By Sarah Taylor
There is only one choice.
You may have sat there like our protagonist in the Eight of Swords, with your head in your hands, at a loss as to what to do. Feeling lost; not-quite-here; an outline in a garish landscape that has, of late, started to seem more grotesque than gorgeous.
Knight of Swords, Eight of Swords, Nine of Wands from The Röhrig Tarot deck, created by Carl-W. Röhrig. Click on the image for a larger version.
Why? Because there are two paths in front of you, and you haven’t had a damn clue which one you’re meant to take.
Actually, it’s a little more complex than that: it’s not as if you’ve had two clear-cut choices and a list of pros and cons for each. Nope. You’ve had an overpowering sense of not being able to step back enough to see anything much at all on this particular issue. You’ve struggled to edge out from under it to get the kind of perspective that enables you to make a decision because you just know it’s the right one for you — and then act on it.
But here is an answer in the form of these three cards that are clearly in front of you.
There is only one choice.
There is only one path. There is only one Sun. This is the path you walk, this is the light by which you navigate. It may look like it’s ‘out there’ but, traveller, it is ‘in here’.
It is the Knight of Swords when he’s at his very best and not screwing around with his cunning, or manipulating behind-the-scenes for his own ends, or unleashing his inner hell cat. When the Knight of Swords grows up and starts to take responsibility for his own shadow, then what is unleashed is a bolt of energy — the energy that was being used to hold that shadow at bay.
When unfettered by the kind of blindness that needs to exist in order not to see a particularly sharp-edged truth, he can then direct that same truth-detecting ability to the matter at hand. Your inner Knight has the ability to knock the obstacles clear out the way that were blocking you from seeing clearly. He has the ability to channel and focus wisdom.
There is only one choice.
Maybe you’ve been caught between two options. Maybe what seemed like two options turned out to be one perfect whole. Maybe there never was another option. Soon, I have a feeling from these cards, you’ll not only get what you need in this regard — something in you also has the potential to feel more vibrant, more present.
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What has been making you feel incomplete is the distance you’ve been experiencing from your own truth as the small figure in the Eight of Swords.
It’s part of a dance with your inner sage, your Higher Self — a dance that involves contacting with it, spinning away, sometimes needing to walk in faith when the distance feels too far to know its presence, sometimes losing faith entirely, and then re-contacting in a moment of supernova brightness that changes the landscape.
And let’s talk about that landscape. In one way, you’ve been here before. In another, you haven’t. Yes, you’ve felt that disconnect and disorientation but, today, the story may not be the same. Don’t rely on past experiences to guide your decision-making.
The guide you need is your inner sight — your insight; the Knight of Swords. He will act as a magnifier for that frequently soft, oft-unheard, always-right knowing that sits at the heart of you. When he appears, you’ll know him because while he is canny and powerful, he isn’t simply about the kind of understanding you reach with your mind. This understanding will have a felt-sense to it. It will be anchored somewhere deep. You will not be moved. This won’t be stubbornness, but certainty. No justifications needed. No apologies required.
The truth, when connected to who you really are and your unique path, has its own rules.
Astrology/Elemental correspondences: Knight of Swords (the fiery aspect of air), Eight of Swords (Jupiter in Gemini), Nine of Wands (Moon in Sagittarius)
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Thank you Sarah it is a very encouraginging reading. It’s been interesting though if you compare the illustration of IX of wands of the RWS deck to this one it feels such a different story. The RWS although he has an accumulation of 8 wands behind him, (as we know were carried in so swiftly and directly in the proceeding card) offing such creative support, he seems to reluctantly clutche the 9th wand on his stage as he looks and feels so insecure, suspicious really. What i find really endearing is the bandaide wrapped around his head. Unfortunately I am very much here today. Sarah I would be interested to get your insight regarding the different images of the same card and their feeling from the two decks.
I wish I had the full expression that is offered with the image of the Rohrig’s deck. But, as it is the last card in this reading perhaps this means it is on its way to a break through this week. I sure feel like I have done the work and have the creative intuitive insight and wands support behind me. Perserverance is not in question. Just need that last push to bust on through! I am ready for the commitment and passions work.
Great comment, P. Sophia.
I tend to draw on different deck illustrations in the same reading, and I’ve found that when I do that, there’s a shared quality rather than a contradiction when the cards have been created with a certain inner alignment (because not all cards are created equally imo). With the two versions of the Nine of Wands specifically – the Rider-Waite Smith and Röhrig – I see the Röhrig as a more forceful version of the RWS Nine, where the protagonist has, indeed, decided he is no longer under attack, and relinquishes his Wand to the line-up behind him – thus adding it to the energy of the eight wands in the Eight of Wands. Then – bam! Break-through!
The RWS suggests this possibility; the Röhrig fulfils it.
Bam! Brilliant Sarah. Thank you. I ve become reliant on the RWS deck i suppose. As a novice, it is more staight forward in some respects and easier for me to read. Yet in some cases as this, it really leaves a bit too much ambiguity. Now the full expression of the Rohrig IX of Wands comes in. Your intrepretation is extremely helpful in comparison:
” I see the Röhrig as a more forceful version of the RWS Nine, where the protagonist has, indeed, decided he is no longer under attack, and relinquishes his Wand to the line-up behind him – thus adding it to the energy of the eight wands in the Eight of Wands. Then – bam! Break-through! The RWS suggests this possibility; the Röhrig fulfils it.”