The Queen of Swords sits atop a beautifully decorated throne with a large sword in her hand. She holds one hand in a lifted pose that reminds one of the Scales of Justice. The Queen of Swords is often believed to depict Athena, a goddess who was the overseer of Justice and administered the punishments or rewards much like a facilitator of karma. She is synonymous with a widow or one who suffers from loneliness. She commonly represents a divorcee or woman who has been left behind without choice by her lover and has possibly been scorned. She can also signify the querent’s need to struggle in order to gain an appreciation of the successes and joys that life brings on a daily basis. She can be seen as quite a visceral woman who sees things in black and white, but never grey as this would unbalance the scales and knock life out of balance.
The court cards of each Minor Arcana Suit represent people, and the physical and astrological characteristics of a person as well. In the case of queens, there are astrologically significant details that should be made known. The Queen of Swords is associated with the signs of Virgo and Libra. The nature of the energy that is carried by the Queen of Swords is considered mutable for Virgos and cardinal for Libra. This shows that these individuals are very accommodating and have the quality of flexibility in their energies when the individual being identified is a Virgo, and there is creative and ambitious energy within the Libra described by the Queen of Swords. The elemental property of this particular queen, which is water energy, mixes with the energy of the suit she appears in:air energy. The Queen of Swords shows a combination of water and air energy, which embodies transmission. This indicates that the Queen of Swords in a spread is about transmitting energy and thought. The physical characteristics often found to accompany a Queen of Swords individual include brown or hazel eyes as well as dark brown or black hair. It is advised that the querent pay attention to the woman depicted in the Queen of Swords that has these physical characteristics.
Although there is very little to go on in terms of an outright card meaning, the surrounding cards will be of immense influence and importance to the Queen of Swords and the interpretation of it.
The Queen of Swords in an Upright Position
The Queen of Swords is a very stern woman who shows very little compassion for her subjects. She is a judge of sorts that is impartial yet extremely clinical and insensitive. The Queen of Swords represents a widowed woman that has done everything herself in order to raise her children and support the whole family. This can also be said for those who have divorced instead of being widowed. She is a troubled person, and she has worked hard for every morsel she has been given. The Queen of Swords is lonely woman who is strong enough to fight for her rights and interests, but she is also a micro-manager who is quite overbearing at times. There are indications that she is sad within but isn’t about to reveal this for fear of appearing weak. Whenever a court card appears in a spread, it does not necessarily always signify a real human being, but a quality within the card that the querent needs to take up as part of his own persona or philosophies in order to experience growth and a better outlook on life.
The querent will find that the appearance of the Queen of Swords in an upright position shows how they may be the biggest problem they have. The querent may be causing issues for themselves by being like the Queen of Swords and brooding over every wrong, interfering in other people’s business, and dwelling on past grievances . The querent may have recently went through a nasty divorce or has lost their spouse unexpectedly. On the other hand, the querent who encounters her is also loyal and logical. The querent may be very committed to their post and lot in life and have a deep understanding that this is where they are because they are meant to be. The queen of Swords can also show how the querent is quite decisive and intelligent.
The Queen of Swords in a Reversed Position
A reversal of a court card has an inverse meaning that corresponds with the court card it is attached to. A reversed Queen of Swords indicates a woman who is very aggressive and intense. She can be aloof or detached, and sometimes takes part in criminal activity. She is a formidable opponent and is very argumentative. The queen of Swords also represents a tactless type who says whatever comes to her mind as if she doesn’t have any filter. She can be very brusque with people at times and her black and white take on the world makes it difficult to reason with her. She loves her children, but she doesn’t understand their emotions because she is so empirical about things. The Queen of Swords can be very standoffish and combative, so it’s hard to get along with her when she appears in a reversal.
The querent could be dealing with these issues on their own as is true sometimes for court cards. The querent could be cranky and unable to tolerate much. There is no escaping the querent’s wrath when they’re feeling this way, and reasoning with them or asking them to cut someone a break is completely out of the question. The querent may also find that they are having problems solving even the simplest of issues, and there are issues also with communicating effectively that make it difficult for the querent to get their point across. The reversed Queen of Swords seems to have literally turned everything upside down in the current situation.
Key Terms
- Justice
- Karma
- Keen business sense
- Hard working
- Cold or aloof
- Logic over emotion
- A widow or divorcee