Keywords
Competition, discord, petty squabbles
Element
Fire
Astrological Association
Aries, Leo, Sagittarius
THE CARD’S STORY BY: HEATHER HUDSON
Five of Wands is a card of struggle between equals. But battles between equals tend to be prolonged and wasteful. Wars between equal powers grind on as civilians die, cities are destroyed, money is spent and governments fall. Even domestic squabbles cause family members to refuse to speak to each other, awkward family dinners, money wasted on lawyers and nobody happy in the end. I’ve illustrated Tengu, legendary bird creatures of Japanese religion. They are contentious beings. Earliest Tengu were painted as anthropomorphized birds of prey, but my Tengu are smaller and, in their squabbling, less effectual. Fighting fiercely over something important only to themselves and, in the end, achieving nothing.
THE CARD’S MESSAGE BY TRISH SULLIVAN
As they try to find the best spot, conflict breaks out among Tengu. No one has been harmed, they’re content blocking each other with sticks and making a show of their prowess for now. Annoyances are coming, irritations and complaints will plague you. But petty issues, that prevent you moving forward rather than doing you harm. Remember that challenges and problems make you stronger, competition sharpens your skills. How you manage them is more important than the trials themselves. Rise above, take the higher ground and get on with things.
MYTHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION TENGU
In Japanese mythology and folklore, the Tengu are mythical creatures. They’re also sometimes considered to be Yokai, a spirit, supernatural creature, demon or monster, and a kami in Shinto religion. They are named for a dog-like demons, but show more bird-like characteristics. Like many Yokai, they are not the good guys. They originated as conflict-driven demons who were pests, but powerful enough to be a real issue, and over time their legends changed to suggest tricky, fairly menacing nature spirits instead. The level of conflict and tension within the legends makes them an ideal Five of Wands characterization.
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