Sagas Among the Arcana: Comparing the Nine of Swords

The Nine of Swords is Drawn

Last year I took a class on Tarot Cards with David Burkam (you should definitely check the class out, it was super fun!), and for an assignment, I actually made a tarot card of my own . . .

It was for the Nine of Swords!

So since I’m not feeling super creative today I thought I would compare my version of the Nine of Swords to the ones in my decks.

This card is from White Numen: A Sacred Animal Tarot, by AlbaBG. I had this deck at the time of my assignment, so naturally, my version of the card is most similar to this. I didn’t include any swords — which are typically present in the card — in my version since my assignment forced me to focus on a single image. I chose to focus on the sleeping woman.

The Tarot of the Divine version, by Yoshi Yoshitani, deviates from usual depictions, with how the “sleeping woman” character is actually not laying in a bed. However, this particular deck coincides cards with myths and legends from around the world, so the interpretation fits by making the Nine of Swords the Oracle of Delphi. The Nine of Cards signifies nightmares and visions, playing well with the Oracle’s role as a seer.

The Murder of Crows Taro card, by Corrado Roi, portrays the person as awake instead of asleep. Yet the image is definitely nightmarish. I also like how the swords are imprinted on the bed sheet.

Admittedly, looking at all these cards now makes me realize that I missed the mark on representing anything nightmare-invoking, I made it too dreamy-looking for that. But if I ever try to make my own card again, I’ll know what to watch out for!