In this card, a middle-aged man is sitting on a wooden bench while his arms are crossed, and his face is showing quite a level of contentment. He is dressed elegantly and has a look of true satisfaction. The head-dress on his head is red and is a depiction of his active mind. At his background, you will notice there are nine golden cups, structured and arranged in an orderly manner. The Nine of Cups symbolizes a representation of fulfillment and success, both spiritually and materially. The man shows that expression of success after achieving his innermost desire.
Upright Meaning Guide
Nine of Cups Upright Tarot Card Key Meanings:
Wishes coming true, realizing dreams, happiness, cheerfulness, joy, fulfillment, positivity, optimism, satisfaction, success, abundance, prosperity, achievements, rewards, confidence, high self-esteem, triumph, celebrating, entertaining, fame, acclaim, recognition, pleasure, sex, sensuality, pampering
General Meaning and Interpretation (Upright)
In a general context, the Nine of Cups Tarot card is a positive card that indicates your wishes will be coming true or your dreams will become a reality. If you have experienced hardship, sorrow or pain recently, this card tells you that the bad times are behind you now and a time of happiness, joyfulness, and fulfillment is coming. With this Minor Arcana card appearing in your Tarot spread you will be able to accomplish anything you put your mind to as it represents triumph, success, and achievement. Your efforts will not go unnoticed either as it also signifies recognition, acclaim, and even fame. The Nine of Cups also represents having high self-esteem and self-confidence. It is a card of celebrations and parties.
Love & Relationships (Upright)
In a love Tarot reading, if you are in a relationship, the Nine of Cups is a good omen indicating that the relationship is in a good place. You should be feeling happy and fulfilled with your partner when this card appears. It is also an indicator of good sex, sensuality, and pleasure so you can expect plenty of romance. If you have been hoping for a bigger commitment in the relationship it is a good card to get as it can represent engagement, marriage or pregnancy. If you are single, the Nine of Cups indicates that you are in a very healthy state mentally and emotionally. You have learned from your past experiences and gained a level of emotional maturity and self-esteem that will benefit you greatly in your future relationships. When you are ready to get involved with someone, the positive energy and confidence that is emanating from you should help to ensure that you attract the right type of person to you. Now is a great time to get out there and meet new people!
Money & Career (Upright)
Things should be going great with the Nine of Cups in your career Tarot reading! It is a card of success, achievement, and acclaim so whatever projects you are involved in should not only be going well but your success will get you noticed! You can do anything you set your mind to so if you have been dreaming of a promotion or starting your own business, this card is a great omen for success. In a financial context, the Nine of Cups indicates abundance and prosperity so things should be going well in terms of money and investments. It is also a card of recognition and reward so you may find that you receive some sort of monetary reward or bonus for your hard work.
Health (Upright)
In a health Tarot reading, the Nine of Cups is a positive omen, so if you have been suffering from health issues you should see some improvement or be feeling more positive about your health when it appears in a reading. If your health is good, this card indicates that it should stay that way. When this card appears, it is a good time to pamper yourself or to have some “me time”. However, it can also warn you to avoid overindulgence as it can have a knock-on effect on your health.
Spirituality (Upright)
In a spiritual context, the Nine of Cups indicates that you will be feeling happy and fulfilled on many levels and you will be emanating positive energy and love to those around you.
Reversed Meaning Guide
Nine of Cups Reversed Tarot Card Key Meanings:
Shattered dreams, nightmares, unhappiness, devastation, misery, lack of fulfillment, negativity, pessimism, disappointment, lack of success/accomplishment, disadvantage, underachieving, unrewarding, low self-esteem, addictions, eating disorders, self-hatred, arrogance, immaturity
General meaning and interpretation (Reversed)
In a general context, the Nine of Cups reversed is not a great omen as it can represent shattered dreams or wishes turning into nightmares. You may have gotten what you wanted but now find that it’s not how you hoped it would be. Alternately, you may have gotten what you wanted and subsequently lost it and are now feeling the devastation that can bring. The Nine of Cups reversed can represent unhappiness, misery, and lack of fulfillment. It can also indicate negativity or pessimism. You may feel let down or disappointed when this Minor Arcana card appears reversed in your Tarot spread. You may also be struggling to achieve your goals, lacking in accomplishments or feel that you are not gaining the rewards or recognition you want. The Nine of Cups reversed can also be an indicator that you are lacking self-confidence or have low self-esteem. This card in a reversed position can also indicate problems such as eating disorders or addictions being caused as a result of low self-esteem and unhappiness. On the other hand, it can signify arrogance or conceitedness and a lack of emotional maturity.
Love & Relationships (Reversed)
In a love Tarot reading, if you are in a relationship, the Nine of Cups reversed is not a good omen as it can indicate that the relationship is not in a good place and that one or both of you is feeling let down or disappointed with it. To the outside world, it may look like everything is fine but on the inside, there may be unhappiness and lack of fulfillment. For example, you may have settled for someone who looks great on paper but you don’t truly love and are now regretting it. However, while it can point to deep-seated issues, the Nine of Cups reversed can simply represent the feeling of stagnation within a relationship that sometimes comes after the initial excitement has worn off or the honeymoon period has ended. If you are single, the Nine of Cups reversed can be a sign that you are not in the right emotional/ mental state or lack the maturity to make a relationship work at the moment. If you find you have been attracting the wrong type of person, you need to work on building your self-esteem and confidence and finding your own inner contentment before you bring anyone else into the equation. Nobody else, no matter how amazing they are, can make you happy if you have not found contentment within yourself. It can also indicate emotionally unhealthy sexual behavior or sex without love. Alternately, the Nine of Cups can indicate that you have gone to the other extreme and that your arrogance or conceitedness could be putting off potential partners.
Money & Career (Reversed)
In a career context, the Nine of Cups reversed can indicate that your dream job or business may have turned into something of a nightmare. Maybe you have started your own business or landed the promotion you wanted but now find that it is not as fulfilling as you thought it would be or the workload is making you miserable. It may also indicate that you are struggling to find a career you like and feeling somewhat like a failure or an underachiever. The Nine of Cups in a reversed position can also represent being overlooked for a promotion or position. It can signify that you are working as hard as you can but feel like you are not achieving what you wanted or your hard work is not being recognized. In a financial context, the Nine of Cups reversed can be a bad omen as you may find that promising investments or financial opportunities turn out to be disappointments.
Health (Reversed)
In a health context, the Nine of Cups reversed can be an indicator of eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia, overeating or excessive indulgence and addictions. If you are suffering from any of these you may need professional medical assistance and or counseling to help you to get to the root causes of these issues and to overcome them. It’s not a great health card to get as it can indicate disappointment. At the same time, it can simply indicate that you will be feeling pessimistic or letting negativity make you feel worse so try to remain positive if you are having health issues.
Spirituality (Reversed)
In a spiritual context, the Nine of Cups reversed can indicate that you may be feeling a lack of spiritual fulfillment and looking for external ways of filling this void. True fulfillment comes from within so you would do well to shift your focus back to your spiritual side and concentrate on discovering your spiritual path.
Reference:
Labyrinthos, 2019, 10/31/19, (https://labyrinthos.co/blogs/tarot-card-meanings-list/nine-of-cups-meaning-tarot-card-meanings)
Lisa, 2019, 10/31/19, (https://www.thetarotguide.com/nine-of-cups)