Apr 06 | 2023 — VIII of Swords
The suit of Swords can be a real bitch sometimes. Of all the front-facing “nasty cards” in Tarot, most of them are Swords. The III of Swords (heartbreak), VI of Swords (moving on from something difficult), VII of Swords (betrayal, deception), IX of Swords (anxiety, regret), X of Swords (absolute fuckery that has left you wrecked). And of course — today’s card, the VIII of Swords, or what I call the “mental trap” card.
The suit of Swords is the suit of the mind. It’s knowledge, wisdom, thoughts, words, and communication. It is very much intertwined with the suit of Cups (the suit of emotion). After all, your thoughts and understanding of something can have a direct impact on your emotions and vice versa. I think this is also why we see water featured in about half of the Sword cards.
When I look at the VIII of Swords, I see some similarities to the II of Swords. It’s almost like it’s the “guess-you-didn’t-work-through-the-II-of-Swords-so-here-you-go” card. Both of these cards feature a blindfolded person who is avoiding the water as best they can (by not looking at it, or by trying to step out of it), and they, of course, both have this thing with swords. Water, in Tarot, symbolizes our emotions, or in this case, a conscious effort to avoid them or block them out.
The II of Swords is about making a difficult decision and trying to base that decision on logic and not emotion. On the other hand, the VIII of Swords is where you are indecisive, trapped in your immobility, a prisoner of your own thoughts. You’ve leveled up! …but not in a good way. And if you look at the coming cards (anxiety/regret, feeling like the end of the world), NOT working through the issues at hand is a bit like slowly digging your own grave.
Message of the Day: I always sorta felt this card was straightforward. I mean, the concept of being "trapped in your head" isn't foreign to any of us, I don't believe. Breaking it down to its most basic point, we're looking at a steady diet of unhealthy thought patterns.
Whatever the situation is at hand, it’s stopped us from moving forward.
Internally, that could be low self-esteem or a low sense of self-worth. It could be lacking confidence. It could be fear, like social anxiety, PTSD, or fear of being judged, outed, or embarrassed.
If we think of the swords in this card as actual words or thoughts, this person is literally being held prisoner by them. This person is standing in water (sorta) which could indicate a reluctance to engage with the emotional nature of the situation. We know that swords (words/thoughts) are sharp and can really hurt (and no one is as good at hurting YOU as yourself). So rather than risking additional pain, they choose to not “get wet.” They stop engaging; they keep things superficial; they avoid.
Externally, this card could represent feeling repressed or forced to live within boundaries that you feel are confining (I mean, whatever happened to Baby Jane?). You hold in these thoughts and begin to sink in the swampy marshland, like Artax, Atreyu’s horse in The Neverending Story, which gave us all severe childhood trauma.
When you are sitting on big thoughts that are difficult to process, it can be really challenging to work through. I’m talking moments where you’re looking at it like, “Oh shit, this could be a Tower moment.” Think of someone who’s queer or trans and needs to come out to their conservative parents. That’s possibly the scariest thing this person has ever had to do. And rather than do it, they sit it in and stew because they’re terrified of a horrible outcome, and it begins to affect their relationship, their health, their emotional wellbeing, and really their overall quality of life because there’s this HUGE blockage.
Or think of someone who feels trapped in a loveless or abusive marriage. Divorce is one thing, but separating themselves physically, financially, materially, and emotionally, is daunting and full of so much hurt and just shitty awfulness that maybe just being “unhappy” is worth the sacrifice. (Pro tip: it’s not.)
The VIII of Swords could even apply to not moving on when a loved one has passed away. Being trapped in loss and sadness is just as immobilizing as these other situations and prevents you from moving forward to new experiences in your life.
It could also represent that you’ve “settled.” You’ve fallen into a comfortable routine that is neither dangerous nor overly exciting. It meets the needs and keeps the peace. Your blindfold keeps you from wanting more, but also keeps you from growing and experiencing new things.
On the flip side, the VIII of Swords could also indicate that you’re being gaslighted. Someone is pulling the wool over your eyes and feeding you pleasantries to keep you stuck. They see you as serving a role for their greater gain. If you realize this is happening to you: Hulk rage, unleash those bindings, grab a sword, and cut that fucker down. Don’t put up with shit like that. Ever.
So when it comes to the VIII of Swords in your life, where are you seeing it? If you aren’t seeing it, look again, because I promise you it’s there. It’s always there. I might as well have it tattooed on my ass. We don’t like to be pushed outside of our comfort zone, but the VIII of Swords is telling us that’s what we need. So how will you interact with it? Are you tired of being its bitch? Are you willing to cut through those bindings and get wet? Do what you can to keep this VIII from turning into a IX.
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Originally published at https://www.pixel-tarot.com on April 6, 2023.
