What sparks this question is the 8 of Swords.
This card popped up in a reading recently, and sparked a rather strong reaction in me. Like any metaphoric system, there are multiple interpretations to be had. However, the most important one's are those with personal significance, the one's that speak to us in a language we are able to receive and understand. With this in mind, I wish to explore the significance this card holds for me.
So, let's begin with the number. Eight is a numerological symbol for power. Some sources have a materialistic take on it, interpreting it as a number of material wealth, business acumen, and positions of authority, while forgetting more esoteric significances. Eight can also symbolize the joining of the above and the below. Turned on it's side, the eight is the sign for infinity. While the materialistic interpretation has a value of it's own, I'm more privy to the arcane interpretations. The fusion of spirit ("above") and matter ("below") is the work of the magician or alchemist. Through the process of this "Great Work", one discovers the source of true power (the ability see beyond illusion/delusion, manifest through Will, serve as conduit to the Divine, etc.). Thus eight, is a symbol for the achievement of true power (which is not power over, but power within).
The suit of swords in the tarot represents the intellect and the air element. The eight paired with the swords indicates a relationship between power and mind. It asks us to ponder what purpose intellect serves in the wielding of true power. It warns us that the mind when given credence over the heart, only serves to bind, blind and banish us from our power (see the woman in the card). This is not to downplay the importance of the intellect. On the contrary, it serves a very important role in our ability to discern, critique, explore and understand. However, for true self discovery and empowerment to occur, the mind must work in service to the heart (otherwise defined as intuition, Holy Spirit, Chante (Lakota), etc.). It is through the heart that we receive pure guidance (inner knowing) from our essential selves. The fusion of the above and the below takes place at the heart center. It is here that intellect and emotion meet to share their respective observations and information so that one can act consciously from the heart.
Considering the above, we can see that the eight of swords card is a symbol for powerlessness caused by intellectual beliefs. In other words, the state of powerlessness shown is merely an illusion of the mind, choice still exists, it's simply unacknowledged. The woman in the card is bound and blindfolded, barren and barred. However, the way in front of her is clear and she has the freedom of movement in her feet. A trickle of water lays a path for her. The water being a symbol for emotion, gives her the encouragement to feel her way out of her predicament. To be freed, she must loose the shackles of the intellect, allow her emotions to flow and will the two to meet in a moment of self-realization. She has been party to her own oppression all along. She has created many of these limitations for herself by buying into dis-empowering messages, external and internal alike. On the other hand, some of the limitations have likely been imposed upon her from outside sources and are out of her control. However, the point is not where the limitations originated, but what she perceives as her level of choice in the situation. The better she can recognize what is, the better she can recognize the what kind of power she has to shift her circumstances. This is the number eight, this is the magical act of grounding intent through the use of Will. So, does she choose to give in to the limitations or use her creative spirit to find ways around, through, and beyond them? Does she choose to activate her latent emotions and give them as much import as her fear-filled, dominating mind? Is she what stands in her way?
Alas, I must ask myself these very same things. When considering these questions in the context of the intellect I must be careful not to negate the hard reality of social inequities that exist outside of my immediate control. That said, I am challenged to see how, in my beliefs about myself and the world, I disallow myself a better life. To tell the truth, my life isn't all that bad, especially when compared to many of my fellow relations, but subjectively speaking, I'm not fulfilled. My dreams seem forever unattainable and I feel powerless for it. But, perhaps I have fallen victim to my own lack of faith and my unwillingness to call up the creative forces innate in me to solve the riddle of my bindings. It's difficult to put a mirror to one's mind, to deconstruct those brilliantly laid internal stories, in order to really see what's going on. I've already asked myself what I want. I know what I want. Now, I just have to see what's standing in my way. I have feeling that, as I lift my blindfold, I'll discover many faces of me staring back. It's just a matter of convincing them that I know what needs to happen, that I've got it straight from the Source, and that they've got nothing to worry about. Well, it's easier said than done, isn't it? Or is that just a good example of how my mind is tricking my heart?
