Minor Arcana - the Threes

Three of Pentacles
Three of Cups
Three of Wands
Three of Swords

KEYWORDS - Three of Pentacles

Financial or material compensation. Receiving pay or money for work done. Earning praise or material rewards for your efforts or group efforts. Teamwork, Collaboration.

Three of Pentacles

The Threes in all suits represents the alchemy of bringing two things together to make something new and thus, this can represent the pooling of resources in order to purchase or achieve what you can’t do alone. It could be that the two factions are coming together are the money you have saved and the preparations you have made, suggesting it is time to marry the two. This card represents money, rewards or material recognition or compensation in return for something earned. By making, creating or performing a service, you will be compensated financially or in other ways. This also suggests that you have the skills, talents, creativity or experience to put your time into something that you can be compensated for. Money can come your way but only because you have earned or you deserve it.

Three of Pentacles Reversed

Reversed or with challenging cards around the Three of Pentacles can suggest that the between what you create and the financial or material rewards is blocked. You are not getting what you deserve or you are not putting in the effort. This is a card that represents the coming together of what you can invest and what you can earn as a result and reversed one of those factors is blocked and needs to be addressed.

KEYWORDS - Three of Cups

Communion. Celebration. Coming together in a shared experience. A party or social event. A time to rejoice. Circle of Support. Joy and Happiness.

Three of Cups

In all the suits, the Three card represents a turning point. The Three of Wands, Swords or Pentacles can be a more challenging turning point whereas the Three of Cups is often a card of celebration. It’s a communion. A sharing or exchanging of intimate thoughts and feelings that may also be on a mental and spiritual level. Here you work as a group and feel more confident in how you feel about something or someone. The card shows the literal communion of angels, which also represents a means of support. This is the success and joy of a group. This can often indicate any situation where you have come together with friends and loved ones for a cause that is important to all of you. It’s a shared experience. This is not a solo celebration but a joint or group celebration. The promise hinted at in the Ace of Cups and then becomes form in the Two of Cups, can now be celebrated. Yet the journey continues and this also indicates the start of the next phase.

Three of Cups Reversed

Reversed or with challenging cards around the Three of Cups, this is often a caution against over indulgence or a little too much partying and celebration. It could indicate celebrating prematurely, cautioning against jumping the gun and instead, waiting to see what eventuates.

KEYWORDS - Three of Wands

The idea, plan, and resources have come together. The different parts are lined up, ready to go. You have the means, ability and the time is right for action. Plan your Work and Work your Plan. Envision a dream. Dreams come True.

Three of Wands

The Three of any suit represents a coming together of two to make one, whether that is two people coming together, two ideas or two different components coming together to make one. An example of that would be words and lyrics coming together to make a song or a man and woman coming together to make a baby. This is the card of collaboration, the pooling of resources and ideas or working with someone to make things happen. This could indicate that you have reached a pivotal moment or a fork in the road, where it is time to gather more people or resources in order to move to the next stage. This is the point where the idea and the plan come together and it is time to make it happen. It’s a time to, after careful planning, envision your dream, for it’s time for your dreams to come true. Plan your work and work your plan. This also represents a need to delegate or pool your resources with others.

Three of Wands REVERSED

Reversed or with challenging cards around the Three of Wands, could indicate that some of the parts are missing. You might have the right resources but not the right plan. Whatever is missing needs to be found before you can proceed to the next step. This might indicate a delay and a need to be patient. There are things you might need to negotiate.

KEYWORDS - Three of Swords

Heartbreak. Loss. Rejection. Divorce. A decision is forced or needs to be made. It is time to end a period of indecision, one way or the other. Strife, grief, hurt, depression and even betrayal.

Three of Swords

The image in the card above is of three swords having been stabbed straight through the heart and the Three of Swords can represent that kind of pain. This could be a betrayal, a divorce, rejection, loss, some sort of heartbreak. This can be a challenging card or represent a challenging life moment or situation but it is also a card of release, where the bandage is ripped off in order to be healed. This is a card that can indicate pain and even betrayal, especially if someone else’s actions have caused you pain or if you have suffered a loss. Unlike the Major Arcana, the numbered suits don’t represent a permanent or even long term state of being, rather a stage in a journey. In this case, this is the stage of the journey where something has been exposed or the event has happened and the healing can begin. It's like a flashlight put on the current situation. Where the Two of Swords represents internal turmoil, here we have something that has manifested and can be felt and dealt with.

Three of Swords Reversed

Reversed or with challenging cards around the Ace of Swords turns this into a positive card. This represents that you may have been hurt in the past, you might be dealing with betrayal or any kind of mental wound, loss or even fatigue but it is behind you. The boil has been lanced and the healing can begin.