AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've never been one to approach a tarot reading as if I'm throwing darts at a dart-board. If I'm going to roll the dice (which I sometimes do, quite literally) it will be with focused intent and not entirely dependent on serendipity and its accomplice, intuition. I owe my sitters more "beef" than … Continue reading The Structured Tarot Reading
Tarot Techniques
“One Must Know These Things”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Excuse the minor autobiographical redundancy in this essay; its repetition was essential to my purpose. A few years ago my son asked me how a guy who cuts down trees with a chainsaw can make such "girly" cocktails, an anomaly he found to be out-of-character (not that he doesn't quaff them willingly). Short … Continue reading “One Must Know These Things”
The 2026 Congressional Midterm Election: A PoMo Tarot Analysis
AUTHOR'S NOTE: It's time once again for my biennial reading on United States politics with Brian William's PoMo (PostModern) tarot. The focus of this analysis is the upcoming Congressional midterm election The PoMo tarot is my all-time favorite deck for sociopolitical readings because the tone is cynical enough to avoid being fooled by appearances, and … Continue reading The 2026 Congressional Midterm Election: A PoMo Tarot Analysis
Consider the Source: Crafting A Personal Tarot Philosophy
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Near the beginning of Robert Anton Wilson's book Prometheus Rising there is a drawing that shows a man contemplating a model of his private universe at its narrowest cross-section, completely ignorant of the sweeping, sidelong view that would have given him a much broader perspective on its true size. It's as if he's … Continue reading Consider the Source: Crafting A Personal Tarot Philosophy
The “Seed” Card and Directional “Pointer” – A Multi-Path Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is another unique way to use the single "focus" (aka Signficator) card to open a tarot reading. Additional Insights: I'm now home after the trip to Italy described in the example reading below. All of the anxiety I anticipated was reserved for the vehicular mayhem we experienced in Florence (Firenze), the one … Continue reading The “Seed” Card and Directional “Pointer” – A Multi-Path Spread
“Midpoint Mash-up” – The Role of Mediation in Tarot Reading
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I recently began reading Robert Anton Wilson's Prometheus Rising. I've dipped into his published work sporadically and randomly over the years with no clear chronology in mind, but as the old advertising slogan goes, you "can't eat just one," and in Israel Regardie's introductory comments I encountered the food for thought that inspired … Continue reading “Midpoint Mash-up” – The Role of Mediation in Tarot Reading
Divination as a “Last Resort”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've just returned from Italy after a seven-day Mediterranean cruise and a destination wedding outside of Pisa (for the record, I'm convinced that Italy lived through its cultural glory days in the 15th and 16th Centuries and I have no intention of going back even though the Tuscan countryside, the country people and … Continue reading Divination as a “Last Resort”
The De-energizer: Reversal as Diminished Potency
AUTHOR'S NOTE: For the approximately fifty percent of my followers who read reversed cards, this is for you. The rest can take it however they choose. Over the years I've come up with over 200 discrete interpretations for the phenomenon of tarot-card reversal sorted into 15 broad categories, independent of the nature of the cards … Continue reading The De-energizer: Reversal as Diminished Potency
Advanced Querent Engagement: Populating the Personal Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: When I create unique tarot spreads, I do so with an eye toward establishing an environment for the topic of interest that a sitter can then populate via "subconscious induction" as a result of shuffling and cutting the cards for the pull. The goal is to open a door into the collective unconscious … Continue reading Advanced Querent Engagement: Populating the Personal Spread
The Diviner’s Art as “Pondering the Manner of Things in the Dark”
"Do you ponder the manner of things in the dark?"-from Glitter and Gold by Barns Courtney AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've occasionally summoned the Biblical phrase "through a glass darkly" when describing the tarot reader's quest for insight as one of murky supposition. Its a useful metaphor to ponder when a reading wanders too far from illumination … Continue reading The Diviner’s Art as “Pondering the Manner of Things in the Dark”
