kind of ‘extra’ physique about them that will send out signals to other people letting them know that you have a strong and good character. The light that you radiate illuminates all that is dark around you, and will attract many people, somewhat like a moth to a flame. However, for you, the love that you must illuminate needs to encompass not only yourself and those that love you, but you must also challenge yourself as part of your learning to love those that you find thorny to deal with. Embrace the people who are making your life difficult. You will have no problems in love at this time, but right now you must focus your attentions on bettering your circumstances so that you are ready for the final phase.

The Nine of Wands in Health

When the Nine of Wands appears in your spread regarding health there is going to be some level of anxiety and worry that you are going to have to push through. There is heaviness and a fear of losing grip on what you possess in your life. Whether that is love, possessions, money, or relationships, the Nine of Wands gives you hope because it is lending you the strength that it has and it is orbiting all around you to help you.

The Nine of Wands in Work and Wealth

Now is the time to protect the work that you have started and create a savings from it. When it comes to money and abundance, now is not the time to be frivolous. You are protecting yourself by buying insurance and making sure that if anything should happen that could create a financial bump that you are prepared to handle it. But you should not spend randomly. You must take care of what you have now so that you will have later when life gets rocky again. On the card shows a person that has been hurt in the past at work, maybe corporate bullying. This card can imply putting up a barrier and protecting yourself. In some instances, it can also suggest being paranoid. You need to have faith and keep on going. The person in the card I would say represents yourself carrying a burden, he can build a fire with those wands and fight his position, but he is wounded. There is a focus that you can overcome obstacles when this card is drawn in a work position, you may be hiding under a psychological wall and in the past suffered pain at work. This card also indicates that a goal is out of reach and this is a good outcome at work. The number nine is Eremita which represents knowledge and wisdom at work. The card also focuses on patience, sometimes doing nothing is defensive in itself. The card is also about moving when the time is right, to get to the end goal. Sometimes doing nothing or delaying in life is better than taking action at the wrong time.

Reversed Meaning - Nine of Wands

If you have received the Nine of Wands in the reversed position in your reading this means that you are going through a phase of feeling defeated because something has happened to make you feel that your defenses, the ones that you worked very hard on, have failed. You have burdened yourself with problems that are bigger than you can handle and you feel weak and incapable of holding them back. Why are you giving away your personal responsibility? The Nine of Wands exemplifies that you are in control of your life and your reality; therefore, nothing is happening to you that is out of your control. Right now you just feel like it is because it is easier than admitting that you need to start over again. It is challenging to go through this because you have already risked so much. But the Nine of Wands assists you in being fearless. You must push yourself to continue the fight or you will lose to it.

The Nine of Wands Card Keywords Upright

• Stamina
• Protection
• Magic
• Soul seeking
• Inner peace
• Push forward
• Healing Wounds
• Rejuvenation
• Rebirth
• New attitude
• Improvement

The Nine of Wands Tarot Card Reversed Card Keywords

• Old lessons
• Temptation
• Going back
• Compromise
• Feeling crushed
• Devastation
• Hopelessness
• Gaining strength
• Hungry ego
• Lots of pride