Ten of Wands
Freight
“You load sixteen tons, what do you get?”
Sixteen Tons, Tennessee Ernie Ford
Ten of Wands at a glance
Finbarre’s interpretation: The Ten of Wands shows success becoming a burden because too much has been carried by one person.
| Upright | heavy responsibility, completion under pressure, overcommitment, carrying a team, success with costs |
|---|---|
| Reversed | collapse under pressure, refusing help, chronic overload, resentment, dropped responsibilities |
| Linked card | Nine of Wands |
| Soundtrack | No Surprises by Radiohead Open the full Tarot Interviews playlist on Spotify |
Upright meanings
- Heavy responsibility
- Completion under pressure
- Overcommitment
- Carrying a team
- Success with costs
- Duty
- Concentrated effort
- A demanding final stage
- Accountability
- Work that must be redistributed
Reversed meanings
- Collapse under pressure
- Refusing help
- Chronic overload
- Resentment
- Dropped responsibilities
- Martyrdom
- Poor delegation
- Work without purpose
- Unnecessary struggle
- Release from a burden
Ten of Wands in a reading
| Area | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Love | Relationship energy: Duty. Reversed: Martyrdom. |
| Career | Work: Concentrated effort; a demanding final stage. Warning: Poor delegation. |
| Money | Financial theme: Accountability. Warning: Unnecessary struggle. |
| Feelings | Upright: Overcommitment. Reversed: Chronic overload. |
| Advice | Prioritise: Work that must be redistributed. Watch for: Release from a burden. |
| Outcome | Potential: Success with costs. Obstacle: Dropped responsibilities. |
| Yes or no | Yes, but the cost or workload must be reduced. |
Symbols in Ten of Wands
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| The bundled wands | Separate duties have become one difficult load. |
| The obscured face | The burden limits perspective and awareness. |
| The nearby town | Completion is close, which can justify one final effort but not endless overload. |
| The bent posture | The body records a cost that ambition may be ignoring. |
A. E. Waite's original description
A man oppressed by the weight of the ten staves which he is carrying.
Waite's original divinatory meanings
Upright:
A card of many significances, and some of the readings cannot be harmonized. I set aside that which connects it with honour and good faith. The chief meaning is oppression simply, but it is also fortune, gain, any kind of success, and then it is the oppression of these things. It is also a card of false-seeming, disguise, perfidy. The place which the figure is approaching may suffer from the rods that he carries. Success is stultified if the Nine of Swords follows, and if it is a question of a lawsuit, there will be certain loss.
Reversed:
Contrarieties, difficulties, intrigues, and their analogies.
Source: A. E. Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, first published in 1910, with illustrations by Pamela Colman Smith.
Continue through the deck
- Previous card: Nine of Wands
- Next card: Page of Wands
Written and interpreted by Finbarre Snarey, tarot researcher, founder of the British Tarot Archive and coordinator of the UK living heritage submission for Rider-Waite-Smith tarot reading practice.
These interpretations reflect Finbarre Snarey’s understanding of contemporary Rider-Waite-Smith tarot practice. They are provided for education, reflection and entertainment only and should not be treated as medical, legal, financial, psychological or relationship advice.
