The Ace of Swords signifies intention on the intellectual level of human expression. Ace of Swords upright: commitment. Ace of Swords reversed: lack of commitment.
The respective faculty of consciousness is involvement. Objectives (Ten of Cups) stimulate intelligence (Hod) to get involved in a creative pursuit. This turns creative pursuits into intelligent ventures.
Coming across an interesting riddle or task stimulates the intellect as well. This is where the secondary meanings of new plan, undertaking, project, and the beginning of a definite process or method come from.
The Ace of Swords marks another turning point in a creative pursuit (the Three of Cups being the first). Desires are a subjective matter. On the intellectual level, our undertaking becomes an objective matter. The nature of the forces involved in a pursuit changes, too. On the creative-feely level, we have natural forces. On the intellectual level, we have invoked forces.
The intellect needs stimulation, which it derives from experiences (the external world) or the creative level. That’s why people who have an intellectual disposition may have a low drive and may even be prone to depression. To deal with that, they look for stimulations. That’s why they tend to enjoy parties, sex, and escapades. But the cultivation of feelings and creative objectives produces healthier and more rewarding stimulation.
Hod is the problem solver. Hod resolves conflicts and challenges that arise in the external world and overcomes the resistance we encounter when we pursue our objectives. This is where the secondary meaning of commencement of enmity comes from. But commencement of adversity is a better term since conflicts are a subset of adversity.
An auspicious Ace of Swords may indicate an enterprising spirit and the beginning of a meaningful venture.
An inauspicious Ace of Swords may signify a lack of objectives. An inauspicious Ace of Swords may also indicate that the querent may be prone to impatience, cutting corners, compulsive competitiveness, manipulation, and taking advantage of people and situations. In this case, the venture becomes a conquest or hostile takeover. This is where the secondary meanings of capture by force of arms or by force of will come from.
The Ace of Swords may also indicate that the querent is at the wit of her objectives — that’s obsession — or in danger of being pulled into someone else’s pursuit of fortune.
Last but not least, an inauspicious Ace of Swords may indicate an impostor syndrome. The querent may not feel adequate to deal with a new venture. Tell her she shouldn’t worry too much about it. When we embark on a new venture, we naturally lack the required skills and experience. We need to acquire them and, for a while, make things up as we go along.
Ace of Swords Symbolism
The picture shows an open hand holding a sword. In Tarot, swords symbolize (sharp) intelligence, which includes the ability to discern and differentiate.
The hand is the creative hand of the higher self.
The Hebrew letter Yod means open hand. This letter belongs to the Hermit/Attainment card. The letter Yod has the form of a flame and is the root letter of the Hebrew alphabet, which is also called the flame alphabet. In enlightenment, fire symbolizes spirit. Think of intellectual intention as a flame that ignites a venture.
The Five Psychological Core Meanings of the Ace of Swords
We derive the psychological meanings of Tarot cards from their position on the Tree of Life. In the Enlightenment Tarot framework, the Ace of Swords represents Kether of Hod, i.e., intention on the intellectual level of human expression.
Every Tarot card represents a faculty or power of consciousness. We can use faculties of consciousness constructively and destructively, which produce either a fortunate or an adverse state of mind. Hence, every Tarot card has five core meanings.
These are the five core meanings of the Ace of Swords:
- Power of consciousness: Involvement
- Constructive use: Commitment
- Unconstructive use: Lack of commitment
- Auspicious state of mind: Engagement, interest
- Inauspicious state of mind: Disengagement, disinterest
Reflective Questions
If the Ace of Swords appears in your spread, it may be beneficial to ask yourself the following questions:
- What objectives am I committing to — and are those commitments full, partial, or hesitant?
- Do I seek stimulation as a substitute for purpose?
- Am I currently at risk of getting pulled into someone else’s objective?
- What kind of stimulation nourishes my intellect and vitality — and what merely distracts or depletes me?
- What new idea or pursuit has recently emerged — and am I ready to meet it head-on?
- Am I avoiding a meaningful pursuit because I doubt my abilities or feel like an impostor?
Ace of Swords Summary
The Ace of Swords calls to embark on a chosen venture with intent, vision, and a clear objective.
Where Do Tarot Card Meanings Actually Come From?
The meanings of Tarot cards come from various sources. The most common are:
- The position of the Tarot cards on the Tree of Life
- Astrological correspondences (signs, planets, & houses)
- The symbolism of Tarot cards
- Intuition
- Meanings that pertain to fortune telling
Most of the Tarot card meanings you can google are astrological correspondences and go back to the Golden Dawn and Arthur Edward Waite. Astrological meanings dominate at present because Astrology is a divination tool and favors fortune telling. But these meanings are unsuitable for (psychological) Tarot readings.
If you are interested in an overview of the astrological correspondences, you can download a high-resolution chart by subscribing to the Enlightenment Tarot.
Tarot card meanings are a bit of a mess since the meanings that pertain to their position on the Tree of Life mingle with astrological correspondences, symbolic interpretations, and fortune-telling connotations. That’s tedious to memorize. Further, tarotists’ opinions, knowledge, and linguistic backgrounds shaped some of these interpretations. Last but not least, many meanings are fuzzy, contradictory, and overlap. If you want to understand why they overlap, read the article How to Deal With the Overlapping Meanings of Tarot cards.
The meanings of the Enlightenment Tarot are based on an objective and holistic framework: the Tree of Life and the four levels of human expression. The resulting meanings are transparent and logical and, hence, easier to memorize.
What Do Various Tarotists Say about the Meanings of the Ace of Swords
Let’s explore what various tarotists wrote about the Ace of Swords.
Tarotists emphasize the astrological significances of Tarot cards since these lend themselves to divination and fortune-telling. The Ace of Swords embraces the sun signs Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius. These sun signs connect to the Karma/Justice, Transformation/Death, and the Trial & Temptation/Temperance cards:
While we pursue ventures, we face ample adversity and resistance, which are forms of karma. Facing challenges and growing with them leads to transformation, during which our creative and intellectual faculties are tested.
Season-wise, the Aces of Swords stands for autumn, the time of harvest and preparation for winter.
What Paul Foster Case Said About the Meanings of the Ace of Swords
For the Ace of Swords, Paul Foster Case proposed the keyword activity. By activity, he meant intellectual activity.
Since we solve our challenges and conflicts intellectually, Paul added the secondary meaning of conquest. Conquest is a bit old-fashioned. Success would be a better term, since we can succeed without winning over others or conquering something.
Paul also suggested that Ace of Swords calls for controlling negative emotions and thoughts. When emotions overwhelm us, we can’t think straight. And negative thoughts attract negative experiences.
What Arthur Edward Waite Said About the Meanings of the Ace of Swords
According to Arthur Edward Waite, this card signifies triumph, in particular, the triumph of one force over another. This concurs with Paul’s meaning of conquest.
Hence, an inauspicious Ace of Swords may indicate the querent’s temptation to trespass others.
Since we can use the intelligence for good and bad, Arthur concluded that intellectual intention is a great force, in love as well as in hatred. This card can foretell great prosperity or great misery, triumph and disaster, augmentation or decrease, multiplicity or reduction.
Indeed, if the objective of a venture is wrong, the venture will go south. Famous examples: Napoleon’s idea that a swift military campaign could subdue Russia, the belief that any internet-based company, even without revenue, would eventually become profitable (the Dot-com Bubble), and the CIA’s misconception that the Taliban could be co-opted.
In family matters, the Ace of Swords may foretell conception, childbirth, and a divorce for an imprudent woman. This pertains to fortune telling, so no comment. But this contains a grain of ageless wisdom, since the Aces signify beginnings, e.g., the beginning of a child. But children are a creative matter, hence, the Ace of Cups is a better candidate for the meaning of conception. And childbirth (an experience) is a better match for the Ten of Pentacles.
What Etteilla Said About the Meanings of the Ten of Cups
Etteilla, a French occultist and the first known professional tarotist, offers the meanings of excess and pregnancy.
Likely, excess refers to an excess of intellectual intention, which the Ace of Swords signifies.
Unlike conception and childbirth, pregnancy is a fitting meaning, since one could consider pregnancy a venture, which is a beautiful experience but also lays adversity upon the mother.
What Papus Said About the Meanings of the Ace of Swords
Papus, another French occultist and the founder of the Martinist Order, suggests that this card signifies the commencement of enmity.
This is a fitting meaning, but it has a negative connotation. Commencement of conflict or commencement of adversity are better terms. True, we deal with conflicts on the intellectual level, but conflicts are not necessarily enmities. Conflicts arise from misunderstandings and conflicts of interest. We deal with misunderstandings through proper communication, and we deal with conflicts of interest through negotiation. And ladies and gentlemen always come to an agreement.
What Gregor Mather Said About the Meanings of the Ace of Swords
Gregor Mather, the founder of the Golden Dawn, suggested that an auspicious Ten of Cups signifies triumph, fertility, and prosperity. We already covered triumph above. Fertility is off since it belongs to the level of natural forces, i.e., the cups, in particular, the Nine of Cups.
Prosperity is off, too, since prosperity is the result of a venture, which we experience in the external world. But we could consider an auspicious Ace of Swords as a promise of prosperity since it indicates sufficient intellectual force to overcome challenges during a venture.
According to Gregor, an inauspicious Ace of Swords may indicate embarrassment, foolish and hopeless love, obstacles, and hindrances. Obstacles and hindrances are a fit since they pertain to adversity, with which we deal on the intellectual level.
Foolish and hopeless love seems off, since love is a matter of the creative-feely level of human expression (the cups). But this contains a grain of ageless wisdom, since over-intellectual people are not well-versed in the matter of love.
Embarrassment is off, too, since it is an emotional reaction to a failed venture. Emotions belong to the bodily level.
What Mme. Le Marchand Said About the Meanings of the Ace of Swords
Mme. Le Marchand, a 19th-century celebrated Parisian fortune teller, thought that when the Ace of Swords pops up during a reading, it means that if the querent keeps it a secret that she dyes her hair (or beard) a certain person will bestow his (her) heart upon her or him.
Strangely detailed fortune telling…
The Psychological Framework of the Enlightenment Tarot
Every Tarot card represents a faculty of consciousness. We can use faculties of consciousness constructively and destructively. This produces favorable and adverse experiences.
We can express faculties of consciousness on four levels:
- The spiritual level (wands/fire/intention)
- The creative-feely level (cups/water/imagination)
- The intellectual level (swords/air/intelligence)
- The bodily level (pentacles/earth/bodily action)
The four tools on the magician’s table symbolize these four levels:
- The wand (spiritual)
- The cup (creative-feely)
- The sword (intellectual)
- The pentagram (bodily)
These tools correspond to the four so-called elements: fire, water, air, and earth.
For this reason, the Enlightenment Tarot wands are made of fire, the cups consist of water, and the pents are composed of earth. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to illustrate something made of air, since air is invisible. For that reason, all swords are made of crystal to show at least transparency.
The Enlightenment Tarot derives its meaning from the Tree of Life and the four levels of human expression. This is an objective, holistic framework that reveals the psychological imports of Tarot cards and their faculties of consciousness. Read more about this framework in the article The Psychological Framework of the Enlightenment Tarot.
The Enlightenment Tarot project attempts to rediscover the original meanings of the Tarot cards that pertain to their position on the Tree of Life. These meanings are simple, clear, and easy to memorize.
*This framework is compatible with Paul Foster Case’s qabalistic system.
Do you want to learn more About The Enlightenment Tarot?
If you want to delve deep into the psychological meanings of Tarot cards, read the book Tarot of Life.
If you are curious about how the Enlightenment Tarot came about, read this article.
If you are interested in learning how to perform psychological Tarot readings, subscribe to receive a free copy of a guide on how to perform psychological Tarot readings.
If you are looking for a psychological Tarot deck, you have come to the right place. The Enlightenment Tarot derives the cards’ meanings from a holistic and transparent framework that is easy to learn and memorize. All major and minor arcana carry psychological titles, and the court cards display psychological profiles. Have a look at the Enlightenment Tarot deck here.
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Delve into the psychological mysteries of the Tarot with the Enlightenment Tarot deck — a contemporary Tarot deck with authentic Tarot symbolism yet immersive illustrations designed for psychological Tarot readings.
Trace your querent’s challenges back to her weaknesses or inner demons. Shadow work made easy.
This exceptional Tarot deck is based on an objective and holistic, psychological framework: the Tree of Life. All minor and major cards feature psychological titles. For example, the Magician has the title ‘Attention’, and the Six of Cups has the title ‘Decision’. The court cards exhibit psychological profiles. For instance, the Queen of Wands stands for a willful woman: generous or stubborn, resolute or revengeful, intense or tyrannical, magnetic or dangerous.