Bohemian Gothic Tarot
FIVE OF WANDS
Lighter or more conventional meanings
Struggles and skirmishes * Quarrels over trivialities * Hassles, petty annoyances * Feeling irritated and beset by annoying people * Getting drawn into pointless battles.
Darker, shadow or more hidden meanings
A fight that seems serious, but might prove not to be * An uneven struggle * Battling against inner demons * Ganging up on someone * Getting caught up in a lot of nasty squabbles.The Five of Wands is a card that usually indicates the kinds of everyday nuisances that can sap so much of our energy. In the Bohemian Gothic version, though, we see a scene that looks a lot more serious than a mere hassle. Four ghouls are materialising around a hooded figure. He stands at the ready, mace in hand, as they approach. Clearly, there is going to be a hard fight - or is there? Pause a moment and consider the fact that while these creatures look horrific they are in fact quite insubstantial. It's possible that the man knows that they can't really harm him and is not expecting much of a struggle. Sometimes the best way to deal with silly quarrels and pointless arguments is to see them for what they really are - petty and ultimately unimportant. It can be hard to remember this when we get drawn into emotive situations but often, if we just stay calm and cool, there is not a whole lot to worry about.
At its darkest though, this card can indicate annoyances and disputes that go on and on and sap your energy, so that you can't see a clear way to get free of them. It can also suggest that you may be picking fights when you don't need to. In either case, the advice is to try to withdraw from it all for a while in order to disentangle yourself both practically and mentally. Calm down, take some time out and ask yourself if the continuing arguments are really achieving anything. It doesn't matter who started it or what the rights and wrongs are, perhaps it's now time to let it go and move on.
