The suit of Swords is known for being connected to the element air, which in turn associates it with things such as thoughts, ideas, intellect, concepts and communication. But there is something curious happening within this particular grouping of cards, which connects it strongly back to the element of water.

If you observe the landscape of the Swords, you might notice something that we also noticed - something that stands out and takes up a lot of space! For such an airy element, there sure is a of a lot of water visible in these cards! In fact, there is almost as much visible water in the Swords as there is in the Cups. And, if you don’t count the court cards, there is actually more. On top of that, 4 of the Swords cards not only depict water, but large bodies of it! Like, HUGE amounts of water! What’s going on here?

During a recent mentoring session, we found ourselves on the topic of elements. This obviously isn’t an uncommon place to travel when discussing the cards, however, after the session ended, the conversation continued. Through that, we began to think of the elements not just as reference points to understanding the cards, but as a framework to becoming more proficient with them.

In other words, what can the elements teach us about becoming effective tarot card readers? How can we use these basic concepts to enhance our practice and ensure we’re approaching things in a balanced and whole way?

Someday you’re gonna look back on this moment of your life as such a sweet time of grieving. You’ll see that you were in mourning and your heart was broken, but your life was changing. -Elizabeth Gilbert

Last month's In-Depth had us exploring the Page of Pentacles, and when I posted about the article on Instagram, I received a request to cover the 3 of Swords next. Since I have just about zero agenda as it comes to these pieces, expect for the hope that I can produce them at a rate of one a month, I was open to the suggestion.

So here we are, my third In-Depth and in it we'll be taking a deep dive with that sometimes dreaded and often difficult 3 of Swords. I say sometimes dreaded and often difficult, because rarely do you pull this card to a rave reaction or sigh of relief. No, 3 swords piecing a heart doesn't exactly conjure up those warm and fuzzys. But, that's not to say there is nothing positive to be gleaned from its presence, but we'll talk more on that later.