Six of Swords tarot card
What Six of Swords means in the Rider-Waite tarot: upright and reversed, in love, at work and as advice. Free online reading.
Minor Arcana · Swords · Element: Air
Keywords: crossing, transition, moving away, calmer waters, change
The advice
Accept the crossing even if it's sad. The other side is calmer than this one.
A ferryman carries a woman and a child across water that is choppy on one side and smooth on the other. Six swords stand upright in the boat and travel with them: the baggage doesn't stay behind.
Six of Swords upright
You are leaving a hard phase for calmer waters. The change is quiet and a little melancholy (no one sings in this card), but it leads somewhere better. It also appears literally in moves to another city, home or job.
In love
Getting past a hard period together, or moving away from a relationship that hurt. Relief with a taste of longing.
In work and money
A change of role, a move to another company, leaving a heavy environment.
In your inner life
Recovery under way. The swords ride in the boat: the pain doesn't vanish, but it no longer steers.
The shadow
Taking everything along as baggage. It's worth choosing consciously what crosses with you.
Six of Swords reversed
The crossing is stuck. Something prevents the departure: emotional baggage, money, a bond, fear of what comes next. The reversed Six asks what has to stay on the dock so that you can finally push the boat off.
In love
Being unable to move away from someone who does harm, or a change put off indefinitely.
In work and money
A change that doesn't happen, a transfer cancelled, a sense of being tied to one place.
In your inner life
Resistance to your own process. One part wants to go, the other still demands an explanation.
The shadow
Always returning to the same dock. Starting again from where you left is not a new start.
Combinations with Six of Swords
Six of Swords + Eight of Cups
Two exits. A necessary crossing and a chosen departure: together they say that leaving here is not flight, it is a path.
Frequently asked questions
Is Six of Swords a yes or no?
Yes, as a crossing. It isn't a festive yes: it's a quiet move toward calmer waters, and the far shore tends to be better than this one. Reversed: Not for now: the boat won't leave the dock. Find out what baggage has to stay ashore so that you can finally push the boat out.
What does Six of Swords mean in love?
Getting past a hard period together, or moving away from a relationship that hurt. Relief with a taste of longing.
What does Six of Swords reversed mean?
The crossing is stuck. Something prevents the departure: emotional baggage, money, a bond, fear of what comes next. The reversed Six asks what has to stay on the dock so that you can finally push the boat off.
What is the advice of Six of Swords?
Accept the crossing even if it's sad. The other side is calmer than this one.