The Three of Swords is a Minor Arcana tarot card. It symbolises pain, unhappiness and sadness. It is a letter of losses and difficulties in overcoming them. She appears in the game to face the pain and overcome it, and then move on. She teaches us that life is cyclical and so are our emotions. Even if today pain seems to tear the chest with its sword, tomorrow, with a lot of struggle and faith, happiness returns.
Visual description and symbology Three of Swords
This card bears the image of a heart in the midst of a storm pierced with three intersecting swords. The heavy clouds represent the sadness caused by lies, betrayals or any circumstance that may have promoted great disappointment.
- The swords pointed down symbolizes endings.
- Clouds represent uncertainty
- The heart represents our feelings and emotions that are not always good
- Despite the suffering, this card appears to show that it is time to heal. A moment of self-knowledge to be able to overcome the turmoil you are going through.
Keywords Three of Swords
Until we go further with the three of swords tarot card meanings in love, money and health let’s examine the key words of this card.
Keywords: Sadness, conflict, suffering, separation, heartache, falsehood.
Reversed keywords: Disruptions, mental confusion, hopelessness.
Now that the visuals and keywords have been introduced, let’s dive deep into the Three of Swords’ interpretations of love, relationships, career, money, health and spirituality. And let’s understand how the meanings of this card can be interpreted for the consultant in each type of reading.
Three of Swords meaning
Three of swords is a feeling card. A negative letter that comes to warn about the conflicts that border the consultant’s life. Care must be taken not to be carried away by what is harmful. Knowing how to deal with situations, learning from mistakes and allowing yourself to try again, not letting pain take root in your heart, are the main messages of this card.
Love and Relationship
It is a relationship doomed to sadness. Frustration, heartache and loneliness are feelings that constantly appear in life as a couple, generating betrayal and insecurity. It is necessary to put pride aside and have a frank conversation with the partner to find the best solution together.
If the person is single, the possibility of disappointment with new partners is great. The desire to surrender entirely to someone may not be reciprocated in the desired way, leading to tears and disappointment. It is important to realize that not everyone has the same delivery time and this is perfectly normal.
This card can also represent the loss of a loved one or the distancing of someone you hold dear, someone you miss, both physically and emotionally.
Money and Career
This card points to the loss of money, work or projects. Trusted people may be involved in these losses.
This is the time to review partnerships and be careful not to dedicate yourself to areas that do not bring professional satisfaction. Ministering energies at work and opening an honest communication channel with colleagues helps to prevent unnecessary conflicts and avoid stress.
In the financial sector, it is not a good time to invest or form new partnerships, as this card reinforces the existence of betrayals and scams.
If you are looking for a job opportunity, it is important to be open to new experiences and areas. The search can become less boring when we are willing to review our skills and are willing to learn new things.
Health and Spirituality
The urgency of the cure is necessary. The 3 of swords shows the illness of the soul. The anguish, sadness, desolation and the feeling of impotence that afflicts the consultant is so strong that hopelessness ends up becoming a constant.
It takes great care to deal with suffering, so that negative feelings do not take root and bring new pain. Depression and mind-related illnesses need special care.
Three of Swords Reversed
When the three of swords appears in the reversed position, all the negative meanings this card carries with it are intensified. The feeling of constant emptiness and the feeling of suffocation seem endless and a way out of the situation, unattainable.
It is much more difficult for the consultant to believe that he will be able to go through this phase, so it is important to understand that, despite the inestimable pain, everything heals over time.
Love and Relationship
The inverted three of swords shows a relationship stuck in a past of deep pain and sadness. Situations that occurred, betrayals and hurts, are so alive in the present of the relationship that it becomes practically impossible to see a future. The people involved may even have tried to forget what happened, but they cannot forgive, and this causes both to fall into a pit of negative and destructive feelings.
It is important to realize that when situations happen that disappoint us within a relationship, we must try to understand the reasons and work so that sadness does not become a constant. Often, separation is inevitable so that the two can walk new paths in search of happiness.
On the other hand, this card, in the inverted position, points to the healing of open wounds. The relationship, which until then was doomed to end, gradually begins to rebuild, showing that it is possible to overcome any difficulty together and build a full and happy life. Mutual forgiveness appears as a form of learning and communication is opened so that problems are not left aside, but rather resolved with patience, love and respect.
If you are single, the letter is accompanied by the message of healing from the past. Frustrations and disappointments with previous partners are abandoned and exchanged for positive feelings that allow moving forward in search of new love.
Money and Career
The reversed Three of Swords presents serious complications in the field of work. All the problems that have been causing tiredness, dissatisfaction and anger for a while, intensify and get worse as the days go by. This is mainly due to the grudge held by things that happened in the past and were not properly resolved. As long as the parties involved are unable to talk frankly and respectfully about the problems, regardless of what they are, the worsening of the situation is inevitable and negative feelings will continue to pollute the work environment and weaken all relationships.
On the other hand, this card represents the resolution of problems that the querent is facing in his work environment. Stressful moments that demand a lot of energy and strained professional relationships are transformed positively. Showing oneself open to resolving problems with colleagues and people in higher positions is the first step towards solving frictions that, until then, undermined projects and careers. The atmosphere of the work environment, little by little, becomes lighter.
On the financial side, the news is positive. The solutions are there, you just need to be able to face the real situation you are in and thus be able to solve problems by changing habits. Often, a significant loss of money and an increase in debt brings with it feelings of impotence and failure, leaving us distressed and hopeless.
Health and Spirituality
It’s time to take care of your health. The inverted 3 of swords warns of redoubled care with the emotion that is very shaken. Fear and apprehension that problems will not be resolved end up suffocating in such a way that they can reflect and cause the onset of mental disorders such as depression, panic syndrome and anxiety. It is very important to seek professional help the moment you feel that the feelings are beyond relief alone. Feeling lonely, lost and desperate is common, and knowing how to deal with these feelings takes time, acceptance and self-knowledge.
This card also means healing. The return of long-lost health. The feeling of optimism is present and helps in the treatment, increasing the chances of recovery.
Three of Swords Yes and No
The answer to any querent’s question is always negative, due to the strong harmful charge that this card carries with it.
Three of Swords Combinations
When combined with other tarot cards, the three of swords is generally not a positive card to receive. It adds confusion and alerts the querent to be aware of possible delusions.
Three of Swords and The Hierophant
Trusting people in some position of authority is difficult, causing communication between them to be negatively affected.
Three of swords and The Lovers
One should be careful when making any kind of decision. Making a thoughtless choice can have negative consequences.
Three of swords and The Fool
Difficulty committing to long-term relationships. Betrayals and disloyalty can arise when a person is not committed to their partner.
Three of Swords and The Hermit
Care must be taken with the pain itself. Nurturing her and spending too much time brooding over the past can bring on great sadness and depression. You have to learn to free yourself and look for what brings happiness.
Three of Swords and The Magician
There are difficulties in communicating. The lack of dialogue can lead to misunderstandings and unnecessary occurrences.
Three of swords and The Chariot
There is a strong tendency to give up on things before they even start.
Three of Swords – Elements, Astrology and Other Associations
Here are the associations with the Three of Swords tarot card
- Element: Air
- Planet: Saturn
- Astrological signs: Libra
- Main dates: 1st of October
- Kabbalah: Yetzirah –
- Yes / No: No
Three of Swords as Personality Types
When upright, this card shows someone who is easily hurt and offended, sometimes by small acts that might go unnoticed by someone with another personality. This attitude owes much to the past of the person. A past of pain and suffering that she carries with her until the present day, which harms her in all kinds of relationships that she will have throughout her life.
It is a person who is afraid of rejection and abandonment. Fear of no longer being useful to the one who carries great affection. This fear causes you to become a controlling, possessive person and dominated by jealousy.
When in the inverted position, it shows someone who carries an ocean of emotions inside him and hides them as much as he can so as not to frustrate himself or bother those around him.
It is a person who appears lighthearted, confident and full of happiness, as if nothing could shake her structures, but who, in fact, is broken, wounded and afraid of the future, feelings that are hidden in a heart that is very hurt and that she rarely shares with the people around you. There is a lack of confidence for her to surrender entirely and let herself be shown. These are people who have learned the hard way to hide their feelings.
Three of Swords as Feelings
Pain, hurt, contempt, sadness and bitterness are the feelings that denote the 3 of swords. There is a very negative feeling carrying in the heart, scars that have not been healed and hurt badly. The person feels hurt, to the point of not being able to forgive, and misunderstood by their own attitudes.
General questions about the Three of Swords tarot card
Finally, let’s summarise some general issues that are related to the Three of Swords tarot card.
What does the Three of Swords tarot card mean?
The Three of Swords appears in the game to warn about the negative feelings that surround the mind. Betrayals and disappointments bring feelings of helplessness and despair. The pain caused is pulsating and seems to have no end and this makes the eyes close to the future, as if there were no more reasons to believe in one day being happy again.
This card comes precisely to show that, regardless of the intensity of the pain experienced, it is fleeting and is there to help you grow and overcome obstacles. It’s important to suffer, to value what you feel, but never to carry too much weight. Learning from suffering and understanding it is part of strengthening oneself as a human being to be able to face the challenges that will come, re-signifying one’s own pain.
What does the inverted Three of Swords tarot card mean?
In the reversed position, the 3 of Swords shows physical and emotional losses that need to be healed. The boiling emotions transform these moments into feelings so negatively charged that getting lost in the midst of sadness seems to be something natural.
Now is the time to leave this suffering in the past, where it belongs, and start moving forward with hope and positivity, as there are still many good things to reap along the way.
What does the Three of Swords tarot card mean in a love reading?
This card shows that pain is very present in relationships. Betrayals, gossip, insecurity, bitterness, are some of the feelings that circulate life as a couple. Conflicts are commonplace and many of them involve things from the past that should have been overcome, but were not. As long as you don’t allow yourself to forgive, the pain will remain and a separation will be inevitable.
It is necessary to talk, put the cards on the table and discuss, with respect and love, the best way out of this turbulent moment, so that both can smile again. A relationship is made with complicity and it only exists when we are open to listening and understanding the other.
Three of Swords and a Yes or No tarot card?
No
Happy reading and see you in the next card, Four of Swords tarot card meaning – Love, Money, Health and more