The Six of Swords is very fitting of a card to follow the preceding five. The Six of Swords shows a man rowing . The cups in the scene are not a boat that carries his wife and child. He seems to be leaving some place as he is also carrying six swords in the boat with him. There is a feeling of escape or getting away that is inherent in the imagery of the card, and it effectively illustrates how leaving a situation can sometimes be the best solution for all involved.
There may be a need to put the past to bed and start anew in another place or surrounded by other people. Sixes in the Minor Arcana help to show where things are coming back into balance and where things are evolving. In reference to the Six of Swords, the conflicts the querent has been experiencing are being put behind him so that he can progress and focus on more important things.
When more than one six appears in the same spread, there is an appended message available to the querent. Pairs of sixes help show where one can benefit from accepting or asking for a favour from another in regards to relocating or staying away from people who cause issues for the querent while three of them sheds light on happy voyages with lovers and luck that is caused by or associated with companions. This could be just the solution the querent and his family have been looking for. Having four sixes in a spread indicates success in regards to a childhood dream or public recognition, and could herald that the querent has elected to move to a city he has always dreamed of living in. The Six of Swords is all about deserting the past in order to pave the way for better opportunities and friendships.
The Six of Swords in an Upright Position
The upright position of the Six of Swords signifies a time in the querent’s life when he is looking at ditching the people, places, and things that have caused him so much grief over the past five cards of the Suit of Swords. He is well aware of the implications of leaving everything behind him, but optimistic about starting over. There may be some sadness that accompanies this situation because of the attachments the querent has made in his current position, but there is nothing more he can do where he is at this point, and he can only stand to benefit from the breaking away from old forms and familiar locales. The querent may be splitting up with a lover and need to take leave in order to put his romantic life back in perspective, or he may decide to take up his family and go somewhere else where there are better employment opportunities available. Whatever the case may be, the querent has decided to spring into action and create his own happiness instead of relying on others to provide him with it.
The meaning of all Minor Arcana cards can be modified by the cards that surround it. Court cards from the Minor Arcana (Pages, Knights, Queens, and Kings) all represent people. They have corresponding physical characteristics as well as their own astrological correspondences. The Six of Swords indicates where the querent has gotten fed up with his present circumstances and has realized that change is his only recourse. Any court cards here will show the companions he takes along for the ride, those who assist him along the way, or new faces he can expect to see upon arrival that are significant in his new path. Major Arcana cards that are positioned around the Six of Swords will focus the interpretation more effectively. For example, the Fool will show that the querent is making the wrong decision and that the move may not turn out as well as he originally thought it would. The Devil nearby will show that the querent may be moving in order to escape an addiction of some sort that is destroying his life.
The Six of Swords in a Reversed Position
The reversed position of each card of the Minor Arcana is really as it states: an inversion of the card’s meaning. When the Six of Swords appears in a reversed position, the move the querent is considering will result in loss or little to no change. Perhaps the situation wasn’t simply about leaving people and places behind or the querent has taken the problem with him. There is an indication here that the querent may be experiencing marital problems and had attempted to solve them through a change of scenery, but it resulted in the same conflict that was occurring in the other location. The querent may have assumed that the problem was his friends or his job when the discontent was coming from his home life. The querent may also discover with the reversed Six of Swords that his issues will follow him everywhere until he seeks the proper help. This could indicate an addiction that needs treatment or a problem with anger that is unsolvable in every location. There is a feeling here that the querent cannot run from his problems but must face them head on in order to achieve the peace he is in search of.
The imagery here is of the boat tipping and everything spilling out into the water. He may lose everything as a result of a hasty decision to take leave, or while he is away, his lover may find a new partner who is content to stay put. The querent may also find that there are few realistic job opportunities in the city he is attempting to relocate to, or he was offered a job under false pretences and is unable to find a suitable replacement for the false promises of employment that were unfounded upon arrival.
Key Terms
- Change of scenery
- Trip for healing
- Taking leave to work out problems
- Severing ties with friends
- Leaving harmful circumstances