Four of Cups in the 5-Card Spread with the Rider Waite Tarot

Four of Cups as second card : Challenge / Obstacle
in the Rider Waite Smith 5-Card spread

In contrast, the Four of Cups highlights a withdrawal that becomes isolation, a tendency towards indifference, or an unconscious refusal to accept what could actually nourish us.

The consultant may remain stuck in an attitude of closure, resignation or disenchantment, refusing or ignoring real emotional opportunities. He or she may also be overly focused on a past wound or waiting for an unattainable ideal, which prevents them from seeing the richness of the present moment.

This card in opposition can also signal excessive self-protection, which blocks the flow of the heart and the ability to connect.

Sometimes it is boredom, emotional routine, or a form of denial of desire that freezes the person in a feeling of emptiness.

The message here is clear: you need to lift your head up, dare to look around you, and recognise that what is being offered — even discreetly — is worth receiving. The blockage comes from a heart closed by fear, disappointment or weariness, but the water is there, just waiting to flow again.

Four of Cups as third card : Advice
in the Rider Waite Smith 5-Card spread

As advice, the Four of Cups invites you to embrace this phase of withdrawal without guilt, to listen to what is going on inside you instead of trying to force an immediate solution.

You may need some emotional space and inner silence to reconnect with your true desires.

This card also advises you to be careful not to reject what life offers you too quickly: there may be a subtle gift, a gentle opportunity, an outstretched hand that you cannot see. Take the time to look again, differently, at what surrounds you. It urges you to ask yourself sincerely: what is being offered to me does not satisfy me… but am I clear about what I really want?

The Four of Cups calls you to return to your centre, not to shut yourself off, but to rediscover the source of your living desire. It is a call to refocus, to inner discernment, to gently reopen your heart.

Four of Cups as fourth card : Outcome
in the Rider Waite Smith 5-Card spread

In the outcome position, the Four of Cups indicates that the current situation could lead to prolonged emotional withdrawal, a form of inaction or persistent dissatisfaction, if no awareness is gained. The consultant risks missing out on a relationship or emotional opportunity, simply because they will not be available to receive it.

This can also result in a repetition of patterns of closure, where one rejects before really feeling.

However, this outcome is not inevitable: if the consultant agrees to look at things differently, to gradually reopen their heart, to re-examine their emotions with honesty, then they will be able to break out of this cycle with new clarity about their real needs.

The Four of Cups can thus be the threshold of an inner awakening, but this will depend on the level of listening and self-awareness that the person is able to achieve. The result is therefore a call for transformation through emotional awareness, or a risk of stagnation if nothing changes.