8 of swords -- card of action ?

[Wyrdkiss]

This card can feel hard on clients.  I struggle with it myself.  Is this a card of action? Yet first acceptance? Any insight you can offer is appreciated. 

[Aeon418]

59 minutes ago, Wyrdkiss said:

 Is this a card of action?

 

I see the 8 of Swords not so much as a card of action, but a call to action. Do something, anything, to break out of the (mental) straight jacket you currently find yourself in.

 

Addendum: Your bonds are never as confining as you think they are. 

Edited October 8, 2023 by Aeon418

[FindYourSovereignty]

I believe it is a card of choice, which to me, is an action - you can choose to take the blindfold off and address what is holding you back, step into a new space, or you can choose to stay stuck. No action, imo, is still an action. 

When I see this card it tells me that there is a mental belief that needs to shift for physical or manifest change to happen. 

[Wyrdkiss]

These are good points many thanks to both of you, especially the term, "mental straightjacket" @Aeon418.  Querents get hit hard, because the ropes are tight and  there is no option for the imaged individual to physically remove them. One must remind the sitter that the swords are an abstraction -- the bondage is thought, or lack thereof...

Helpful.

[FindYourSovereignty]

2 minutes ago, Wyrdkiss said:

One must remind the sitter that the swords are an abstraction -- the bondage is thought, or lack thereof...

Yes, the battle within one’s mind. 

[Aeon418]

Within the framework of Qabalistic Tarot the 8's correspond to Mercury and the Mind. The "ideal mind" is fluid, flexible, adaptable and open to change and movement. But the 8 of Swords is an image of the mind that has become paralyzed with self doubt and internal conflict, rigid and inflexible. This condition of stasis stands in sharp contrast to the fluidic adaptability of Mercury.

 

In nearly all life situations there are choices and options open to us, even if those choices are sometimes unpalatable, unappealing or even frightening. In these situations the mind, out of a need for self protection, has a tendency to erect illusory stop signs that inhibit action and forward progress. But the obstruction is a 'blinding' mental one that does not match up with the reality of the situation.     

 

 

[DanielJUK]

I think it's an important detail in this card that often in decks this woman is not really trapped. There is a way out. She can just walk forwards through the Swords, the ties that band are not that tight and she can remove the blindfold. Waite said about this card, "A woman, bound and hoodwinked, with the swords of the card about her. Yet it is rather a card of temporary durance than of irretrievable bondage". She can escape her ties that bind and remove the blindfold and just walk forwards. It's also heavily implied that she imposed herself in this situation, no one else did it!

 

As a card of action, this is about self-reflection. This card is all about the mind, as others have said here. Is she really trapped or can she change her mindset and just walk out?

On the action theme, this card reminds me of Olympic athletes and sports people and they go on about "positive mental attitude" and positive visualisation. Is a huge task or challenge in our lives impossible, or do you just have to tell yourself and think that anything is possible? Visualising yourself as actually completing something you don't think you can do! That is the action of this card, is it impossible to go on, to escape this and for things to change for the better? Anything is possible. We might feel trapped in our lives but instead of thinking about it, perhaps open our eyes and look around, can we back up our thoughts or are they just distortions or negative thought patterns? We all do it! That's the action.

[Misterei]

4 hours ago, Aeon418 said:

Within the framework of Qabalistic Tarot the 8's correspond to Mercury and the Mind. The "ideal mind" is fluid, flexible, adaptable and open to change and movement. But the 8 of Swords is an image of the mind that has become paralyzed with self doubt and internal conflict, rigid and inflexible. This condition of stasis stands in sharp contrast to the fluidic adaptability of Mercury.

I'm not a Kabbalist  but I see your point.  

I read this card as 8=stability + Swords = air

But in this case it's more like stale air. Sailors used to dread the "doldrums" as their ship might drift for days going nowhere.

 

2 hours ago, DanielJUK said:

I think it's an important detail in this card that often in decks this woman is not really trapped. There is a way out. She can just walk forwards through the Swords, the ties that band are not that tight and she can remove the blindfold. Waite said about this card, "A woman, bound and hoodwinked, with the swords of the card about her. Yet it is rather a card of temporary durance than of irretrievable bondage".

I sometimes get this card as "analysis paralysis".

The person is overthinking things or looping the same negative thoughts ... so they've trapped themselves.

I take this more when reading RWS and the above when reading Pip decks.

The flavor is slightly different to me depending the type of deck. Thoth calls it Interference. I seldom read thoth ... but sometimes this meaning applies even with other decks.

Edited October 8, 2023 by Misterei

[Aeon418]

1 hour ago, Misterei said:

I'm not a Kabbalist  but I see your point.  

I read this card as 8=stability + Swords = air

But in this case it's more like stale air. Sailors used to dread the "doldrums" as their ship might drift for days going nowhere.

 

You could compare it riding a bicycle. Its stability is guaranteed by constant motion. There's an inherent naturalness to it. But try balancing on it while standing still. The individual mind that begins to feel hemmed in and restricted is similar to that stationary bicycle. It can be balanced for short while, but eventually it gets more and more difficult. This enforced stationary balance in the arena of the mind manifests as increasing levels of stress, with all of the harm that can cause in the long term.   

[Yola]

Hello @Wyrdkiss , how are you? ☺️
In this topic there are some unusual reflections on this arcane, perhaps it could be useful!
I hope it helps!

 

 

[Grizabella]

This card can say "figure this out by using what senses you have left."  She can't take the blindfold off since her hands are tied behind her back.  She can't see anything with that blindfold on.  She can, however, feel her way forward or backward or sideways with her feet, so sense of touch with some parts of her body is left to her.  She can still hear, since her ears aren't covered, so she can concentrate on separating the sounds she's hearing into what they might mean.  She has her sense of smell, so if someone is near her, she'd be able to smell their body odor or any toiletries they may have used and will know someone is there.  She has her voice so she could call for help.  It's a card that says to me that all is not lost. Just because you can't see anything doesn't mean all is lost and that you have to just give up.  The old saying, "where there's a will there's a way" is at play here.

[Chariot]

Most depictions of this card have the woman standing blindfolded and bound ...sometimes her feet are free, sometimes not.  Sometimes she can't move at all, other times she's free to move, but might cut herself on swords if she's not careful.  But one OTHER thing that seems constant in most traditional depictions is that she seems to be standing on a beach or shoreline, at the bottom of a cliff.  Will the tide will be coming in soon, and engulfing her? If she hasn't found a way out by then?

That's a scary thought.

I usually read this card as a situation in which a person feels trapped.  There are ways out, BUT if the tide is coming in, there is also an element of danger if she doesn't free herself PDQ.  There is no way of knowing for sure, from the depictions, whether the woman is aware of where she is or not, but this card upright, for me, often signals some kind of danger that is imminent, but hasn't actually happened yet.  The person may, or may not, be aware of this oncoming danger.  The significant thing, if you take the tide into account, is that the person doesn't have forever to free herself.  So this is a time when all her senses need to be alert, active, and she needs to be thinking hard about how to get free.  She could wait for rescue, but rescue might not come—or might not come in time.   This is a situation that requires diligent application to the problem.

If the card is reversed, she has figured a way out, or has been rescued, and is no longer trapped.  The reversed card is more reassuring to get than the upright one.  

Edited December 9, 2023 by Chariot