voice of the ten of wands

A man oppressed by the weight of the ten staves which he is carrying. Divinatory Meanings: A card of many significances, and some of the readings cannot be harmonized. I set aside that which connects it with honour and good faith. The chief meaning is oppression simply, but it is also of fortune, gain, any kind of success, and then it is the oppression of these things. It is also a card of false-seeming, disguise, perfidy. The place which the figure is approaching may suffer from the rods that he carries. Success is stultified if the Nine of Swords follows, and if it is a question of a lawsuit, there will be certain loss. Reversed: Contrarieties, difficulties, intrigues, and their analogies.--A.E. Waite

There is a weariness and sad determination to this person, as if the task is not satisfying on any level, but must be completed. He bears the burden alone with no sign of help anywhere.--Susan Hansson

Responsibilities and obligations can be oppressive and stressful if not balanced with perspective and the release of nonessentials. Distinctions between exploiting and being exploited need to be considered.--Tracey Hoover

The Ten shows us, on the surface, an image of a person burdened and oppressed by life, and especially by responsibility. His Wands eagerness has involved him in so many situations that now, paradoxically, that very energy is weighed down with commitments and problems. He wants to be free to travel, to seek adventure and new involvements; but instead he finds himself, like the suburban career man, caught in a net of endless responsibilities--financial, family, work that he himself has created. He did not plan this; it has grown up around him.

We see here the great Wands problem. The Fire energy acts without thinking, takes on new problems simply for the challenge. But these situations and responsibilities do not go away when the person becomes bored and wants to go on to something new. They remain and can swamp the fire that seemed to conquer them.--Rachel Pollack

Nothing exists for this man but his burdens and responsibilities.
In readings, the 10 of Wands can be a sign that you are pushing yourself too hard. Sometimes a task can seem light and easy because we enjoy it, or it's worthwhile or we know it's temporary. Other times our days seem endless and unfulfilling - a grueling treadmill. ...
You may have to fight uphill for every little gain, and each step may be a struggle. When you see this card, know that your life is going to be tougher than usual for a time.--Joan Bunning

OPPRESSION

The number Ten refers to Malkuth, which depends from the other nine Sephiroth, but is not directly in communication with them. It shows the Force detached from its spiritual sources. It is become a blind Force; so, the most violent form of that particular energy, without any modifying influences. The flames in the background of the card have run wild. It is Fire in its most destructive aspect.
The card also refers to the influence of Saturn in Sagittarius. Here is the greatest antipathy. Sagittarius is spiritual, swift, light, elusive, and luminous; Saturn is material, slow, heavy, obstinare, and obscure.
The eight Wands are still crossed, showing the enormous power of the completed energies of Fire; but they have lost their patents of nobility. Their ends seem more like claws; they lack the authority and intelligence shown in the earlier cards; and in front are the two formidable Dorjes of the Two of Wands, but lengthened to bards.
The whole picture suggests oppression and repression. It is a stupid and obstinate cruelty from which there is no escape. It is a Will which has not understood anything beyond its dull purpose, its "lust of result", and will devour itself in the conflagrations it has evoked.--Aleister Crowley

The figure trapped by the wands might be a victim of his or her own passiveness, or this person might be one who sacrificed his or her life to the cause of liberty, which is never lost, even if it is at times obscured.--Jean Huets

Nine Flags Are United in the Flag of the Earth

The Ten of Wands is first a card of individual patriotism and pride. Patriotism is defined as love and support of one's country and its authority. The wand is a symbol of the power of the king, whose scepter is the emblem of his royal authority. The flag is the scepter of the country and represents the country's unique qualitites and its sovereign status. The flag, as the standard of the country, is an icon of the authority of its laws and form of government. In the Ten of Wands this "patriotism" may be for your famiy, friends, or even for your own work.
...
When this card is part of your reading, think about some of the things you are patriotic about or proud of. ... Whenever you are so proud of your work that you want to run up the flag so people notice you, watch that you do not send out the army to put down the work of others.
We need to establish a new relationship to pride and victory that allows us to claim our own power but does not crush the strength of others in the process. We cannot make ourselves better at the expense of others. Only when we compete against ourselves to learn to do better than we have done before, and encourage others to do the same without humiliating comparisons, will we make the world a place without hatred. For it is in our desire to elevate ourselves that we put the other down.--Alexandra Genetti

Don't let the weeds choke the flowers.--Moonchild

10 toes	imho	vision

For sources, see the Bibliography and Credits page.
http://www.moonchild.ch/Tarot/minors/wands/w10/w10voice.html