“There’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it’s worth fighting for.”
~ Samwise Gamgee
I missed last week due to the holiday festivities, and I hope that you all had a good holiday. Two weeks ago we were dealing with the 7 of Cups, and the plethora of choices that bled between the external and internal orbit of our emotions. Now we are moving into the reversed 10 of Swords. In the reversed position, I usually read these cards as internal, and not yet ready or active in the physical world.
A bull lays skewered in the ground. Nine swords penetrate his flanks and back. The tenth sword has been pushed through both eyes. It also appears that there is a heavy rain, surrounding and seeping the bull into invisibility. The whole scene is violent, and quite sad. This image resonates that in the internal mental space sometimes we are the one holding the sword, ready to attack and destroy for no reason. Other times, we are the bull, a victim of a cruel game. Whether this game is perceived or real does not actually matter. If we allow ourselves to become the victim, real or imaginary, we are now part of that cruel and violent spot.
On the surface this card speaks to an abrupt finality in our mental cycles. There is pain, trauma, and past weight that bears down on us, keeping us fixed in one space. With the reversed 10 of Swords, there is a warning given that we must end our internal cycles, processes, and old focuses. If we let the ego continue to hold it’s stance in the same terrible position, we will continuously endure the same dreaded fate, and we can never transform.
In the light though, internal transformation is one of the biggest declarations of this card. We endure and carry so much mental weight and blistering judgments. However, there is room for a promise here. In our endurance, we find our strength. We become mentally unyielding, less likely to succumb or kneel. Now, we have let old parts of ourselves die, old illnesses in the ego that were crumbling into dust. This is where we internally set new boundaries, and take control of our lives. We will not be the victim, nor the jester to make the sick and twisted cheer. We are in control, and unencumbered.
On the shadow side, the pain and trauma could leave us more bitter and less willing to fight. Internally, we feel shaken, beat down, and impoverished. Because this card is reversed, this could also point to the fact than many times we bear a smile, and an empty victory in our fists, but deep down we are still the victim stuck in the deluge of our doubts. The only way that we can truly move forward, and claim a new mental space is to be open and honest. The pain may be unbearable, but we truly have nowhere to go but up.
**Thank you for reading. Please let me know how the reversed 10 of Swords has impacted you. If you would like a personal reading, please email me at teaandtombstones@gmail.com**
Tarot card is from The Wild Unknown tarot deck. Click here to go The Wild Unknown website for their full collection. (This is not an affiliate link).