5 of pentacles - my inner self

[kislany]

I pulled this card for showing my true self, things that help me center - or obstacles on not being able properly centered, and I am very confused. How can I interpret this card in a positive way? It seems to tell about me a pretty sad story
I don't want to go into financial loss, material trouble, as the question relevant to this card refers to my internal life, so maybe it tries to tell me that I'm searching for spiritual learning, guidance, but I'm lost right now and can't see 'the light', although it's right in front of me? Ah it just all seems so bleak from where I'm sitting looking at the card...*sigh*
Any cheer ups for me, please?

 

[poivre]

When this card shows I read it as someone coming from
a hard time searching for the sun.
A lesson of done that, got the tee shirt and I'm not
doing it again.

The past is the past and you can't go back. Move forward
in confidence knowing you are trying to move forward with your life.

Lessons puts character into our personalities!

 

[Thirteen]

I pulled this card for showing my true self, things that help me center - or obstacles on not being able properly centered

I know you don't want to get into "fiancial loss," etc, but if this card is about "obstacles on not being able to properly center" then it might be telling you that you fiances or material troubles or desires are getting in the way.

On the negative side of this card, we see a focus on what we materially don't have; we may dwell a lot on where we thing we SHOULD be with our life. "I should have a home by now--" we might say, or "Why am I still struggling to pay the rent?" We may look at our neighbors or friends in envy of the material happiness they *seem* to have--wife, kids, home, car. Also, don't disregard the pentacles as referencing HEALTH and LUCK. Do you envy others their health because you have problems that you can't seem to shed? Do you feel pepetually unlucky and brood on your misfortunes as compared to the luck of others?

It's far from uncommon to feel like a beggar in the midst of wealth. We ALL feel that way on certain days, as if we're the starving folk pressing our hands up against the glass of a posh restuarant, watching everyone else feast. The real problem is if you feel that way often, commonly. That would be a very big obstacle when it comes to centering yourself. You can't find a calm, peaceful, spiritual center if you're always focusing on what you lack. On your poverty instead of your wealth.

On the positive side, the card might be trying to tell you the exact opposite: that perhaps you're more spiritually better off than you think. That you do care about your spiritual wealth rather than your material wealth. And unlike those who equate spiritual wealth with materialism YOU are aware that spareness, a life unencumbered by treasures, is the best way to reach that peaceful center.

Which to you think it is?

 

[kislany]

Thanks ross, I like the idea of a lesson learned and not looking back again, going forward.

Thirteen, from the way you put it, I can very well identify with the second description. And I don't mean it because it sounds positive. It's just that (keeps fingers crossed), right now I have no huge material problems that keep me wake at night, and I am on a spiritual journey as of late (woke up after 35 years of complete atheism, lack of spiritual, etc). However to put a spin on your take, do I maybe care too much of spiritual and loose the material in the process? I should be more grounded and 'down to Earth' rather than always in the clouds

Thanks both, highly appreciated.

 

[Flidais]

Based on the image on this card in the Rider-Waite deck, I sometimes interpret the 5 of Pentacles as being "on the outside" rather than included or "on the inside". In light of your question, I think perhaps it could be a reference to not being fully integrated within yourself. Perhaps you are having trouble acknowledging or accepting certain aspects of yourself. This, of course, would hinder your efforts to become centered. Meditation or other readings might help you determine what is being "left out" and how to integrate all aspects of yourself into a stronger whole.

 

[MercyMe]

One of the old time traditional meanings of this card is "lovers looking for a place to meet." Kinda romantic, no?

I sometimes see this as two people sticking it out through thick and thin, being a refuge for others, holding fast to faith when times are tough, when you can't see the path in front of you but you know to keep moving forward. Divine intervention at a time of need.

~Mercy

 

[Thirteen]

I am on a spiritual journey as of late (woke up after 35 years of complete atheism, lack of spiritual

I think that's the spin I would take on this. The 5/Pents, like all 5's, is about loss, afterall. The Rider-Waite image is of the poor folk outside a rich church. So there you are, the atheist looking in those stained glass windows, having lost, in an instant, all spiritual wealth. I'm not saying that you want to go into the church; in fact, the card may be trying to tell you that your true center isn't to be found in any organized religion.

I think the card describes your true self very accurately. And it certainly describes how you're feeling--from what you say, you're not altogether happy with this atheism--else why are you seeking spirituality? Like the beggars, you seem to feel like you're poor, like you need something more to feed yourself, keep you warm and comfortable. However, like those beggars, you also seem to feel like you're on your own.

Now I know that this sounds a little bleak, but the thing you have to remember about 5/Pents is that, like all 5's, it's not only a card of loss, but of transformation, of tests, of change. 4's are where you're stuck; nothing is moving forward. The loss and imblance of 5's have to happen in order for you to transition into the peaceful 6's where balance is restored at a higher level. And 5, as pointed out elsewhere, is the Hierophant's number. So 5's are certainly about spiritual trails, doubts and questions. About finding your own connection to the divine--rather than having someone tell you how to make that connection. Going through this "poverty" is going to help you learn who you are; what you think, what you believe, what you REALLY want and need.

You're on your own...as we all are when it come to finding something more in the universe than ourselves. And that's as scary as being the solitary beggar outside the church on a winter's night. But enduring this will teach you far more--and give you answers more sure and real and true than any you could find by going through those stained glass doors. What you're looking for isn't in there. That, I think, what the card is trying to tell you. Your true self, your center, is out there in the snow.

 

[firemaiden]

The fives are all about loss? That comes as a surprise to me. I can see fives as imbalance, because it takes you out of the square - but I would have thought -- five - introduces the fifth dimension - a spiritual dimension. Five is also the number for wholeness of man - our head/arms/legs make five. Perhaps - rather than loss, I would say a sudden knocking out of one's complacency. Admittedly that is a kind of loss - but it is also a gain in awareness.

Kislany, I would say perhaps you are experiencing some discomfort now as you are knocked off your old way of seeing/experiencing things, but you are gaining a new spiritual awareness.

 

[kislany]

When I first got the card in my hands, I couldn't figure out how could I be any of the two people in it, but now, after reading all these replies, I can completely identify with the card. Still sort of sad, but not like before, it's indeed where I am. Just a quick background so that you know where I am coming from. I've been living all my life in an East European (dictatorial) country, where church was something to go to only during occasions (christening, when somebody died, etc), but not for spiritual enlightening. Thus I grew up completely atheist (and still am, when it comes to organized church, religion). However the last 2 years I started looking into alternative ways of knowing myself and finding a purpose (although not consciously I must say, but this card did open my eyes). I started with astrology, to learn about my natal chart, then past lives, now tarot. So yes, I think the card is me...still trying to find myself. Going past the church, not entering it as I know it's not me, but still searching...

 

[WalesWoman]

Another aspect... with the RWS image is no matter if you are feeling handicapped or in the dark... out in the cold... to remember to look up, to find your spiritual beacon rather than focusing on those things that have created dis- ease and seen as limitations or spiritual poverty. The guy on crutches is moving, looking for solace and comfort... the main thing is he is on his feet using man made aides to help support him as he makes his way through his winter of the soul... he has hope, he has determination and has not given up to lay around feeling sorry for himself and become an ice cube.

I might look at this a passage through a challenge and agree with Thirteen, it may not be that your find what you need in an established edifice.

I was struck by Rachel Pollacks ideas of 5 in the Hierophant... that when we reject established accepted belief systems... we must find our own path or will wander about lost... which seems a bit 5 Pentish.