stumped over the 4 of cups?

[third eye]

hi ive been learning the meanings of the tarot cards for 11 months or so, I have learnt the basic meanings of most cards but i still cant for the life of me get my head around the 4 of cups card meanings. Does it mean just being fed up with your situation, or you are bored with your life. replies would be appreciated as i really cant get to grips with this card.

 

[rwcarter]

Hi third eye,

Welcome to AT!

The 4 Cups can mean many things depending on the situation, the question asked and the other cards in the reading. Both examples you gave can apply to the 4C in the right situation. It could also be pointing to not seeing an opportunity because of one's sense of ennui. It could point to the beginning of depression or it might point to a need for the Querent to "lighten up."

HTH,
Rodney

 

[starrystarrynight]

My take is usually that the honeymoon (of the Three of Cups) is over when this card comes up. Now is the time to pause, take stock of the relationship or situation, and decide to expend the effort to build deeper roots...or to move on.

Fours often signify a pause in the action for me (implying that there is more to come, and one can't stay in this state forever.) So, with Cups, it may be time to stop and meditate over an emotional issue. It could be that you are bored and apathetic...wondering if this is all there is to the relationship or situation.

It's like the Seven-year itch in that way, I think...or even a mid-life crisis, maybe.

There are other interpretations for this card, though (I always loved Fudugazi's "homesickness for the heart's soul"--which I am paraphrasing from memory because I don't have it in front of me at the moment--from the LWB of the Fantastic Menagerie Tarot)...but what I said above is often the first thing that comes to mind when this card comes up for me.

 

[Sulis]

I agree with Rodney, the meaning of a card in a reading depends on many things; the question, the position, the other cards, the context etc..

When I'm thinking about card meanings I find that looking at the number and the element really helps as well as looking at the image on the card.

Think of the number 4 and the element of water and imagine how they interact.
Fours are about structure, boundaries, pauses, consolidation and foundations whilst water is an element that flows, reflects, has depths etc.
If you think of water being contained (as it is in the number 4), you may get more of a feeling for this card. Water represents the emotions, relationships etc and it likes to flow; contain it for too long and it becomes stagnant. That's what you get in the 4 of Cups.
This is a card about emotional stability but with that you have to beware of becoming bored and stagnant... You know that time in a relationship when the initial enthusiasm has started to wear off? The love is there but it's getting a bit stale and needs a bit of input (that cup being offered). The danger is that you're so stagnant that you won't notice the offered cup.

This card could be saying that you need to make sure that you don't miss opportunities or that you should look out for opportunities. It could also be saying that things are fine now but you need to watch out that you don't get stuck in an emotional rut.

Does that help?

 

[third eye]

thanks for the replies folks, this has been a real help, im starting to understand the 4 of cups a bit better now.

 

[Alissa]

I agree with all the shades of Four of Cups already shared. A few other interpretations that come up often for me is the sense of being willful, and/or stubbornly refusing to accept a situation simply because it goes against one's personal will. A real temper tantrum, especially if reversed.

Also, it can signify he's "full". It may not be a temper tantrum if the connotation of the card would indicate he just needs some time to stop and think, to "digest" what he's already got (I'm using this as a metaphor) going on inside him/around him.

 

[afrosaxon]

Everyone has given excellent interpretations so far.

(can't wait for the Search Forum feature to be fixed! ).

You can go to the :All About Tarot--The Cards" thread in this section, and there are other threads about the 4 of Cups.

In a more literal sense: if the 3 of Cups is about celebrating (especially a celebration that includes alcoholic toasts), then the 4 of Cups is the hangover and "I swear, I'll never drink again if I can just get through this!".

T.

 

[Firewind17]

Thank you Sulis

I,too have been studying and altho I've read

in many of my books the meaning of this card

it wasn't til I just read your post on it that I

truly understood that angle of the meaning.

Thank you so much for such a clear example

and explanation. Sharon

 

[Grizabella]

Everyone has given excellent interpretations so far.

(can't wait for the Search Forum feature to be fixed! ).

You can go to the :All About Tarot--The Cards" thread in this section, and there are other threads about the 4 of Cups.

In a more literal sense: if the 3 of Cups is about celebrating (especially a celebration that includes alcoholic toasts), then the 4 of Cups is the hangover and "I swear, I'll never drink again if I can just get through this!".

T.

There really is such a thing as an emotional hangover, too. Good point!

 

[third eye]

could it also mean to be near trees and absorb their energy?