AUTHOR’S NOTE: In an old post of several years ago I mentioned a sidelight to the RWS version of this card that views the choppy surface to the right of the boat as driving it toward the calmer waters to its left and thus uneventfully on to the far shore. An interlude of “smooth sailing ahead” is the usual prediction. Although I didn’t think of it at the time, this wave action could instead be pushing it along the spiritually-daunting “left-hand path,” not a good way to go for those who aren’t esoterically savvy.

But this perception can be turned around by thinking of it more as a cerebral “left-brained” orientation* of the “analytical, logical and detail-oriented” kind. This aligns well with the intellectual inclinations of the suit of Swords, making for a rational approach to resolution of the matter at hand. In fact, the Thoth variant of this card is titled “Science,” which seems to fit my re-imagining perfectly. The Thoth image discards the nautical motif and conveys the perception of harmonized thought appropriate to its placement on the Qabalistic Tree of Life.

The mundane interpretation of this card as “travel over water” doesn’t usually figure into the psychological or spiritual scope of its influence, but here it seems highly relevant. Reversal stands the above scenario on its head: the boat is being driven toward the right and therefore the “right-brained” premise of emotional and intuitive fluidity in mind-work would be uppermost. However, in the meticulous, painstaking suit of Swords, this can be a creatively-barren trajectory, and the reversal places the seeker further out of touch with the original inspiration, not to mention the artistic muse.

I also think reversal could steer the boat back toward whence it came, and it will return to the departure point without having reached its destination. In practical terms this could mean an unrealized plan and aborted objectives but it could also signify a fresh start if the six swords in its path prove to be too overbearing. There may be too many “irons in the fire” or too many competing ideas in the hopper, and the mental burden is too great to enable forward progress. The boatman is heading back to the dock to offload a few of them and then set out again.

*This assumption has been debunked by modern research and is now regarded as largely mythical except in the area of non-verbal visualization, but it does offer a good “talking-point” for this essay.