Elentir
I personally prefer to understand the 4 of swords in the sense of "peace of mind." I only ask because I was taken aback in a reading where the querent spoke up upon seeing the card and said the knight was in a crypt. And then I suddenly thought, "Hey, she's kinda right!" I will say, though, that if the 4 of swords were indeed a card of death, it nevertheless seems to be a rather kindly, peaceful death; "to die, to sleep-- to sleep, perchance to dream...."
The 4s in general seem strange to me (in the RWS, that is). I often try to think of the minor arcana in terms of Kabbalistic correspondences, and as such, the 4s belong to the sephirah of Khesed, "Mercy," which is an expanding, outward-facing kind of energy (cf. Jupiter being traditionally assigned to this sephirah as well), balanced by Gevurah, "Judgement," which is the position of the 5s on the other side of the Tree. But in the RWS, only the 4 of wands seems to be in this spirit, at least as traditionally interpreted by the LWB and other books I've seen. Based on what I've read in Kabbalah (and I hardly consider myself an expert), the 2s, 4s, and 7s should all in some respect reflect the outward, expanding side of the Kabbalistic Tree.
Further, 4s otherwise represent solidity, stability, and the like, which of course can be either positive or negative (as in inertia or rigidity).
From now on, I think I'm going to interpret the 4s differently. To me, the 4 of pentacles means that one's resources are maintained and protected, which I generally see as a good (a very good) thing. Perhaps reversed its implication could be the more traditional "avaricious, miserly behavior." The 4 of cups to me is the opportunity to follow a new path (whereas reversed it is perhaps the inability to see or take advantage of such an opportunity, through boredom and such). And the 4 of swords? I do, as I mentioned, usually see it as "peace of mind," for the reasons I've just explained. Reversed, stagnation of thought, inability to be mentally or intellectually flexible. Or a conflict that one cannot put to rest or detach oneself from.
I'd better stop now, because the other half of my brain is saying "Wait a second--" and starting to come up with counterarguments.... that's what I get for being born under Mercury in Gemini!
The 4s in general seem strange to me (in the RWS, that is). I often try to think of the minor arcana in terms of Kabbalistic correspondences, and as such, the 4s belong to the sephirah of Khesed, "Mercy," which is an expanding, outward-facing kind of energy (cf. Jupiter being traditionally assigned to this sephirah as well), balanced by Gevurah, "Judgement," which is the position of the 5s on the other side of the Tree. But in the RWS, only the 4 of wands seems to be in this spirit, at least as traditionally interpreted by the LWB and other books I've seen. Based on what I've read in Kabbalah (and I hardly consider myself an expert), the 2s, 4s, and 7s should all in some respect reflect the outward, expanding side of the Kabbalistic Tree.
Further, 4s otherwise represent solidity, stability, and the like, which of course can be either positive or negative (as in inertia or rigidity).
From now on, I think I'm going to interpret the 4s differently. To me, the 4 of pentacles means that one's resources are maintained and protected, which I generally see as a good (a very good) thing. Perhaps reversed its implication could be the more traditional "avaricious, miserly behavior." The 4 of cups to me is the opportunity to follow a new path (whereas reversed it is perhaps the inability to see or take advantage of such an opportunity, through boredom and such). And the 4 of swords? I do, as I mentioned, usually see it as "peace of mind," for the reasons I've just explained. Reversed, stagnation of thought, inability to be mentally or intellectually flexible. Or a conflict that one cannot put to rest or detach oneself from.
I'd better stop now, because the other half of my brain is saying "Wait a second--" and starting to come up with counterarguments.... that's what I get for being born under Mercury in Gemini!