Rider-Waite (Primary): The Process of Experience / Zen Tarot (Auxiliary): Guidance for the Soul
Six of Swords
This card is the “Actual Display” of your current situation. “The Six of Swords” in Rider-Waite represents “Transition,” “Healing,” and “Moving Away from Trouble.” A small boat carries passengers from rough waters (current troubles) towards calm waters in the distance (future peace). Although there are six swords in the boat (representing painful memories), the worst is over. On a practical level, this indicates you are going through a “recovery period,” possibly involving moving, travel, changing jobs, or slowly walking out of a painful relationship.
Due to copyright issues, BJD Tarot is used to replace Rider-Waite
📖 Rider-Waite: The Actual Display of Reality
| Area | Upright (Good: Transition/Peace) | Reversed (Bad/Warning: Stuck/Baggage) |
|---|---|---|
| Love | Relationship entering a calm period, or a healing journey after breakup, staying away from arguments, slow repair. | Unable to shake off shadows of the past, relationship stagnation, bringing old wounds into new relationship, refusing healing. |
| Career | Changing career tracks, transfer, solving difficult problems, work pressure reduced, transitioning to a new stage. | Want to leave but can’t, unresolved work dilemma, plan delays, problems resurfacing. |
| Academic | Transferring schools, or relaxing after semester end, finding better study methods, passing safely. | Hitting a bottleneck in learning, unable to adapt to new environment, no improvement in grades. |
| Friendship | Friends helping you through difficulties, traveling together, staying away from bad friends, quiet but long-lasting friendship. | Dragged down by friends, emotional debts, social circle stagnation. |
| Cooperation | Getting through the running-in period, resolving differences, cooperation entering stable phase, solving problems together. | Old problems recurring, ineffective communication, inability to reach consensus causing jam. |
| Wealth | Financial crisis relieved, debt restructuring, slow recovery, cash flow becoming smooth. | Continued debt pressure, unable to fix financial loopholes, funds stuck. |
Zen = Manifesting simplicity. No judgment of emotions and desires. Return to purity.
Zen Observation: Six of Swords
The Six of Swords shows a small boat slowly moving towards a distant shore, carrying passengers and six upright swords. The water is rough on one side and calm on the other, symbolizing the transition from chaos to peace. In Zen teachings, this mirrors the parable of “using a raft to cross the river.”
This card speaks to the nature of impermanence and change. You are leaving behind a phase of difficulty or pain, moving towards an unknown future. The swords in the boat represent the baggage, memories, and mental burdens you still carry. Zen does not demand that you immediately throw these overboard; rather, it accepts their presence—you can move forward even while carrying your wounds. Do not blame yourself for not being fully healed yet; healing happens in the motion of the journey.
The key practice is to “trust the flow.” You do not have to swim the ocean alone; the boat (support systems, faith, or time itself) is carrying you. Watch the ripples in the water and understand that everything passes. Pain passes, joy passes; only this process of “crossing over” is real. When you eventually reach the other shore, remember to leave the raft behind; do not let past experiences become future chains. But until you arrive, be patient, sit quietly, and let the currents of the universe guide you home.
想親身體驗 MSER 的靈性轉化嗎？
Wish to experience the MSER spiritual journey?