Conquering The Court - Page Swords

the first time I saw the RW page of swords I saw him as a child who has just unwrapped a Christmas present which turned out to be a sword. he then ran out into the field and wielded his new sword about, feeling invincible (but if someone did try to strike him down he would be pretty defenceless, the gung ho is more of a show) the clouds in the background all looks very dramatic...but he needs to remember he is only a page, and has much to learn.

eh also I had thought the page puffing out his chest + fancying himself looking a little like something from a Mills + Boons book cover...

willowfox said:

I don't think he is looking over his shoulder at all, he is standing sideways to his on coming opponent, making his body as small as possible, so less of a target to hit, this is a very basic martial arts defensive position.

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That makes sense. In the RWS, his posture is quite elegant too, something else that reminds me of certain Eastern martial arts.

In the Marseille, he is face-on, holding his sword slightly diagonally - and he holds his right hand to his hip on the sheath, and looks down towards his right. The whole image makes him look as though he has only just unsheathed his sword, and is preparing to assume the "en garde" posistion of the duellist, which is face-to-face. This youngster is very obviously a knight in the making and his sword is not a play sword!

Fudugazi said:

That makes sense. In the RWS, his posture is quite elegant too, something else that reminds me of certain Eastern martial arts.

In the Marseille, he is face-on, holding his sword slightly diagonally - and he holds his right hand to his hip on the sheath, and looks down towards his right. The whole image makes him look as though he has only just unsheathed his sword, and is preparing to assume the "en garde" posistion of the duellist, which is face-to-face. This youngster is very obviously a knight in the making and his sword is not a play sword!

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The Robin Wood has him/her charging the opponent but I have always liked the way he has been portrayed in the RWS deck, it gives the idea of a person thinking before acting whereas the Wood tarot shows him to be acting without thinking. I wonder which is the more correct? I have seen other decks that suggest the the page is a reckless person as well. What do you think?

The swords courts are always more problematic for me more than any other suit. I have virtually no air myself, so I do find them harder to understand. Yet I am also drawn to them, because I don't understand.

Just recently I saw the RWS Page of Swords as listening. The way his left ear is pushed outward, like he was really trying to hear something. As advice, I took that to mean listen more, or really learn to listen well.

I've also seen him as being observant or indicating a need to be more so. Try to see the bigger picture all the way up there in the clouds, a bird's eye view as such.

I love Fudugazi's description of this page - perfect

I think of the Pages as air not earth so for me this guy is air of air.

He's the beginning of thought or communication and he's also quite detached at times... He thinks about his thoughts, he's 'up in his head'
In the Rider-Waite-Smith image he looks as if he's ready for action but something has distracted him..

Have you noticed with the RWS Page of Swords that his feet aren't actually on the ground so maybe he's a little in need of a dose of reality or grounding every now and then.

Sulis said:

Have you noticed with the RWS Page of Swords that his feet aren't actually on the ground so maybe he's a little in need of a dose of reality or grounding every now and then.

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Well, I'm not sure about that, it seems that his feet are resting on the ground, perhaps it is just a strange way to depict it.

But, what I was wondering about is why the page is on the very top of a high hill? I know its an air sign but what other reason is there?

willowfox said:

I don't think he is looking over his shoulder at all, he is standing sideways to his on coming opponent, making his body as small as possible, so less of a target to hit, this is a very basic martial arts defensive position.

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Sometimes he's looking over his shoulder,sometimes he calculating a defensive move,sometimes he listning,sometimes his feet aren't on the ground and more all these are all possible aspects of the page conveyed by th R.W. art work.The theme of the reading,the other cards and your intuition will tell you what the page is doing and thinking.The page isn't always going to be telling you the same thing or be a one dementional character.Court cards aren't suppose to be archtypes their more elemental in nature and all 16 court cards make up aspects of ourselves.One thing we can all agree on is this page is a card of movement.

The Swords are challenging because they are double edged. Problem as opportunity. I've always seen this guy as being prepared for anything, on the alert, vigilant, aware, watchful. I can see where old books say this is a spy.

He's not as "pretty" as the other pages. No adornments on his person. Clothing is pretty straight forward. I see him looking all around, not just over his shoulder, and he's scanning the territory he's in. Love the cloud play in all the Swords cards.

As a message - it is when a co-worker is trying to get some scoop out of you or really nail just what the heck is going on here.

There was a young child in our neighborhood when I raised my daughter and she was always listening in on conversations. I thought of her as a Page of Sword -- a little Clarkina Kent newspaper investigator with notepad and pen gathering column-stuffs, later spreading it about. It gave her a sense of power, I suppose. One was smart not to say anything near her that you wouldn't broadcast yourself. She "innocently" caused much trouble that parents later had to straighten out in what was sometimes a face-to-face conference.

RX - The guard was somehow let down and a challenge presents itself that was unforeseen, or that you are unprepared for.

Played with I Ching a bit the other night:

18 THE KU HEXAGRAM

Earth of Air

Winds sweep
through the Mountain valley:
The Superior Person
sweeps away
corruption and stagnation
by stirring up the people
and strengthening their spirit.


Definite lack of athleticism pictured here. Always thought that Page so capable of hurting self or others with that sword from careless use. My son's comment, "Probably swings like a girl."

How'd I miss the start of this thread? Eek! More later, time is getting away from me today. - Sea

willowfox said:

I don't think he is looking over his shoulder at all, he is standing sideways to his on coming opponent, making his body as small as possible, so less of a target to hit, this is a very basic martial arts defensive position.

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If that is a martial arts defensive position it is the worse one I have ever seen. I am pretty sure Pamela Coleman Smith and Dr. Waite did not have that in mind when it was drawn. Looks more like ballet. His knees are locked.

The crowned one said:

If that is a martial arts defensive position it is the worse one I have ever seen. I am pretty sure Pamela Coleman Smith and Dr. Waite did not have that in mind when it was drawn. Looks more like ballet. His knees are locked.

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I suggest that you look to see how some Chinese fighter stand in a defensive pose, anyway some martial art styles are very similiar to dance, full of very flowing and fluid movements. There is a difference between styles, some are soft and yielding and others are hard and aggressive.