Pearks of Wisdom - Seven of Swords

Rede Seeker

This is a very Wyrd card for me. Someone crossing a narrow, slippery-looking bridge over moving water under a Harvest-gold full moon. The Green Earth Spirits are sleeping on either side of the body of water (can't tell if it's a lake or river). The Winds of Change are at the Traveller's back. She/he walks with one sword piercing the air before her/him and the other drawn and ready to strike. Gold Stars are twinkling and there are sworls of something - breath or air or clouds - in the sky. The water's surface is rippled and reflecting the Harvest-gold Moon eerily.

A hint of 'creepiness' for me appears along the border. There are six swords in the upper corners, one on the lower left side, but a dark sword-shape on the lower right side. Is it the shadow of a sword, perhaps one that the Traveller is carrying, or something darker? There is an unbalance along the border. I mistook the five swords tucked along the top of the Traveller's cloak as a collar. Points for two, maybe three, of them poke out the bottom of the cloak.

The Runes are an inverted Ansuz (answers) and Tiwaz (direction), numerical value of 4 and 17, respectively. The Rune total is 21, Laguz, the Rune of Water - hence the body of water the Traveller is crossing? The inverted Ansuz could represent hidden widsom. In Rune work, a body of water can represent unseen roots; it can also represent a test or journey. Our Traveller is crossing it by a bridge-like structure that does not look to easy to walk on, especially if there is a wind at your back.

There is much reflection in this card - twinkling stars and the Golden Moon reflect the Sun's light, the water reflects the moon, the bridge, and the Traveller; Swords being the suit of thoughts and ideas. The bridge looks like a rainbow with all the color drained out of it.

I get a creepy feel from this card, which is bothersome because I drew it as the 'To Know' card in a reading for my Mother this morning. The other cards:

To Will: Four of Swords Reversed
To Dare: Hermit Reversed
To Imagine: Page of Pentacles
To Be Silent: King of Swords Reversed

My interpretation: Mind my own business - there are things that my Mother needs to work out for herself. Keep the lines of communication open.

The question: What remains with my Mother that I have the ability to change for the better before Year End?
 

Sulis

I instantly got a creepy feeling from this image too.
I think this is an incredibly beautiful card but I usually dislike 7 of Swords cards that depict a thief of some sort because I tend to think that the thief image sometimes narrows the scope of a very complex card, a little like the pierced sword image on many 3 of Swords does.

After a bit of looking though this card's negative connotations don't really seem as strong as they did.

I relate the minors to their numerically equivalent major and so the sevens for me are about overcoming obstacles.
This guy is crossing over water and when I looked at him on that bridge the first phrase that came to my mind was 'overcoming'.
He's overcoming obstacles that are emotional in nature (the water). He's using his brain and he's doing what he needs to do.
He has swords on his back and if you think of swords as ideas or words then you could see this guy as gathering information and ideas... In other words research.
He holds one sword out in front of him; he's prepared for whatever may happen.
The goddesses of the Earth are asleep and so they don't see him. He's planned this well and he has the light of the moon to guide him and the wind and the stars are at his back.
The swirls under the bridge look like eyes to me and that's not really saying anything to me right now but who knows what those eyes may signify given the right context?
 

Attachments

  • 7 of Swords.jpg
    7 of Swords.jpg
    103.6 KB · Views: 142

Rede Seeker

5-6-7 of Swords

Seen as the conclusion of the story from the Five and Six of Swords, the Seven shows a decision being made.

In the Five, we see two men, one standing with fist in the air and sword in hand threatening an identical man who is kneeling, head down, with a dagger hidden behind his back and a string of pearls in the other. Both men are bearded, the kneeling man has a pearl earring.

In the Six, we see two people, one bearded, one unbearded sitting back-to-back in a row boat. The bearded man is at the oars. The unbearded person is holding a string of pearls. Both people are wearing pear earrings and both are smiling. Are they Man and Woman or Older and Younger versions of the same Man?

Five of Swords indicates confrontation; Six of Swords indicates partnership; Seven of Swords indicates a separation. We can't see the face clearly, so we can't tell if the bearded or unbearded man from the Six of Swords is making the journey by night. We do see pearls around the hilt of both swords that the Traveller carries.

The next three cards show a change in personnel: Eight and nine show a woman; ten shows an impaled man (we've discussed this card already).
 

Sulis

Rede Seeker I really like how you've linked those three cards.
I tend to do this more with decks with pip minors, I have no trouble at all seeing pips as a progression from one to the next but with scenic minors I often don't tend to do it as much.

I really like how you've noticed that the 6 of Swords shows a partnership. It does, you're right but it's not something I usually see in that card yet sixes relate to The Lovers so do indeed represent both partnerships and choices.
 

Rede Seeker

Negotiation

I was flipping through my 2008 Seasons of the Witch Weekly Planner and found the Seven of Swords featured for 9 January for 'one/one negotiation'. Here's the text:

'Stealing away into a new direction. Leaving behind the old, outworn, and extraneous. Adventure. Moving into the dark side of the self for a look-see. Be aware. Do not succumb to feelings of self doubt and wasted energy though dangers may abound. Consider that one of the fundamental uses of adversity is growth.'