The Knight of Swords reversed is an interesting card and one that characteristically means managing our stress in the heat of the battles.
The Knight of Swords Reversed
We’ve all going through our own battles. Whether they’re in the material world or merely in the spiritual, emotional or mental front – we all need to manage our stress.
Forging on is a popular concept by yoga and spiritual business owners. We seek more without the recognizition of rest. Life is a long pursuit so we all need time to rest and process.
As with any tarot card, The King of Swords reversed has the dark and the light. The present and the optimistic future.
Analyzing this tarot card
Let’s have a good look at this Rider Waite card. We see the king and the horse. The king is relentless – always striving for more and keenly motivated for the next big opportunity. Maybe that’s you, or at the very least, someone you know.
Then you’ve got the horse. He’s a wiser soul. In fact, he’s a reflection of our true self and society.
Because of social media motivators, hard work is glorified. That “success at all costs” mentality has swept through in the pursuit of pursuing self worth. “If I outwork them, the gold is mine!”
The horse wants to stop. It needs to rest. By resting, it can manage stress and strategically plan for round 2. We’re not here to grind to our bones. We’re here to live a beautiful existence through both bouts of work and play.
The knight hasn’t figured that out, yet the horse has. As a result, there are two polarizing views. A fighting of the inner dialogue of rest vs pursuit.
Rest = results
Yocean Yogi promotes rest. That is rest of the mind, body and soul. By resting, we can often achieve greater results than those who keep striving for more.
By recharging those batteries, whether through a vacation or 3 days away from all electronic devices (say hello camping in the woods next weekend!), we can find that inner sanctum. One where we can truly escape for a moment.
Perhaps it’s time for you to slow down temporarily. There will always be time for more. The Knight of Kinds reversed shows that relentless pursuit leads to exhaustion. You’re both looking for results, only results take energy.
By slowing down, we can feel more in touch with the present moment. A chance to reflect, remember and plan. What does the next few months or years look like? Maybe it’s time to fill a journal with all your ideas, dreams and visions of the future.
Tangible actions
So then, what can you actually do? It’s one thing to understand the meaning of a tarot card, but it’s another to really know what you can do.
Firstly – you’re probably doing too much. Perhaps you’re not yet a workaholic, but you’re close.
For many people, it’s the distractions. Are you getting a lot of distracting text messages? Emails? Watching TV? Social media? Turn it off.
Balancing work with play is important, but even better is work with rest. True rest. That could be a yoga class, a spiritual retreat or a total detox physically and mentally.
By doing so, we can bring greater harmony to our lives. That harmony is balance like the Yin and Yang. Achievement and success is a wonderful pursuit, but not when stress rears up from the blindspot.
Going forward
Life is about taking a holistic viewpoint. The horse knows this and surprisingly, so does the knight. He knows he needs to rest, but his ego won’t let him. Plus – his friends are watching and he needs to prove his work ethic.
But is the quest of consistent ambition what you really desire? What are we really here for? Fun? Happiness? Excitement? Kindness? Contribution? We’re certainly not here for stress.
If the knight just paused and reflected, even for a short while, he’ll be more focused. His horse would run faster and for longer while impressing his friends through tangible results.
Slowing down is progress. We need to manage our stress. From here, we can find peace, happiness and magic. From this point of restoration, we can then strive for new heights.
Illustrations from the Rider-Waite Tarot Deck® reproduced by permission of U.S. Games Systems, Inc., Stamford, CT 06902 USA. Copyright ©1971 by U.S. Games Systems, Inc. Further reproduction prohibited. The Rider-Waite Tarot Deck® is a registered trademark of U.S. Games Systems, Inc.
