Hello Tarot lovers, I’m super excited to be part of the first ever International Tarot Day Blog Hop! I trust you enjoyed Eva’s piece on the Knight of Swords and are looking forward to meeting another member of the wonderful Swords family 🙂
All four Queens have the ability to express facets of the Divine Feminine in their own unique ways. Equally, all four Queens can express the shadow or ‘false feminine’ instead. Sadly, the Queen of Swords is the Queen who has had the most shadow projected onto her from the outside. She’s known among many Tarot readers as a cold-hearted, sharp-tongued bitch. Traditionally she is seen as a widow or a barren woman.
Because God forbid that a woman have both brains and beauty.
A clever woman is typically seen as a threat by Patriarchy and I believe this is the real reason the Queen of Swords is so often vilified, though thankfully this is starting to change. I also know many a Tarot reader who identifies with the Queen of Swords. As someone who mainly identified with her lunar Piscean self, the Queen of Cups always seemed a better match… Until one day when I had the brain wave to dress as the Queen of Swords and do some role play.
Yup, that’s me in the picture at the top of the post. It was wonderfully empowering to imagine holding the Sword of Truth and the simple act of dressing the Queen of Swords put me into full role-play swing, with the ‘Thou shalt not pass’ pose you see below as one of the results…
A firm believer in trying to embody the energy of each of the 78 Keys in order to know and understand them fully, I cannot recommend dressing up and acting as them highly enough. After this little exercise, which was really just fun and play, I finally felt comfortable owning my own inner Queen of Swords archetype – good AND bad, rather than just referring to myself as a bit queen-of-swordsy after I’d been shooting my mouth off.
Speaking of Archetypes… For the #julydeckbond Tarot challenge this month, I’m working with the Kingdom Within Tarot (UK Amazon affiliate link) and this deck just happens to feature the powerful Witch Goddess Hecate as the Queen of Swords. Pretty cool, huh? The three archetypes associated with the Queen of Swords according to the creators of this deck are Witch/Crone/Scapegoat.
Personally, I have always associated the Queen of Swords with Athena/Minerva but I can see how Hecate is a good fit too, especially for the Scapegoat archetype since Wise Women have been persecuted and badmouthed by Patriarchy for a few millennia now. And that’s not necessarily men hating women – it is women hating themselves to the point of hating other women and offering them up as a sacrifice too. Patriarchy did a number on both genders and the wonderfully wise Queen of Swords has often been seen numbered among the victims.
‘We are the grandchildren of the witches you didn’t manage to burn’ could be a meme for this card.
Elementally, the Queen of Swords corresponds with Water in Air. Astrologically, she is Libra (or last decan Virgo and first two decans of Libra according to some sources).
So how can we embody the Divine Feminine qualities found in the Queen of Swords card?
By…
- …seeking harmony within and balancing our divine masculine and feminine energy
- … focusing on becoming wise rather than just knowledgable
- …having kick-ass personal boundaries and using discernment about whom we invite into our life
- …fighting for truth and justice
- …honing our communication skills
- …not suffering fools gladly
- …decorating your living space for maximum, beauty, peace and harmony
- …nurturing those around us with words of encouragement
The Archangel associate with the Queen of Swords is Raguel, Angel of Harmony and Justice. Blue lace agate carries the vibration of this angel.
Items to place on your altar to help you embody more of the positive qualities of the Queen of Swords could include an owl statue or owl feathers, blue lace agate (harmony, communication) and lapis lazuli (wisdom), an emerald-green altar cloth (a nod to Venus, ruler of Libra), orange blossoms, a bowl of water, patchouli incense (also Venusian), a statue of Athena, Minerva or Hecate… and of course a Queen of Swords card of choice! Don’t be afraid to use your own imagination when it comes to decorating your Queen of Swords altar.
This Queen has a mind of her own and that’s also her blessing to you… Think for yourself!
I hope you have learned something new about the Queen of Swords here and that you will have fun enacting her. If you do try some role play, I totally want to see the picture evidence, so feel free to tag me @tarotize on Insta! Now please hop on over to Ethony’s blog where she will be presenting a Tarot spread to help you harness the energy of the King of Swords!
Comments 7
You make dressing up as the Queen of Swords look beautiful and fun 😀 I love this lady, seeing her as a woman who really reflects on life and all that she has experienced, as well as having firm, clear boundaries. Adored what you add in saying she nurtures with words of encouragement!
Author
Thanks, Chloe – It was fun. Emila (my big girl) and I did it together. She chose to pose as a Knight. All the Queens are capable of nurturing. I think you and I often try to do it through the written word which is a good fit with this particular Queen 🙂
Great article as usual 🙂 And yes your photos as the Queen of Swords complement the writing perfectly, the blue and purple, the sword and posture. Creative mon amie 🙂 xxx
Author
Thanks Oephebia! xxx
I love your embodiment of the Queen of Swords here, Lisa! Your expression in that second pic..wow. I totally agree with your observation about women offering each other up as sacrifice. That needs to be acknowledged and explored so much more. Thank you for your wise insights and teaching here. Honored to be a part of this blog hop with you.
xo kim
Author
Thanks Kim! xo
Totally enjoyed this post – and the photos are wonderful. You look quite good with blue hair. I particularly like the ‘Thou shalt not pass’ stance.