Challenging the 8 of Swords: The Gift of Confinement
Preface: This article is one of several in our “Challenging” series. The purpose of these articles is to flip the script on cards that we usually view as difficult, providing a fresh and more positive perspective. If this type of exploration is of interest to you, then feel free to check out the other cards we’ve tackled: The Hierophant, The Devil, Judgement, 5 of Pentacles, 4 of Cups
If The Fool were a symbol for absolute freedom and unbounded possibility, then the 8 of Swords must be its energetic antagonist. All you need to do is observe the body language, posture and predicament to realize these two figures are occupying opposite ends of their particular polarity - liberation vs. confinement.
When I pull the 8 of Swords in a reading, yes it’s annoying, but it’s rarely a surprise. Usually, I'm able to identify right away that's how I've been feeling - frustrated, unsure, bound. I could equate it to a really bad case of writers block (though not limited to the act of writing). It’s actually one of the cards in the deck, in my opinion, that does a really good job of visually depicting the feeling it represents.
8 of Swords paired with verse 47 of the Tao Te Ching
Even preparing this piece now, I'm feeling a lot of that 8 of Swords tension. What is it I even want to say? How will I find the right words? Do I have the motivation to carry me through? Where is this all going? I want to complete what I’ve started here, but I can't even see a foot in front of myself. When so much mental energy is being spilled on the anxiety of not knowing, it doesn't leave a lot of space for forward moving energy to flow. The 8 of Swords says that not only are you stuck in place, you can’t see what’s in front of you! Imagine having so much of yourself held at a deficit - can’t move, can’t see - it’s no wonder it feels so damn frustrating!
But, the more I work with this card, the more I am able to see its energy as somewhat synonymous with life itself.
When we come here, we are, in essence, stuck in form. We have programs running within us dictating a lot of what we feel and what we do. We're also given a set of life circumstances that we need to work within. It's as if life itself is a kind of container!
I remember one day very vividly, maybe 8 years ago, driving down a familiar road and contemplating something I really wanted to do. This wasn't some half-hearted desire either; this was something I truly wanted for my life. But, as I drove and continued to contemplate it, I realized there was something analogous to a barbed wire fence surrounding me. As much as I wanted this thing, I knew I couldn't move beyond the barrier. BUT WHY!? It was as if I had run into a piece of code within myself that was not designed to let me pass. Like the part of a video game that hasn’t been written yet, where you continue to bump into an invisible wall.
Can you think of something like this in your own life? If you can, then you’ve experienced, first hand, the 8 of Swords.
But here is what I’ve come to learn about this energy - it can also be a gift. Imagine a scenario where you have this impulse to act, but something within you holds your back. Them, in retrospect, you realize had you done that thing, you would have made a terrible mistake. Yes, restriction can be frustrating, but perhaps it’s there for a reason. Sometimes we are held in containers because we’re not meant to move forward, or we’re supposed to wait for a better time. Restriction can also force us to become more creative than we otherwise would if we had endless possibility. When we’re given limited options, it can sometimes we easier to narrow our focus.
Here is the other gift that limitation can provide - it can slow us down long enough to where we have the time and space to figure out what it is we really want. In my personal example above, I felt like everything in me was betraying me to keep me stuck. I felt even Spirit, in a way, had let me down. But looking back, I now realize that time in restriction helped me cultivate, with absolute precision, what I wanted instead. And, when the time became right, and when conditions shifted, I was able to do the thing that was blocked from me initially. The next level in the videogame had been revealed, and even though it was still incredibly difficult (as all next levels usually are), I was at least able to move into that field.
I’ve come to realize we all have a bit of a complicated relationship with the concept of liberation. As much as we say we want to transform and we want freedom, we rarely examine the flip side of what that truly means. Freedom, for many, also equates to a lack of stability. It’s removing every safeguard and precaution we’ve ever put in place for ourselves. When we hold ourselves back, it’s not because we don’t want to have what we want, it’s because we’re trying to protect ourselves from some other consequence associated with it (real or imagined). Freedom also means a lack of attachment, and for many of us, we’re way too attached to ourselves, our stuff, our titles and our personalities to actually embrace meaningful change. Dealing with the 8 of Swords means having to face not only the frustration of stagnation, but also the real reasons we limit ourselves.
The next time you pull this card, or feel its energy, try to see it not as something holding you back, but as something holding you in place until the next step can be revealed. In the meantime, try to identify as clearly as possible what isn’t working and also, what it is you’d rather. Give yourself some space and grace to allow creative solutions to unfold. But also remember this, while restriction is real, so is personal power and will. Sometimes we make things more complicated than they need to be. The 8 of Swords is ruled by Air, so we know mental activity could be a big part of what is keeping us stuck. When we can’t see the next outward step, that’s a hint to take the exploration inward. That blindfold is there for a reason, it shows up also in the 2 of Swords. Both cards are an invitation look using our inner eyes. The physical world may not contain the full picture, so we must seek within for not just the truth of the situation, but the truth of ourselves.
A Quick Summary
The 8 of Swords isn’t inherently bad. This energy has many positives too, such as its ability to keep us safe and secure. Let’s think back to the comparison above between The Fool and this 8. Let’s say you were in a situation where you were about to run out into harm’s way. What card would you want to lead in that moment? The Fool who simply jumps in, to hell with the consequences? Or, the 8 of Swords who will hold you still until the danger has passed? All of these energies must be taken in context.
When we’re held in confinement, we have the opportunity to pause, which can lead to some interesting and helpful revelations. In a confined space, we may have time to consider not just what’s holding us back, but also what it is we truly want.
Restriction is synonymous with life! The very nature of this reality depends on limitation, form and parameters. If we didn’t have them, what would we even be? You know what happens to things when they enter a black hole? They separate and stretch until they are no longer recognizable - they become “no thing”. I’m not saying we have to accept every restriction we have in our lives, but I am suggesting we try to view them as something of a fact of life (to be lived with, and also overcome).
Restrictions can feel like big stop signs, even when they’re coming from within. When we arrive at what looks like a closed road, it could be an invitation to take a side quest, or explore another avenue. Maybe the detour was necessary? We don’t always know what’s best for ourselves, and sometimes what looks like a limitation is actually a better pathway in disguise!
Journaling prompts when you pull the 8 of Swords or feel its influence:
How does my current stuckness actually keep me safe?
What is really in the way of me moving forward?
How can I use this current confinement in creative ways?
Compare and contrast the 8 of Swords with The Devil - what do you see?
Compare and contrast the 8 of Swords with the 8 of Wands - what do you see?