Swords!

The Swords are probably the most difficult suit of the tarot.  They represent conflict, strife, and often times devastation and grief.  There is also a great deal of beauty in the Swords.  They represent intelligence and deep wisdom, they represent the logic we can use to create structure and order in the world in order to manifest a society where we try to make things fair. 

Ultimately our search for knowledge comes up futile in many cases – there are many things in the universe we just can’t understand using our conventional methods of learning.  Which reminds me of one of my most favorite scenes from Twin Peaks.  Unfortunately I couldn’t find a clip on YouTube, so this will have to suffice:

While the Swords teaches us that we can’t find all our answers using books and education, they also teach us that we can find the answers outside our traditional sources and instead through trusting in the universe and in ourselves.

The suit of Swords is a return to the more active, energized energy we saw in the wands.  The suit is ruled by air, which is all about movement.  This is the movement around our ambition and how that ambition can get the better of us, especially if we let our ego and our aggression lead the way.  The Swords are the philosophical and psychological suit and on the back of the energy of the air, we receive messages from the universe as well as transmit our own messages in the language we use.  The suit is all about command, execution, and carrying out the message of the universe.

Element: Air

Astrology: Gemini, Libra, Aquarius

Season: Fall

Class: Nobility

Angel Representative: Michael

Minerals: Amethyst, Kyanite, Yellow Jasper, Opal, Ametrine

Colors: Light Blue, Grey, Black, White

Animal: Eagle, Owl*

Major Arcana Cards Associated with Swords/Air:

• 0: The Fool (The element air)
• 1: The Magician (Mercury)
• 6: The Lovers (Gemini)
• 11: Justice (Libra)
• 14: The Star (Aquarius)

All these major arcana cards are governed by air, and as a result, correspond well to the suit of Swords.

* To keep my Twin Peaks/Swords/Tarot theme going, I’ll just end this post by reminding you that the owls are not what they seem.  ❤