We see a woman whose hands are tied up and bound, and who is blindfolded. She stands in muddied water, with eight swords behind her.
When the Eight of Swords appears, it is an indication that you may have options, but none of them seem palpable. This is in the simplest manner of speaking a card of "being stuck in a rut". There is no way out and no possible way further or back. There is a feeling of being trapped, and being arrested by fear. The situation has managed to make you feel as though you have been abandoned and this feeds into thoughts of worthlessness or being overwhelmed which in turn spirals into depression.
It doesn't help that emotions muddy your rationality and they too end up feeding into the downward spiral of negative thinking that you are being sucked into. The mind plays tricks and makes you believe that you've been cornered or ambushed, and yet when you look at the card, notice that the woman isn't fenced in. She can move if she'd only try, and walk off to find help. She is possibly being held captive by the fear that holds her in that position. If only she would walk out and call for help or take her situation into her own hands, she could move. She has lost the fight in her, and that may be because of her depression, and her isolation. Our mind is far crueler than any of our opponents and can really bring down a person from the inside.
The way forward is thinking out of the box, shedding the limiting behavior and victim mentality that keeps one bound, or if nothing else seems viable, seeking professional help. Sometimes we may have been victims of abuse so subtle, that we don't recognize those patterns in ourselves that keep us chained to an undesirable situation.
It calls to mind Macbeth where he mentions "should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er,” which means sometimes we are in a situation so deep, that going forward with the flow is as hard is returning back to the beginning. This is where fear holds you and there is nothing in your mind, but the fear, that feeds into the hysteria of being trapped. Take a minute and breathe and try using your rationality to help look for a way out.
Work on one sword at a time, everything does not need to change overnight or be dealt with in one go. You are powerful. Within this dismal card, lies the clue, seek out help or drop the mentality of the victim. You can free your binds or walk to find help, it is only the hands that are bound after all.
Meditation on the Eight Of Swords
“The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..”
― John Milton, Paradise Lost
What is holding you captive?
What situation do you find yourself trapped in?
What belief is holding you back, that you identify as your reality? How will you rewrite your story to change it?
If this Resonates with You Take A Class or Book A Reading.
Images Used on The Site. Illustrations from the Rider-Waite Tarot Deck, known also as the Rider Tarot and the Waite Tarot, reproduced by permission of U.S. Games Systems, Inc., Stamford, CT 06902. c. 1971 by U.S. Games Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. The Rider-Waite Tarot deck is a registered trademark of U.S. Games Systems, Inc