The figure on this card is turning away from the chalices; he is moving forward and away from some old situation that no longer serves him. He is rejecting his emotional burden that on this card is portrayed by swamp around him. The swamp is appropriate image of stagnant energy, old habbits and emotional attachments. Where there is no longer the flow of energy, only stagnation and death are possible. This card speaks about our relationship with the past. This card also signifies the breaking of our connection with the past. Maybe we were imprisoned in "everything was better in the past" mode of thinking and that was detrimental for our present efforts. Maybe we found a new direction in our life that brings us more motivation and new energy.

Positive: positive change, breaking of ties, new development, new direction, rejecting old for something new, turning point.

Negative: delusion, dissatisfaction, reckless, restless, unrealistic goals, material attachment.

   A man of dejected aspect is deserting the cups of his felicity, enterprise, undertaking or previous concern. Divinatory Meanings: The card speaks for itself on the surface, but other readings are entirely antithetical--giving joy, mildness, timidity, honour, modesty. In practice, it is usually found that the card shews the decline of a matter, or that a matter which has been thought to be important is really of slight consequence--either for good or evil. Reversed: Great joy, happiness, feasting.

— The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, by A.E. Waite