Five of Brushes

Tarot: Friday, October 16

A card drawn from one of three decks

This is an archived reading, kept as it was published.

Five of Brushes

Reversed The Tarot of Beijing
Five of Brushes

The game at the stone xiangqi table is over. Reversed, the Five of Brushes is the morning after: the winner comes back to the park, finds the table empty, and only now sees what the victory cost. Today an old quarrel may still smoulder, a neighbour who has stopped greeting you, a colleague quoting your sharp words back. Go back to the table first. Bring the tea and apologise without asking for a rematch. If you were the one who lost, stop replaying the game move by move. A brush stroke cannot be unmade, and the next page is blank.

Read the full card

For your star sign

The same reading, taken through each sign of the zodiac.

Aries

You won the argument, and now the table is empty. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to go back first, before pride decides for you. An apology with no rematch attached tends to restore more than the victory gained.

Taurus

Grudges stay with you the way everything does, firmly. Reversed, this card asks you to set one down. Whoever beat you at that table has moved on. Release the game, and you get your evening back.

Gemini

Your sharp words were clever, and someone is still quoting them. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to rethink the habit as well as the sentence. Say the plain kind thing today and leave the wit out of it.

Cancer

You remember every slight, and you also remember who was kind afterwards. Reversed, this card asks you to be that person. Bring the tea to the one you quarrelled with. The courtyard will remember it longer than the dispute.

Leo

Losing face stings you more than losing the game. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to let it sting and move on, straight-backed but not stiff. Grace in defeat tends to earn more respect than a rematch would.

Virgo

You may be replaying the lost game move by move, finding every error. Reversed, the card says the review is finished. Note the one lesson worth keeping, then close the board and stand up.

Libra

Discord wears you out, and this card agrees the feud has gone on long enough. Reversed, it asks for the first step toward peace. Make it yours. Fairness can be sorted out once people are talking again.

Scorpio

You keep score quietly and for a long time. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to stop. The win you are guarding is hollow, or the loss is old. Either way, your seat at that table is costing you.

Sagittarius

You speak your mind and sometimes leave a mark you did not intend. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to go back and look at it. A short, honest apology costs little and may restore a friendship.

Capricorn

People who win earn your respect, and you were one of them. Reversed, this card asks what the win cost in goodwill. Rebuild the trust slowly and deliberately, as you would any long project worth keeping.

Aquarius

You may have been right on the principle and still lost the room. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to choose people over being right today. Concede something small and see what it opens.

Pisces

Guilt about a quarrel, or bitterness about losing one, may still be with you. Reversed, this card asks you to release both. Forgive the other player and yourself, and let the lane go quiet again.

For your Chinese animal

The same reading, taken through each animal of the Chinese zodiac.

Rat

You won on cleverness and are only now counting the cost. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to return to the table first and offer peace without terms.

Ox

A defeat does not leave you easily. Reversed, this card asks you to release the game. Carrying it keeps you seated at a board everyone else has left.

Tiger

Your fighting spirit won the round and may have cost a friendship. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks for the harder courage: going back to apologise.

Rabbit

Conflict upsets you, and this card signals that the quarrel is ready to end. Reversed, it invites you to make the gentle first move. Peace tends to return quickly once someone does.

Dragon

A little gloating slipped out, and the courtyard noticed. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks for humility today. A warm word to the loser restores more than any trophy.

Snake

You keep a long memory of who said what. Reversed, the card asks you to let one exchange go. Holding it hurts you more than it hurts them.

Horse

You may want to ride away from an awkward quarrel. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to turn round and settle it first. That takes less time than avoiding it.

Goat

A lost argument may still be smarting. Reversed, this card asks you to release the bitterness. Your place among people matters more than the score.

Monkey

Your quick tongue won the game and may have lost you a neighbour. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to take back the sharp remark and offer the friendlier word.

Rooster

You like to be right and to say so. Reversed, this card asks you to let someone else keep their dignity today. Concede gracefully and watch the mood change.

Dog

You may feel a quarrel was unfair and keep defending your side. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to end the feud instead of winning it.

Pig

Harmony is what you prefer, and this card gives you a way back to it. Reversed, the Five of Brushes asks you to forgive easily today and invite the other player back to the table.

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