Element: Fire
Imagery: Five figures clash with wands in a chaotic scene.
General Themes: Hollow victory, conflict.
Five of Wands Upright
The Five of Wands, like the Five of Swords, is about hollow victories and conflicts that seemingly have no end. It’s important to know when to walk away. This card wants you to redirect your energy to more life-affirming pursuits. It’s one thing to fight for what you need to, but the presence of this card indicates that the fight here is not worth your time or energy.
Walk away from conflict that doesn’t generate healthy change. Shake off the stagnation of constant strife. In this instance, it’s important not to fight change that can only come through flow, not force.
The Five of Wands can also show up when a lack of communication creates more conflict than is necessary. Slow down and cultivate healthy conversations about what needs to get done or fixed. Not everything gets resolved through battle.
Five of Wands Reversed
The reversal of this card indicates that you need to let down your guard. You don’t always have to be ready for a fight. In fact, that’s a good way for trouble to find you! Instead, shift your frequency. Sometimes the best way to avoid drama is to simply shift your focus to more generative things. If you don’t feed the conflict, it can’t grow.
It’s one thing to wrestle with something, but do so in a way that’s generative. Explore. Examine. Research. Feel. But don’t fixate on a specific outcome. See what makes the most sense when you look at the situation holistically.
Instead of constantly pushing forward or striving to conquer the next big thing, focus on what you do have. Cultivate contentment, and you will find less desire to chase after pointless conflict.
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