Tarot cards do not have set meanings. They have powerful imagery and underlying messages that help guide us, reflecting on our past and present, revealing truths to us.
You may have found the 10 of Swords within your Tarot spreads and wonder what it means. The difficult imagery can be unsettling, but don’t fret! This card is all about transformation and below is a more detailed way to read into its messaging so you can extract important lessons from it.
Ten of Swords Keywords
Upright card (keywords)
Ruin, failure, bitterness, collapse, exhaustion, dead end, victimization, betrayal
Reversed card (keywords)
Survival, improvement, healing, lessons learned, despair, relapse
The Ten of Swords Tarot Card Description
When using the Rider-Waite tarot deck, you’ll likely encounter the Suit of Swords. It’s a complex suit with many elements, but themes often recur around mental clarity, pain, and duality. Within this suit, you may be faced with the disturbing illustration of the Ten of Swords, where the dark sky engulfs a man lying down with ten swords in his back.
What first sticks out is that this is about endings. The swords in the back can represent betrayal or backstabbing, as well as deep wounds. For others, it may be about hitting rock bottom or suffering a dead-end situation.
Associations with this card include failure, exhaustion, severing ties, playing the victim, and letting fears engulf you. However, this can be a warning about what fear can do when we do not face it. Because the man is face down, the swords represent something that he was running from and failed to confront.
However, there is hope, and the card has something else that it’s telling us. There is an orange hue underneath the dark sky—the horizon—and it symbolizes the end of a cycle, offering us hope for transformation and new beginnings.
The Ten of Swords Upright Meaning
The upright Ten of Swords reading is often a sign that an end of a cycle is near—a marking point where something must change. Amongst many of the associations, there are common themes of fear and hurt.
Looking beyond the initial interpretations of the upright position are messages of acceptance and letting go. This may mean conceding that we cannot run away anymore, or that you must release old versions of yourself.
Drawing this card may cause anxiety, but it is anxiety that it tells us to face up to. Instead, as the orange horizon suggests, we should see this as an opportunity to end suffering and move beyond our troubles.
Love Meaning
When it comes to your love life, the upright Ten of Swords represents painful endings or heartbreak. This may mean letting go of an abusive relationship or toxic connections, but it doesn’t always mean the end of a relationship. It can signify the end of an all-consuming fear, such as attachment issues or past baggage, that has gotten on top of you and is jeopardizing your love life. This fear must now be faced.
Career Meaning
In an upright position, this card can be an intimidating one, so you may be wondering what it means in a career reading. Here, it reflects a difficult workplace situation such as being overworked, or a betrayal such as being made redundant. While this may be your lowest point professionally, this is an urgent call to be aware of new opportunities and pursue a fulfilling path. You don’t need to recklessly hand in your notice tomorrow, but be aware that we cannot take new opportunities if we don’t truthfully confront our current situation.
Finances Meaning
Nobody wants to draw the Ten of Swords in a financial reading because of the symbolism of finality and how that could signal bankruptcy or financial ruin—after all, the swords in the back can symbolize debts that have caught up with you. It is not always doom and gloom, as it advises caution with spending and investments, and most importantly, reminds us that financial recovery (the cycle of the sunrise) is possible.
The Ten of Swords Reversed Card Meaning
The reversed meaning of the Ten of Swords is pointed more towards resistance and recovery. It signals a healing process that has already begun about a past situation, be it mental or physical, financial or social. In other words, the reversed position softens the card’s disturbing illustration as it signals the worst is behind you. Although there is hope in the upright position reading, the reversed meaning is immediately transformational and positive, far more than just a silver lining.
Love Meaning
In a love reading, the reversed Ten of Swords can signal healing after heartbreak or reconciling an existing relationship—even a family member. It may be that you’re letting go of your past pain, for example, and are now beginning to open yourself up to new romantic connections. For those who have been hurt or hit rock bottom, this reversed card is good news in its reassurance that you’re on the road to recovery.
Career Meaning
Your workplace may be fraught with conflicts or rejection, but this reading helps encourage you to rebuild close relationships within your career. Even the seemingly small acts of second chances and rebuilding social connections within the workplace can be the catalyst for this newfound optimism and resilience. And, making new connections is a good way to find new opportunities during the hard times.
Finances Meaning
The reversed Ten of Swords alludes to a difficult situation like overspending on our own needs, but pushes us to regain control and learn from past mistakes—you should incorporate these lessons into your newfound belief systems. While financial ruin may not yet be fully resolved, it isn’t to say that gradual improvements through resistance are not on the table for you.
Other Cards With The Ten of Swords
The general meaning of the Ten of Swords card isn’t set in stone and depends on the reading and the person. But when paired with other cards, even more nuance is needed from the tarot reader as the messages run deeper.
The Ten of Swords and The Tower
When paired with the Tower, these cards can indicate a sudden dramatic ending. These cards are perhaps the most challenging combination, with the Tower signifying unexpected change. Projects and plans may be falling through, such as an abrupt redundancy in your current job. But the pairing can spur on the destruction of old belief systems and structures, where despite the negativity or tragic loss, there’s an opportunity for growth after a violent end.
The Ten of Swords and The Star
This is a slightly more upbeat pairing, as the Star softens the brutality of the ten swords and presents light in our darkest hour. The Star has energy for renewal, inspiring us to garner a new sense of purpose that can often emerge after a difficult period. Together, you’re encouraged to release old thought patterns and embrace a brighter outlook.
The Ten of Swords and The Death
When paired with the Death card, both symbolize endings individually, yet together they synergize into a message of profound transformation. Death here isn’t always literal, of course, and it depends on the person, but it may suggest toxic situations ending in our personal lives that make way for deeper personal growth. The takeaway message here is to make way for new beginnings and lean into transformational experiences.
The Ten of Swords and The Three of Swords
Within tarot card readings, eyebrows are often raised when two Suit of Swords cards are paired together. These Minor Arcana cards reinforce the themes of heartbreak and emotional pain, be that general anxieties or past relationships. The Three of Swords pairing encourages acceptance and to release what internal pain that may have stuck around for a long time—new ways of thinking are now needed.
The Ten of Swords and The Fool
This pairing is a great way to hammer home the transformational messaging of the Ten of Swords card. The Fool represents a leap of faith towards new opportunities, but courage is required. Courage can be difficult to muster after the crisis of the Ten of Swords, and the Fool combination does exercise caution, as some circumstances may not have gone to plan.
The Ten of Swords Card and Its Astrological Sign
When it comes to astral projection, the Ten of Swords connects with Gemini, a star ruled by Mercury. The duality of Gemini coincides with the card’s core messages of difficult endings yet new beginnings, and the mental struggles that often accompany the Suit of Swords cards. Mercury’s influence is an emphasis on communication and clear thinking so that we can adapt to change.
Just as Gemini tends to truly thrive on the ability to adapt and weather storms, the Ten of Swords encourages us to lean into change and seek clarity. This Zodiac signs connection is really about getting through difficult transitions, and how it all begins with a shift in your mindset.
Conclusion
With tarot card reading, it’s important to be receptive to its subtle messaging and symbolism rather than expert singular meanings. Like with many Swords description, there is an emphasis on mindset and pushing through. The Ten of Swords tarot card meaning has daunting messages around painful endings, but there’s sun on the horizon.
By learning more about the messages of tarot cards, you will become better at applying them to your own life, as some level of interpretation is needed. The more you reflect on your tarot guide and its messages, the more mental clarity you will have in making decisions.
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