Upright Keywords
heartbreak, separation, sadness, grief, sorrow, upset, loss, trauma, tears
Reversed Keywords
healing, forgiveness, recovery, reconciliation, repressing emotions
One of themost iconic images in the tarot, the Three of Swords displays a floating heartthat is pierced by three swords. Above it, there are heavy clouds. There isalso a heavy downpour in the background. The symbolism is pretty opaque, andthe emotional effect that it has is immediate. The heart is the seat of warmth,affection and spirit, and the three swords indicate the power to harm, causepain, and create suffering to what it pierces. This is an image of grief, lossand literally heartbreak. The clouds and rain depict the surrounding grimnessof the situation. All these symbols point to the Three of Swords showing a lowpoint in one's life.
The Three ofSwords depicts the message of rejection, betrayal, hurtand discouragement. In moments like these, we are well served by the mind.If you can think logically about it and prepare for the experience, theimpact of this pain may be minimized.
But remembertoo, that pain and grief are a normal part of life, because they makeus appreciate what joy and happiness we have, as well as teaching us. Itis through pain that we learn to be avoid mistakes that could lead us intodanger and grief. It is therefore a necessity in the journey of life. TheThree of Swords therefore is a depiction of suffering that is meant tomake us stronger, more careful and more vigilant.
Sometimes life givesus no choice - we are knocked down. But what determines one's future is thechoice of whether to remain down, or rise again.
Sometimes lifegives us no choice - we are knocked down. But what determines one's future isthe choice of whether to remain knocked down, or rise again. Each little pieceof suffering you encounter serves as a stepping stone to find a deepermeaning in this world. This card comes at a time when you need to prepareyourself for this next stage in life. While the grief may beextremely hurtful, it enables you to forget your past and focus on your futureknowing that you have control of what actions you take afterwards. Don’t dwellso much on what is troubling you but instead, focus on what is approaching,because you determine your fate.
Upright Love Meaning
Upright Career Meaning
Upright Finances Meaning
breakup, argument, conflict, separation, sadness and tears
conflicts at work, job loss, hurt feelings at work, feeling hopeless
loss of assets, division of assets after break up
The imagery ofthis card is plain and simple; heartbreak is to come with the 3 of Swords tarotlove meaning. This is likely to be a time in your life of tears, sadness andheartbreak. If you’re in a relationship, this can sometimes point to a breakup,a conflict, or some kind of separation. In the worst case scenario, since thiscard is a three, it can also point to a third party creating trouble in yourrelationship. You and your partner may have to face difficult problems in orderto remain together. Without clear and respectful discussions and a willingnessto work together, the relationship can reach its end. If you’re single, it maybe that past grief and suffering is affecting your ability to date. Past woundshave not yet healed, and it’s important to give yourself time before youattempt to find love again.
Work can be agreat source of stress, frustration and sadness for you right now. At worst, itcan point to a sudden job loss, or collapse of a company. More commonly, it cansignal some kind of conflict at work amongst clients and colleagues. If you’redealing with this, make sure that you have honest and open conversations withyour coworkers, while keeping things respectful. There’s likely a lot that youall can learn from one another. If you’re looking for work, or you have justlost your job, the search right now can leave you hopeless. Don’t bedisheartened; if you can afford it, take the time now to recover from thisperiod of anguish. It may provide you a more positive mindset for your jobsearch.
You may bedealing with a material loss right now, or at least something in your financiallife causing you a lot of stress. A breakup has both emotional and financialconsequences; you may no longer be able to afford your apartment alone, or youmay have to split your assets in a divorce. All these things can beoverwhelming now. Make sure to be gentle with yourself, but also remember notto avoid taking care of these things. Find support; you can make it through.
The Three ofSwords reversed indicates that have faced a recent loss, abreak-up or a moment of grief. You may be still recovering from this, andyour emotions have not completely calmed, making it difficult to move on.Although you may still be thinking of your past suffering, this card maybe a signal that it's time to let go and look forwards towards lifeahead of you, because there is much for you to enjoy.
Many don’t seethis, and they end up being immersed in their own pain for too long, delayingtheir own recovery process. Don’t focus too much on what happened, renew youremotions and gather your courage. The reversed Three of Swords card ishere to let you know that all difficult moments pass - they are notthere to stay, and when we fall, we can also rise again.
Reversed Love Meaning
Reversed Career Meaning
Reversed Finances Meaning
forgiving one another, moving on after pain, separation
putting conflicts behind, developing better processes
building savings, finding stability, severe grief about finances
With thereversed 3 of Swords tarot love meaning, lovers may find themselves settlingtheir conflicts and forgiving one another. There is a desire here to heal, andmove past old wounds, while looking forwards towards the future. For singles,this often means finally getting over past heartbreak, in order to be fullypresent in your dating life again. However, this card can also sometimesinstead suggest the very opposite. Wounds may not be healing, but they may berepressed, so they fester and create resentment. Partners may not be able toforgive one another for past hurts. Sometimes, in these cases, it can be betterfor both to move on.
Things at workare starting to become bright again. Stressful conflicts are beginning toresolve, and your outlook and general happiness are improving as well. Yourcolleagues may have moved on from the conflict, or the person that was causingfrustration has left. Everyone at work may instead be focusing on forgivingpast mistakes, and working together on the future. Communication has improved,and there may be new processes in place to avoid the mistakes of the past.Sometimes though, this card can also point towards a worsening ofcircumstances, where instead of putting issues behind them, they can holdgrudges and remain negative. Surrounding cards will give more context.
If you’ve beensuffering from financial setbacks, the reversed 3 of Swords can signal thatimprovement is coming. You can be rebuilding your savings, or finding yourselfin a better, more stable financial position than you were in before.Alternatively, this card can also indicate that the level of emotional griefafter a financial loss is getting worse. If you’ve gone through a big loss, youmay find it very difficult to adjust your spending habits, or give up your pastliving standards. Not accepting the truth of your position often makes a toughsituation more difficult.
BooksArtworkBlanketPremium boxPresentatieThis project is made by Jan Otte for his final project at Ap hogeschool.
You can find more of his work at his personal website.