I’m feeling really tired today. Just mentally and physically worn out. It’s tough to get the motivation to do anything, and I feel like I needed a crow bar to pry me out of bed this morning. But I have kids, so that is not an option. My question for the cards today is, “What do I need to know about my body and mind today?” It seemed like a good question to help tune into those elements of my body. The card that I pulled today was… Seven of Pentacles REVERSED. Dun dun dunnnnn. So here we gooooo.

I had to flip the card over so that I could actually see what was going on. So at first glance, it’s a man standing with a ho. He’s leaning on it, and to be honest, he looks tired. Same my man! High five! He’s stooped over, and looking at a large plant, and on that plant are six pentacles. There’s on pentacle that’s sitting at his feet, almost like there was no room left on the plant, and it’s fallen off. The card feels very… bountiful. And it feels like the man has spent a lot of time tilling the soil, planting the seeds, and caring for the plant. It seems like maybe that’s what’s made him tired. But he’s tired in like a proud way. Like, “wow, that was A LOT of work, but you know what, look at all of this abundance!” and then he pats himself on the back. There’s also a mountain range in the distance, and it’s funny because it comes to a peak right in between his spread legs, which is interesting. Also, there is not a cloud in the sky. But it’s odd, because there’s also not a sun in the sky. In terms of the card being in the reversed position, it does look a bit like he’s less happy, and more just tired tired. It also looks like the pentacles are about to fall, which doesn’t see good.

What does it mean?

So the Pentacles are a suit in the Minor Arcana. They deal with the physical or external level of consciousness and thus mirror the outer situations of your health, finances, work, and creativity. They have to do with what we make of our surrounds, how we create it, shape it, transform it, and grow it. The card meanings cover material aspects of our life including work, business, trade, property, money, and other material possessions. On a more esoteric level, Pentacles are associated with the ego, self-esteem, and self-image.

The positive aspects of the suit of Pentacles include things like, manifestation, realization, proof, and prosperity. The negative aspects can include things like being possessive, greedy, overly materialist, over-indulging and not exercising, not effective managing ones finances, and being overly focused on career to the detriment of other like priorities. Often what is required to counteract these negative aspects is a return to nature to ground oneself and rediscover what is truly important.

The suit is also associated with the element of Earth. Earth is tactile, earthy, and tangible. It creates the foundation from which the planet can grow and develop, and it supports and nurtures the plants and trees. Earth is grounded, stable, supportive, and fertile. It is a feminine element that is receptive. It takes in nutrients and sun light and then uses this energy to sustain life that grows out of it. It is also representative of the astrological earth signs – Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn. When you see a Pentacles Court Card in a Tarot reading, it often relates to a person with one of those star signs. Generally Pentacle people are practical, career-minded, down-to-earth, and generous. They are tactile beings and like the experience the physical, tangible world. They are connected trough the senses and seek pleasurable and sometimes indulgent experiences.

Should a Tarot reading be predominantly Pentacles, you are seeking solutions to what are primarily material conflicts, financial matters, and concerns with career and work.

In the Seven of Pentacles, a man leans on his hoe, gazing down at his abundant crop. He has worked long and hard to nurture tiny seeds in this thriving garden and can now take a break to enjoy the fruits of his labor. Note the expression in his face, however: he also looks fatigued – even a little ‘over it’ – from having worked to hard for this successful harvest. Success comes from hard work, and patient, but this card reminds you to take care not to overdo it and exhaust yourself.

In the reversed position this card suggests your efforts may be scattered at this time and you are questioning whether you are investing in the right areas. You may outlay some initial money on things that will not produce ‘fruit’. Or, what you thought would make you happy is creating stress and anxiety and isn’t worth the effort. Examine where you are investing our time, energy, and resources to make sure you are satisfied with your current progress and receiving those investments. Use a prioritization system to ensure you do not waste precious resources on areas that will not deliver results.

Similarly, the reversed Seven of Pentacles suggests that even though you may continue to invest a lot of energy into a specific situation, you may not reap the rewards you are loking for. As such, this card calls on your to prioritize your activities carefully. You need to do a cost-benefit analysis of the major tasks involved to bring your project to fruition, as some are taking a lot of your time and energy without bearing the rewards you are seeking. For example, email and meetings are colossal time waster if not used effectively. Take stock of what you still need to do to get where you want to be. Apply your focus.

As a critical strength, the the reversed Seven of Pentacles can show that you know when to stop investing in something when you see little return. Some people are inclined to keep ‘toughing it out’, just because they spent time, energy, or money and don’t want to admit defeat. However, you are adept at identifying when a situation is no longer delivering you any value and know when to pack it in and try something else.

In a relationship reading this card reversed indicates you’ve been working very hard on laying the foundations for your relationship but now worry that you will lose all of it. You may also feel frustrated that the relationship is not progressing or growing as quickly as you had hoped, especially when you put in so much time and energy. Sometimes you can pour your heart and soul into something that comes with no guarantees. You may come to the realization that this relationship just is not worth your time, no matter how much you try.

Thoughts

So I’m a bit confused here…. There are some aspects that I understand, clearly there is something in my life that I’m spending a lot of time and energy on and I’m not seeing a return on it. It’s draining my battery and not really providing me any value. OR I think maybe it could be the relationship that I have with my health. I work hard, but I’m not seeing the progress as quickly as I’d hoped.

I did end up drawing a clarifying card, asking, “What are you in reference to?” for the initial card and ended up pulling Justice. At it’s core, Justice is about the search for truth, and I’m on a journey to learn the truth about myself, and why I am the way I am. It often appears when you need to make an important choice, and I’m in a point in my life where I feel like I’m making a lot of those. I need to align with my inner intuition. Honestly, I think this has to do with the relationship I have with my health. I know I need to take better care of myself both physically and mentally. I’ve really been burning the candle at both ends. I worked out almost every single day last week, and as a result I’m feeling worn down.

I recognize this, and the reason that I’m feeling so tired is because of that. I’m going to hard, and it is not sustainable, which is a pattern I fall into a lot. I go hard, and then if I can’t be perfect, then forget doing it. And that’s not the reality I want to live anymore. I am the one that makes decisions about my life, and those decisions have consequences. It’s time that I face those consequences and work towards a sustainable level of physical and mental health.