Five of Cups

The Fives teach us what happens due to our “break” with the Four. Keywords: Loss. Fight. Tunnel Vision. Incorrect focus.

Card meaning

The story of the Five of Cups is the loss and regret that follows the natural course taken by the feelings of apathy that caused us to ignore opportunities found in the Four of Cups. We’ve now lost that which we took for granted, represented almost universally with the imagery of spilled cups.

As heartbreaking as it is to experience the stinging emotion of grief we see in the cloaked figure, when the Five of Cups shows up in a reading, it’s important to recognize that there are still two full cups, prompting us to change focus and direction toward what remains. There is no use crying over spilled milk, so to speak.

Perspective is the key to overcoming sadness. Finding gratitude for what is left may help you discover that this sad experience actually creates more gain than it does loss. Shifting your perspective, turning to the cups that remain, picking them up and crossing the bridge depicted in the background, is the easiest way to overcome.

It takes some time to work through grief and despair, so don’t expect a quick solution when this card appears. But the point is that there is a solution if you look closely enough. Just be sure not to pick up the spilled cups as you journey onward. Mourn for what you need to mourn, so that you don’t carry that grief into your future.