3 of swords

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 05 Oct 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

loveinspirit	05 Oct 2004
myself and some friends have at some time been to a reader , who when the 3 of swords is shown always says that it means a rush to hospital no matter what cards are around it at the time say.... i thought it meant heartbreak, loneliness, betrayal. unless you have the lovers, 3 of cups,or 10 of cups,which would then be, feeling love, trust and compinship, joy and peace ....... whos right please, as my friends dont like having readings from her

ros	05 Oct 2004
I use the 3 of Swords ~ healing of the heart ~ mentally exploring unhappy emotions ~ opportunity to heal old wounds ~ disappointment ~ three issues that are emotionally bothering you So I'd say whatever works for you and your readings! Everyone reads different.

Macavity	05 Oct 2004
I think it's a card that suffers from image problems (pierced heart) and some traditional negative (astrological?) connotations. But I think there are two things really. (Rhetorical question) Why can't there be some "sorrow" in all our lives? The other issue concerns Tarot's capacity for direct prediction. If one believes "fate" is immutable, by all means, worry? }) Personally I feel this (any) card invites us to look at potential for... things. What we actually DO, to resolve situations, is entirely (IMO) within our own resolve. Idem many other cards: Death, Nine Swords, Ten Swords etc. I guess I take the positive approach with so-called "bad" cards. I see this card as working though or moving on from such things... Otherwise, we might as well "give up"! And there's no fun in that? :P Macavity

acolyte	05 Oct 2004
Interesting that card came up for me in a reading for someone who was moving house so i read it as pain due to parting from loved ones,a neccesary kick in the ass to get moving,healing of old wounds, issues that get in between two people and the usual infidelity.well i am new at this so i do not know wether there is any concrete meaning to the cards or wehter they are flexible.

Eco74	05 Oct 2004
The Three of Swords can mean a lot of things.. A broken heart, surgery, infertility, other medical problems, brutal honesty, finally ending a bad relationship, needing to talk things over even if hard words will be spoken, finally getting to the heart of the matter in a conflict, disappointment, meeting the pain head on instead of beating around the bush... Having just one meaning for a card is surely not a good thing since it limits the readers view of the dynamics and neuances that exist in a reading. Atleast this is what I think.

Mesara	05 Oct 2004
I think you need to find a new reader. Such a narrow minded interpretation of that card hints that either a) that reader obviously hasn't spent much time studying tarot or b) that reader is what I call a "doomsayer" - they thrive off being theatrical, melodramatic. They love their customer's reactions to their dire predictions.

firelite	05 Oct 2004
I agree. Every card has dozens of interpretations which should change according to the surrounding cards and the position of the card. IMO it´s not that much the cards, it´s more the connections between the cards that are interesting. I posted my own interpretation of the 3 of swords - look-see if you like it.

Umbrae	05 Oct 2004
Sometimes the Three of Swords indicates issues of our own doing. The result of what our own ego has wrought. Other times it is about us trying to fix something that’s not broken – and we all know the results of those actions. Ya know, the Three of Swords sits over on Binah. Unless we face the pain we carry, we never gain the intelligence to carry on – to grow. We get stuck…on three swords, and dragging that old baggage on - and on - and on... I once went to a reader who said it (the three of swords) meant that my windows were leaking and that I needed to have them replaced…roflmao…

Fulgour	05 Oct 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Umbrae Ya know, the Three of Swords sits over on Binah. I see where Binah has "the Threes" but too, "all Cups." The Queens also are placed in Binah (Understanding). "...all Swords" are in Tiphareth along with "...the Sixes." Tiphareth (Beauty) also has "the Princes" (re: Knights). Swords also are assigned to Yetzirah (the Formative World). While the Three of Swords is said to be the "Binah of Vau." But that being The Golden Dawn ~ I see what you mean.

RedMaple	06 Oct 2004
I tend to read the three of swords pretty traditionally. There is pain there - either in the past, or on the path you are following. If it is in a future position, I try to find cards that can help cope with it, or avoid it. Sometimes it cannot be avoided, and as in a dream, one can only face the danger. It totally depends on the cards around it. There is pain in our lives, and for me, the Tarot's honesty in that regard is one of its great strengths. Although the Nigel Jackson has some cards I really don't like, I think the three of swords is interesting, because it shows the pierced heart in the air between two cliffs. On each cliff is a person, one with their back turned. Such separation, alienation. I think that image of separation and alienation is a good representation of the pain of the 3 swords.

sarahbellum	06 Oct 2004
I just did a reading for someone the other day where the Three of Swords came up in the position for "what you need to move past," and took it to mean moving away from loneliness and feelings of hopelessness. Had it come up in a different position, or in a different type of spread, I would have interpreted it differently. To my mind, the swords are not as negative as they are sometimes made out to be--they often mean moving past a source of pain, or gaining wsdom from passing through a trial. (BTW, I was using Medieval Scapini, which does not portray the familiar pierced heart. Instead, it shows someone leaving home, i.e. departing from loved ones--hence loneliness and poignancy, but also moving into a new stage of life.) Just the fact that your "reader" said that a card ALWAYS means one particular event shows that she is no reader at all, in my opinion.

The 3 of swords thread was originally posted on 05 Oct 2004 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.