Eight of Swords Keywords: Confinement, Restriction, Constraints

Eight of Swords Tarot Card Description

A woman in a long red dress is bound and blindfolded. Eight swords stand upright in the ground beside her. There are puddles at her feet. She seems to be standing in rockpools at the foreshore. Behind her, a castle stands on a cliff. The sky is a dull grey.

What the Eight of Swords Means in a Tarot Reading

The imagery of the Eight of Swords elicits strong emotions because we’ve all been through these times in our lives. This is when you feel restricted or bound in some way. You feel you’ve lost control over your life and can’t follow the path you choose. Your voice and thoughts are stifled. You can’t see the way forward.

At the more extreme end of the scale, this is you literally being controlled and restricted by someone in your life or by your circumstances. This is deeply disturbing to live through and can happen to anyone, no matter their position, rank, or role and no matter how strong and independent they appear to others. It feels as though help is very far away and that no-one is even aware of your plight. However (and this is a very point to remember), this situation is temporary, and things aren’t quite as desperate as they seem to you right now. You need to change your perspective so that you can see and find solutions to your problems. If you can remain calm and focused for a short time, you’ll begin to see things more clearly.

The lady in the image is bound loosely and her feet aren’t bound at all. She can quite easily cut herself free with the swords near her, and then remove her blindfold. Of course, she may not actually know that there are any swords there. However, one or two tentative steps would reveal them to her. The key here is not to lose perspective. The situation is awful, but it isn’t inescapable. When you see the Eight of Swords in a reading try to remember this.

Many tarot readers focus on the fact that the troubles and restrictions in the Eight of Swords are most likely caused by your own negative and restricting thoughts. In many cases this can indeed be true, however, I think this interpretation fails to paint the whole picture and very easily belittles your reaction to the very real situation you’re in. There’s no doubt that your mental state is affecting your physical circumstances when the Eight of Swords appears. The reverse is also true – your physical circumstances are affecting your mental state. Knowing that this situation won’t last long will help you to cope, but there’s nothing easy about Eight of Swords times in our lives. You’ll need to work through whatever is happening to you and then eventually you’ll make discoveries and have moments of clarity that will help you to move on from the Eight of Swords.

Eight of Swords Love and Relationships Tarot Meaning

This is not a card you want to see in a relationship reading, but before you jump to the worst-case scenarios, please keep in mind that the circumstances, emotions, or situation the Eight of Swords is referring to won’t last as long as you fear. This will probably be cold comfort at the time of your reading, but knowing that you won’t feel trapped and alone forever will hopefully give you the will to start looking more closely and bravely at your situation and at your options.

Unfortunately, many of us have been in these situations in our relationships and we know how almost impossibly difficult it is to see a way out. You’ve read all the advice. You already know what I’m going to say. You’re not in this situation because you’re weak, or blind, or stupid. This is NOT your fault. You didn’t choose this, and you didn’t cause this. But be that as it may, the reality is that you’re feeling stuck, and you need a way out. And no matter what advice I or anyone else offers you, you need to figure this out for yourself. Believe in yourself, realize your strength, and you’ll find a way. That’s certain. Remember too that every situation will be different, sometimes vastly so. Your way out may mean that you need to escape a toxic relationship. But not everyone in this situation is in a toxic relationship. For some people the way out is through self-awareness, healing, therapy (for you, for your partner, or for both of you). Do whatever it takes to feel free and in control of your life again.

On a different note, if you draw the Eight of Swords in a love reading and you’re single then perhaps you’re feeling trapped in an endless cycle of loneliness, or failed relationships. Again, tapping into your self-awareness, looking after your own needs first, helping yourself – any positive action you can take to look after yourself, and to see and love yourself, will help you to break the cycle. You can do this – no doubt about that!

Eight of Swords Career Tarot Meaning

Unfortunately, the Eight of Swords isn’t a card you’re going to want to see in a career reading, but when it does appear remember that it’s describing a temporary situation.

Being stuck in a rut is the least of your worries here. Most likely you’re feeling stuck in a job you don’t like, or maybe even hate. It probably fulfils many of your requirements like stability, financial security, health benefits, etc., and because of this you feel that can’t simply walk away. You feel stuck and you’ve come to believe that there’s no way out, that there are no options available to you. But this isn’t true. The Eight of Swords should be a wake-up call to you that you need to open your eyes and your heart and take a closer look at your situation. When you stop burying your head in the sand, you’ll be able to see the way forward more clearly and then you can begin to make plans. Maybe you’ll find a job that you’ll find more fulfilling, or maybe you’ll be able to make small changes in your current work practises that give more meaning to what you do, or it may be that you put yourself forward more and get to work on more interesting projects as a result. There’s really no limit to the possibilities here. The main takeaway is that change for the better is coming, but you need to help yourself to make it happen.

Or perhaps you feel that you’ve reached a plateau in work and that you can go no further. This belief is limiting you and is starting to affect your mental health. You’re going to need to unpack your feelings around this and, when you regain some clarity, you’ll be able to see your way forward and make plans for the future. Perhaps it’s true that for now you can’t expect any more from your job, but that doesn’t mean that you should stop planning ahead. Also, you can perhaps concentrate more on finding fulfilment from your life outside of the workplace. Think about your hobbies, friends, and family and the joy they can bring. Work is just one facet of our lives, despite our tendency to give it centre stage.