The Sixes in the Tarot: Meaning of the Number Six and the Four Sixes

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The Sixes of the tarot speak of restored harmony, exchange, transition and recognition. Here is the traditional meaning of each Six and the mistakes to avoid.

Key points

Number	6
Keywords	Harmony, exchange, passage
Cards	Six of Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles
Sephirah (Golden Dawn)	Tiferet, "beauty" in the Kabbalah
Nearby major arcana	The Lovers, number 6
In the Marseille deck	Repeated emblems, no figures
In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck	One scene per card

The number in tarot tradition

After the jolt of five, six restores balance. In traditional numerology it is the number of harmony, of ordered beauty, of fair exchange. Six also evokes the six-pointed star, the six days of creation in some accounts, and half of twelve. It is a number of reconciliation: between high and low, giving and receiving.

The Golden Dawn (an English occult society of the late nineteenth century) matches it with Tiferet, "beauty", the centre of the Tree of Life in the Kabbalah: the point of balance. In tarot, a Six often says that a tension is easing, that a stage has been passed, that an exchange is being rebalanced. Be careful, though: the calm is not final, and the seven will follow with its trials. The tarot describes a moment; it does not announce it.

The four cards at a glance

Suit	Image (Rider-Waite-Smith)	Traditional meaning	Question to reflect on
Wands	A horseman crowned with laurel, surrounded by people carrying staves	Victory, recognition, regained confidence	What am I proud to have brought this far?
Cups	Two children in a village; one offers the other a cup of flowers	Memories, gentleness, childhood, simple gestures	Which memory nourishes me today?
Swords	A ferryman rows a boat with two figures on board, six swords planted ahead	Passage, departure, transition toward calmer waters	What am I ready to leave behind?
Pentacles	A merchant holds a scale and gives coins to two beggars	Generosity, fairness, just exchange	What am I giving, and what am I receiving?

The scenes described are those of the Rider-Waite-Smith deck (1909). Other decks offer other images, but the number keeps the same tone.

Marseille or Rider-Waite-Smith?

In the Tarot de Marseille, the Sixes are pip cards: six emblems in two columns or around a centre, with a marked visual balance. No figures; the harmony lies in the composition itself. In the Rider-Waite-Smith, the Sixes tell precise stories: the horseman's triumph, the village children, the boat, the scale. The Six of Swords in particular shows a passage: the water is rough on the left and calmer on the right, and the card is read as a transition toward a more peaceful time, without saying that everything is fine. The Marseille leaves it to you to imagine the balance for yourself.

The number and the major arcana

Six is the number of The Lovers, major arcanum number 6, also called "the choice": one sees the harmony of relationships there, but also the dilemma between several paths. Likewise, the minor Sixes are cards of passage and relationship. For the major arcana in general: the guide to the major arcana.

Reading this number in a spread

A Six in a spread invites you to notice what is rebalancing: an exchange, a reconciliation, a stage passed. What is easing? What am I giving, and what am I receiving? Several Sixes in the same spread often suggest transitions, or exchanges that need rebalancing. They are not promises of serenity.

If you read reversed cards, a reversed Six is sometimes seen as an unbalanced exchange, a delayed transition or a memory that weighs. These are conventions. To practise: the three-card spread.

Beginner's mistakes

Believing the Six guarantees happiness: it shows a balance, not a happy ending.
Reading the Six of Pentacles as "money arriving": it is an exchange, in which one gives as well as receives.
Taking the Six of Cups for pure nostalgia: it is also a gesture of childhood and simplicity.
Forgetting that the Six of Swords speaks of a departure, which can be a relief.
Neglecting the Six of Wands because it is a "victory" card: recognition also calls for modesty.

Practice

Look at the four Sixes and sort them: which speaks of recognition, which of memory, which of passage, which of sharing? Think of a situation in your life that is calming down, and find which Six resembles it most. Note what you learned during the period before. This small exercise is for reflection, not prediction. For the next number, which tests the balance you have found: the Sevens.