The Five of Wands is a card that brings along tension and high-energy movement. It is typically a sign of being too busy to focus on anything else, but can also indicate competition, jealousy, or doing something against others for personal gain.
Five of Wands Keywords
Upright Keywords | Reversed Keywords |
Tension, petty arguments, hostile environment, high drama, lack of listening to others, competition, being too busy to focus on anything else, pressure, obstacles, and battling differences. | Acceptance of different beliefs and paths, trust and teamwork, coming to agreements and decisions, slowing down, finding solutions, internal conflicts, jealousy from others, harmony, avoidance, internal conflicts. |
Imagery & Symbolism
Five Men: The number 5 in numerology and tarot is symbolic of change, and the men being shown together but a bit scattered is a representation of high energy and tension.
Diverse Outfits: The diverse range of outfits is symbolic of each of these characters' differences in opinions and beliefs.
Leg Stance: If you notice the stances of these five characters, their legs are apart, stable, and rooted into the ground to give them a strong foundation. This is symbolic of their unwavering opinion.
Ground/Grass: The ground and grass are not scattered, and are almost flat, which is a positive sign that although their opinions have substance, there is a possibility of coming to an agreement or acceptance of differences.
Blue Sky: The sky is clear, and there are no chaotic clouds scattered about, which gives room for thinking and coming to solutions with a clear mindset about disagreements.
Five of Wands Tarot Card Meanings
UPRIGHT
The Five of Wands appearing in a general reading usually indicates a quick change of energy in your surrounding environment. The change in energy can typically cause tension and a sense of being too busy to be able to focus on anything else. It may also indicate doing too many things at once and losing focus on what is important.
REVERSE
The Five of Wands can indicate a coming together and cooperation after fights or arguments. This can be because of acceptance and forgiveness of personal conflicts or differences. The tension and higher energy will start to slow down, and solutions will be discussed. This can also indicate a period of exhaustion after a difficult fight.
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
UPRIGHT
The Five of Wands appearing in a love and relationship reading can indicate an increase in tension in relationships or loved ones. This may be a sign that there are small petty fights or arguments, and this can lead to competition or high-energy aggression.
This card can also indicate one person focusing on their own needs, and not caring about others or being selfless. There may be high drama going around in your environment, and it is important for you to not involve yourself in this, as it will escalate the drama. One person may be highly opinionated, or someone is not listening to the opinions of others.
REVERSE
The Five of Wands can suggest partnerships that are accepting of each other's differences and beliefs, which results in forgiveness and compassion. It is a sign of the resolution of issues and disagreements, so the tension in a relationship will begin to dissolve.
Alternatively, the Five of Wands can suggest avoiding arguments or disagreements to attempt to keep the peace within a relationship. In the long-term, this will start to build up tension if these issues are not resolved or faced.
CAREER, JOB & BUSINESS
UPRIGHT
The Five of Wands appearing in a job, career, or business meaning can indicate a high-energy working environment where everyone is focused on working on their own thing. There is likely to be highly independent energy, and also a lack of dependency and teamwork with each other.
The Five of Wands can also be a sign of competition in the workplace for promotions or some other reward - this can be supported by the Three of Pentacles. This can be seen as climbing the social ladder to build up a reputation, so it is important to be careful of any possible hostility or jealousy towards yourself or others. Alternatively, the Five of Wands can suggest misfortune around your passions, hobbies, and interests.
REVERSE
The Five of Wands can indicate teamwork or groups in a work environment coming together to create a successful project. It is possible that before this, there may have been disagreements and arguments, but they have now been dissolved and solutions have been found.
Alternatively, you may be avoiding high drama or conflict at work either by minding your business or not speaking up about something that you believe should be heard, causing an internal battle for yourself.
FINANCES & MONEY
UPRIGHT
The Five of Wands appearing in a financial reading can suggest being too busy earning money to focus on your finances. You may have multiple jobs in which you are running around for extra income and are struggling to balance. There may be a battle of gaining money against a person or group of people, which could be due to competition or a legal situation. This can also be a sign that those around you are not willing to share their money and are keeping it for their selfish desires – seeking to undermine you.
REVERSE
The Five of Wands can indicate finding solutions to stressful situations caused by your finances. This is also a sign that you can focus more on your finances and not stress about other factors influencing your life and holding you back. If other people are around you, it can be a sign of compromise and willingness to share finances in a joint effort - this could be due to multiple situations, such as weddings, funerals, medical bills, etc.
WELLNESS
UPRIGHT
The Five of Wands in a wellness reading can indicate that you may have workaholic tendencies, which are causing stress and could lead to burnout. It is important to slow down, as things are happening quite fast, and you may get more easily overwhelmed physically. It is important to stand your ground and stay focused, yet clear of any stress.
It can also indicate high blood pressure and high adrenaline due to being rushed and overwhelmed by so much going on. It is important to slow down and breathe. There may be arguments due to wellness issues and disagreements around what should and should not be done.
REVERSE
The Five of Wands can indicate wellness issues being resolved and solutions being found. It is a sign of people coming together to resolve health issues and collaborating in joint efforts. Alternatively, the Five of Wands in reverse can signify going through an internal wellness battle, but having too many issues going on to focus on your health, can be detrimental or make it worse in a long-term perspective.
