The Five of Swords as Advice: Pick Your Battles

Written by Chaya the Medium.

The Five of Swords as advice asks what victory costs. Here is how to use it, and what the reversal says about repair.

If you want the short answer, the Five of Swords as advice says: pick your battles. Some wins cost more than they are worth; walk away from those.

What the Five of Swords advises upright

Tina Gong's the Five of Swords guide at Labyrinthos associates the upright card with conflict, defeat, winning at a cost and walking away. 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 Five of Swords advises reckoning the cost of conflict: let the point go, step back from the fight, protect the relationship over the argument.

What the Five of Swords is not asking you to do

The Five is not asking you to let yourself be walked over.

The Five of Swords reversed as advice

Reversed, the Five of Swords as advice says make amends or let the grudge go. A reversed card in an advice position is usually pointing at the habit that is getting in your way, not at a punishment.

The Five of Swords as advice in love

In love, the Five of Swords advises choosing the relationship over being right.

The Five of Swords as advice for work and money

For work and money, it advises avoiding wins that burn bridges. 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

Choose one argument this week and decide not to win it.

For comparison, the Five of Wands as advice and Justice as advice ask different things of you. The the Five of Swords card meaning page covers the card in full, and the Five of Swords as a yes or no, the Five of Swords as feelings and the Five of Swords 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.