EIGHT OF SWORDS

• RESTRICTION
• CONFUSION
• POWERLESSNESS

• Actions
• Opposing Cards
• Reinforcing Cards
• Description

ACTIONS

• RESTRICTION
• being fenced in by obstacles
• staying in a limited situation
feeling trapped by circumstances experiencing few options being blind to freedom feeling persecuted

• CONFUSION
• being unsure which way to turn
• feeling at a loss
• lacking direction
• feeling overwhelmed
• floundering around
• needing guidance and clarity
• not understanding what is happening

• POWERLESSNESS
• waiting for outside rescue
• doubting anything you do will help
• avoiding responsibility
• looking for a white knight
• feeling victimized
• accepting inaction

OPPOSING CARDS: Some Possibilities

• Magician - feeling powerful, knowing what's going on
• Chariot - self-confidence, focus
• Two of Wands - power, boldness
• Four of Wands - freedom, lack of restriction
• Three of Pentacles - competence, know-how, planning

REINFORCING CARDS: Some Possibilities

• Devil - confusion, restriction
• Moon - confusion, lack of clarity
• Ten of Swords - victim mentality, powerlessness

DESCRIPTION

The woman on the Eight of Swords is lost and alone. She can't see because she is blindfolded. She can't reach out because she is bound. She can't move freely because she is caught in a prison of swords. It seems she has wandered far from home - her place of security far away on the hill. How can she get back? She doesn't even know which way to go. The Eight of Swords stands for those times when we feel lost, confused and powerless. Help and relief seems very far away.

In readings, the Eight of Swords is often a sign that you are heading toward (or already in) a situation in which you will feel a lack of freedom and choice. Such situations are tricky because the more you get into them, the more restricted you feel. At each step, your options seem to narrow until you feel completely stuck.

When you see this card, remember that you do have choices, and you do have power. No matter how trapped you feel, you can find a way out if you believe it is possible. The young girl in the picture could free herself. She could wriggle free, tear off the blindfold, and kick down those swords. Solutions are not always easy, but they exist. Find your clarity of thought and purpose and use them to take that first step toward home.

• TAROT CARDS
• TAROT CARDS: SWORDS
• Tarot cards, swords: ace of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: two of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: three of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: four of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: five of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: six of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: seven of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: eight of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: nine of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: ten of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: page of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: knight of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: queen of swords;
• Tarot cards, swords: king of swords;