The woman on the card has taken a symmetrical pose with two swords in her hands. This brings out the motif of stalemate, of two equal forces facing each other, as the essence of this card. We can sense balance in her pose. She is blindfolded, and her arms are crossed over her heart. Maybe these swords are guarding something in her heart, something she cannot or does not want to see? This card often portrays strife between two people, usually partners, where each side thinks the other is guilty. The duality of this card suggests that usually both sides are guilty; it all depends on one's position or, as we could say, on the eye of the beholder. There is a Moon in the sky, perhaps the mark of the broadened perception of The High Priestess. That detail and the great body of water behind her give this card a watery mark, clearly suggesting that intuition is at work here: this woman may feel more than she can see with her eyes.
On the card
A woman in a long white robe sits on a stone bench by the sea at night. Her eyes are covered with a blindfold, and her arms are crossed over her chest, each hand holding a long sword that rises above her shoulders, so the two blades form a wide, balanced cross. Behind her the sea is calm, with a few rocks breaking the surface. A pale crescent moon hangs in the sky above.
Everything in this picture is held in careful balance. The two swords are equal in weight and length, and as long as she keeps her arms crossed and still, neither can fall. But this balance comes at a cost: she cannot move without disturbing it, and with the blindfold she cannot see her way out. Her crossed arms guard her heart, closing it off from whatever lies before her. She sits with her back to the water, the realm of feelings, and the moon above, a symbol of intuition and of things half seen, suggests that the answer she seeks may come from within rather than from what the eyes can see. The scene is peaceful on the surface, but it is the peace of a decision not yet made.
Upright
Balance, a truce or compromise, resolved differences, harmony.
Reversed
Stalemate as a result of indecision, delayed decisions, duplicity, misrepresentation, running away from a problem, blocked emotions.