"The current path is suddenly a prison, a tower built on false hopes and incorrect assumptions; and how the truth strikes and nothing will ever be the same again. A total breaking down has to occur to make way for transformation and reorganization. The change is traumatic but necessary."

The Tower is one of the Major Arcana and it represents a level of change second only to Death. It represents all kinds of disruptions of a particularly extreme nature: divorce, war, natural disasters, bankruptcy. It is a catastrophe of an actual or metaphysical nature that suddenly changes everything; it is emotional upheaval or an instant realization that things can no longer continue on the way they are. But it is also sometimes a hopeful card, as the Tower can represent a tiny island of strength amidst total chaos, a bit of stability surrounded by traumatic but inevitable change.

"A weary traveller trudges onward despite the strain of carrying ten heavy rods. The environment around him denotes winter, a season of endings and the completion of a natural cycle. There is a weariness and sad determination to this person, as if the task is not satisfying on any level but must be completed. This traveller bears the burden alone with no sign of help anywhere."

The Rods as a "suit" represent the world of ideas: both the having of them and the execution of them. Rods represent intellect, growth, will, inspiration, change, and renewal. The Ten of Rods represents a person feeling, or the feeling itself of, strain from overbearing internal and external pressures. There is great responsibility and demand, there are numerous tasks that represent the traveller's talent and trust in the traveller's abilities, but this is also very hard work. This is what the ten flowering rods represent: not just his or her responsibilities tended well so far but also his or her own determination to finish them satisfactorily. However, the traveller has been carrying the rods for a long time; his bent head and weary expression indicates that he or she feels tired and depressed. He or she is on the road alone, with no one to help and no end to the journey in sight. The time has come to find a stopping point, to lay down the burdens, and to recover from the strain.

"A King, marvellously bejewelled and attired, possesses an air of authority and importance (the scepter) though his features reveal a depth of intuition and sensitivity (the cup). The dolphin and the ship represent, respectively, deep intelligence and communication, along with excellence and success within his chosen field."

The King of Cups is a figure in the Minor Arcana (the Pages, Knights, Queens and Kings of each of the four "suits") and he typically represents an actual adult male or a particular type of traditionally "male" energy. It represents an authoritative but compassionate man who is a leader. He is creative and energetic with a clear vision; he can become lost in his thoughts, becoming secretive and passionate but frustrating to those around him. He performs his duties with ease and imagination, and he is ever generous to those he loves.

"A heart, pierced by three swords, hangs suspended in a cloudy, rainy sky. The smaller crossed swords denote a painful, difficult deadlock. The crescent moon in the center is the intuitive knowledge that relates to the largest middle sword, which represents a final, forced solution that ends the stalemate. The wounded heart denotes intense sorrow and the raindrops fall all around like tears."

The Swords as a "suit" represent the formative world of human expression; they act within the context of other cards as evidence of courage and strong ideas, forcefulness, assertion, and sometimes a cold but necessary detachment of thought from emotion. The Three of Swords represents disappointments in and loss of love. It represents heartache, sorrow, betrayal tears, anguish, and/or terrible loneliness. It can represent either an intense but transient time of great emotional pain, or a more permanent emotional scar.

"The silvery crescent moon glows in the black night, its form outlined by shadowy rays of reflected light. Instinctively, we are drawn to follow the path of the Moon, to stare at it in the night sky, to let it hypnotize and draw out our untamed imagination."

The Moon represents psychic ability, intuition, and intuitive reasoning. It also can represent a creative, artistic person with many talents who is prone to moodiness and possesses a compulsive need to create. It can represent a person who seeks to escape: into roles or characters, into music and the artistic act, or by taking all kinds of journeys or expeditions--emotional, metaphorical, psychological, and otherwise. The Moon can also represent a special kind of inspiration; inspiration from nature, inspiration from one's own deepest resources, inspiration from a Muse or spirit or cosmic, eternal force. This card represents dreams, messages, solitude, and secret love.

"The seven cups hold a bounty of gifts: the cascading flowers represent living life to the fullest, the rainbow represents hope with rewards, the sun denotes power, energy and intelligence, the crescent moon denotes mental and psychic powers and intuition, the serpent speaks of wisdom, the fire represents passion, and the water represents brimming emotions."

The Seven of Cups represents a person, or a type of person, with a unique, multi-talented personality--someone with a creative intelligence, marvelous ideas, and a deep interest in a variety of subjects. This person is inspirational and exceptional, and he or she possesses a wonderful combination of talents; he or she always needs just the right environment in which to flourish, but he or she is perpetually interesting, wonderfully complex, and never boring.