Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.”
— Napoleon Hill
Grief, regret, disappointment, loss focus, concentrating on loss
Overview
Let down by your own expectations
I warned you about expectations with the last card, didn’t I? You’ve been fully let down by them, and spilled the cups the universe was so diligent to offer you. This is the definition of crying over spilled milk.
Trust me when I say to cut your losses, there are better things out there. Yes, this may be the best you’ve ever had— but it’s not the end of the world or your life. There will be more opportunities to come, and better things to experience. Just turn around, not all is lost. While you may have sacrificed almost everything to those three cups, two still remain standing.
Symbolism
A grey sky meets the green earth, which holds what seems to be an impassable river with a turbulent stream. The stream stretches into the horizon, meeting a waterfall situated between two rocks. The stream undoubtedly carved its way through the stone to create these rocky peaks. On the skyline the bombed out remains of a castle sits on the hillside.
In the foreground a man adorned in black stands between two sets of cups. Before him, three cups are spilled over, two with wine and one with water. His back is turned on two additional cups which still remain upright.
Meaning
This is a loss. Ultimately, the majority of the suit or the major arcana surrounding this card indicates what kind of loss you are facing. This is one of the few times Death COULD symbolize actual death, though more likely— it’s the grief of the natural ending of something that has fully played its part in your life especially with a lot of other cups present.
Grief
So much was lost in your time navigating your turbulent emotions. You could have handled that situation more gracefully, and perhaps you would not have lost so much. Regardless, grief is a fact of life. Though don’t trip over the blessings behind you and spill those when you finally turn away from the pain.
Regret
You could have handled a situation better, and are deep in regret for how you behaved. Could you have salvaged those spilled goblets if you had just handled things differently? Perhaps, but there’s no use crying over it now. Reflect on the situation, and you won’t slight so many of your opportunities in the future
Disappointment
Things didn’t turn out the way they were supposed to, or that’s what you’ve convinced yourself at least. You had big plans for those goblets of wine and water, you were going to share them with the world. Alas, they’ve spilled, and now you’re coming home with less than you bargained for
This can be seen in many ways, but ultimately you counted your chickens before they hatched and there’s a pied piper to be paid.
Pessimism
Loss is a reality we all live with, but brooding over it will not bring the dead back to life nor will it put water back into the cups. Look on the bright side, you have two hands, and two chalices left. That’s the perfect amount to carry without spilling anything more. Just watch your step so you don’t knock the other two over in your exit.
Lacking focus / concentrating on Loss
Due to your focus on the past, you’re refusing to make concrete plans into the future. The grief is fogging your brain, you are unsure of life without three additional cups with you. Look at the facts of the situation, reflect on what you could have done better.
Bad Memory Loop
Stuck in a whirlpool of pessimistic thoughts, you are not sure where things went wrong to begin with. Re-watching the situation over and over, looking for hidden meanings, foot notes that you failed to read coded in things they said that at one point made you smile. You are stuck on rinse cycle, lost at how things can be so good, end so horribly, and you never even saw it coming. The feelings you are holding about this situation are filling your light with shadow. There is a dark cloud of anxiety, anger or chaotic energy whirling inside.
Let down by expectations
Things did not go as planned, but how often do they actually go the way they expect? Things don’t always roll out flawlessly. Maybe you were betrayed, or disappointed in the person behind the mask. While you should be taking steps to move on, you are sitting under your dark cloud feeling sorry for yourself. It’s not doing you any favors, and misery loves company. Stop giving your energy to this thing and start moving forward, this corpse is not honorable enough to drag.
Brooding
This card can be seen in brooding. It’s negative feelings about a situation, or someone which is soaked in disappointment. It’s creating animosity, and negative feelings that are stirring inside of you and creating pressure. Let it go, it’s not worth it.
Five of Cups Reversed
“The wound is the place where the Light enters you.”
— Rumi
Healing, acceptance, emotional recovery, moving on.
Overview
The Five of Cups reversed is on the positive end of the spectrum. It means you’ve come to terms with your grief and you are coming out of the cycle of such.
Due to the cups appearing to the right of the image, this could also appear as a warning sign that things are about to get rocky. While the cups haven’t spilled yet there maybe a time when they will. The Five of Cups is asking you to be strong in this loss, or avoid any missteps to avoid it happening all together. Be cautious in your dealings and relationships and you won’t have to experience the loss at all.
Meaning
Avoiding the worst
Look on the bright side, you could have gone straight down that waterfall and met your watery demise. Instead, it’s behind you now. You narrowly avoided disaster
Healing, Emotional Recovery
You are finally seeing the other side of a hard situation and coming to terms with how it ended. You’ve taken your responsibility, or not, and you simply don’t relent your mind with thoughts of it anymore.
In the times it does come to mind, it doesn’t bring so much pain. Express your gratitude for overcoming your loss. Commemorate the good, and leave this chapter in the past where it belongs
Acceptance,
Accepting your part in the downfall is crucial to seeing the silver lining. Assess the situation for what it is, what happened, and how you played your role in its ending. Even if you did the best you could with what you had at the time, and you tried your hardest to keep it all together, does not mean that your best was enough.
Consider the fact that your best would have never of been enough. All you can do is take responsibility for being a participant in the spilling of the cups. Even if it was truly an accident, and not something pre-meditated, or a decision that you made which was poorly calculated, you can walk away with you conscious free of guilt.
Though, if a decision you know was one that would end you up in hot water if you were caught— that’s all on you and presents a much heavier burden to bare.
Moving on
Despite the emotional toll it took on you, you are moving forward in your life. Go forth and be known for greater things. This was a mountain to overcome.
