Tarot Reflections: Six of Swords
This card speaks of passage, but more specifically of healing passage.
Maybe the querent (that’s you) didn’t expect to make that crossing, but the water behind them had become turbulent, unpredictable, and hard to manage.
So they hop on the boat, and they are ferried away to smoother, calmer waters. To land that’s on the other side of the crossing. So the Six of Swords isn’t about arriving at a place just yet, it’s about the passage itself. Those six swords that sit in the boat represent our thoughts, memories, wounds, and experiences — the discernment we carry forward with us.
And it makes a lot of sense, because if we take a look at the Five of Swords that comes before it, we see that there was an argument that came with a price. Sometimes reconciliation is knowing when it’s time to ferry away from situations that have become untenable, unpredictable, and ultimately destabilizing.
So there’s some grief attached to the Six of Swords, absolutely. But it’s honest, and empowered, and potentially hopeful as well. The figures are bringing the six swords of their experience with them, because lessons (even tough lessons!) are knowledge for our future selves.
I always like to point out that there are three figures on the boat: someone ferrying, an adult, and a child. Who is the querent, exactly? I like to think the querent is all of them. The one who is ferrying with faith, the one shrouded in grief, and the inner child witnessing it all.
In this way, the Six of Swords is parts work, and encourages us to explore our inner mind by viewing our personality as a collection of different sub-personalities or “parts” rather than a single, fixed self. All of them matter, and all of them are collectively deciding that it’s time to navigate this difficult, destabilizing terrain with honesty, bravery, and self-respect.
So I’d like you consider the periods of conflict and tension in your life. What would it mean to emotionally and physically “board the ferry” in your circumstance? Who, if anyone, would join the ferry with you? Name people or “parts” of yourself. What are the swords you’re carrying with you? Can you name them?
If you’d like a journal prompt for this card, then you can take this one:
What does calmer water look like for you, specifically? Not in general terms, but in the concrete details of your actual life? Describing the destination makes the crossing more real.
And as always, if you’re ready to learn tarot, then I invite you to enroll in Tarot Academy. It’s an online, digital course I created for folks just like you.
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Until next time,
Patrick (& Rosie 🐕)
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