Two of Wands
Minor Arcana · Wands · number 2 · Due di Bastoni
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The Two of Wands shows a man holding the world in his hand and gazing far away, and yet he looks sad. Waite says the readings cannot be reconciled: on one side riches, fortune, magnificence; on the other physical suffering, melancholy, mortification. Do you recognise yourself? You have achieved a lot, at work or in money, and wonder why it is not enough. It is no accident: once the goal is reached, the emptiness is felt more. Waite compares it to the sadness of Alexander amidst the grandeur of the world: everything conquered, and no joy. Watch your health, which often pays the bill for ambition. The practical advice: before planning the next conquest, ask yourself who you want to share what you already have with.
Source: Arthur Edward Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1910) · read the original passage
Reversed
Reversed, the Two of Wands brings surprise: wonder, enchantment, a strong emotion that can be beautiful or frightening. Something arrives without warning, a meeting, a piece of news, a proposal, and it takes your breath away. If these days you feel shaken, between excitement and fear, it is no accident. In love it may be a bolt from the blue; at work a sudden change you had not foreseen. It is not a sentence: it is life on the move. The practical advice: decide nothing in the heat of emotion. Give yourself three days, let the surprise settle, and then answer with a clear head.