Six of Pentacles
generosity · giving and receiving · charity · fair share
Card art: Pamela Colman Smith, 1909, for A. E. Waite. Public domain.
The suit of Pentacles
In a few words
- generosity
- giving and receiving
- charity
- fair share
A merchant with scales, giving coins to two who kneel. Generosity, charity, money moving to where it is needed.
Upright
- Everything
- A merchant with scales, giving coins to two who kneel. Generosity, charity, money moving to where it is needed.
- Love
- Giving freely, and receiving without keeping score. Support that balances over time.
- Work
- A fair boss, a bonus, help given or received. Mentorship pays both ways.
- Money
- Money comes through fairness: a gift, a loan on good terms, a debt forgiven. Give some on.
- Myself
- Generosity is a practice. Give, and notice what returns.
Presents, gifts, gratification; another account says attention, vigilance; now is the accepted time, present prosperity, etc.The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1911), p. 270
Reversed
- Everything
- Strings attached. Charity with a price, debt as control, giving that keeps the other small.
- Love
- One always giving, one always taking. Or gifts used as leverage.
- Work
- Favouritism, unpaid overtime, help that comes with obligations.
- Money
- A loan that binds you, or generosity you cannot afford. Read the terms; keep your dignity.
- Myself
- Giving to be seen, or taking without thanks. Straighten the scales.
Desire, cupidity, envy, jealousy, illusion.The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1911), p. 270
The card, as Waite described it
A person in the guise of a merchant weighs money in a pair of scales and distributes it to the needy and distressed. It is a testimony to his own success in life, as well as to his goodness of heart.The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1911), p. 270
The plain-word meanings on this page were written for ShreeJyoti and are still under review.