Three of Swords: Modern RWS Tarot Card Meanings
‘The 3 of Swords’, Rider Waite Smith tarot deck.
Upright Three of Swords Meanings
Keywords
Heartbreak, Sorrow, Painful Truth, Grief, Separation, Rejection
Generally
The Three of Swords is one of the most direct and poignant cards in the tarot. It signifies a painful realization, heartbreak, sorrow, and separation. The image of three swords piercing a heart is a powerful metaphor for a sharp, painful truth that cuts to the core. This is not a subtle sadness; it is a clear, definitive, and often necessary pain. This card represents a moment of acute grief that, while difficult, brings a kind of painful clarity. It is the sorrow that comes from seeing a situation for exactly what it is, without illusion.
In a Love Context
In a love reading, this card is an unmistakable symbol of heartbreak, a painful breakup, or the discovery of a hurtful truth, such as infidelity. It represents a period of deep sorrow and emotional pain within a relationship. The clarity it brings is often brutal, shattering illusions and forcing you to confront a reality you may have been avoiding. While devastating, this card signifies that the truth is now out in the open, which is the first step toward eventual healing.
In a Money/Career Context
This card can signify a significant and painful loss in your career or finances. This could be a sudden job loss, the failure of a business you poured your heart into, or a major financial setback. It can also represent a harsh truth or critical feedback at work that is difficult to hear. The pain is sharp, but it forces a clear assessment of the situation, free from wishful thinking.
In a Spiritual Context
Spiritually, the Three of Swords represents a "dark night of the soul" or a painful spiritual crisis. It can be the moment a long-held belief is shattered by a harsh truth, leading to a period of disillusionment and sorrow. This experience, while deeply painful, is often necessary to strip away spiritual illusions and allow for a more authentic understanding to be built from the ground up.
In Common Spread Positions
As Advice
You must face this painful truth head-on. Acknowledge your grief and allow yourself to feel the pain. Do not avoid this difficult conversation or realization.
As (Ultimate) Outcome
A painful truth will be revealed. A period of heartbreak and sorrow is unavoidable. Separation.
As Obstacles
Your fear of heartbreak is preventing you from moving forward. You are refusing to accept a painful reality. Clinging to illusions.
As Hidden Energy
A deep, unacknowledged sorrow is influencing the situation. A painful truth is about to come to light.
As Resources/Alliances
The liberating power of the truth, no matter how painful. The clarity that comes from ending a period of uncertainty.
‘The Three of Swords’ Reversed
Keywords
Healing, Forgiveness, Releasing Pain, Recovery, Overcoming Grief, Reconciliation
Generally
Reversed, the Three of Swords signifies the process of recovery and healing after a period of deep pain. The swords are being removed from the heart. It indicates that you are moving past the initial shock of sorrow and beginning to release your grief. This card represents forgiveness (of yourself or others), letting go of past hurts, and overcoming heartbreak. The pain is still present, but you are actively working through it and are on the road to emotional recovery.
In a Love Context
In a love reading, this card reversed suggests healing after a breakup or a painful period in a relationship. It can signify reconciliation, forgiveness, and repairing a connection after a painful truth has been revealed. It shows a willingness to communicate and move past the hurt. If you are single, it means you are finally healing from past heartbreak and are ready to open your heart again.
In a Money/Career Context
This can signify recovery from a job loss or a business failure. You are picking up the pieces and moving forward with a new perspective. It can also represent resolving a difficult conflict at work and moving toward a more harmonious environment. You are releasing the disappointment of a past failure and are ready for a new chapter.
In a Spiritual Context
Spiritually, this card reversed signifies coming out of a period of spiritual crisis with a renewed sense of hope. You are healing from the disillusionment and integrating the painful lessons you've learned. It is a time of self-forgiveness and releasing old spiritual wounds, allowing for a more compassionate and resilient faith to emerge.
In Common Spread Positions
As Advice
It's time to forgive and let go. Release the pain you have been holding onto. Focus on healing. Communicate your feelings to find resolution.
As (Ultimate) Outcome
Healing and recovery will occur. You will overcome the sorrow. Forgiveness will be achieved.
As Obstacles
You are holding onto old wounds and refusing to forgive. You are wallowing in your grief instead of processing it. A refusal to let go of the pain.
As Hidden Energy
A deep-seated desire to forgive and heal. The process of recovery is happening beneath the surface, even if you don't feel it yet.
As Resources/Alliances
Your own resilience and capacity to heal. The support of others who can help you process your grief. The power of forgiveness.
Additional Notes on The RWS ‘Three of Swords’
Waite’s Divinatory Meanings of The Three of Swords
"Removal, absence, delay, division, rupture, dispersion, and all that the design signifies naturally. Reversed: Mental alienation, error, loss, distraction, disorder, confusion." (The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, 1911)
RWS Three of Swords Symbolism
A.E. Waite’s Three of Swords is one of the most iconic images in tarot. It shows a large, floating red heart pierced by three swords. Above the heart, dark clouds are pouring rain. The image is a stark and unambiguous allegory for sorrow and pain. The heart represents emotion and love, while the swords represent the intellect, words, and painful truth. The rain symbolizes the grief and tears that accompany such a realization. There is no human figure, suggesting this is a universal experience of sorrow.
Meditations On The Three of Swords
What sorrow am I experiencing?
Do I have any control over the experience of this sorrow?
How can I gain resilience to this suffering?
