I am the Master of my fate; the Captain of my soul
– Invictus, William Ernest Henley

Power, containment, compassion, confidence, courage,

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Overview

The audacity to do what is right at the expense of comfort

Internal Strength and will against all odds, find the courage to step forward into the unknown. Strength is the coming together of your primal instinct, human logic wrapped together with nurturing empathy. Selflessly serving because you feel it’s right while knowing the risk of being bitten, hurt or scorned. The act of bravery and power is a beneficial thing to know and will come naturally with all you learn about survival.

Symbolism

A Yellow sky meets blue mountains which trickle down into a plane with sparsely rooted trees. The plane leads to a woman who is seen in white robes. An infinity symbol floats over her ivy crown which also belts her waist with blooming flowers. In her hands is the head of an orange lion; one on its skull and the other on its jaw as if parting its teeth. The Lion shows signs of submission to her, seen in his tail between his legs, ears back, eyes locked, and chest lowered to the ground.

Meaning

Dealing with Conflicts

Exactly as it sounds, Strength is the will to persevere and survive while nurturing courage over cowardice. Reach into yourself and find the courage to deal with your conflicts no matter how big or small. You feel in control now more than ever before. Reign in your anxious thoughts, puff up your chest and imagine what could be gained here. The experience to be had is far greater than any failure in your anxious arsenal.

Doing the Right thing

Doing what is right while completely out of your comfort zone is what this card resonates with. Such as holding your tongue in an emotionally charged situations; or when angry words bubble up your throat like heart burn. Here you are reminded that your words don’t always work against egos trying to prove a point. Strength in your instincts, self-confidence and awareness of consequences is more valuable than the last word.

Fortitude

In its most broad sense, there is something you have to do that requires true grit. Whether it’s rolling up your sleeves and doing tough work, or finding the means to keep working hard at something. Strength is the card symbolizing the ability to persevere.

Wrangling the internal beast

Just like the woman holding the jaws of the Lion, Strength is a symbol to tame the forces inside of you. Whether it’s unkempt rage, or scattered focus; the strength card asks you to channel your animalistic energies into something positive. It’s another form of internal alchemy.

Licking your wounds

Sometimes, looking in the mirror is the most difficult part of our journey. During times when our internal animals are wounded, it maybe time to turn inward and heal ourselves. This is a symbol to do the tough internal work to make yourself better for everyone around you.

Alchemize your Nervous System

In my personal journey, I’ve found that strength is the call to turn nervous energy into forward movement. If you’re struggling with a fight/flight/freeze response to a situation, this is a good time to learn how to take that effect and turn it towards a righteous cause.

Influence on Suites

During a reading, pay attention to the majority of the cards that are present. Depending on the number of Tarot cards of each suite, the meaning of the card can take a different shape.

If Strength is surrounded by the suit of cups it’s a sign to roll up your sleeves. In order to have deep emotional fulfillment, we must go through the painstaking tasks of partnership. Learn to trust

Wands surrounding Strength is a sign of insecurity, of perceived weakness. Whatever you are unsure of, you need to believe in your abilities. The only limits are the ones you set on yourself.

Pentacles in a reading with Strength asks you to ask the tough questions and read the fine print. Consider the terms and conditions before signing onto something. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is Use your instinct and experience to figure out what’s throwing your red flag.

Swords with the Strength card asks you to use your mind. Logic is essential in this situation. While instinct if valuable, weighing the pros and cons is essential. Think your way through loop holes to the most logical conclusion.

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Strength Reversed

“No Man is Free who is not Master of Himself”
-Epictetus

Doubt, imbalance, misused power burnout

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In the Reversed position, you can turn the meaning of Strength upside down and inside out, or it can be perceived as something else. Reversed cards can be read a few different ways. If you want to know the source of the concept of why this card is defined the way it is, check out the article “Reading Reversals” in Chapter 6 of this knowledge base.

If you simply want to know the reason and not the method of deciphering, here are some possible ways to read the card in reversed.

Meaning

Indecisiveness

There’s a tough choice you have to make, that seems impossible even after weighing the pro’s and cons. The Strength in this position is urging you to trust your gut in this situation.

Inability to do what you know is right

You know what you should do, what you’re supposed to do, but you can’t do it. Whether that’s an apology, being the bigger person, or admitting your part in a conflict. Regardless of the conclusion, you are being urged to choose the morally upright path.

Emotional dysregulation

You’re all out of sorts. You know how you should feel, but you feel a different way. This is skewing an internal balance within you, which normally keeps you grounded. Try to find a moment to gather yourself.

Alternatively this could mean you’re allowing your emotions to lead when your logic and actions are the most necessary faculties you should focus on.

No internal support systems

When things fall apart externally, it’s turbulent internally. When it comes to calamity of any sort, it sends shockwaves through your system. There’s a failing in the way you manage your stress.

Having an outlet in fitness is prevalent in this card. Whether your feet beat the ground or you beat on a bag, find a way to channel the discord into an alternate source.

Tapping out in the last round

Don’t give up yet, you are one minor step away from achieving a goal. This is the last of the obstacles, and all it will take is you continuing to forge forth to reach the end.

This is the final countdown. You have it in you to pull yourself up and keep going, but you may refuse to. This is especially the case if the Nine of Wands is present near the strength reversed card. If you really wanted it— you could. Yes you’re exhausted and beat to hell— but if you really wanted to you would.

Fear

A lack of courage is stopping you from the conclusion. Whether a fear of rejection or of a future endeavor, you must be brave. You are avoiding something critical that requires your attention.

Nervous System breakdown

This is a little more than a full blown panic attack. It’s one of those needs to turn inward and have internal strength to keep going. There could be some kind of trauma that you need to sort through which keeps popping up in your life.

Find some time for catharsis, and try to identify your mental symptoms. Journal, describe how you’re feeling, what’s going on in your head. Potentially even look into therapy. You are facing something tough that is going to take extreme introspection if you’re capable, of feedback from a professional. Sometimes a concrete diagnosis is all the evidence you need to know you’re not you when you’re crazy.

Remaining out of comfort

Either you’ve outgrown something, or something has outgrown you. The Strength reversed indicates that you are too comfortable to move forward. It’s not necessarily complete cowardice, or lack of wherewithal, but it’s a moment of peace that saturated too deeply. Even if something is no longer serving you, or you no longer it— you are refusing to move forward because you want a few more moments of peace.

Remember, an object in motion likes to stay in motion; an object at rest likes to stay at rest. Stop digging your heels and become and object in motion.