LS Secret Tarot - 5 of Swords

MareSaturni

After the interesting discussion we had about the 10 of wands, i thought we could start another card already.

Here is an image of the card. It shows a woman, warrior looking, and sheem to have been caught in the 'end of the line'. The enemies have used their nasty methods to put her in a place she can't run, just accept they have won. She has lost the fight, the argument.

Any other ideas?

~Yuko
 

aaquwaa

Hi Yuko,
Glad to be back with our discusssions. I love this 5 of Swords. With most decks, I always feel like someone is defeated, and someone is gloating. This lovely lady is still up for a fight. She has those 5 swords guarding her, but she hasn't reliquinshed her weapon yet. I'm wondering if that is an open cliff behind her and she is about out of options. She still has a determined look on her face. :) What do you think, is she beaten? Will she put that sword down?
aaquwaa
 

MareSaturni

She seems to be willing to fight, yes, but the question is...is it worth? She has five swords pointed at her...for how long will she be able to resist?
Whatever she plans to do now, it isn't the time to wonder if it's right or wrong. She will...do it, because she has to save herself from the five swords. But that doesn't means she'll win, no matter how capable she thinks she is of beating up all these evil people. She may use all the weapons she has in stock, but she might not win.
As the 5 of words always tell to me that, while the querent is willing to do it, he may end up losing simply because...he's dealing with people that are, for now, stronger or smarter or play dirtier than him. The lady in the card seems to be in a middle point - she can either throw herself on the swords or stop and leave for another time, when she isn't one against five. Personally the swords always give the 'stop' advice. Time to make a lemonade from the lemons reality has handed you, no matter how sour they may be ;)

Yuko
 

MareSaturni

No one else trying? C'mon....don't hide! I know there are other Tarot of Secrets lovers ;)

Yuko
 

aaquwaa

Hi Yuko,
Had another thought on this lady. Maybe she has tried physically and is defeated but maybe she is going to be more strategic (sneaky) and get herself out of this situation. Maybe let the captors take her, let their guard down and escape :) Just another thought.
aaquwaa
 

cosmic_bubble

she's very 'lara croft' from tomb raider, isn't she? i quite like her :) maybe it's the way she's leaping..ready for action!
 

Briar Rose

If you closely you can see that she has a gun by her side. The QoS choses not to use the gun. And she is in mid air, ready to take on any challenges in front of her with confidence. And there is the warm glow of the sun shinning on her. So that tells me that if she faces the challenges or her fears she'll win the match or make the right decision.
 

Shade

Very interesting comparison with the Queen of Swords. To me, certain sword cards are about subtlety (the Queen included) whereas in this 5 all subtlety and pretenses are dropped. "It's on." Go for the jugular.

As was pointed out the figure looks a lot like Lara Croft and comparing her to either Lara or Angelina Jolie has always proven effective.
 

Alan Ross

In the minors, this deck is closely based on RWS, and in the RWS the Five of Swords generally signifies defeat. Defeat certainly seems imminent here. This young lady appears to be surrounded by her enemies with her back to a cliff. However, she doesn't look like she's going to go down without a fight.

The RWS shows a couple of losers in the background dejectedly leaving the scene, with a gloating victor in the foreground. I much prefer the Secret Tarot's depiction of a spunky heroine who may be going down to defeat, but who clearly remains unbroken in spirit. The message I get here is that even if circumstances defeat you, you can still hold your head high and maintain a positive attitude, as long as you gave it your best shot.

Alan
 

teaguejb

I have a different take on this card. I see this character as a thief or some other sort of outlaw. She is high on a rock ledge above a traveling party and she decides jump down to attack them. She knows they are armed to the hilt, but she doesn't care. She didn't want an easier mark to rob. She wants combat. She wants bloodshed...even if it means her own. Her actions are clearly ill-conceived. Her design for treachery will be turned back toward her. What she plans to do to others will be done to her instead. This card is a two-fold warning: first, don't be the perpetrator or it will come back to bite you in the ass; second, look out for others who might do you harm and take care of yourself. It is about self-interest in the presence of deceit, trickery, and even crimes.