10 of cups

[wind]

What does 10 of cups mean to you?

I have a bit of trouble with this card because "it is too good to be true".

I need to say that there were many occasions when the card did show "suppreme happiness" for me, where I was joyous, fulfilled, blissed.

But those were just moments.

I have troubles with this card when it comes to relationship questions, especially at early stage (where I know it is too soon to go for "one big happy family" thing) or maybe in difficult relationships where it is simply too good to be true.

I feel it is more a card of peace - like whatever happens, you will feel joy and peace.
But how long does this peace last?

So,my concerns are:

-how real is this happiness/joy - is it just a moment? or is it lasting?
-how many people are involved - can this be a solitary card or is it necessarily sharing?
-in relationships: what kind of situation it talks about?
-since it is number 10 - is it relevant if it appears in a "new" relationship where it is absolutely too soon to talk about family joy and happiness? Then what does it say?

I hope you can share some of your insights and experience.

 

[rwcarter]

wind,

I had this card come up in a reading I did for a then co-worker about her relationship. It came up in the position of how he viewed the relationship. I was trying to explain to her that just because he thought everything was fine in the relationship didn't mean that it actually was. I was using one of the RW clones and it occurred to me to pull out the New Vision to provide a different perspective on the card. Here is the New Vision version of the card.

The happiness of the family is contrasted against their surroundings (which I remember looking shabbier than they do in the link above). The new perspective provided by the New Vision card (I also pulled some other equivalent cards from the New Vision) brought home the message I was trying to make that he was content with the outward appearance of happiness despite the conditions in which the family lives.

Since putting both versions of the 10C together, I'm always a little leery of saying that the 10C (at least in a RWS deck) suggests the type of everlasting happiness that I used to associate with the card. In some cases it's true, but in others it isn't.

Rodney

 

[wind]

Thanks for your input, Rodney!
Yes, this is exactly my dilemma too...usually this card doesn't reflect this pure and blissful happiness, but then I am a bit lost on what does it say exactly.

It is number 10, so it is completion - maybe it says that the situation is changing rapidly? maybe there will be certain bliss, but it will pass quickly?
And it is cups, so maybe the happiness is only imaginary, just an inner feeling but we know that feelings change?

I admit, this card is a mystery to me

 

[papercut]

My most recent experience with this card -

The first six months or so of my current relationship were troubled for various reasons. Things were chaotic and we were pretty much always on the brink of ending it.

I was getting really sick of the chaos, and I did a reading asking if things would change. Well, the cards indicated that things would indeed change, and for the outcome I got the 10 of cups. Always the pessimist, I saw that and thought "Yeah, right".

However a few months later something very specific happened to change things between us, and it's like our relationship did a 360.

The chaos is gone for the most part. The relationship feels incredibly stable and we are both committed. We even live together in sickly-sweet domestic bliss, lol. I don't want to make it sound like a "too good to be true" situation - things aren't perfect, of course. But the bottom line is - I haven't felt this happy about a relationship for *years*.

It doesn't mean we will always be committed, or that everlasting happiness is ours. But this is no fling either, for the time being things are rock solid (which is in sharp contrast to the way things were several months ago, when we were both sure the relationship was doomed).

This is what I've come to associate the ten of cups with when it comes to relationships - security and comfortable happiness, and above all, lasting committment (though *lasting* does not necessarily mean *forever*).

 

[WalesWoman]

Maybe it's that whole "over the rainbow" sense of being, like you found your pot of treasure at the end of it... that it feels like what you've been wanting in a relationship.

Maybe because it is a 10, it represents a time emotional transition, a change in the status of the relationship... going from casual to something more serious and committed. Perhaps it's not dramatic but more of a realization and crystalization of what you want, what fulfills you. It's not static, it will change, so perhaps it means enjoy this time, let yourself be filled and be shower the ones you love with love.

Or since 10's are associated with the Wheel of Fortune, you are in a rare lucky state. Dance, laugh, be merry and enjoy the moment without worrying about what tomorrow will bring... let it play out and see where it takes you.

Or if it is a rating of new relationships, you've found yourself a 10... and need to look no further.

OR... be careful, you may find yourself in 10 months as a family unit. Ye olde "You thought you knew what total happiness was... until you had baby... and then it was too late" (that was on a card I got after the birth of my first child)

 

[Belladonna]

I must admit that I do associate long term commitment with this card, but not neccessarily lasting happiness or bliss. I see this card as a container of sorts. One in which a couple can experience the many ups and downs, joys and pains that come with any long term, committed relationship. I like the idea of transition that is associated with the 10's in general, but my take is that the transition in this case refers to going from a less serious relationship in which either partner may back out when the going gets rough, to a more settled position of knowing that each partner is there for the long haul despite the many challenges that inevitably arise when two people create a life together. I believe there is a fullness and depth of emotion associated with the 10 of cups, both joyful and sorrowful.

 

[The crowned one]

I find the 10 of cups can be true happiness, but it is always in the moment. It is when all the peices fall together, no matter how fleeting it is worth experiencing. A pinnacle, that unfortunately passes.

EDIT:

What does 10 of cups mean to you?

I gave my answer above but as to your detail questions:

So,my concerns are:

-how real is this happiness/joy - is it just a moment? or is it lasting?

Nothing lasts forever, but moments can vary from seconds to years. AS a 10 the joy is very real in the moment, but quickly becomes something based on a memory, it is how our minds work.

-how many people are involved - can this be a solitary card or is it necessarily sharing?

Generally it represents more then one person, love is best shared. A narcissist would not have the joy of a 10 of cups.

-in relationships: what kind of situation it talks about?

family, or true cups.

-since it is number 10 - is it relevant if it appears in a "new" relationship where it is absolutely too soon to talk about family joy and happiness? Then what does it say?

Sure, 10 is a pinnacle, some people are struck by love at first sight. They know it in their soul.

Generally speaking I break cards down to suite and number as a foundation, anthing I can fit on that foundation is valid.

 

[Belladonna]

I found that last post interesting. I'd love to hear your take on the Ace of cups. I just appreciate a different angle/opinion sometimes.

 

[nisaba]

Since getting a hold of the Herbal Deck twelve or thirteen years ago (as a much-appreciated gift), this hasn;'t been a card of unalloyed joy to me, but more of an over-indulgence card (its herb is cannabis sativa).

 

[Chiara]

What does 10 of cups mean to you?

I need to say that there were many occasions when the card did show "suppreme happiness" for me, where I was joyous, fulfilled, blissed.

But those were just moments.

But how long does this peace last?

I think too many people get caught up in "when". I will be happy "when" I get a new car...I will be happy "when" I get a change jobs...I will be happy "when" my kids are grown..."when" my mortgage is paid off..."when" it is the weekend. But "when" we get what we want, there is always a new "when" to replace the old "when." So yes, there are happiness is moments.

The best business advice I ever got (I know...it is the 10 of Cups not Pents) seems to apply here in the 10 of Cups also. "Don't go for the dollars, go for the nickels...but go for a lot of nickels." So go for the moments. Those little "moments" can make you happy for your lifetime! ...and like the 10 of Pents...can make you rich beyond belief. Some of the richest people I know don't have a cent in the bank.