Five of Cups

Upright Meaning

A cloaked figure stands with bowed head, mourning three spilled cups. Behind them — unseen — two cups remain standing. A bridge crosses a river toward a castle in the distance. This is the card of grief and loss, but with a crucial detail that most people miss on first reading: not everything is lost. The figure's anguish is real and valid. But the two cups behind them and the bridge ahead mean that recovery is possible. The Five of Cups doesn't ask you to stop grieving. It asks you to eventually turn around.

Reversed Meaning

Reversed, the Five of Cups signals the beginning of recovery. You're turning around, seeing the two cups that remain, noticing the bridge. Grief doesn't disappear — it integrates. The reversed Five says you're ready to carry your loss forward without being consumed by it. This is quiet courage.

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