Sacred Circle -- Four of Swords

Phoenyx*

Guess what guys? Time this week for another card! I'll post when I get home from work, or tomorrow morning. :)
 

contrascarpe

The card of "Rest". I guess it is self-explanatory. Four swords with jewelled hilts stand rigidly in the ground, surrounded by daisies. In the background is a knoll. I get a feeling like I am in a cemetary - not the kind of rest I would want (sort of reminiscent of the sarcophagus in the RWS version of this card). The sky seems to have cleared into a nice early morning haze. The card does make me feel peaceful.

This is probably the most accessible of the swords cards we have reviewed thus far, even with the connotation that rest is equated with death.

Dan
 

Phoenyx*

Four jewelled swords pointing vertically downwards, buried partially in the ground. Daisies grow up around them. The sky is a very peaceful, non-threatening sky, as if the storm from the 3 of Swords has passed. Emerald green grass leads up to a barrow.

From this webpage I found this:
According to ancient Celtic legend daisies appeared from the spirits of children who died at birth. God sprinkled these bright lovely flowers across the earth to cheer the grieving parents.

Later on in the article it says:
Because daisy flowers mixed with water were used to treat bruised skin, the daisy became known as bruisewort.

This card does remind me of death, but at the same time, I take into account that pre-Christian Celts believed in rebirth, so that death was not the end, but just a resting time between lives.

This also ties in with the use for healing bruises. Bruises were often gotten in fights, and battles, afterwards with the participants coming back to be healed and to rest.

It reminds me of a time in high school where a demonstration happened, and it broke the feeling of security I had in the place. All I wanted to do all day was to go home and hide in some place secure.
Or the time when my SO and I broke up for a few months, for a week afterwards, even though I pushed myself to keep going in my daily routine, the need to find some place to hide and burrow down was very strong in me.

This card represents to me, a time where the battle has just ended, its a time to recover, catch your breath, and regain that sense of security you normally have.
 

starsongs

Triquetra,

Awesome information about the significance of the Daisy in Celtic lore! Thanks so very much :D

I hope to post on the 4 of Swords tomorrow...

starsongs
 

cjtarot

ok..sometimes...

Hi,

with this card, I sometimes find that there are 4 of something or perhaps people blocking you from your "Home" or "Goal". In this scenario there is 1 person/problem a bit greater than the others..but if you can "Uproot" the swords and move past to the mountain you will obtain your goal.

There have been other readings when it has indicated just what is said "Rest", a time when you and yours need to put down the swords and heal..only when that is done will the flowers of spring and joy grow.

Does the height of the swords mean anything to you? I sometimes see height and placement as indicators.

Do the trees in the background (those that watch from a distant) catch your eye?


Blessings,

Cj
 

starsongs

4 of Swords ~ Rest

The sky has cleared considerably since the 3 of swords; there is a mauve/lavender (healing) cast to it.

Four swords with red-jeweled handles stick up from the earth amidst daisies growing wild.

A green grass covered mound is in the distance.

This card reminds me of rest after a battle; quiet after a storm. In the distance whatever the difficulty was is buried under the mound. The swords are up front and although they are amidst flowers there is still a sense of vigilance as well as rest as because the battle is fresh in the mind.

This card also suggests a need for quiet and solitude.

Starsongs
 

Nitegoddess

Four of Swords
First thing I notice is the clear skies.. looks like a perfert spring day beginning... my eyes then are drawn to the red jewels on the swords handles... the four swords are aligned on different heights... starting low and rising up with a gradual decline.... however not as low as the first sword... then i see that the background is the same as the swords in a way ... going left to right the ground is low then escalating up the hill and back down again... and last but not least the white daisies..indicating spring is here and that flowers are in bloom... (I have dasies planted in my yard and they bloom forever... from first sun in April to last sun in November... They last... endurance..
 

CreativeFire

4 of Swords - Rest

I have become a bit familiar with this card since doing the daily draws with Sacred Circle - has come up a few times - and I always could do with some rest! LOL

To me the swords are like a protective fence that keeps the wonderful uncluttered, clear and open space behind them free from every day intrusions. This enables you to wander freely and peacefully across the fields, curl up under one of the trees and get some rest. I see myself behind the barrier not infront of it, lying on the soft cool grass looking up at the clearing sky.

CreativeFire
 

Kazz

Well after the way I have been feeling lately, this card is quite appropriate

4 Of Swords - (Rest)

I feel a complete sense of calm from this card. Recovery, recuperate, a real need for some peace and quiet. Things feel rather dorment but there is a slight breeze which is very soothing. This time should be used for reflection, let your mind wander, rather than contemplate

This card was great for me as I am recovering from (what we think) was pnemonia, and you know the day after I studied this card I felt heaps better than I thought....so there you go, great healing card maybe;)




Cheers
Karen
 

mj07

ooh, CreativeFire, I love your idea of the swords being like a fence protecting the pastoral scene behind it. The fact they're so close, in your face, really makes them look like a fence!

I think of the swords as communication, words, but also as weapons and fighting. All of those things must be layed to rest here. Have the flowers grown up around the swords? They don't really look like they've been there very long, so we've only just begun our rest, which perhaps won't last as long as we'd like it to. Literally, it makes me think of four people who've come to this place to rest. Maybe they don't always agree... maybe three were fighting in the previous card and a fourth intervened. He said "we have to talk this out, but first, we all must put down our weapons and calm down". So they go to a Sacred place, the passage tomb Newgrange (I've been there, THOUGHT that's what it looked like!) If I recall correctly from the tour I took there, it probably wasn't actually used to bury people, but rather for ceremonial reasons. It was designed in such a way that on the Winter Solstice the light would hit just right and illuminate the inside! Sheesh! Obviously you wouldn't bury somebody in a place like that! So, our 3 fighters and their intermediary have come here to make peace!