Eight of Swords
Feeling bound by a trap that is partly loose.
You feel stuck, though options may be more open than they seem.
- restriction
- fear
- feeling trapped
Element: Air
What the card shows
A woman stands blindfolded and bound, surrounded by eight swords in the ground, with shallow water at her feet and a castle on a distant hill.
Eight is movement and mastery. The ties are loose and the swords do not form a closed cage, which is the point: the restriction may be partly in the mind. The shallow water suggests the way out is not far.
▲Upright
A sense of being stuck that may be more about perception than fact.
What would I try if I thought I could?
▼Reversed
Taking off the blindfold and seeing a way out.
Which of my limits are real, and which are assumed?
Eight of Swords in a reading
In love
Feeling trapped in a pattern.
Reversed: Taking off the blindfold and seeing a way out.
At work
Feeling powerless in a job or situation.
Its shadow side: self-imposed limits, helplessness.
As one of the Swords
Thought, conflict and truth. The suit's element is Air. It shows where in daily life the reading plays out.
Related cards
The other eights, and Strength, Major Arcana card 8: the same stage of a story in other parts of life.
Strength
Eight of Wands
Eight of Cups
Eight of PentaclesRead it with other cards
Questions about Eight of Swords
What does Eight of Swords mean in tarot?
A sense of being stuck that may be more about perception than fact. Keywords: restriction, fear, feeling trapped.
What does Eight of Swords mean reversed?
Taking off the blindfold and seeing a way out. Releasing: freedom coming. Blocked: staying in the trap. Excess: victim thinking.
What does Eight of Swords mean in love?
Feeling trapped in a pattern.
What does Eight of Swords mean for work?
Feeling powerless in a job or situation.
What question does Eight of Swords ask?
Upright: What would I try if I thought I could? Reversed: Which of my limits are real, and which are assumed?
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