AUTHOR'S NOTE: In her 1971 book, Mastering the Tarot, Eden Gray presented a three-card "yes-or-no" predictive model that had the four Aces as its key feature. (Benebell Wen's Holistic Tarot pointed me at it and I do in fact own a copy.) I've adapted Gray's approach in developing this spread, but I won't offer a … Continue reading A Three-Card “Yes-or-No” Spread with Extra Detail (à la Eden Gray)
“Ninety-Nine and a Half (Won’t Do)”
"We got to realize that ninety-nine and a half just won't doNo, got to have a hundred, oh yeah"- from the rhythm & blues song by Wilson Pickett AUTHOR'S NOTE: Today - for the third or fourth time in nine years - I've reached 100 consecutive days of posting on this blog, which is nowhere … Continue reading “Ninety-Nine and a Half (Won’t Do)”
The Numerical Essence Card as “Force Majeure”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: An assumption that goes all the way back to my first exposure to tarot literature in Eden Gray's 1960 book, The Tarot Revealed, is that the Major Arcana normally identify significant external events that are beyond the querent's control. At one time my own definition was that they describe consequential influences that the … Continue reading The Numerical Essence Card as “Force Majeure”
“Rising on the Planes” – A Three-Tier Decision-Making and Problem-Solving Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rising on the planes is an act of ceremonial magic performed on the Middle Pillar of the Qabalistic Tree of Life. Here I'm using it as the inspiration for a tarot spread that looks at practical/physical, mental/emotional and spiritual/philosophical approaches to decision-making and problem-solving, with an eye toward optimizing one of them. Begin … Continue reading “Rising on the Planes” – A Three-Tier Decision-Making and Problem-Solving Spread
The “Crossing Card” – An Alternate View
AUTHOR'S NOTE: It has been common knowledge when working with the Celtic Cross spread that the horizontal card sitting atop the first vertical one - "crossing" it - always indicates an obstacle to the flow of events or circumstances, but that premise falls apart when a positive card is pulled for the crossing position. This … Continue reading The “Crossing Card” – An Alternate View
Diverging Paths: A “Detour-and-Intersection” Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The typical way to read a line spread is as an unbroken sequence from one end to the other. I've found that this approach does not always reflect the "redirection" that can be caused by reversal of any of the cards. Here I'm proposing that reversal can cause a detour along the way, … Continue reading Diverging Paths: A “Detour-and-Intersection” Spread
The “Peaks-and-Valleys” Landscape: A Five-Card Reading Matrix
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The most common way to read a tarot line spread is as an unbroken flow of cards from left-to-right (and typically from past to future) with occasional "bumps in the road" caused by less-fortunate or reversed cards. In my own practice, I first examine the whole layout, looking for peaks and valleys of … Continue reading The “Peaks-and-Valleys” Landscape: A Five-Card Reading Matrix
The “Exploded” Tarot Reading: Expanding the Narrative
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In previous posts I've explored different ways to tell "the rest of the story" when the cards pulled for the original spread don't produce a meaningful outcome. Here is another one. (I almost never rely on clarifiers, preferring a supplemental reading that picks up where the first one left off.) The spread uses … Continue reading The “Exploded” Tarot Reading: Expanding the Narrative
Balancing the Equation: A “Two Sides to Every Story” Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The prior experiences a seeker brings to a tarot session are often exceedingly complex. Promises of favorable conditions are turning out "too good to be true" while those that warned of misfortune now appear to be "not half as bad as they seemed;" in the most challenging cases the two are mingled This … Continue reading Balancing the Equation: A “Two Sides to Every Story” Spread
A Three-Factor “Mind/Body/Spirit” Relationship Reading
AUTHOR'S NOTE: For this reading I'm using my Celtic triskelion "Mind/Body/Spirit" spread to examine a hypothetical relationship situation. The guidance has changed slightly from my last post using this design. Choose a card to represent either the querent or the situation itself. Leave it in the deck. Shuffle the deck while concentrating on the question, … Continue reading A Three-Factor “Mind/Body/Spirit” Relationship Reading
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 