9 of swords

baba-prague

It's thought-provoking to read this - I'm grateful to hear these posts.

We worried quite a lot about this card as The Little Mermaid is in many ways such a harsh story. I remember being terribly upset by it - for days in fact - when I was a child. In the scene that we've depicted the Mermaid is about to give up her tongue in order to gain the ability to walk on land. It's the moment in the story when the reader feels very much like a helpless bystander - it always makes me want to shout out "Don't do it?" because it's such a cruel bargain and you know that there will be no going back. We didn't depict this graphically at all - but if you know this story you know exactly what is about to happen - and this knowledge hurts.

But the story has an odd lesson as well, because in fact the mermaid, as it turns out, gains the most important thing of all, a soul. She seems to lose everything - her love and her life and even her family - but she does gain something more important. It's bitter-sweet, as I think this card can be.
 

Al Si'ra

Yes..such a sad story..no wonder why Disney softened it or no totally changed it and made it a happy ending movie-little mermaid if stayed true to the original story is i think a teenager-adult story-it could be too harsh for kids-i still can't digest the fact that prince marries the wrong girl ghrr.
She seems to lose everything - her love and her life and even her family - but she does gain something more important
So there is growth and enlightment at the end of nine of swords which is perfectly reflected with the end of the original story..and it is unexpected when considering the circumstances before..

When in a 9 of swords situation isn't it the same..we don't usually see what might come out of the situation..we don't even see if it's going to get better or not..A surprise ending is another interpretation i will think of,when this card pops up..the outcome may not seem positive at first but then when looking from a spiritual-higher perspective it's far more beneficial probably in the long run.

:love:
 

arachnophobia

Al Si'ra said:
Yes..such a sad story..no wonder why Disney softened it or no totally changed it and made it a happy ending movie-little mermaid if stayed true to the original story is i think a teenager-adult story-it could be too harsh for kids-i still can't digest the fact that prince marries the wrong girl ghrr.


Can't stand the Hollywood "disneyfication" of fairytales for precisely this reason *grr* Through fairytales, children can come to appreciate the bitter-sweetness and occasional harshness of life, as much as any teenager or adult... see baba-prague's post above... and I think Disney does us all an enormous disservice by trying to sugar-coat this. We did have a very interesting thread previously on this forum regarding children and Tarot, i.e. at what age can you introduce them to this, and the responses interested me greatly. Some wanted to protect children from all the gross images, like Death, the Devil, guys lying with swords in their back, etc. But that seems hypocritical to me, given the actual content of real fairytales, and children's cartoons alike ;-P

The Whimsical Tarot, imho, gets around this very nicely, by including all the cards, but reframing them nicely in terms of fairytales and nursery rhymes, i.e. the total collapse and destruction of the 10 of Swords = Humpty Dumpty falling off his wall (a bad day for eggs?), the 9 of Swords = Rapunzel's original "bad hair" day (and even children have their share of those), Death = the Sleeping Beauty, and the Devil = the puppeteer controlling Pinocchio's strings (but he does hold the key to liberation, i.e. a pair of scissors, in his back pocket!) lol

Reading the Little Mermaid as a kid, 'proper'Hans Christian Andersen version not the Disney version, profoundly moved me, and also made me vow to 'save the mermaids'... remember, whether or not the mermaid gains a soul, comes down to the participation of the reader? I immortalized her in my own Tarot, eventually, as the Queen of Cups ;-))

Al Si'ra said:
So there is growth and enlightment at the end of nine of swords which is perfectly reflected with the end of the original story..and it is unexpected when considering the circumstances before..

When in a 9 of swords situation isn't it the same..we don't usually see what might come out of the situation..we don't even see if it's going to get better or not..A surprise ending is another interpretation i will think of,when this card pops up..the outcome may not seem positive at first but then when looking from a spiritual-higher perspective it's far more beneficial probably in the long run.

:love:
 

Al Si'ra

I agree with you i know you are right..I prefer the fact-always-to fiction..no matter how painful it could be ..but my heart can't take being that harsh even from the beginning-i am being emotional i know-what you say makes sense but still i just wouldn't prefer it for little kids....the original little mermaid story is indeed harsh even for an adult -but mom gave me the original one to read when i was like 4 or 5-and i felt so upset and as a kid did not get the significance,but only felt pain and anger although i was clever enough to read at that age; i wasn't aware enough to see the lesson that was trying to be delivered..and then saw the disney version tried to erase the past memories lol..it was like opening of the chakras in a very sudden way-can cause emotional turbulance..that's why i still think some fairytales are meant to be more or less for adults lol :love: So maybe mothers should read it to children and then help the kid understand the point..i don't know..my experience was not pleasant-that is why my feelings pretty much muddy my views on this beautiful story and some other fairytales as well..

Peter Pan-my favourite- is sugar coated in many versions also..but the original one is harsh-that little guy needs to open up his heart and all but he can't he refuses to-so he prefers to stay ignorant and in the end he is left all alone in his dreamland-all young men need to read it..i gave it as a present to my 22 year old boyfriend LOL..and i just don't think he got the message behind it..as an adult..i guess he just thought that i wanted him with wild hair -in tight sexy green pants..really..ok that's another story..

My personal view,
i still wonder if fairytales are meant to be for us or for the little ones..or for us to tell the little ones..still thinking..
Btw;
most of the fairytales have 2 or more versions..wow i am just recognizing this.


:love: and hugs