[rwcarter]

Two travelers come to an impassable obstacle - a landslide has taken out part of their path. Across the gap from them are eight swords that have been driven into the ground.

There's not a lot that I can say about this card. It came up in my New Deck Interview spread that I posted here. MeeWah helped me to have a breakthrough about this card in both the AET and the RWS decks. Instead of focusing on what's wrong or what you can't do, instead one needs to still their mind so that they can hear that inner voice that knows the right thing to do. Block out all distractions and the answer will come.

Rodney

[MeeWah]

The particular imagery of the AET 8-Swords illustrates a mindset or a perception. & in that way, similar in concept to that of the RWS 8-Swords, though the AET's more clearly evinces not a mere separation, but also a lack of connection; the cohesive thought or action.

Alludes to 8-Strength; to that 'as above, so below'; to applied knowledge or taking appropriate action as opposed to ignorance or to doing nothing.

Additionally, to exercising discernment.

The appearance of a thing to not necessarily be a true indicator of an actual condition nor expressive of the possibilities. Thus, to also caution to beware of appearances.

Conversely, as the saying goes: If it acts like a duck, quacks like a duck & walks like a duck, it *is* a duck.

http://******************.com/photos/...nt_Egyptian#44

[SweetIsTheTruth]

This card is the one that hooked me into this deck in the beginning. When I got my first copy of this deck, I felt repulsed as I flipped through the cards for the first time. That reaction was not what I expected. I promptly put the deck away and would not touch it for the next 6 weeks.

Later, I was visiting a friend who had told me of this huge tree in a forest which he wished to show me. My friend referred to it as a 'fairy' tree. My friend, his son, myself and this other friend, set off into the woods to see this tree.

We eventually reached an impasse, in the form of a ditch. This ditch was far too wide to jump, yet we somehow had to cross it to reach the tree on the other side. My friend's son did manage to jump the ditch, but he was much younger than the rest of us and had the right shoes. I was in flip-flops, so I knew there was no way I could jump the ditch. It was at this point that the 8 of swords rose up in my mind and took over the entire experience.

I felt as if I had entered the card and was actually living it. I pretty much forgot about the tree, my friends and why we were there at this point. I only knew I had entered and was living this card from this deck. I got very quiet and quit speaking to anyone, being so flabbergasted at what I was experiencing.

With my friend's son already on the other side of the ditch, the remaining three of us followed the edge of the ditch, until we finally reached a point where the gap between the sides of the ditch had narrowed. It was narrow enough for the three of us to finally cross it, and eventually end up at the tree.

The message here was obvious. Yes, it originally appeared as if there was no way to cross the impasse of the ditch. Yet, that was illusion. Sure, we could not cross it at the point where we first came to it, but there was another way to get across somewhere else. What was immediately obvious was not the solution we needed. We had to look elsewhere to find our way across.

I will never forget how it felt to actually live this card. This one experience with this card taking over my mind in the woods, is what got me hooked into this deck, to the point that I eventually purchased a second copy. Since this experience, I can not put these decks down and they are the decks I use the most.

[rwcarter]

SweetIsTheTruth,

Thanks for a very powerful, personal experience of this card!

Rodney