The Ace of Swords (Tarot Triptych)
Name: Ace of Swords
Number: 1
Astrology: Air
Qabalah: Kether of Vau
Chris Gabriel April 12, 2025
The Ace of Swords is the card of inspiration. It is the air we inhale and the divine ideas which are given to us. Here is the perfect image of a dual crown pierced by a sword.
In Rider, a hand comes forth from a cloud bearing a sword. The sword holds up a crown upon which two laurels sit, one is fuller than the other. The landscape is barren and mountainous. Six yellow yods float about the hilt.
In Thoth, we have Crowley’s own sword, green in color with a hilt made of the waxing and waning moons, between which two spheres sit. Its blade bears the word θέλημα (Thelema, or Will). The crown which it penetrates has 22 rays, one for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The background is a cloudy night made bright by the sword.
In Marseille, we are shown a hand holding a great red sword piercing a crown. Two distinct branches grow from the crown. Many yods emanate from the sword.
Napoleon said “I found the crown of France in the gutter. I picked it up with the tip of my sword, and cleaned it, and placed it atop my own head.”
Here,the crown is raised by the sword, the dual drives of nature lifted up by Intelligence. In each representation, the crown is dual, formed by the Yin and Yang of Water and Fire - the elements which precede Air, and are more base in nature. This is also the two lungs, the two hemispheres of the brain, and so on. Fire and Water are universals, but Air is peculiar, ubiquitous but invisible, and we each breathe our own yet we all share. The Ace of Swords we see the beginning of “Individuality” in the deck.
While God moves the Universe with light and dark, he moves individuals with his breath. The Greek word for “Inspiration” is θεόπνευστος which literally translates to God-breathed. It is through Pneuma, the divine breath, that we are given our destiny.
The Sword is the image of the divine intellect which pierces the mystery of nature. While fire, earth, and water are visible, air is invisible, and so the Sword, which cuts through the air, is chosen. With our intellect we can cut up our simple perceptions and make sense of what is happening around us. Through this we begin to categorize and understand, to think, and to create our own ideas, to craft our own swords. In the material world, this is the weapon we lead with to achieve.
The Ace of Swords is like the cartoon light bulb above a head, it is a eureka moment, when God-given ideas are breathed into us. Yet, it can also be a terrible idea, which as a sword, pierces our brain. Macbeth’s indecision is put to an end by his vision of a dagger.
In a mundane deck of playing cards the Ace of Swords becomes the Ace of Spades, the most notorious card in the deck. To all superstitious gamblers, it means death. Alejandro Jodorowsky says that a poker deck is a tarot deck stripped of Divinity; the 22 majors and the 4 faces of the Tetragrammaton. At this level, the Sword is only something to kill with.
When we pull this card we can expect success, we will receive inspiration, and cut through confusion and indecision. But be careful, the sword is double edged and will just as easily divide us if we are not moving with will.
