The figure on this card is turning away from the chalices; he is moving on, away from an old situation that no longer serves him. He is rejecting the emotional burden that is portrayed on this card by the swamp around him. The swamp is an appropriate image of stagnant energy, old habits and emotional attachments. Where there is no longer a flow of energy, only stagnation and death are possible. This card speaks of our relationship with the past. It also signifies the breaking of our connection with the past. Maybe we were imprisoned in an "everything was better in the past" way of thinking, and that was detrimental to our present efforts. Maybe we have found a new direction in life that brings us more motivation and new energy.
On the card
Under a night sky, a figure in a red cloak walks away from us, leaning on a staff, heading towards a range of barren, rocky hills. In the foreground stand eight cups, stacked carefully in two rows, five below and three above, with a visible gap where another cup might have stood. Water lies at the edge of the scene. Above, the moon looks down with a closed, sorrowful face, a crescent held within the full disc.
The cups are neatly arranged; nothing has been spilled or broken. This is not a flight from disaster but a deliberate leaving of something that was built with care and yet no longer feels complete. The gap in the stack hints at what is missing, the reason the traveller cannot stay. The staff shows that this is a long journey, perhaps a pilgrimage, and the rocky hills ahead promise no easy road. The moon, ruler of feelings and cycles, watches the departure at night, the hour of introspection and quiet decisions. The red cloak gives the walker warmth and resolve. The card shows the courage it takes to walk away from what is familiar in search of something deeper.
Upright
Positive change, breaking of ties, new development, new direction, rejecting the old for something new, turning point.
Reversed
Dissatisfaction, recklessness, restlessness, unrealistic goals, material attachment, delusion.