PROJECTS • TAROT

10 of Cups

Joy, fulfillment, overwhelming emotion, giddiness

Range of meanings

Light: Having more than you ever dreamed. Being deeply thankful for all you’ve been given. Recognizing the Hand of God in the gifts the Universe brings your way. Experiencing transcendent joy. Achieving domestic bliss.

Shadow: Comparing your achievements or relationships to unrealistic fantasy standards. Experiencing emotions so intense they blunt your ability to cope with reality. Feeling overwhelmed. Envying the achievements and happiness of others.

Questions to ask

  1. In your situation, what’s been promised? Who has a promise to keep? What will it take to fulfill that promise?
  2. Who gets to define what “joy” consists of?
  3. What course of action is available when you feel overwhelmed?
  4. How might vows or promises play a role in achieving a greater level of joy in your life?

Advice

Personal Growth: Gratitude enhances success. While celebrating your achievements, remember to give credit to those who helped you achieve it. Overwhelm others with sincere recognition, and you’ll find yourself surrounded by an army of eager supporters.

Work: Fulfilling work is rare indeed. Be careful how you define success; don’t get so caught up in reaching the next goal that you forget to celebrate your achievements so far. Feeling overwhelmed? Take time out to count your blessings and realign your work with what matters most.

Relationships: Having it all may be a matter of perspective. Rather than pursue a fantasy romance, decide what you really want and need. Your relationship doesn’t require anyone else’s stamp of approval. Do what delights you, and be grateful for what you have.

Spirituality: While we may glimpse nirvana in meditation, maintaining a constant state of bliss may prove to be an unrealistic goal. Delight in the small steps you take along the Path. Don’t be overly concerned with spiritual arrival; enjoy the journey.

Fortune-Telling: Marriage and family are in the cards. Expect a friendship to blossom into a romance.

Associations

Astrological: Pisces

Planet: Mars

Fool's Journey: The main character finds himself or herself in a relationship more fulfilling or intense than expected.

The Number 10: The End: finality, completion, the end of a cycle.

Cups: One of the 4 suits of the tarot. Also sometimes called vessels, or chalices. Represents intuition, spirituality, affection, and motivation. As a suit marker, Cups suggest receptivity: they are vessels, waiting to be filled. Cups have long been associated with divination (remember the uproar caused when Benjamin stole King Joseph’s cup?) and, by extension, intuition.

Happy Family: Most RWS-inspired decks depict a joyful couple with dancing children on the 10 of Cups, representing gratitude and fulfillment. There's also a hint of a question: what now?