Knight of Pentacles

Slow and steady. The one who finishes what he starts.

The picture

A knight in armour sits on a heavy black horse that is standing still. He holds a pentacle out in one gloved hand. Sprigs of green leaves decorate his helmet and the horse's head. Ploughed fields spread out below them.

Upright

Knights are movement and pursuit, and they often go too far in the direction of their suit. The Knights of Wands and Swords charge, and even the Knight of Cups keeps walking. This one's horse has stopped. He moves at the speed of earth, which is to say slowly, and he gets there.

This is the card of routine, reliability and hard work. Turning up every day. Doing the dull part properly. Paying the bills on time. When the Knight of Pentacles says he will do something, it gets done.

Too far in this direction is caution that becomes stubbornness, and routine that becomes a rut. Like every court card, he can be a person, an approach or a part of you, and age and gender do not limit who he describes. He might be the dependable worker, the patient method, or the part of you that finishes things.

Reversed

Reversed, I read this as too much or too little. Too much is the horse that never moves again: stuck, bored, stubborn, doing the same thing every day long after it has stopped working. Too little is the steadiness gone missing, with corners cut, deadlines slipping and nobody quite sure the job will be finished.

To tell which, ask whether you are moving at all. If you are not, it is too much. If you are moving but carelessly, it is too little.

When it turns up

What would change if you did the next small task, every day, until it was done?

If you would like the cards read against your own chart, my readings are here.