TAROTThree of Cups
Upright
A cause to celebrate within a group or community
A reminder that sometimes it is necessary to celebrate.
An upcoming celebration of a good result for a group of people.
Intuition
The card shows the Three Graces.
They are shown underwater, as water is representative of emotion. A celebration is a social gathering, but more importantly it is a focus of positive emotion.
Reversed
A lack of connection or underlying problems
Either you are avoiding a celebration or the celebration itself has issues.
Issues preventing a social group coming together.
Issues preventing you from joining in with a social gathering or celebration.
Astrologia
High emotional intelligence. Intuition is at the forefront of all communication. Home and family focus, or even a wider group. Can lack a sense of adventure or be over-protective.
Three of Cups
The Three of Cups represents a time of celebration. As this is the Suit of Cups, it also represents a time of positive, uplifting emotion surrounding an event.
This could be a formal event, such as a wedding or christening, or a less formal one, such as a reunion between old friends or a family gathering.
Even if you foresee no such event in your near future, the card implies that organizing one may be the solution to another problem. Your larger social group is often one of your best support systems for difficult concerns, and is usually more frank and true than other sources. A positive social event where you celebrate a win (rather than picking over the carcass of a defeat) is frequently the best way to heal old differences.
The Three Graces
The Three Graces are a trio of goddesses and sisters who were said to bring happiness, joy, and celebration:
- Euphrosyne: The goddess of fun and good cheer. Her name means 'merriment'.
- Aglaea: The goddess of beauty. Her name means 'brilliance'.
- Thalia: The goddess of plenty and banquets. Her name means 'to flourish' or 'festivity'. She is also associated with joy and comedy.
The Three Graces were frequently seen as attendants to other deities, particularly Aphrodite (Ace of Cups). They represent friendship and a more global love, aimed at wider groups such as a community or even humanity itself.
In later Christian traditions, the Three Graces were mapped onto the Seven Virtues. These consist of four Cardinal Virtues (virtues of character: prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude) and three Theological Virtues (virtues of belief: faith, hope, and charity).
The Cardinal Virtues are grouped together in Torch-Tarot within the Temperance card. This leaves the final three (faith, hope, and charity) to the Three of Cups. They remind us that while there may be a cause for celebration in the present, we should never forget our belief in our wider group (humanity) and the divine, and how both reflect our vision of the future.
Description and Symbology
Three women, the Three Graces, are seen raising a toast in celebration. Unlike most celebrations, their drink is not merely contained in the cups, but surrounds them completely, as the scene takes place underwater. This represents a celebration as more than just a feast or a dance; it is a profound meeting and sharing of emotion.
The Three Graces are dressed in white, representing a purity of intent in being present to celebrate achievement and share joy. This white clothing also represents the sense of virtue found in later religious beliefs surrounding the Graces (who are sometimes explicitly referred to as the Three Charities).
Three women raising a toast in celebration
Three women – the Graces – raise their cups in celebration.
An underwater scene
Under the assumption that Tarot archetypes and dream symbology are usually one and the same (because they are both the language of the subconscious mind and the closer to dream a Tarot card becomes, the better!), the three women are underwater. Water represents emotion, so the celebration is a sharing of not just food and drink, but emotion, and it literally flows into everything. The sea is also symbolic of plenty.
White dresses
The three women wear white, symbolic of purity of thought. The celebration is a positive one of joy and accomplishment.
Tips for Readings
The following table shows the upright and reverse meanings for general questions. The last row ('Yes/No') is useful when you are picking a single card to decide a yes or no decision.
Upright
Reversed
The building of deep connections or shared experiences within a larger grouping such as family or close friends, usually caused by a celebration.
The event may cause old bonds to become stronger or new people to appear in your life.
One or more strained relationship may jeopardize what would otherwise be a cause for celebration within a group.
This strained relationship may be within the group or be between you and others in the group.
In either case, there may be issues to resolve, and there is a chance the celebration may not occur if this does not happen.
A cause for celebration within a work group. This may involve a completed project or major milestone. Whatever it is, the accolade will be for the team and not an individual.
The card suggests that greater collaboration now will make success later stronger and longer lasting,
Conflicting directions, strained communications or simply impossible deadlines are causing issues within your team. These may result in missed deadlines, inefficient work, miscommunications or poor job specification, causing lost work and effort.
There is a need to address the root causes or accept delays.
There is a time to work hard and a time to celebrate the gains made or connections made.
There will soon be a time to celebrate. Make sure you make time for it, as nothing boosts mental health and energy more than a cause for partying! Just make sure you don’t party too hard!
Social interaction, especially for large group events, is a major stimulus to health as it strengthens support systems.
Unfortunately, something is stopping you connecting, and this may affect you negatively. The card suggests some level of understanding, discussion or compromise may be necessary. This may be something as simple as reconsidering your priorities, better managing distances, or finally labelling old wounds as ‘old wounds’ rather than picking at them to create fresh pain.
There are strong indications that organized religion contains so many communal gatherings because it creates social support systems, and builds community and larger social groups than simple kinship.
Stop work and set yourself to enjoy what is to come. You need it and you have probably earned it!
A feeling of disconnection or distance from community, or an inability to form a sense of community (or friendship) may be impacting you. Boredom and loneliness are not diseases, but they are equally dangerous!
Although finances are not a focus of this card, it suggests positive results from talking to your larger social group may create benefits in your financial planning. Perhaps someone has already been in the position you are now, or they can act as a sounding board. Whatever the reason, social networks are a strong support system, so make use of them!
Although finances are not a focus of this card, it suggests your connections within your wider social support group may be low. You may be missing the weight of previous experience and valued opinion of trusted friends and family (who, let’s face it, are one of the best sources of hard facts you may not want to hear but are true!). Worse, you may be missing out on social interaction and are instead using finances as another basis of success.
The card suggests you should consider any such imbalance in your life.
Yes, and a cause for celebration!
No. A sense of ‘going it alone’ suggests much greater risk-taking and a lack of valued advice in your decisions.
Reading the Card
The Upright Card
The Upright card suggests that the timing of a celebration is close. This may be a formal occasion (such as a christening or a wedding), and it is a lucky card for those looking toward family and relationships.
The cause for celebration may be less formal: a reunion, a gathering of friends, or the achievement of career-related goals.
In all situations, the Three of Cups represents the gathering of more than two people to celebrate and affirm something joyous.
The Reversal
The reversed Three of Cups diminishes the need to celebrate. Something is preventing this from happening.
There may be problems within the social group, or the event itself may be built upon a false premise.
The seeker may have distanced themselves from the group or prioritized other things, making them unlikely to attend or organize the event.
In all cases, the card acknowledges the need to work and further yourself, but reminds you of the vital need to stop and celebrate the achievements of yourself and others. Without pausing to celebrate, any success is simply a physical gain that fails to achieve the significant task of bringing people together to share their thoughts and emotions.
Without pausing to celebrate, any success is simply a physical gain that fails to achieve the significant task of bringing people together to share their thoughts and emotions.
Final Words
The Three of Cups suggests that celebration is not just an act of joy, but a bringing together of people. It builds support networks and strengthens bonds in times of success, ensuring they can be relied upon in times of need.
If we do not celebrate our successes, they start to ring hollow. We may even become lonely, chasing victories without sharing them or building emotional depth around them.
