Keywords: nostalgia, childhood, memories, kindness, emotional roots
Suit: Cups (Element of Water)
Numerical Value: 6 – harmony, reflection, healing
The Six of Cups is a tarot card rich with the energy of memory, innocence, and emotional reflection. It draws your attention to the past—not to dwell, but to reconnect with what was once pure, joyful, and meaningful. This card often appears when you’re being called to revisit old relationships, childhood roots, or moments of genuine emotional warmth.
The Six of Cups is a gentle reminder that healing often comes through remembering who you used to be—and reconnecting with your inner child.
🟢 Upright Meaning
Upright, the Six of Cups symbolizes fond memories, childhood nostalgia, old friends, and moments of emotional sweetness. It can also indicate reunions, or the return of someone or something from your past that offers healing or closure.
This card may also represent innocent love, goodwill, or the simple pleasures in life that often get lost in the adult world.
Upright Themes:
- Nostalgia and fond reflection
- Reunions and returning people
- Healing childhood wounds
- Innocence, play, and emotional purity
- Acts of kindness and generosity
🔻 Reversed Meaning
Reversed, the Six of Cups may indicate being stuck in the past, clinging to nostalgia, or struggling to move forward emotionally. It can suggest idealizing the past at the expense of the present.
On a positive note, it may also point to a break from the past, finally leaving behind emotional baggage or outdated relationships.
Reversed Themes:
- Living in the past or emotional stagnation
- Unrealistic nostalgia
- Letting go of outdated beliefs or relationships
- Healing old wounds
- Releasing emotional anchors
❤️ Six of Cups in Love
In love, the Six of Cups often suggests a soulmate connection, rekindled romance, or someone returning from your past. It can also highlight sweet, emotionally honest love—the kind that feels childlike in its simplicity and depth.
If you’re single, this card may indicate meeting someone from your past, or someone who feels deeply familiar. It can also prompt inner child healing before you’re ready to fully connect with another.
Reversed, it may signal being too focused on a past relationship, or a need to release emotional patterns that no longer serve your heart.
💼 Six of Cups in Career
In a career reading, the Six of Cups can suggest returning to a past job, a family-run business, or revisiting an old dream. It also speaks to finding joy in your work, or bringing playfulness and collaboration into your environment.
Reversed, it could mean clinging to an outdated career path, or resisting change out of fear of losing comfort.
🌌 Six of Cups in Spirituality
Spiritually, this card calls you to reconnect with your inner child, past lives, or forgotten parts of yourself. It encourages reflection and emotional healing, especially around childhood wounds or soul lessons.
Reversed, it may suggest breaking away from outdated spiritual beliefs inherited in childhood—or finally reclaiming your personal truth.
✨ Final Thoughts
The Six of Cups is a soft, heartfelt card that urges you to remember where you came from—but not to stay there. Let the past inform, not define you. There is healing in memory, and joy in simple moments. Sometimes, the way forward begins by looking gently back.