The Eight of Cups as Advice: Walk Away From What Is Not Enough

Written by Chaya the Medium.

The Eight of Cups as advice asks you to go. Here is how to leave well, and what the reversal says about fear.

If you want the short answer, the Eight of Cups as advice says: walk away from what is not enough, even if it is fine. Go and look for what is missing.

What the Eight of Cups advises upright

Tina Gong's the Eight of Cups guide at Labyrinthos associates the upright card with walking away, disillusionment, leaving behind and seeking deeper meaning. In an advice position I read those meanings as an instruction: the attitude or action the card is asking of you, rather than a description of what will happen. The Minor Arcana overview at Biddy Tarot is a useful second reference.

Upright, the Eight of Cups advises honest departure: admit what is not working and start moving toward something more meaningful.

What the Eight of Cups is not asking you to do

The Eight is not asking you to leave without knowing what you are looking for.

The Eight of Cups reversed as advice

Reversed, the Eight of Cups as advice says you are staying out of fear, or wandering without direction. Name the mountain. A reversed card in an advice position is usually pointing at the habit that is getting in your way, not at a punishment.

The Eight of Cups as advice in love

In love, the Eight of Cups advises honesty about whether the relationship is enough.

The Eight of Cups as advice for work and money

For work and money, it advises leaving the comfortable job that has gone hollow, with a plan. Advice from a card is reflection. For decisions with legal, medical or financial weight, take it to someone qualified as well.

One step to take this week

Write what you are actually searching for in one sentence. That is the mountain.

For comparison, the Four of Cups as advice and the Hermit as advice ask different things of you. The the Eight of Cups card meaning page covers the card in full, and the Eight of Cups as a yes or no, the Eight of Cups as feelings and the Eight of Cups as timing cover the other questions people most often ask of it. You can draw a card for yourself with the free daily tarot tool. For a personal interpretation, my guide to an online psychic reading explains how readings work, and the three-card tarot listing and customer reviews are worth reading before deciding whether to order.