Nine of Wands
You may have to dig deep to push past some of the obstacles and frustrations you’re dealing with in your life right now.
And with a stressful aspect between Mercury and Pluto today, you might have to step back, take a breath and remind yourself that it’s not as bad as it seems. You may not be where you expected to be at this point, but you’ve still got a lot of fight left in you and you’re closer to the finish line than you know.
The Nine of Wands can refer to a moment of uncertainty or hesitation that comes after you’ve given what feels like your ALL and still haven’t seen the results for your efforts.
You may have been frustrated with the lack of progress — or worse — come *this close* to completing your journey, only to find another road-block directly ahead of you.
But if you look at it from an evolutionary perspective, you may be better able to understand why you’ve been forced to step back and to re-evaluate your needs. Perhaps the setbacks you’ve encountered haven’t been setbacks at all. Perhaps they’ve been lessons in disguise.
The figure in this card is surrounded by minor obstacles. A half formed “wall” encircles her with 8 flimsy rods stuck into the ground around it. The rods all have smiling cartoonish faces on them — including the one she’s retrieved and holds in her hand.
She herself looks a bit worse for the wear. She’s got fresh stitches on her forehead and patch over one eye. But if you look at the other symbols on the card — the compass, the world tree and eye peering out from behind her open heart — and lets not forget the angel wings! — you can see that this is more about getting insight into where you’re heading than is it about focusing on the obstacles that have held you back.
The Nine of Wands is not about the uncertainty or hesitation so much as it is about the one big burst of energy that gets you moving again. It’s a card of perseverance and determination, reminding that you’re almost there, with one final hurdle or battle to overcome.
If you can stay on course you’ll be rewarded in the end, and will see that what is gained is far greater than anything you could have achieved had you chosen an easier path.
Today’s card — Nine of Wands — comes from the Joie de Vivre Tarot series by phenomenal artist Paulina Cassidy, author of the equally impressive Paulina Tarot. You can view and purchase the entire deck on her website or through her Etsy storefront. This deck is also available for Iphone, IPad and Android Devices through the Fools Dog website. Please visit and “like” her Facebook fan page!
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I like your interpretation of the Nine of Wands card from the gorgeous Joie the Vivre Tarot. For me it is also the: “I am almost there card” The encouragement to keep going and know I can do this 🙂
Thank you… I loved that card too… shows that you “see with your heart”. I particularly like the outline of the tree within the figure as it brings up images of putting roots down (anchoring towards the feet into the earth, firmer footing) and allowing for any growth you wish the tree to take. There’s a lot you can do with that image… the tree can totally shatter any barriers around and what’s more… you are in charge of what direction you wish the tree to grow.
Hi Ellen! thank you and me too…. this version is so charming — the whole deck is… thank you for your comments, that is such a good way to look at it.. By the way I enjoy your site so much!
Thank you so much Melodie