← Encyclopedia of Tarot · lesson 64/121
King of Swords
The King of Swords is the mind in command. He stands for reason, principle, fairness and authority grounded in knowledge. As a person, he can be an expert, a judge, an adviser or anyone whose decisions rest on clear thinking and honest standards. As a situation, he points to decisions that call for objectivity, ethics and a cool head.
The image
A king sits facing forward on a throne carved with butterflies and crescent moons, holding his sword upright but tilted slightly. Behind him tall trees and drifting clouds stand under a calm sky, with two birds in flight. Waite links him to the figure of Justice in the Major Arcana. His frontal gaze is usually read as directness and impartiality, and the sword as the power to decide.
Upright
Authority, intellect, fairness, ethics, clear communication, sound advice. Waite lists "judgment and all its connexions — power, command, authority, militant intelligence, law". The card often asks for decisions made on principle rather than feeling alone.
Reversed
Waite's reversal is "cruelty, perversity, barbarity", and a caution to end a ruinous dispute. Modern readers often see authority misused, rigid or cold judgement, manipulation through clever words, or a refusal to listen. Some readers do not use reversals.
Correspondences
A court card of the Minor Arcana, the King of the suit of Swords, element Air. In the Golden Dawn system, which most English-language decks follow, the seated King is the Order's Prince, Air of Air: the suit's element in its purest form. He is usually given 20° Capricorn to 20° Aquarius. The Order titled him the Prince of the Chariots of the Winds.
In a reading
As a person, a fair-minded authority or adviser. As advice: decide on the evidence and say so clearly. Beside Justice or The Emperor, structure and fairness dominate the reading.
In astrology
The Golden Dawn's correspondences, which most English-language decks follow (French, Marseille-based tradition differs for some Major Arcana).
Element: Air — the element of Gemini, Libra and Aquarius