Six of Wands

Number VI · Element Fire · Correspondence Second decan of Leo

Upright: public victory, recognition, honors, promotion

Reversed: late recognition, arrogance, a reputation not lived up to

Riding through the crowd, wearing a laurel wreath that others have given.

The image

A rider on a white horse wears a laurel wreath, and a second wreath is tied to the wand in his hand. A crowd walks alongside him. The whole scene looks like a public victory parade (Rider-Waite-Smith).

Core meaning

The many-sided struggle of the Five of Wands now has a clear winner. This card is about winning recognition, and the kind of victory that is seen and publicly acknowledged by many people. Private self-satisfaction is a different thing.
As the Wands suit moves through the numbers, its strength keeps growing, and the emphasis shifts from problems to joy and from defense to optimism. The Six of Wands marks that turning point; the Golden Dawn system calls it simply "Victory."
Rachel Pollack points out a telling detail: the hero in the picture has not actually reached his destination yet, and (following Waite's own hint) may well just be on his way home. What matters is not whether the end point has been reached. He has already won, and optimism has brought the success it longed for and expected.
If you truly believe in yourself, you can find the energy needed to reach the goals you want, and that belief inspires others to follow. Sixes are often connected with communication and gifts, and what the Six of Wands gives the people around it is exactly this fiery faith in life.
Often stands for good news, honors and promotion, usually tied to concrete achievements that can be checked from outside, such as an award, an acceptance letter or a successful project.
It also carries a warning: the crowd's following and applause last only a while. How to keep the reputation and hold on to the gains after a victory is the task waiting in the Seven of Wands.
The red ribbon tied to the laurel wreath should have been knotted into a horizontal infinity sign, but in the picture only half of it is tied and the other half floats in the air. This detail suggests that victory is not settled once and for all. To keep the recognition and status, you have to go on proving yourself.
In love, the card sometimes points to a relationship with a gap in status. The other person is clearly more dazzling and more popular, and you are more the one looking up to them and trying to please them. The relationship needs more effort to sustain and is not entirely a sweet match between equals.
Money: the card points to real financial success. The sense of victory comes from gathering scattered resources and energy toward a single goal. It is a result earned through focus and discipline, and luck that comes from nowhere has little to do with it.
Health: upright, it is mostly read as the body being in a balanced, good state, and it is often a positive confirmation of a particular health plan or treatment. Even someone who has always had plenty of energy should face the limits that come with age, though, and stop pushing themselves by the standards of their youth.
The white horse matters too. White symbolizes support, status, purity and the divine. This victory was won on one's own merit, without shortcuts or opportunism, and in a sense can be called pure, which is why it is easily read as being in tune with the divine.
The crowd following behind is more than a group of supporters. They acknowledge the victory, but they also expect the winner to protect them in return. This sense of responsibility, "you won, now it's your turn to look after us," sets up why the next card, the Seven of Wands, has to hold its ground.

Reversed

The laurel wreath moves lower, suggesting that beneath the polished performance, ambition and desire are fermenting. Under the halo, things may not be as simple as they look (reading from the image).
The surrounding crowd now stands taller than the rider. This is easily read as being surrounded by enemies and deserted by friends; the halo of victory is starting to be questioned and even shaken by betrayal (reading from the image).
An opening that goes too smoothly easily breeds complacency. Once you stop listening to the warnings of the people around you, your advantage can attract more resentment and more challengers (negative meaning).
The support this time is not as solid as it looks, and someone may even be working against you behind your back. Pressing on stubbornly can easily turn success into decline (opposite meaning).
It may also be a loss of confidence in your current situation, hiding the performance you should be showing and not daring to accept or claim recognition that is rightfully yours (opposite meaning).
For money, the reversal often suggests that the goals are spread too wide and that too many possible directions are scattering your energy, so that even basic financial goals are hard to reach. Narrow the scope first and refocus. For health, the same scattering of energy may be wearing the body down. This is a good time to first drop the tasks that drain you without necessarily paying off, and only then think about the next step.

Correspondences

The number six: the "harmony" stage in Numbers in Tarot. Astrologically, the second decan of Leo; see Astrological Correspondences. In the Golden Dawn system, the card's esoteric title is "Lord of Victory"; see Esoteric Titles.

Views from different traditions

In traditional readings, besides recognition that comes late, the Six of Wands reversed is also often linked specifically with open-ended delays and with possible mistakes in decision-making or leadership.