AUTHOR'S NOTE: As Mary K. Greer has pointed out, the original source for many of the Lenormand card descriptions was not solely the German Game of Hope (although that added to the vocabulary), but rather the practice of "coffee-ground" divination that predated it, at first in the Middle East and later in Europe. Among the … Continue reading Lenormand: Wisdom In A Cup
Experimental Methods
Into the Mystic: The Triangular Grand Tableau
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Very little about the Lenormand system of divination can be called metaphysical or psychological, and as a nominal traditionalist I believe this is appropriate despite efforts by tarot transplants to hijack it with their intuitive and psychic sensibilities. But I've been re-reading the Lenormand Symbols e-book by Anthony Louis and decided to take … Continue reading Into the Mystic: The Triangular Grand Tableau
The “Cusp of Renewal” Year-End Review & New-Year Forecast
AUTHOR'S NOTE: While preparing to do New Year's readings for some friends tomorrow, I decided to create a special spread for the occasion. The scope encompasses a recap of the year that is ending, a look at the present-in-transition, and a projection for the coming year in three developmental areas: Stimulation; Stability and Stagnation. It … Continue reading The “Cusp of Renewal” Year-End Review & New-Year Forecast
The “Pendulum of Progress” Situational Development Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The directional orientation of the figures on the cards is an underutilized factor in tarot reading that is most often taught in traditional courses of study. I've made a few attempts in the past to bring this technique into my own practice, and now I'm at it again. This orientation can be depicted … Continue reading The “Pendulum of Progress” Situational Development Spread
Full-Moon Finale: The “Cold” Moon
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Although I prefer to do a New Moon reading each month, the Full Moon on December 15th of this year is special. Not only is it the last Full Moon of the year, it is reaching its northernmost declination (distance from the equator), achieving a "major lunar standstill" in the sky after which … Continue reading Full-Moon Finale: The “Cold” Moon
“Running the Maze” – A Mixed-Media Situational Insight Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm always looking for new ways to pre-select a subset of the 78-card deck that shrinks the playing field and allows pulling the cards for the reading from a narrower population. This one uses a 24-card template that, with the addition of a single six-sided die, produces a four-card run complemented by a … Continue reading “Running the Maze” – A Mixed-Media Situational Insight Spread
Negotiated Settlement: A Best-Case/Worst-Case Trend Development Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I like to say that I don't purposely seek "good" or "bad" answers in a tarot reading but only an indication of trending circumstances that can be brought to a head through the querent's focused engagement. Here is a spread that makes good on this paradigm. It uses a breakdown of generally auspicious, … Continue reading Negotiated Settlement: A Best-Case/Worst-Case Trend Development Spread
Approaching the Hub: An Elemental Alignment Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: While reading about the Medieval concept of "Fortuna" (later identified with the tarot Wheel of Fortune), I was impressed by the thinking of Boethius (as presented by C.S. Lewis), who put the following into the mouth of his philosophical muse, Philosophia. (Note that, although "Divine Providence" is not in my personal vocabulary as … Continue reading Approaching the Hub: An Elemental Alignment Spread
Manipulative Tendencies: A “Dark Triad” Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: While roaming the internet I encountered a psychological concept I hadn't seen presented in quite the same way before. I don't believe tarot should be used independently for the kind of psychoanalytical probing this behavioral complex demands, but I propose that it can at least shed speculative light on the presence of such … Continue reading Manipulative Tendencies: A “Dark Triad” Spread
A Seven-Day Mixed Media Card Selection Method
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is a card-selection technique that uses a large, randomly-pulled template from which to select seven cards for a weekly reading by throwing a single "token" or "pointer" seven times (I used alphabet beads as described below). My "casting surface" was a repurposed pizza box, but any rectangular container with sides will suffice. … Continue reading A Seven-Day Mixed Media Card Selection Method
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 