Seven of Swords - Faith

I think this card is one of the darkest in the Mythic Tarot Deck, an always give me a feeling of foreboding. Faith, betrayal, and deception are represented in the Seven of Swords as Orestes scaulks away under the hooded veil of darkness, by the light of the crescent moon. He is unsure and ambivalent about what he is doing.

In life we all come to some kind of a cross roads. Lacking faith and what Orestes is contemplating doing, as a means to an end, is a highly questionable goal, and amorality is not the best choice, because it's really like sitting on the fence, which reminds me of this quote.

 “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”― Edmund Burke


Knowing what Orestes is about to do, makes me wish someone would step in and stop him from making the worst mistake of his life. It is good to know that eventually Athene will come to his defense, later in the Ten of Swords, in spite of what he does, and that there is someone who cares enough to know that even Orestes needs forgiveness.

Having faith in myself, in others and in the God of my understanding is paramount if I'm to avoid betrayal and deception, something we are all capable of doing. It's especially easy to betray and deceive myself with dishonesty and not caring for myself. If I'm honest and loyal to myself, in all likelihood, I will be the same toward others.

Lack of faith is what I see as a cause of so many problems within the world, between human beings, and our relationship to all living things. Our earth is suffering because of our lack of faith, and this is reflected all around us, leaving us very short sighted.

 I am only one person, but my own, personal, individual power through faith should not be underestimated as a way to change myself and my world.