Tarot - Five of Pentacles

^z 19th June 2023 at 8:11am

Five of Pentacles

Two mendicants in a snow-storm pass a lighted casement. Divinatory Meanings: The card foretells material trouble above all, whether in the form illustrated–that is, destitution–or otherwise. For some cartomancists, it is a card of love and lovers-wife, husband, friend, mistress; also concordance, affinities. These alternatives cannot be harmonized. Reversed: Disorder, chaos, ruin, discord, profligacy.

A. E. Waite, Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1911)

Here we have loss, financial loss or loss of faith in oneself, cause of confusion of self-value with material security. It forces a let go, because if material disaster comes then perhaps it is in some way necessary and the inevitable outgrowth of a wrong or inappropriate attitude. Disadvantages and temporary economic crisis leads to transformation of the inner individual towards material success with a more solid inner center which can cope with the challenges which success brings. Prepare to begin again and move from a position of security to the unknown.

5 of Rainbows: The Outsider

The small child in this card is standing on one side of a gate, looking through it. He is so small, and so convinced that he cannot get through, he cannot see that the chain holding the gate is not locked; all he has to do is open it.

Whenever we feel 'left out', or excluded, it brings up this feeling of being a small, helpless child. It is not surprising, as the feeling is deeply rooted in our earliest childhood experiences. The problem is that, because it is so deeply rooted, it plays over and over again, like a tape, in our lives.

You have an opportunity now to stop the tape, to quit tormenting yourself with ideas that you are somehow not 'enough' to be accepted and included. Recognize the roots of these feelings in the past, and let go of the old pain. It will bring you the clarity to see how you can open the gate and enter that which you most long to become.

In a world that equates success with financial security, the loss shown on the Five of Pentacles can be a humbling blow to one's self-esteem. This can be brought about in many ways, but even though an exterior event may seem to be the cause, this card often shows a loss that you bring upon yourself. Even though the Pentacles are a material suit, and Fives usually deal with real-world problems, the theme of poverty is not the true destitution shown on the Five of Pentacles. There is a spiritual loss that often precedes or accompanies loss of material wealth.

But since outer problems must often be resolved before inner conflict can be attended to, the outer meaning of the Five of Pentacles shall be explained first. This card shows the many faces of material misfortune and lack: loss of funds, general poverty, illness, unemployment, solitude. The card also tells you that many of these are caused by your emotions. Greed will lead to loss, anxiety will lead to error, possessiveness will lead to solitude. By focusing on the material, you lose sight of the spiritual development the Ace promised. You may be rich for a while, but all will be lost if you learn nothing.

This leads up to the more spiritual meaning of the Five of Pentacles. This card represents the dark night of the soul, when you must stumble around in the darkness because you can no longer see the light shining within you. Often, during times like this, salvation is not far away, but because you are so preoccupied with your material problems you cannot see it. The two people on the Rider-Waite card walk by a brightly lit church, unable to acknowledge how close a solution to their destitution is. The church is an apt symbol because it provides spiritual comfort while helping those who cannot help themselves.

When the Five of Pentacles appears it is almost always a warning that you are likely to experience some kind of loss, material or otherwise. If this loss has not yet happened you can prevent it or lessen the blow. Worrying about problems like this will do nothing but make them even worse, so stop worrying and start doing something! If you are in a situation where you have lost a great deal, know that you have the ability to get it back. There is always a solution, always a way out, always a church window just around the corner. So either open your eyes and go to it, or close your eyes and let the inner light guide you.