The person on the card is under a great burden. It looks as though his life is not too easy; he is probably a serf required to work for the lord of the manor. We can even see a manor house in the background. This is a very unusual ending to the Wands suit. But if we understand that the wands represent fire, the element that is often destructive and out of control, then we can see that mastery of fire is indeed taming it. There are many ways to interpret this card: maybe you are trying too hard, with no results; maybe the burden is some old project that will never bring any results; sometimes the burden signifies the expectations other people have of you when you are successful. Although it is never easy, sometimes one must accept defeat. The fire element is especially involved in ego-based dreams of glory and riches that are not grounded in reality. This card shows how it feels to be faced with the consequences of an ego-driven mentality for too long. People experience frustration, sadness and oppression even though their real situation is not so bad; their disappointment is.
On the card
A man walks across a ploughed field towards a house in the distance, carrying a large bundle of ten wands in his arms. The load is so heavy and awkward that he is bent forward under it, and the wands are held in front of his face, so that they block his view of the road ahead.
He carries all ten wands together rather than in smaller bundles. His back is towards us and we cannot see his face, only the strain in his posture. The house he is heading for is not far, set among trees, so the end of the journey is in sight.
The field and the buildings show that the work has a purpose: this is harvest, labour and the gathering of what has been grown. But the way he carries it shows that he has taken on more than he can comfortably manage.
The card is about responsibility and its weight. The success of the Wands suit has become a burden, and the energy that once made things grow is now spent simply on carrying them. It invites the question of what can be put down, shared or delegated before arriving home.
Upright
Commitment, perseverance; resolution is near, but not necessarily a positive one.
Reversed
Exhausted, misuse of talents, overworking, no results, difficulties, deception, ill health, struggle.