AUTHOR'S NOTE: In recent years I have moved away from the "Past/Present/Future" format in three-card tarot readings because there is little point in dwelling on "what has been" in such a brief snapshot. Instead I cut to the chase by focusing on "Present/Near Future/Longer-Range Outcome." However, in larger spreads like the ten-card Celtic Cross, there … Continue reading The Importance of Validation: Framing the Past in a Reading
Month: October 2025
The Reversed Seven of Wands: “Kneecapping the Enemy”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: When upright, the 7 of Wands represents "Valour" or extraordinary courage in the face of daunting odds. This is clearly reflected in the Waite-Smith version, which shows a harried warrior being set upon by six adversaries who have crowded him into a corner. At that moment in time he has yet to give … Continue reading The Reversed Seven of Wands: “Kneecapping the Enemy”
Unresolved Tension in the Waite-Smith Two of Wands
AUTHOR'S NOTE: My daily tarot reading (literature, not cards) recently presented the idea that the reversed 2 of Wands in the Waite-Smith deck conveys "tension." I've never thought of the reversal of this card as elevating the stress that is already there, only making it more insidious. In my "Tarot 101" lesson material on the … Continue reading Unresolved Tension in the Waite-Smith Two of Wands
The Aces: A State of Anticipation
AUTHOR'S NOTE: It is generally accepted in esoteric tarot circles that the Aces don't represent "the first step in a new direction," but rather the anticipatory urge to take that step, and they must be set in motion before they will do us any good. As George Carlin once said in a different context, "Ya … Continue reading The Aces: A State of Anticipation
The World: Final Destination or “Jumping-Off Place?”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The World card is generally interpreted to mean successful completion of the matter at hand (although it may entail some delay). In her book Holistic Tarot, Benebell Wen describes it as showing the "final state of cosmic consciousness" for the querent's Higher Self. A few years ago I formed a slightly different opinion … Continue reading The World: Final Destination or “Jumping-Off Place?”
Digging Deeper: Creative Consulting vs. Counseling
AUTHOR'S NOTE: While all tarot reading for other people is advisory in nature, some professional diviners possess the psychoanalytical qualifications and credentials to counsel their clients in a therapeutic way, while those who don't should be careful to remain within the bounds of informal "consulting." I may bring decades of life experience, philosophical study and … Continue reading Digging Deeper: Creative Consulting vs. Counseling
Mischief Afoot: External Meddling in the Lovers’ Affairs
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Although morality has lost much of its grip on modern romance, I still prefer the older definition of the Lovers card as being presented with a decision that has ethical implications. The Tarot de Marseille "Lover" makes this abundantly clear. I almost always read the Lovers as a "crossroads" from which the seeker … Continue reading Mischief Afoot: External Meddling in the Lovers’ Affairs
“Plateauing” – The Nature of the Fours
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In esoteric number theory, Four is the number of the Square that prefigures the six-sided cube it becomes when projected into three-dimensional space, and many people relate it directly to that polyhedron. But, although it is the fourth geometric expression after the Point, the Line and the Triangle, no volume is implied since … Continue reading “Plateauing” – The Nature of the Fours
Force Over Form: Leveraging the Elements
AUTHOR'S NOTE: "Leveraging" is the act of pressing one's advantage in ways that optimize the benefit in practical terms; it's the concept behind the Biblical proverb of "moving mountains" with simple conviction and affirmation (aka "faith" but I don't subscribe to that concept, preferring to say that I'm a "man of certainty"). Here I will … Continue reading Force Over Form: Leveraging the Elements
Transformative Tarot Reading: From “Soft in the Middle” to “Fire in the Belly”
"A man walks down the streetHe says, 'Why am I soft in the middle now?Why am I soft in the middle?The rest of my life is so hard.'"from You Can Call Me Al by Paul Simon AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've reached the unsurprising conclusion that many (if not most) serious seekers who consult me for a … Continue reading Transformative Tarot Reading: From “Soft in the Middle” to “Fire in the Belly”
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 