Six of Cups Tarot Card: Meaning, Upright and Reversed

In brief: number, name and keywords

The Six of Cups is the card of sweetness and memory. After the sorrow of the Five, attention returns to simple things: childhood, tender gestures, old bonds. Traditionally it is read as nostalgia, reunion, a gift given without strings attached.

The card is called Six of Cups in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, and it bears the same name in both traditions.

Keywords: nostalgia, childhood, memory, giving, reunion, innocence.

The image in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck

In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, two children stand in the courtyard of an old house. The taller one, a boy, offers the smaller one a cup filled with white flowers. Five other cups, also full of flowers, stand in the courtyard.

In the background, the figure of an adult carrying a pike or halberd walks away down a lane; stone houses can be seen. The sky is clear.

• The flowers in the cups: sweetness, the gratuitousness of giving; one offers something beautiful that serves no purpose.
• The two children: the bond between generations, or between yourself and your inner child.
• The enclosed courtyard: a protected, familiar place that reassures; but also a limited horizon.
• The figure in the distance: the adult who watches over, or who walks away; the outside world is not forgotten.

In the Tarot de Marseille

In the Tarot de Marseille, the Six of Cups is a pip card: six cups, often arranged in two columns of three or in a circle, with flower and leaf ornaments. No figure. The regular arrangement gives an impression of calm and harmony. Many readers see balance and a gentleness of living, without any particular emphasis.

Upright meaning

Upright, the Six of Cups traditionally evokes nostalgia, childhood memories, reunions, a gesture of kindness. It is read as the sweetness of an old bond, innocence, the pleasure of giving without counting.

The card invites you to remember what was lived with joy, without staying a prisoner of it. In a spread, it may speak of a return to the past, a visit, a gift, or the need to rediscover your own simplicity.

Reversed: different schools

School 1: the opposite or excess. Reversed, the Six of Cups is read as a nostalgia that traps, an overly idealised past, difficulty growing up or letting go, or on the contrary the urge to turn the page. The flowers wilt.

School 2: blockage or held-back energy. In this reading, one lives in memories at the expense of the present, or one breaks with one’s own history. The card invites you to ask what can be kept from the past without remaining there.

Some tarot readers only read the upright card: this is an equally valid choice.

Correspondences (Golden Dawn) and numerology

According to the Golden Dawn, the Six of Cups corresponds to the Sun in the second decan of Scorpio: the Sun’s light warms a deep water sign. This attribution comes from nineteenth-century English occultism and is not universal.

In traditional numerology, 6 is the number of harmony: balance between above and below, exchange. On the Tree of Life, Tiphereth is the central sphere of beauty. In the suit of cups, harmony is that of memories and bonds. The Sixes of the deck share this tone of agreement, detailed on the page on the Sixes of the tarot. Major Arcana number 6, The Lovers, evokes the bond and what one chooses within it.

Possible readings and reflection questions

Tarot does not say what will happen: it offers images to reflect on. Here is what the card may symbolically evoke, depending on your question.

• Personal reflection: reconnecting with your inner child and your simple tastes. Possible question: what did I enjoy doing without asking myself questions?
• Relationships: reunions, childhood friendships, tenderness. The card speaks of a sweetness, not of a guaranteed return.
• Work: returning to an old project, passing on knowledge, mentoring. Symbolically, a link with the past.
• Money: a gift, a symbolic inheritance. It predicts no gain.

Questions to ask yourself:

• Which memory still warms me?
• What would I like to give without expecting anything in return?
• How can I keep the sweetness of the past without being trapped in it?

Combinations with neighbouring cards

A card is rarely read on its own. Here are a few simple pairings as starting points:

• Five of Cups: after loss, the sweetness of a memory.
• Seven of Cups: from memory to dreams; too many possibilities.
• The Sun: innocence and simple joy.
• The Fool: childhood setting out on the road.

To practise: the three-card spread; for the whole suite: the guide to the minor arcana.

Common beginner mistakes

• Reading the card as “a child is about to be born”: it speaks of symbolic childhood.
• Idealising the past: the figure in the distance reminds you that time moves on.
• Forgetting that the gifts of the card are free.

Try it yourself

Look for a simple object from your childhood (a toy, a book, a photo) or a specific memory. Write five lines about what it brings back and what you have kept from it. Then choose a small gesture today that honours it: offer a flower, prepare a snack, call an old friend.

Frequently asked questions

Also read

The meanings mentioned belong to tradition and symbolism. They are neither promises of results nor medical advice. Back to Guide to the Minor Arcana.