The Suit of Swords

The Suit of Swords has a reputation for being the 'difficult' suit, and it's true that heartbreak, worry and conflict live here. But Swords are also the suit of clarity, truth and brilliant ideas. These fourteen cards show how our thoughts can wound us or set us free.

Swords are the suit of air. They describe the mind: thoughts, decisions, words, beliefs and conflicts. Many Swords in a reading suggest that the situation is being shaped by how you think about it, and that honest communication is key.

How to read the Swords by number

• Ace of Swords: Aces carry the pure, undiluted energy of their suit. They are seeds and doorways: an offer, an opening, a first spark.
• Five of Swords: Fives introduce disruption. They are the challenge in the middle of each suit's story, and they ask you to adapt.
• Ten of Swords: Tens complete the cycle, sometimes as fulfillment and sometimes as a burden that must be released.

The four court cards, the Page, Knight, Queen and King of Swords, can describe real people in your life or parts of your own personality.