Depth over breadth

This card is a wild one. Besides what you see on your own version of this card, try an online image search and you’ll see what I mean. Treasure, demons, mythical figures… what on earth is going on here?

This could be about a boundless imagination, and the importance of giving our dreams structure and support. Rachel Pollack puts it best, in Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom:

Emotion and imagination can produce wonderful visions, but without grounding in both action and the outer realities of life these fantastic images remain daydreams, ‘fancies’ without real meaning or value. … They lack meaning because they don’t connect to anything outside of themselves.

It’s good to be imaginative and curious, of course! But ideas, callings, desires, if these aren’t acted upon then they remain like the symbols in this card: figments of your mind, or rather, your heart. Any of us may have many beautiful ideas, but what makes them meaningful is when we go deep into one or two, and really see where they can take us, what we can create if we make brave choices.

There’s excitement here, and also fear. What would happen if you really just followed your heart?

In a reading…

Your ideas may be wonderful, but can you make them real? What can they really mean, here, in your life? The Seven of Cups asks you to ‘make the impossible possible’, to actively manifest your desires, rather than admiring them as daydreams. In order to put in this energy, you may need to let some dreams go. Focus on what really lights you up, and don’t be afraid to leave some of your dreams behind (if only just for now). Let your heart guide you to choose the meaningful over the superficial.

This is about making pro-active choices. Perhaps you’re faced with too many, and you just can’t pick one path. Maybe you want to do All Of The Things. Perhaps you’re torn between lovers. Perhaps there are just too many things vying for your attention right now and you’re feeling lost or overwhelmed.

Choice can be a burden, and the Seven of Cups opens up a discussion about that kind of spiritual ‘weight’. What does it look like to choose something and really go deep with it, rather than dabbling without purpose in many things? This card promotes depth over breadth, and thus asks for commitment.