78 Weeks: Seven Batons

jmd

To find out what these threads refer to, please seeThe link above provides suggested dates and links to all threads for this study.

Some amongst us may be working through the deck in a different order, and using different decks.

For more general comments or questions about the 78 weeks, please post in the thread linked above.

Enjoy!
 

CreativeFire

Seven of Wands

Universal Waite

This card shows a man dressed in yellow tights and green tunic on a hill holding a wand in a defensive position against 6 wands below him.

As the man appears to be standing on higher ground than his attackers, it seems to fit for me looking back at the 6 of Wands that now that he has achieved success that the other wands may be trying to challenge his position in some way. However the man is positioned in an aggressive stance, ready and able to take on his challenges / challengers.

After looking at this card for a while I noticed that he has two different types of boots on his feet, making me feel that he may have dressed in a hurry and was unprepared for the sudden opposition. Also thinking of the higher ground on which the man stands makes me think that he has the advantage in this situation and the other 6 wands maybe fighting an up hill battle to unseat him from his position of defence / defiance.

I also noted that the sky is clear and blue (with no clouds on the horizon), and this therefore makes me think that he will be victorious if he believes strongly in his convictions and stands his ground by firmly asserting himself in this struggle. As he stands on the 'hill', he has his feet wide apart (giving him a firm base to fight from), however he appears to be straddling a river (water), that may indicate that this is also an emotional time or emotions are running high.

Also he may need to be careful and aware of his footing (and maneuvres) in this conflict so that that he does not fall over the edge or get tripped up by the water (emotions) or the uneven surface of the ground. Overall this card to me shows strength and a willingness to fight for what you believe in or what you have worked for. Sometimes you just have to take a stand and take what comes if you believe strongly enough in what you are fighting for or are not prepared to yield what you have gained.

CreativeFire
 

tao51

7 of wands/batons

There seems to be a pattern in the suit. The suit seems to be telling us that the road of ambition ore passionate thought is full of challencges which the power of persuasion is needed. The 7 of wands shows the person with an advantage over the six other wands. It seems to say by gaining the exprience through the previous conflicts you are now holding the advantage. You have ability to meet this challenge. In the Tarot of Prague we seen the young man about to pull his wand in defense. His eyes look straight forward as to say that this conflict is nothing compared to meeting his goal! The 7 of wands in the Tarot of Timeless Truth carries a similar picture. The man has a forward glance with a courageous expression on his face. The six wands form a semicircle around him. He is ready to move forward without concern for lopsided odds.--Tao (These threads of study are of great value.)
 

Major Tom

Oddly enough I met some challenges during my study of this card. :laugh: I've spent this period of study with 3 different versions of the 7 of Batons from the Tarot of Marseilles propped up between by keyboard and monitor.

My RWS upbringing has taught me to associate the 7 of Wands with the idea of a struggle or of positioning oneself within a competitive environment and I can see these ideas within the 7 of Batons too. I associate the number 7 with The Chariot and the ideas of control, particularly control exercised by the individual over him/herself. Put that together with the suit of batons and I get ideas about standing up for what you believe.

My one and only numerology book tells me that 7 is the number of inner wisdom and guidance so ideas of faith and trust are also appropriate to the 7 of Batons. This could be expressed as faith and trust in one's own beliefs and the need to stand up for the same.

I attach my own version of the VII Batons that I've drawn during this period of study.
 

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gregory

Seven of Wands - Revelations Tarot
First impressions

The gags on the figures are worrying…..

From the book
Upright

He fights all till the end. He is resilient and determined.
The fighting spirit is alive within you. Draw on this and keep facing your demons. This card advises to keep soldiering on to the very end.
This card tells you that no task is too hard to manage and no situation is too daunting to handle. Challenging situations will arise, but resilience will overcome any hurdles. Draw from your personal strengths and the resources around you.

Reversed
He who hesitates will lose
Hesitation will cost you your current position or ground. Outside forces will work swiftly around you and against you. This card warns to take control of the moment and fight on with determination. Holding back will only cost you valuable time to respond.
In situations, this card calls for seizing the day or the moment. In relationships, do not fear what may or may not be the outcome and continue living for the moment.

Images and Symbolism
This is a warrior who thrives on battle. He relishes the moment and laughs his enemies off as he fights them, even at the edge of a cliff. Within him is the strength and energy to carry on.
On the reverse, the warrior is clouded in the darkness of self-doubt. His hesitation and indecisiveness will cost him precious time to react. This card warns to be quick to decide and to seize the moment.
He is too distracted to notice that his enemy will take advantage of his shortfall and attack by surprise.
Color: royal purples and sapphire blues, associated with Sagittarius.

Traditional meanings
Upright:
Great possibilities which need courage and determination. Powerful competition, but victory through consistent effort. Personal bravery. Overcoming obstacles to achieve a goal.

Reversed: Indecisiveness leading to failure. Hesitation losing an opportunity. Embarrassment, called bluffs.

My impressions:
Upright
A warrior – with his mouth bound closed - with a lance is ready for anything. The sky behind is whirling and energetic. Before him four more lances – 2 are crossed. He seems to be expertly fending them off. He works alone.

Reversed
A frightened looking man with bound mouth – to which he is pointing – rests his hand on a lance – but does nothing with it. Behind is a second figure with a lance – whether a supporter or an enemy is impossible to tell. The background look like pouring purple rain. There is a hint of smoke.

My take
Action versus indecision – a classic. The upright image clasps and wields his lance; the reverse just sort of stroke s it impotently. He doesn’t even bother to look around to see if it may be needed. Anyone could ambush him – and probably will.

All the cards from this deck can be viewed here.
 

rcb30872

Radiant Rider-Waite

Seven of Wands

LWB

A young man on a craggy eminence, brandishing a staff, six other staves are raised towards him from below.
Divinatory Meaning
It is a card of various, for on the surface, six are attacking one, who has, however, the vantage position on the intellectual plane, it signifies discussion, wordy strife, in business - negotiations, war of trade, barter and competition. It is a further card of success, for the combatant is on the top and his enemies may be unable to reach him.

My Impressions
This card could imply that the enemies or foes are either real or imaginery, as they are actually not seen. More than likely they are things that he has fighting against so that he can continue on with what he is doing. In some sense, the man standing above the others could indicate higher thinking or consciousness and he has to do battle against things that are of lower thinking or responses, or negative influences in his life. If that is the case then the higher thoughts and higher consciousness includes things what he truly desires to do and can also be indicating his life mission in one sense and the lower thoughts and responses and other negative influences can include such things as self-doubts, worries, fears, insecurities, other self-sabotaging thoughts, guilt, shame, hatred, holding a grudge against someone, grief, people that are naysayers, people who are negative influences in other ways. People who place certain expections on him and people that demand too much of his time, energy and attention and doing things that no longer serve your purpose that take up valuable time and energy.

In a sense this card can indicate that yes there is competition but your services or products would be the preferred by the people who would provide the demand. Even though you may think that what you are doing there is no way that you can make a go of it due to the competition, you may be the one that provides the superior product or service. Since there is a path, of a sort, of water between where he has his two feet planted the thing more than likely be more of an emotional nature, where all is needed to make that one last final step to make it, complete it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Golden Tarot of Klimt

7 of Wands

LWB

Decisive challenge, profitable alliances and moral strength.

My Impressions
Since the background of the card, and there are two figures, one with normal colouring and the other has colouring tha tis duller and darker which head is that of a beast but a body of a man, and the fact that the normal coloured man is holding a sword makes me think is of an internal nature in the terms of the thoughts that you may have. The head of the duller figure could almost like the head of the devil, which indicates that part of you that makes you feel trapped in your same over and over again sabotaging patterns which means that progress cannot be made. There is a fierce and very determined battle between the normal coloured figure and the duller and darker figure when he is trying to punch and strike the duller figure with the sword but the duller figure is providing a worth opponent by effectively blocking and stopping these intended blows.

Seen like this then for you to be able to continue on with making progress ther is a need to recognise and acknowledge these thoughts that sabotage your efforts, and then in some way to challenge and deal with these thoughts, of course it may not necessarily just be thoughts, it could be actions, emotions and reactions to certain things. In which the beast head would represent your darker/shadowy aspect and the lighter coloured figure would be the light aspect of yourself. In some way, so, in this sense then it could be seen that there is something that you want to do, achieve and accomplish, and the main thing that actually thwarts your progress is yourself and your negative thoughts. These negative thoughts could include self-doubt, fears, worries, insecurities, other self-sabotaging thoughts, blame, grief, holding a grudge, anger and shame. But usually what is a result of this is that you may want to do something but the one thing that would stop you from doing it in the first place, for example, is a fear of failure, or just plain doubting that you are capable and have the qualifications to do it. So, in a sense yuou have to first recognise that you have such thoughs in the first place, and then realise or know when these thoughts are likely to arise, such as in at what time and under what circumstances and situations, then once you have come to some sort of understanding or realisation when these thoughts come up, you can begin to challenge these such as thinking "So what if....." or at least turn them around, and make the negative thoughts into positive thoughts. With practice, you can come quite good at it, but to begin with you will need to be watchful, vigilant and persistent, in a manner of speaking.
 

coyoteblack

Physical Description: There is a man fighting off 6 other men with spears he has a quarter staff. 3 of spears are silver and other 3 are gold.

Symbols
3 gold/silver – gold usually stands for male energy and silver for the female energy
One guy on a battlement- This is one mans confrontation he has to overcome it him self

Element and Number:
Fire: Passion, Energy, Inspiration
Seven: Finding ways to take back control

Golden Dawn References
Traditional GD name: Lord of Valor

Days: 8/12-8/22

Sphere on the Tree of Life
Sphere 7 Hod. There is no time for strategizing when you find yourself under attack from all quarters. Instead, you must rely on instinct to see you through.

Astrology
Mars in Leo. A proud and authoritative leader (Leo) will inevitably find that being under attack (Mars) goes with the territory.

Bringing it all together
With the fire, valor, Leo, and picture you can see this person is defending something he is passionate about. the gold and silver in this card also tell me the need to master one’s inner self with a balance of male and female energies. Mars and 7 tell me there is a fight going on but with Leo here I am thinking he will hold out till the end and most likely win.

Possible Meanings:

Good : Although there might be a struggle coming up,we will most likely win because of the inner fire burning with in us to keep fighting.

Bad . fighting your self , or fighting justr to be fighting. The drain on the spirit can be to much.

Indifferent: the ability to stand ones own ground.
 

Sulis

Seven of Wands - Week beginning 28th February 2011

Seven of Wands - Hoi Polloi Tarot
A man holding a wand in a defensive position, diagonally across his body stands on a hill. 6 more wands can be seen advancing towards him from below. It looks as if he's standing his ground and is defending himself from the bearers of the wands below.

The Sevens
Seven is a very magical number. It's made up of a four representing stability and Earth and a three representing spirit.
The sevens in Tarot are related to The Chariot and so they represent going deeper, problems that can be overcome and victory. With the sixes we find ourselves in a comfortable place that we could very well settle in but that can get boring and with the sevens we decide to go deeper, to leave the comfort zone and to take on and overcome problems. The Sevens are different to the Fives because of this conscious choice to upset things.

So with the energy of the Wands suit being Fire, the 7 of Wands is about taking things on and standing our ground if we're faced with challenges to our beliefs etc... The man on the card has the higher ground and so is in a good position even though he is outnumbered. This is a problem he can face and overcome but he'll need to have the courage of his convictions and the self-belief to fight and not give up.
 

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gregory

Thoth

Card name: Seven of Wands: Valour

First impressions

This is so like a split version of the six (though the background is SO much darker – is this something to do with my deck ?? – I looked it up and no it isn’t ! Six wands, arranged to form a grid, and up the centre, a seventh, burning brightly. At the nine intersections are flames spreading in four directions from each X. As in the six, two of the six wands are winged with snakes; two are phoenix headed and two lotus. The central one is a rod of wood with no decoration. Red hot. The background is purple. Two sigils – those of Leo and Mars.

From the Book of Thoth
VALOUR SEVEN OF WANDS
This card derives from Netzach (Victory) in the suit of Fire. But the Seven is a weak, earthy, feminine number as regards the Tree of Life, and represents a departure from the balance so low down on the Tree that this implies a loss of confidence.

Fortunately, the card is also attributed to Mars in Leo. Leo is still the Sun in his full strength, but the marks of decadence are already to be seen. It is as if the wavering fire summoned the brutal energy of Mars to its support. But this is not enough to counter- act fully the degeneration of the initial energy, and the departure from equilibrium.

The army has been thrown into disorder; if victory is to be won, it will be by dint of individual valour-a “soldiers’ battle”.
The pictorial representation shows the fixed and balanced wands of the last card relegated to the background, diminished, and become commonplace.

In front is a large crude uneven club, the first weapon to hand; evidently unsatisfactory in ordered combat.

The flames are dispersed, and seem to attack in all directions without systematic purpose.

Images and Symbolism
Frieda Harris says in her essays:
Seven of Wands=Valour. Netzach in the suit of Fire. Mars in Leo.
The Adept’s Wands are relegated to the background; in front is a crude, uneven club; the flames are dispersed. This shows degeneration of initial Energy, and departure from equilibrium.
Also:
Seven of Wands=Valour. Mars in Leo. Netzach.
The wands are covered by a club. Valour implies fear as well as courage.

DuQuette says that the seventh wand is “crude, like a club.” He suggests it delivers a sobering message that – to quote the Book of Thoth, “the four sevens are not capable of bringing any comfort; each one represents the degeneration of the element.” It’s all about slugging it out, but that that is a waste of energy. It is chaos, mindless disorder. How this equates to valour is moot…. To my mind, valour is not about beating up the other guy.
Banzhaf seems to agree, saying that “even the support by Mars (in Leo) is not adequate to oppose the degeneration of the energy and a great deal of bravery is needed in order to defend oneself against destiny, which will ultimately win the battle”.
So THAT’s where the valour comes in.
As in the six, the lotus wands are blue and white, signifying water; the phoenixes are amber, for Netzach and the sun; the solar disc of the caduceus (the first adept) is red and here, the wings are red, for Mars. But with the fiery club in the middle, much of the balance is lost.
Crowley sees the seven in relation to the Tree of Life as weak, earthy and feminine, and refers to a loss of balance and trust. Banzhaf suggest that “even our best is not good enough”. But this is supposed to be about courage, so where does that leave the value of bravery ? it means that we have to do better than our best to succeed.
Snuffin points out that unlike the six wands, the club is definitely shown as a weapon. It has ten segments. He also points out that the flames at the intersections are wild and unsteady – indeed, sparks fly from them, they are not controlled like those on the six. The phoenix wands also have red feet. He also points out that the astrological glyphs are off centre – another indication of the loss of balance here.

Meaning (cribbed from Wasserman) Seven of Wands: Valor . Energy feels itself at least gasp, struggles, possible victory, obstacles and difficulties yet courage to meet them, quarrelling, victory in small things.

DuQuette Opposition, yet courage.
Possible victory, depending on the energy and courage exercised; valour; opposition, obstacles and difficulties, yet courage to meet them; quarrelling, ignorance, pretence, and wrangling, and threatening; also victory in small and unimportant things: and influence upon subordinates.
Traditional meanings – From Thirteen’s book of meanings:
A man defends himself with one wand against six others. This is the "under siege" card. The stakes are high, and the querent is under attack; even worse, the odds are against him. This is where the energy you've been using to create must be used to defend what you've created.
Usually this card indicates a disagreement with how you are directing and managing your career, criticism of a philosophy, or a schism in the religion. Those who you gathered in, who were your supporters are now at odds with you. They think you're in error and that someone else could do better. They want you to step down.
And so you're on the defensive, fighting to regain control. The card urges you to stand your ground. The reader can tell the querent that though his enemies seem stronger, they don't expect resistance, and his fighting spirit will daunt them.
This card tells us to use what we've learned about maintaining our energy, about being bold and stalwart and we will win the battle.
My impressions (appearance of the card):
For once it immediately struck me as a step onward from the preceding one. And as a MASSIVE obstacle distorting everything else. the red tops to the phoenix wands really bugs me, for some reason – they look almost cartoony. But I like the very blue lotuses. It really is a startlingly AGGRESSIVE card.

My take (what I make of it/what I might see in a reading where I drew it)
Thirteen has the single wand as a defence against the others. This would suggest courage – but also taking a serious risk, being something of a daredevil. Maybe even acting in a way that transcends your own capabilities. It also might suggest a major hurdle to be overcome – possibly one placed there deliberately to stop you doing something.