Five of Wands
A posse of youths, who are brandishing staves, as if in sport or strife. It is mimic warfare, and hereto correspond the Divinatory Meanings: Imitation, as, for example, sham fight, but also the strenuous competition and struggle of the search after riches and fortune. In this sense it connects with the battle of life. Hence some attributions say that it is a card of gold, gain, opulence. Reversed: Litigation, disputes, trickery, contradiction.
A. E. Waite, Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1911)
The battle with the dragon, where the creative vision has collided with earthly reality - the primitive power - is now rebellion for change. Sometimes one is being forced into a new situation or it is a challenge from an unexpected source. This irrational energy brings trouble on the concrete level and asks to use instincts and intuition, the feeling of how the laws of material world operate. Compromises must be made while still retaining the integrity of the original vision. This means strife and this show-fight is a challenge to express power of creative imagination.
5 of Fire: Totality
These three women are high in the air, playful and free, yet alert and interdependent. In a trapeze act, nobody can afford to be a little bit "absent" even for a split second. And it is this quality of total attentiveness to the moment at hand that is represented here. We may feel there are too many things to do at once, but get bogged down in trying to do a bit here, a bit there, instead of taking one task at a time and getting on with it. Or perhaps we think our task is "boring" because we've forgotten that it's not what you do but how you do it that matters.
Developing the knack of being total in responding to whatever comes, as it comes, is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself. Taking one step through life at a time, giving each step your complete attention and energy, can bring a wondrous new vitality and creativity to all that you do.
Tarot of the Ages - Mario Garizio ©1988 U.S. Games Systems, Inc.
The Five of Wands shows two types of conflict - outer and inner. The former arises when the world around you is filled with hassles and minor obstacles that would not slow your progress alone, but, when combined, they become increasingly difficult to overcome. The latter meaning manifests in times of difficult ethical choices, when the head fights the heart and when both are in combat with the conscience, each trying to tell you the best way to act and the right thing to do. It can indeed seem that you are being held back and attacked from all sides in such times.
When an outer battle is signaled by the appearance of this card, expect several problems to crop up all at once, each demanding immediate attention and none seeming particularly easy to solve. In the Rider-Waite variants the five combatants are evenly matched and armed, because none of them are any more important that the others. The situation then becomes a lesson about setting priorities calmly and without vacillation. In the Five of Wands there is a tendency towards rashness and loss of control, and you must be careful not to let that overwhelm you.
For inner battles marked by the Five of Wands the approach you must take is similar. Strategy is the key, because the energy of this card is natural, wild and untamed, an "every man for himself" philosophy. In such situations, once again, a clear head will prevail where hot-headed personalities get overwhelmed by difficulties. The emphasis is now on finding the sources of inner conflict and righting the wrongs that have caused them too appear. As long as there is guilt there can be no peace. Forgiveness and repentance, in these cases, make much more powerful weapons than the thickest wand or the sharpest sword.
The implementation of new ideas is a central theme of the Wands and the Five can show times where this implementation is halted or blocked in some way. This card may also appear when your ideas meet tough challenges by skeptics or opponents around you. At times like this, the best offense is a good defense. Hold fast to your resolve and let nothing deter you from your objectives. You will always succeed if you can tap the fiery energy of the Wands and, instead of using it for destructive purposes like fighting and quarreling, use it for constructive purposes. Compromise if you must, but refuse to lose your cool, even while standing on the hottest coals.
Tarot of the Dream Enchantress ©2009 Lo Scarabeo