AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is a spread for those who feel like they're "living in a bubble" of arrested development, and who are looking for a way to escape as the atmosphere grows stale and the internal pressure increases. It adopts the pyramidal structure of the ten-card "tetractys" spread that I created earlier, but instead flows … Continue reading “Bursting the Bubble” – A Problem-Solving Spread
Month: August 2024
The Candidates on Policy: A Tarot and I Ching Analysis
AUTHOR'S NOTE: As the 2024 Presidential election cycle enters its critical phase, Republican nominee Donald Trump has been trying to steer the campaign towards policy debate and away from ad-hominem invective. One of the liberal media commentators has admitted that if the vote were held today based solely on policy, Trump would most likely win. … Continue reading The Candidates on Policy: A Tarot and I Ching Analysis
Another Election Forecast: Two “Shots-on-Goal” Readings
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I decided to apply my new "Shots-on-Goal" spread to the upcoming US Presidential election. The first reading shows Donald Trump's chances of winning while the second displays the same scenario for Kamala Harris. For the "Conscious Intention" row, using the Thoth deck I chose the Star as "High Hopes;" Lust as "Playing to … Continue reading Another Election Forecast: Two “Shots-on-Goal” Readings
Literal Intent with a Hint of Impressionism
AUTHOR'S NOTE: As a follow-up to the posting of my essay on intuition vs. analysis in divination, I've been having a conversation with another member of the r/seculartarot sub-reddit. Our subject is the need to stay within the established context of the cards as a starting point in any reading, and only then resort to … Continue reading Literal Intent with a Hint of Impressionism
Revisiting the Astrology of the Major Arcana
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Recently, someone in the r/tarot sub-reddit community voiced the opinion (for which they had been previously chastised and downvoted) that some of the astrological correspondences proposed by the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn for the Major Arcana of the tarot just don't seem to hold water. Although I don't personally agree with … Continue reading Revisiting the Astrology of the Major Arcana
“No Truth, No Trust” – Cautionary Advice for the Tarot Reader
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Several years ago I met a kindly gentleman from Mississippi, a business colleague who told me pointblank that, when engaged in conversation with a Southerner, I shouldn't believe everything (or maybe anything) I hear; they are masters of amiable dissembling and there is almost certainly something quite different going on behind that charming … Continue reading “No Truth, No Trust” – Cautionary Advice for the Tarot Reader
Not Milk: An Atypical Astro-Tarot Meditation Array
AUTHOR'S NOTE: There is a biblical quote that goes something like "Milk for babes, meat for strong men." Here I'm offering what might be a hard-to-swallow bit of gristle for those who are locked into the Golden Dawn's esoteric attributions for the cards of the tarot. What can I say, I've always been an iconoclast … Continue reading Not Milk: An Atypical Astro-Tarot Meditation Array
The “Upset Condition” – Getting at the Bad
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Process-control technicians often face a dilemma known as an "upset condition," an off-normal deviation that must be corrected to return the system to a state of balance. There are similar challenges in tarot reading, where the reader must flush out any discordant anomalies so they can be examined and dealt with constructively by … Continue reading The “Upset Condition” – Getting at the Bad
A “Shots on Goal” Advancement Spread: Elemental Alignment and Orientation as Success Factors
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The phrase "shots on goal" describes a statistic used in sporting events such as international football and hockey to quantify how many legitimate attempts to score a team was able to make during a game (which is usually a function of offensive-line ability to breach the opponent's defense). There are situations in daily … Continue reading A “Shots on Goal” Advancement Spread: Elemental Alignment and Orientation as Success Factors
Tarot As “Mental Gymnastics”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: As I continue to create innovative tarot spreads, I decided to pause for a moment and reflect on what is driving me in this effort. Those who have been following me for a while know that I have a strong inclination toward critical analysis of the cards that I temper with a little … Continue reading Tarot As “Mental Gymnastics”
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 