BABA comparison: 7 of Swords

Looking at four decks this time, I can see that in the Cats, Prague and Romantic, there is a very strong similarity to the original Rider Waite Smith. Of course, each image has a different tuning to both it and each other, but all three depict someone moving off with some swords or what is presumed to be someone elses posessions. We are allerted to theft or some kind of indiscression. The other day, I drew this card from the Romantic. Low and behold, at the end of my night out, my very expensive headphones were missing. Did I just lose them? I don't think so, since they were connected and carefully wrapped around my I-Pod to begin with.

Losing headphones was a disappointment, down to the fact that I had only had them for a couple of weeks and they were the most expensive in the shop. But it wasn't the end of the world. I would rather have lost them than either my I-Pod or telephone [having said that, the latter is insured]. But it does trip up your day. And this card, depicted in the way that it is in the Cats, Prague and Romantic decks, illustrates a dishonest upset or trip. Either we have fiddled something, deceived or pocketed something we shouldn't have. Or we have been on the recieveing end.

But the Menagerie has a very different face image. In this card, I see a group forming round a window. A fox helps some hens from it, and down a ladder. Looking at the image, I can not quite understand the message, so I will need to refer to Sophie's book. But what I can say is that foxes and hens are not the best mix, in my mind! Foxes, aside from eating hens, are also sly.

Some help with this one would be appreciated.

Out of the four, I think I get the most from the Romantic. He has the sneakiest look on his face. Having said that, I love the 'playing-card-guys' of the Prague - great colouring.

LB

Well, I don't want to say too much here, but I always think of the Seven of Swords as a "sneaky" triumph - there is something sly in it. So the sly foxes who are apparently eloping with the hens are a good image to me. They are stealing something - the girls and, presumably, their virtue. But they are also carrying out a thoroughly nasty and less open plan - as the chicken feet hanging out of one fox's pocket (added by us by the way) indicate. Oops! The silly chickens are being well and truly duped by the handsome foxes.

As for the others, I'll stand aside a bit as I want to hear what people here have to say. It's fascinating and I'm learning a lot.

Four cards?! I refuse to succumb to peer pressure, never mind that I have been surreptiously checking prices on the Prague...

...which is a nice segway into these three tricksie sevensies I have before me. (L to R: BBC, FMT, VR)
I am rarely satisfied with the way the seven of swords is depicted in scenic decks. This is because in my readings, it hardly ever shows up in its "sneak-thief" aspect and this is the spin most scenic decks use. With this in mind, I enjoy the BBC version the most. I like the ears on the cat and the magpie has a certain significance beyond it's reputation as a thief. Magpies are large, noisy, yet beautiful birds. From a magpie's perspective, it is not a thief... that egg it took is food. Magpies have to eat too. Your actions are determined by what is essential in your life at a given time, however others may have a different opinion about how you "should" be going about things. I see the seven as the card of the individual, you know your own mind and that may put you at odds with the majority.
For once, the FMT is my least favorite of the three. I see graft, dishonesty, and the exploitation of others. It feels very one-sided.
The VR is a pleasant surprise, my first impression was a mercenary returning home. An unusual profession that would set him apart from the denizens of this little seaside town. I also notice how brightly colored his garments are, I imagine his appearance would also set him apart from the crowd. Here we have a man who stands out in a crowd and makes little effort to fit in. There is much fuel for thought here.

Just thinking about the Victorian. I don't have it here with me. The man carries a trunk. Is this just symbolic? We think that he has possibly stolen it. But is it symbolic of his own riches, on show. Thinking once again about my headphones. I had valuables on me, and like this man, they were on show and open to being taken. He looks twitchy. This may not be because he is the guilty party; but because he is nervous of ambush or the sneaky actions of others.

LB

In my mind, I keep thinking about theft of posessions. But ideas could be a big one with this card, I suppose, since it is the mind we are looking at. Inspiration, creative endeavours, words, identity are all things that can be taken. May be a card of fraud. Riches do not always have to be physical items. It could be someone taking what somebody has said, and repeating it incorrectly; being mis-quoted in a way that makes the person who is quoted, appear in a bad light - twisting words.

LB

LittleBuddha said:

Just thinking about the Victorian. I don't have it here with me. The man carries a trunk. Is this just symbolic? We think that he has possibly stolen it. But is it symbolic of his own riches, on show. Thinking once again about my headphones. I had valuables on me, and like this man, they were on show and open to being taken. He looks twitchy. This may not be because he is the guilty party; but because he is nervous of ambush or the sneaky actions of others.

LB

Click to expand...

I like what you said here, yes, the man does carry a trunk as well as some kind of receptacle at his waist... a golden flask or is it a money bag. He does stand out from his surroundings, an easy mark.

I wanted to go back to the FMT, because the whole meaning of a study is to connect with the cards that one has trouble. I just flounced off to the other two without really trying to work with the Menagerie.

I decided to play with point of view again, starting with the chickens. They are dressed in pink, a color associated with romance and glossing over harsh truths (ie. rose colored glasses). Romance doesn't necessarily have to mean love in the traditional sense, but it can be seen in the broader sense of love/enjoyment of life, the experience of living.
One fox is on a ladder, is he reaching above his station? He is dressed garishly... to attract attention or to appear more exotic than he truly is?
The second fox seems separate from the first one, I tend to view him as being independant from the other. They are not working together. The monkey wears the garb of a footman and steadies the ladder for the first fox. If there is deception here, the monkey seems to be unaware of it. The bulldog porter is counting gold. Is he supposed to be guarding the hen house and the gold is a bribe? Or are these hens "ladies for hire" and he merely collects the cash? If so then the chickens appear more innocent than they really are... so who is really getting duped here? I'll have to come back to this, this is becoming an interesting train of thought for me.