Five of Swords- Defeat, and The Priestess
The Five of Swords is not a welcomed card. No wants to experience defeat, no one wants things not to go their way. But the truth of the matter is that most people encounter disappointment, it is a natural part of life.
The Five of Swords has the appearance of being underwater with reflections of green, blue, and purple. There are five swords in the shape of a pentagram star and the star is pointed towards us.
The significance of the pentagram in this formation is that we are the ones that are in control of the defeat. We control how it affects us and how we interpret it. We control what we learn from it and how we move forward.
This week we may experience our fair share of setbacks. Things might not work out the way we had planned. But the card of Defeat has more to do with how we limit ourselves to avoid failure or pain than the actual event that causes disappointment.
I used to experience really bad acne flare-ups. I would get large and painful breakouts that would make me feel so defeated. This may seem silly to anyone who hasn’t experienced acne, but I know the pain of anyone struggling with this and it is not easily brushed off. Our skin is very much connected to our confidence and can impact our whole being.
But what was really hard about acne, was the way I felt limited by it. I did not want to be as social and I didn’t feel like putting myself out there. I felt I was not as worthy as I did when my skin was clear. It was distracting and I wanted to hide away until it was gone.
I finally learned to push through those feelings and be more accepting of myself. This took time and was partly due to the natural wisdom of getting older. But I learned that it was more about how I felt about the zit than the zit itself.
I could make it a huge deal and think about everyone staring at it or I could accept that acne, like disappointment, is a natural part of life. I could accept the things I don’t love about myself or life and continue to live. I would still make presentations at work, go on a date and hang with my friends. I was still worthy.
In Buddhism, there is the concept of the second arrow. The first arrow is the thing that happens to us, the heartbreak, the accident, the setback, but the second arrow, the more painful arrow, is how we view the first. It is how we beat ourselves up because of what happened. It is how we talk to ourselves and say we are a failure. It is all the ways we negatively process the first arrow.
How can we change the way we view defeat this week? How can we start to see it as benign and normal? How can we continue to take risks knowing we might be disappointed? How can we let go of the second arrow?
Defeat and disappointment, like failure, are our best teachers. They show us how strong we are and what we can do differently next time.
We should feel proud that we care enough to be disappointed. We put ourselves out there to encounter a setback. That means we were brave enough to take a chance.
The Priestess is here to support us this week with her intuitive and psychic energies. She supports our work with disappointment as she wants us to tap into our power of vision.
Through the Priestess, we will be able to see that our failures are part of our path and that we will be successful in the future. She opens up our intuitive ability and allows us to know that we are on a bigger journey.
Amplify her energy by meditating this week. Take time to yourself and think about your steps forward. The Priestess will help us put our setbacks in perspective and give us deeper insights.
With the Full Moon on the 23rd, our psychic energies will be heightened so it will be the perfect time to connect to the Priestess. Meditate under the energy of the Moon and let the messages come through to you.
Mantra for the week: My defeats do not defeat me. My path has natural ups and downs. I am courageous, loving and full of positivity.
