"What, in short, is the truth's cash-value in experiential terms?"- Psychologist William James on the uncertain advantage that truth holds over falsehood "in anyone's actual life." AUTHOR'S NOTE: Many years ago I was taken to task in one of the online tarot forums for prizing accurate results in my divination. I was asked pointblank by … Continue reading Experiential Cash-Value: The Wages of Accurate Prediction
Tarot Opinion
Peripheral Vision in Tarot Reading
AUTHOR'S NOTE The inspiration for this brief essay came from a Stephen Wright quote in Dean Radin's book Supernormal: "I was a peripheral clairvoyant. I saw the future, but only way off to the side." I've always been skeptical of intuitive (and, more specifically, psychic) tarot readers who claim they can learn everything they need … Continue reading Peripheral Vision in Tarot Reading
“Eyes That Are the Windows, Eyes That Are the View” – Tarot and Quantum Mechanics*
*Lyrics quoted are from the Dave Mason song Sad and Deep as You. AUTHOR'S NOTE: Quantum theory in modern physics holds that until an elementary quantum object is observed (by direct measurement according to mainstream scientists and in response to conscious attention in paranormal circles), it is in an "indeterminate state" and has "no definite … Continue reading “Eyes That Are the Windows, Eyes That Are the View” – Tarot and Quantum Mechanics*
Individual Reading Style in Divination (A Recap)
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've touched on this subject numerous times in previous essays, but almost always in passing. Here I will give it the full treatment from my personal perspective, with a small amount of unavoidable repetition. Traditional tarot decks feature a wealth of symbolic raw material that is "baked-in;" these fundamental meanings should be internalized … Continue reading Individual Reading Style in Divination (A Recap)
Online Tarot Reading for Profit: An Outsider’s Perspective
AUTHOR'S NOTE: There is currently a glut of aspiring tarot readers who believe that starting up an online practice is a surefire way to make enough money to survive. Until disabused of the notion, they don't realize just how many of their peers they will be competing against, many of whom read for free or … Continue reading Online Tarot Reading for Profit: An Outsider’s Perspective
“Uncontrolled Variables” in Remote Tarot Reading
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In the category of "A Little Knowledge Is A Dangerous Thing" for the mystical tarot reader, parapsychologist Dean Radin (in Supernormal, his 2013 study of yoga) had a few critical things to say about the lack of scientific confidence in online testimony. Dr. Radin made a tossed-off remark about the fact that the … Continue reading “Uncontrolled Variables” in Remote Tarot Reading
Tarot “Whack-a-Mole” – Hitting the Sweet Spot
AUTHOR'S NOTE: All too often, the cards pulled for a tarot reading amount to little more than "visual noise" when we first try to relate them to the question or topic of interest. Readers must employ noise reduction (typically some kind of selective seeing) in coaxing the more significant insights to poke their heads above … Continue reading Tarot “Whack-a-Mole” – Hitting the Sweet Spot
Occult Knowledge: What’s the Use?
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I have a few less-meaty essays in my backlog of pending posts. This is one, and I will publish the others over the next couple of days. A fellow member of the r/occult sub-reddit community recently asked a particularly vexing question: "What do you people even do with occult knowledge?" This individual was … Continue reading Occult Knowledge: What’s the Use?
Tarot Reading Beyond the Lookup
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In a recent post titled "Most Tarot Readings Stop Too Soon," tarot author Paul Hughes-Barlow observed that, at its most basic, a tarot reading approximates a "lookup table:" Pull a card, look up the meaning, make the interpretation. He concluded by saying that "It works, but only in the same sense that a … Continue reading Tarot Reading Beyond the Lookup
Intuitive Divination as “Auto-Suggestion”
Auto-suggestion: "A psychological technique where an individual consciously or unconsciously influences their own attitudes, behaviors, or physical states through repeated self-instruction or mental affirmations." (Wikipedia) AUTHOR'S NOTE: When I first picked up the tarot in 1972, reading the cards was primarily an expression of esoteric principles applied in a mystical way, and about as far … Continue reading Intuitive Divination as “Auto-Suggestion”
