The King of Swords Yes or No: Yes, by the Rules

Written by Chaya the Medium.

The King of Swords is a yes delivered as a ruling. Here is how I read him for yes or no questions, upright and reversed, and why the reversal is a no about abuse of power.

If you want the short answer, the King of Swords is a yes. In a yes or no draw the upright card says the thing you are asking about will be decided fairly, by logic and proper process, and that the outcome will be sound. It is a formal yes, and it is as warm as a court is.

This is a card of yes as a king facing straight out with the sword slightly tilted. He is not your friend. He is fair, and fair is enough.

Is the King of Swords a yes or a no?

Upright, I read the King of Swords as a yes. Reversed, I read it as a no. My free yes or no tarot draw uses the Major Arcana only, so if you want a quick draw, use that; these Minor Arcana values are the ones I apply when a full deck is in play.

Tina Gong's the King of Swords guide at Labyrinthos associates the upright card with authority, truth, intellectual power and ethical judgment. Brigit Esselmont's yes or no tarot overview at Biddy Tarot notes that readers assign yes and no values differently, which is true, and it is why I state mine rather than pretend there is one correct table.

Why the upright card reads this way

I read the King of Swords as yes because the card is about authority exercised correctly: the stone throne, the upright posture, the butterflies and crescents of a mind at work. When a question is about whether a process will produce a just result, whether a decision is logically sound, whether an authority can be trusted, the King says yes.

The yes is procedural. The King of Swords does not rush and does not favour. If you wanted the answer to bend toward you, this card is telling you it will bend toward the rules instead.

The King of Swords reversed as yes or no

Reversed, I read the King of Swords as a no. The reversal describes manipulation, abuse of authority, a cold and irrational judgment, or a process used to stall rather than decide.

If you drew the King of Swords reversed, ask whether someone is using the rules against you or whether no one will rule at all. The no answers both.

The King of Swords yes or no in a love question

In a love question, the King of Swords is a yes to a relationship built on honesty and clear agreements, and a yes to handling a difficult matter between you logically and fairly. It is a cool card for romance. Reversed, it is a no to a controlling partner and to a relationship governed by one person's rules.

The King of Swords yes or no for work and money

For work and money, the King of Swords is a strong yes for legal questions, contracts, disputes and anything decided by process and logic. It is also a yes to a fair boss. Reversed, it is a no to a manipulative authority, a rigged process, or a decision that is cold without being correct.

When a yes or no draw is the wrong tool

The King of Swords answers questions about process and fair judgment. He is a poor card for questions about feeling or mercy, which he answers by consulting the rules. A single card answers a single, well-formed question. If the question is really three questions, or is about another person's choices, a yes or no draw will give you a confident answer to the wrong thing. My guide to a one question psychic reading explains how I handle questions that need more than one card.

What to record before drawing again

Keep three short notes: the exact question you asked, the process or authority the outcome depends on, and whether your part in that process is complete. If the third note is yes, the rest is the King's.

For comparison, the Queen of Swords yes or no and Justice yes or no answer differently. The the King of Swords card meaning page covers the card in full, and the King of Swords as timing and the King of Swords as feelings cover the two other questions people most often ask of it. 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.