Nine of Swords tarot card meaning: upright, reversed and symbols

The Nine of Swords shows a woman sitting up in bed in the dark, her face in her hands. Nine swords hang in rows on the black wall behind her.

It is the card of the 3 a.m. mind: anxiety, worry and fear. This page covers what the Nine of Swords means upright and reversed, the symbols Pamela Colman Smith drew and a gentle spread for worry.

Here is the Nine of Swords at a glance.

Book T calls the Nine of Swords the Lord of Despair and Cruelty and gives it Mars in Gemini, the middle decan of the sign, on Yesod. Mars brings aggression to the restless sign of the twins, and Yesod is the sephira of the unconscious and dreams, which makes this card’s place in the night especially apt.

Later tradition The Golden Dawn also gave each decan two of the 72 Goetic spirits, one for the day and one for the night. For the second decan of Gemini, and so for the Nine of Swords, they are Barbatos (spirit 8, day) and Shax (spirit 44, night). Their pages read the old entries as history; see the spirit directory for all 72.

The card: what Pamela Colman Smith drew

Waite wrote: “One seated on her couch in lamentation, with the swords over her. She is as one who knows no sorrow which is like unto hers. It is a card of utter desolation.” Smith decorated her quilt with roses and astrological signs and carved a scene of a fight on the side of the bed.

Face in her hands. She cannot look. Worry often feels worst in the dark, alone, when there is nothing to do but think.

The swords on the wall. The swords hang over her, but none of them touches her. They are thoughts, not wounds.

The quilt. Her quilt has roses and zodiac signs. Even in the dark, the world is still full of beauty and order she cannot see right now.

Upright meaning

Upright, the Nine of Swords is anxiety. A woman sits up in bed in the dark, her face in her hands, while nine swords hang on the black wall behind her. Her quilt is covered with roses and zodiac signs. The card speaks of worry, insomnia, guilt and the fears that grow worse at night.

The swords are on the wall, not in her body. That detail matters. The card often shows suffering that is real but comes mostly from the mind, from imagining the worst. Fear of what might happen can hurt as much as what actually does.

Turn on the light. Talk to someone. Write the fear down and look at it in daylight. Things are rarely as dark as they seem at three in the morning.

Reversed meaning

Reversed, the Nine of Swords can show recovery from anxiety, seeking help, or the first night of good sleep. It can also show anxiety that has become so deep that it needs real support.

Ask whether you are carrying this alone. If your worry has become constant, talking with a professional is a strong and wise step.

In a spread, look at the card that follows it. A reversed Nine followed by the Star or the Sun is a strong sign that relief is near. Followed by the Moon, it may mean the worry is mixing with real uncertainty, and that more information will help.

In love, work and spirituality

In love. Upright: Worry about a relationship, or guilt over something said or done. Reversed: Fears easing, or seeking help together.

At work. Upright: Stress, sleepless nights over work, or fear of failure. Reversed: Recovering from stress, or a clearer view of the problem.

With money. Upright: Money worries keeping you up at night. Reversed: Facing the numbers and finding they are not as bad as feared.

In spiritual practice. Upright: Shadow work, facing your fears. Reversed: Releasing old guilt.

As feelings. Worried, anxious or guilty about the relationship.

As a person. Someone anxious who tends to fear the worst.

As advice. Bring your fears into the light and ask for support.

Reading the Nine of Swords: positions and yes or no

In the past position: A time of worry left its mark. In the present position: Worry is loud right now. Look at it in daylight.

In the future position: Anxiety may come up, and it can be met. As advice: Talk to someone about what keeps you awake.

In modern yes or no readings, the Nine of Swords leans no. Worry points to no, but much of it may be fear rather than fact.

What the Nine means, and the history behind the card

Nine is the suit at its most intense. In Swords that intensity is anxiety, the mind turning against itself. The Golden Dawn named it Despair and Cruelty.

Here is how the Nine looks across the four suits:

• Nine of Wands: resilience, persistence, last stand
• Nine of Cups: satisfaction, contentment, emotional fulfillment
• Nine of Swords (this card): anxiety, worry, fear
• Nine of Pentacles: self-sufficiency, luxury, abundance

When A. E. Waite published The Pictorial Key to the Tarot in 1910, he listed these divinatory meanings for the Nine of Swords: “Death, failure, miscarriage, delay, deception, disappointment, despair.” Reversed, he gave: “Imprisonment, suspicion, doubt, reasonable fear, shame.”

Common questions

Is the Nine of Swords a yes or no card? It leans no, but it often shows fear that is bigger than the facts.

What does the Nine of Swords mean in love? Anxiety, guilt or sleepless worry about a relationship.

Is the Nine of Swords a bad omen? No. It shows worry, not fate. The swords on the wall never touch her.

Try this

Use this gentle spread when worry keeps you awake.

Affirmation: I meet anxiety with care, facts, and support when I need it.

Reversed affirmation: I notice relief as it grows and keep the habits that help.

If you keep a tarot journal, take one of these questions to it: What is my worry saying, and what are the facts? Who could I tell about this? What helps me when I cannot sleep?

What next

Cards that sit close to this one are Eight of Swords (the fear that comes before), The Moon (the Major Arcana card of night fears) and Ten of Swords (the end of the suit, where the worst is over).

The Nine of Swords is part of the lesson Swords in my free Tarot for Beginners course. To see the whole suit on one page, go to the suit of Swords. To keep walking the suit, read the card before it, Eight of Swords or the card after it, Ten of Swords, or go back to all the card meanings.

For the suits and numbers in one place, see The Minor Arcana: suits and numbers made simple. For every card with keywords, affirmations and examples, see my book The Novice’s Guide to Tarot. If you would like a printable cheat sheet for all 78 cards, my 45-page Tarot Workbook is on Etsy.

Sources

• A. E. Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (London: Rider, 1910), Part III, sections 1 and 2.
• Pamela Colman Smith and A. E. Waite, the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot (London: Rider, 1909).
• Nicolas Conver, Tarot de Marseille (Marseille, 1760).
• Lauri Mukkala, The Novice’s Guide to Tarot, entry for the Nine of Swords.
• Aleister Crowley, 777 (London: Walter Scott, 1909), columns of the decans, the Minor Arcana and the court cards.
• Israel Regardie, ed., The Golden Dawn (Chicago: Aries Press, 1937 to 1940), “Book T”, titles and attributions of the small cards and the court.