Five of Swords
Five of Swords — Upright
The Five of Swords symbolizes conflict where warriors have suffered defeat and are leaving the battlefield under the mockery of the ruthless victor. Revenge, sharp words, and actions harm the querent, causing them to inflict pain on others.
Selfish games and the desire to triumph over others lead to discord. The querent should understand that revenge does not bring relief. By causing pain to others, a person suffers themselves. The card can also signify a loss of interest in the achieved goal or motives of revenge and stubbornness.
It points to secretive, dishonest, sometimes illegal ways of achieving goals, but it also carries the risk of becoming a victim of others' schemes.
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Five of Swords — Reversed
The meaning of the card remains the same: defeat and loss, possibly in favor of another.
The Five of Swords is an ambiguous card because defeat and loss can affect both the querent and their opponents. In some cases, the meaning of the card will be obvious, while in others, it may require clarification from the querent.
Astrology
The Five of Swords reflects Venus in Aquarius, where love and connection can clash with detachment or ego. Venus desires peace, but Aquarius may prioritize ideals over harmony. This card captures the fallout from conflict and alienation.
Numerology
Number 5 symbolizes conflict, change, and challenge. It reveals the card’s role in the progression of the Wands suit, showing a stage of 5. The reduced number 5 emphasizes recurring life themes in creative or passionate pursuits.
Symbolism & Archetypes
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The victorious warrior looks disdainfully at the two quickly retreating, disgraced opponents. Their swords are scattered on the ground. He has lifted two swords onto his left shoulder, while holding the third in his right hand, directed towards the ground. The battlefield is left behind.
Prophetic meanings: Decline, destruction, the overturning of a legal decision, disgrace, dishonor, loss in all its manifestations.
Reversed card: The same meanings; funerals and funeral rites.
In the Golden Dawn system, this card is known as the Lord of Defeat. Mathers describes it as a Conflict which has ended to the disadvantage of the person.
Waite clearly embodies this idea in the scene of the battle's end, where the two losers are retreating towards the sea, leaving the victor to collect the five swords on the battlefield. This is reminiscent of Waite's depiction on the Five of Wands, where five youths are struggling for five wands.
However, while the Five of Wands depicts a battle, the Five of Swords shows its conclusion with a victor and the vanquished.
The astrological characteristic is the first decan of Aquarius, where Venus is in Aquarius. This symbolism is not explicit on the card. The hieroglyph of Aquarius, representing an air sign, is depicted as two wavy lines.
The watery expanses and jagged edges of the clouds in the background only slightly allude to Aquarius. As for Venus, the warrior-victor's outer garment is green, and his undergarment is red, and in the Golden Dawn magick, the vivid combination of green and red symbolizes Venus.
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