Welcome to Tarot Thursdays! This week we will be exploring the Five of Pentacles and how it can be used as a prompt or brainstorming in our writing.

Tarot is an interesting thing. It’s based upon symbolism and metaphors through imagery. With these images the subconscious mind is tapped into through the story provided. Not everyone gets the same thing from a piece of art. Each piece will influence each person in a slightly different way.

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Introduction of the Card

The Five of Pentacles is card number 68 in the deck and the fifth card of the Pentacles Suit in the Minor Arcana of the Tarot.

Let’s take a look at the following examples of this card below.

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Card Examples

Notice the similarities between them and take note of their differences. Do any of these move you more than the others? Take your time and allow these cards to tell you their story.

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My Analysis of These Cards

In the Mythic Tarot, the man appears to have been cast out from the building and is now walking alone down the hill with only the clothes on his back. The dragon in the Dragon Tarot is also alone and appears to be lost in solving the labyrinth below. In the Universal Tarot, the figures are not alone but they are stuck outside in the cold with no help. And in the Tarot of Dreams, and old woman is also outside in the cold with a baby in her care with no assistance as well.

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Themes of the Card

Each card has a set of keywords associated with it that serve as themes for its image. These keywords will vary somewhat depending on who you ask.

According to the Learning the Tarot website, the keywords associated with the card are:

• HARD TIMES
• ILL HEALTH
• REJECTION

You can learn more about what this site has to say about this card here.

According to the Biddy Tarot website, the keywords associated with the card are:

• ISOLATION
• INSECURITY
• WORRY
• FINANCIAL LOSS
• POVERTY

You can learn more about what this site has to say about this card here.

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What this Card Means to Me

This card represents tangible, concrete hard times that we can visibly see. We can certainly feel the pain that comes from it, but the struggle is one that exists in the physical realm in some way. We need help with something but no one is available to offer it. We lack resources with no place to find it. We’ve run out of something we desperately need.

In the classic tales of Robin Hood, these were the people the hero was trying to help. Those that had fallen into hard times due to the tyranny of the prince and the sheriff.

The keyword I choose for this card is: POVERTY.

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Music Playlist

In this spirit of all this, these are the songs I have picked out for this card.

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The Writing Exercise

This exercise is a free write. Permit yourself to write whatever comes to mind based upon the theme of this card. Choose a keyword or key phrase and run with it to see what you come up with.

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I would love it if you linked or pinged back what you wrote so I could see where you went with this.

Happy writing!

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Mythic Tarot by Liz Greene (Author), Juliet Sharman-Burke (Author), Tricia Newell (Illustrator) © 1989
Dragon Tarot by Terry Donaldson (Author), Peter Pracownik (Author) © 1996
Universal Tarot by Lo Scarabeo (Author), R. De Angelis (Illustrator), A. E. Waite (Designer) © 2001
Tarot of Dreams by Ciro Marchetti (Author), Lee Bursten (Author) © 2015