Five of Cups

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 04 Apr 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

VerseJunkie	04 Apr 2003
I am having issues interpreting the Five of Cups in my deck, Tarot of the Cat People. According to the li'l white book, it's about separation and ending of a union, but that is not necessarily what I see in the card or what it seems to generally signify in other decks. What do y'all think of this card?

wavebreaker	04 Apr 2003
I see the Five of Cups as a sort of warning to not focus too much on negative things, but instead to look at the positive side. So if something bad happens, don't linger on it too much; don't look at what you've lost, but look at what you still have left.

Sulis	04 Apr 2003
I agree with tarotlady. Most decks show 3 cups which have spilled but 2 cups remain full. I take this to mean you`re having a bad time, you may be focusing on what you`ve lost but look around you at what you still have, it`s not as bad as you think. I`ve had this card come up in relation to an aunt of mine who lost her son so I saw the traditional meaning of grieving but grieving which is coming to an end, an end to emotional suffering. Love and light Crystalmynx xx

Astraea	04 Apr 2003
I believe that this is one of those times when the card illustration and LWB statement are at odds with more traditional interpretations. The Tarot of the Cat People shows a man with his back to a woman; in his hand is an upside-down goblet, spilling its contents. Three cups are upright at his feet, and another is behind him, with a cat drinking from it or playing with it in some way. I believe that we could stretch this design statement to conform more closely to the RWS understanding of the card, but it wouldn't be as powerful. The Tarot of the Cat People is a real challenge to interpretation, IMO -- it follows a narrative that is described in the book which is now available about the deck. The LWB is not very helpful, but the interpretation given there of the V of Cups seems to fit the illustration.

The Five of Cups thread was originally posted on 04 Apr 2003 in the Using Tarot Cards board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Using Tarot Cards, or read more archived threads.