The Element of Air
Suit: Swords (sometimes Wands - see Fire).
Spirit, intellectual development, rationalisation, and inspiration come under the dominion of Air. Air encompasses areas of thought, such as science and logic, along with all forms of written, spoken and technological communication.
Everything ever done by anybody was the end result of the element of Air - someone had to think about it before it could happen! In Air we find the link to our spiritual needs, and when we know what our needs are we can apply our Will to manifest them into our mundane lives.
Imagine you are an artist - by perceiving your core (Air) you can visualise ideas (Water) and then use your Will (Fire) to direct your painting skills (Water again). The resulting painting (Earth) can be exchanged for money (also Earth). But it all started with Air.
The Swords suit tends to be dreaded by most people. This is because Swords can indicate emotional conflict, battles, disruption and difficulties. It also examines the process of creating trends in life - what we do today shapes how tomorrow will be. If we make a bad choice now, it will result in a bad outcome in the future. If we are not true to our inner needs, we will find ourselves forced to realign, often uncomfortably. And of course, if we do something dirty to someone else, it will find its way back to us sooner or later. In each case, the thought came first and the action followed.
Thought belongs to Air. What we think has an enormous impact on our life now and the life we are shaping. Natural laws ensure that if we perceive our True Will clearly, recognise our place in the world, and work with all we have to achieve our highest potential, then we will find ourselves sure and certain. If not, then we end up in conflict - with ourselves and with others - unhappy and dissatisfied.
You can perhaps see that when the less positive Swords appear in a reading, they indicate that the person in question is at not fulfilling their own function and is not pursuing their true needs. This naturally results in conflict. Our emotional reactions often show up around Swords, revealing our emotional reactions to what is going on, one which often clouds the rational logic of the Swords and acts to block us.
This then is Swords - connected with the spirit and the intellect, often indicating inner conflict and uncertainty, shrouded by emotions. Yet, as keepers of our own destiny, we can use Swords to recognise the areas of unhappiness and clear them out, leaving the way clear for us to achieve our highest potential.
