Tarot Card for the week-ending 31 October 2021

Dear Beloved

The beginning of this fabulous new week.

I used this beautiful illustrated card deck from the Gilded Tarot by Ciro Marchefti and Barbara Moore.

The card of the week may or may not apply to your situations....and that is okay if you are unable to relate to this week's card.

The card drawn for this week is the the Ten of Swords

Ten of Swords is a striking and ominous looking card, the shows a man lying flat on the ground with his face in the dirt. Ten long swords are stabbed into his back, he may not have seen this end coming. The man looks defeated. Looking into the horizon, in the east, the sun is rising, and the weather seems very calm despite the darkness. The Ten of Swords seems to intimate that this is the lowest point in one's life, and it cannot get worse than this, and the rising sun gives hope that the worse is over.

The tale of the suit of swords is a powerful metaphor, one that ends in tragedy. The swords are a symbol of intellect, intelligence and logic, and yet we find the final culmination of this suit a complete and total defeat of the spirit. We must realize that the swords are a weapon that can have immense potential for destruction or for good. The story as it unfolds from the ace to the ten is one where an untrained individual uses this weapon for faulty reasons - makes many mistakes, and then spends an entire lifetime attempting to run away from the power that he misused.

Do not assume that situations are stable. This card depicts quite a defeating situation and it can bring upon anxiety, stress or worry. A major negative situation of some sort has unfolded with catastrophic consequences. A certain extreme situation has occurred and we see that in the man being stabbed in his back. This card warns of betrayal, backstabbers; separation or divorce; business or work situations not working out. The betrayal could come from those closest to you - it could be relationships/friendships that you had trusted and that is not going to work out as you had hoped. Unfortunately, we can not not control everything.

When a person believes the swords are external to him, as opposed to the reality that they are part of him, and the choices that he has made; his pain is not the pain of his circumstances, but the pain of fear, anxiety and of not being able to be a master of his surroundings. This is a sign of not taking self responsibility for choices made and for placing his trust in the wrong people or situations.

After the hopelessness of the nine of swords, what could have happened? Were you overwhelmed by the pressure? Or did you take the final sword upon yourself and admit defeat?

The Ten of Swords depicts that situation where your mentality is ‘poor me’, you feel like there is nothing you can do. Pause and remember that as with the Death card, the end of something means a new beginning. Let go of what you have lost, and focus on the new path forward because that is where your life is meant to go. A good example is a break-up with your partner - though it could be intensely painful, it could also be the beginning of a new sense of independence. Leaving a position that does not suite you any more. Financially - if you have been let down by someone who did not come through for you. Remember to not waste your energy on revenge for you are being guided to a better situation, trust in yourself and trust in the Universe.

Love to you

Meenakshi