The Ten of Swords — Betrayal & Collapse Playlist
The Ten of Swords is finality: the collapse, the ending you didn’t choose, the moment that feels like it can’t get any worse. It’s treachery, devastation, and the pain of hitting an all-time low.
But it’s also the clearing. In the silence after the storm, space opens for renewal. This card says: yes, this is the end, but also, this is where the new beginning waits.
And that’s where music comes in. A playlist about rock bottom, like this one, acts as a spell. It walks you through the wreckage, holding space for grief while planting the first whispers of hope.
But first, let’s talk about what this card means.
The Ten of Swords in Tarot
In the Rider–Waite–Smith deck, the Ten of Swords shows a figure lying face down with ten swords piercing their back, the dawn breaking beyond. It is the image of painful finales.
At its core, this card represents:
✨ Betrayal and Collapse — the sharpness of rock bottom.
✨ Finality and Closure — the ending of a cycle, harsh but complete.
✨ The First Light After Darkness — the dawn that follows even the deepest night.
When this card appears in a reading, it’s an invitation to acknowledge the conclusion as a turning point. It’s painful, yes, but also fertile ground for renewal.
Music as Magic
To me, music is one of the simplest kinds of spellwork. A playlist can set the tone for an afternoon of creativity, a ritual, or even just a mood shift. The songs we choose become the energy we’re weaving around ourselves.
The Ten of Swords playlist is one I imagine playing while:
Journaling after a conclusion that feels devastating or final.
Lighting a black candle to honor closure and release.
Meditating on surrender when there’s nothing left to hold.
Allowing grief to clear space for eventual renewal.
It’s music for the breaking point, endings, and the first spark of rebirth.
The Playlist
Here’s the soundtrack I curated to capture the essence of the Ten of Swords:
Goodbye Cruel World – Pink Floyd
A blunt farewell, this track captures the card’s downfall and finality. Opening the playlist with resignation sets the stage for the descent ahead. It’s a recognition that something is truly over, and that what follows will be a spiral into misery, grief, and eventual surrender.The A Team – Ed Sheeran
A quiet narrative of decline and addiction, this song embodies the fragility of survival when everything feels lost. Its soft storytelling contrasts the opener’s harshness, showing how suffering often lingers in subtle, everyday ways. It deepens the sense of hopelessness before bitterness breaks through.No Children – The Mountain Goats
Brimming with gallows humor and venom, this track gives voice to bitterness, rage, and the ugly honesty of hitting bottom. Its sarcastic energy mirrors the Ten of Swords’ raw exposure, where there’s nothing left to hide and nothing left to protect. It cracks open the pain, forcing it into the light.Black – Pearl Jam
Grief takes center stage here. After sarcasm comes the aching void, the broken heart that can’t be mended. “Black” is mourning in song form, pulling the listener into the weight of loss. Its placement grounds the emotional core of the playlist, moving from sharp edges to raw sorrow.Everybody Knows – Leonard Cohen
Cohen’s iconic cynicism widens the focus of despair. This track embodies resignation with the recognition that betrayal, collapse, and finales are woven into the fabric of human experience. It provides a grim perspective shift, a weary acknowledgment that suffering is collective as well as individual.Bottom of the Deep Blue Sea – MISSIO
The imagery of drowning and sinking pulls the listener into the depths. This is the plunge beneath the surface with the heavy drag of hopelessness and the suffocating quality of despair. It marks the point of no return, where survival seems distant and surrender feels inevitable.From the Dining Table – Harry Styles
A portrait of loneliness, regret, and absence. Here, the playlist narrows back to intimacy, showing how endings echo in daily life. The mundane becomes unbearable in the wake of a betrayal. Placing this song here grounds the despair in something familiar, before the arc turns ethereal.Blue Light – Mazzy Star
Dreamy and detached, this song ushers in the haze of numbness that follows the sharpest pain. Its placement creates a threshold: grief begins to dissolve into dissociation. The track floats between sorrow and surrender, softening the descent and preparing the listener for the final dissolution ahead.How to Disappear Completely – Radiohead
An anthem of erasure, this song embodies the wish to vanish—to dissolve entirely rather than continue carrying the unbearable weight. It aligns perfectly with the Ten of Swords’ imagery: annihilation so absolute that only surrender remains. Here, the arc tips into the void of release.The End – The Doors
Cinematic and final, “The End” closes the journey with apocalyptic grandeur. It’s not just an ending, it’s the annihilation of everything that came before. Its placement ensures the playlist doesn’t trail off, but rather concludes with clarity: this is rock bottom, complete ruin, and yet, a clear path forward.
Journal Prompts for the Ten of Swords
If you want to go deeper into the energy of this card, try reflecting with these prompts:
Where in my life am I facing a conclusion that feels overwhelming?
What does it mean to surrender when there is nothing left to hold?
How can I find the first spark of renewal even in the ashes?
If you want to explore these prompts more deeply, I created a free worksheet to guide you.
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Bringing the Ten of Swords Into Your Life
This playlist is music for finales and the spark of renewal.
Release Ritual: Lie on the floor, imagining the old dissolving as the songs play.
Fire Spell: Burn paper with what you’re releasing while the final track plays.
Shadow Journaling: Write about the lessons hidden in endings.
Affirmation Work: Say, “I rise again. Renewal begins in the ashes.”
By making listening intentional, you transform music into magic.
Final Thoughts
The Ten of Swords is finality, collapse, and endings we can’t ignore. Yet even rock bottom clears the ground for something new. This playlist honors conclusions as sacred thresholds.
So press play when you need to let go. Let the music hold you through surrender and remind you that dawn follows every night.
✨ Want to go deeper? Journal on “what am I ready to release so something new can rise?” as you listen.
