The Eight Of Cups is a card of courage. It is recognizing that there is something missing in one's life and leaving behind a workable situation to find what the soul is yearning for.
When the Eight of Cups appears, there is no more joy in a situation, and there is a feeling of depression, of something missing. The sense of a void in the soul is so overwhelming that one does not want a situation that just works anymore. This is something that the person may have really worked hard at.
The cups in the card are not thrown away or discarded. They have been neatly arranged and someone took the time to do that. However, there is a space for a missing cup, and that is what the figure is seeking. Obviously, this recognition has not transpired overnight. Like the cups that have been arranged this is something that has been brewing for a while and has it a climax now. Every now and then we do lose our way.
The figure in this card does not know what he or she wants. All they know is that this current situation is what they don't want. The Eight of Cups is about the end of an era. Things cannot go on this way, as the dissatisfaction outweighs the material comfort or the comfort of the familiar.
The figure on the card has been questioning his choices and life and knows that he cannot live like this anymore and will have to go on to seek what his heart truly desires. This is the step at which one embarks on a personal quest to find and bring back what one's soul truly desires. This figure later becomes the hermit holding out the beacon of light and hope to others. It is said that having the courage to leave this situation behind has given him a new lease on life and he will return to the Nine of Cups with the additional cup which was the missing factor in his life.
This is a card of great courage. A lot of people are content to live in a situation that is unhappy and depressing because they are scared of change. This situation has eaten away at the figure who has used this misery, to set himself free and take his chances out there in the unknown, and to give himself a shot at happiness, rather than wilt and let his spirit die.
Every great journey begins with a single step and the turning up of the Eight Of Cups shows that you have begun that journey.
Meditation on the Eight Of Cups
“Don't be afraid of the future as it's always uncertain. Your mind and hands together can make your future better. So, don't spend time thinking while doing nothing.” ― Giridhar Alwar, My Quest For Happy Life
What is it that you are leaving behind?
Do you know what you are searching for?
If not, do you know with surety what you do not want?
If this Resonates with You Take A Class or Book A Reading.
Images Used on The Site. Illustrations from the Rider-Waite Tarot Deck, known also as the Rider Tarot and the Waite Tarot, reproduced by permission of U.S. Games Systems, Inc., Stamford, CT 06902. c. 1971 by U.S. Games Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. The Rider-Waite Tarot deck is a registered trademark of U.S. Games Systems, Inc