Knight of Swords
Minor Arcana · Swords · number 12 · Cavaliere di Spade
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The Knight of Swords charges with sword drawn against the wind: skill, bravery, capacity, defence, but also enmity, wrath, war, destruction, opposition, resistance, ruin. Waite says the card can mean death only when accompanied by other cards of fatality; on its own, it is a frontal attack. If these days you feel ready to fight, for a right, for a position, for a person, it is no accident: you have the weapons. But be careful whom you run over along the way, and of the anger driving you. The practical advice: decide the objective first, then charge. A battle won without knowing why is already half lost.
Source: Arthur Edward Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1910) · read the original passage
Reversed
Reversed, the Knight of Swords falls from the saddle: imprudence, incapacity, extravagance. The charge set off without a plan, and now the damage shows. If these days you said one word too many, spent more than you should, made a hasty work decision and now regret it, it is no accident: the energy was right, the direction was not. Beware of impulsive spending and promises made out of pride. It is a fall you get up from. The practical advice: for one week, no snap decisions. For every important choice, sleep on it and ask the opinion of someone who is not in a hurry.