1. Tarot
2. Card meanings
3. Two of Swords

Minor Arcana · Swords

Two of Swords

• conformity
• equipoise
• courage
• friendship
• tenderness

Upright meaning

Equipoise: a careful balance held with courage. Waite also gives tenderness, affection and intimacy.

Reversed meaning

Reversed, Waite gives falsehood and duplicity. A prompt to be honest about which side you favour.

• falsehood

Symbolism

A blindfolded woman sits balancing two crossed swords on her shoulders, the sea behind her.

Group

Minor Arcana · Swords

Element, astrology

Not given by Waite, so we give none

Source

Our own plain-English summary of A. E. Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (London: Rider, 1911), Part III §2 (The Lesser Arcana). The keywords are Waite’s own words. Waite’s fortune-telling lists also contain harsher terms; we keep to the reflective readings he gives and never state an event as certain.

Tarot is a tool for reflection, not a prediction of fixed outcomes. This is not medical, legal or financial advice.