Two of Swords
Name: Peace, the Two of Swords
Number: 2
Astrology: Moon in Libra
Qabalah: Chokmah of Vau
Chris Gabriel December 28, 2024
The Two of Swords is the beginning of Thought. It is the mind taking its first steps; comparing and contrasting, balancing opposing ideas and finding peace. This is the card of the beauty that forms when we master this ability.
In Rider, we find a blindfolded woman balancing two swords in her hands. One faces left, the other right. She is seated, and behind her is a rocky shore. This is Lady Justice, for Justice is blind. It is evening, and a crescent moon sits in the sky above her.
In Thoth, we see two swords piercing a blue rose and crossing one another. The rose emits white geometric rays. Two miniature swords uphold the symbols for the Moon and Libra.
In Marseille, we have a central flower and two swords.
Sigmund Freud writes that “neurosis is the inability to tolerate ambiguity.” As a card of peace, the Two of Swords embraces ambiguity, duality, and finds the balance therein. Like riding a bicycle, continual movement is necessary to maintain true balance. One way to look at this card is like a Gyroscope or spinning top. It stands balanced and upright when in motion, but falls without it. Peace is not stationary, and certainly not permanent.
Beyond the mechanical gyroscope, the Two of Swords calls to mind a baby learning to take its first steps. Once learned and mastered, it will never be forgotten. The development of the Mind is similar, but immensely more difficult.
We must train the mind to engage without belief, without attachment and sentimentality. We must treat it as a tool, sharpening and honing it until, we achieve balance - then the flower starts to grow. This is the true beauty of the mind unpoisoned by belief, natural processes flourish.
A full mind can be polluted and congested with ideas that are not one’s own. A mind may be taken over by viruses for all manner of reasons. Our desires and fears can be hijacked, thoughts can be inserted in that we believe to be our own, and they then run freely with our bodies. This must be avoided if we want to create great things.
When pulling this card, we can expect a period of peaceful consideration, a lull in things. The hard work that we’ve put in before now grants us the freedom and time to think.
