Even as a naive young novice I was leery of making glib predictions with the tarot; my early work in astrology had taught me that there are few metaphysical absolutes and the Prime Directive was to offer the seeker an intricate synthesis of possibilities. There are a number of good reasons to avoid the practice … Continue reading Partly Dark with a Chance of Rain
Tarot Techniques
A “Threepenny Opera” Followup Reading: Arm Surgery
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I have quite a few short essays jostling for inclusion here and I've been hard-pressed to maintain my self-imposed limit of one post per day. So I won't in a few special cases, mainly new spreads and example readings that are more illustrative than profoundly informative. As mentioned in my previous post on … Continue reading A “Threepenny Opera” Followup Reading: Arm Surgery
The “Captains of Industry” Business Dynamic Spread
“Business Management” spreads are some of the most challenging patterns to craft since there so many dynamic variables, vested interests and external influences to consider that it can be difficult to decide where to place the focus. You can quickly wind up with a sprawling, multi-armed monstrosity. (Hint: Despite its appearance, this really isn’t one … Continue reading The “Captains of Industry” Business Dynamic Spread
A “Threepenny Opera” Example Reading: Arm Surgery
My wife recently fell and fractured both bones of her forearm near the wrist. They're calling it an "unstable" fracture that will require two plates to be inserted into her arm; that surgery is scheduled for today. I performed my "Threepenny Opera" multi-deck selection method to a three-card line asking about the outcome of the … Continue reading A “Threepenny Opera” Example Reading: Arm Surgery
The “Threepenny Opera” Multi-Deck Selection Method
Although some people shuffle the packs together when using more than one tarot deck in a reading, I've never found that approach particularly easy or effective due to inconsistent card size, thickness and finish. So I have always shuffled the decks separately for any multi-deck spread, usually placing them in different rows, columns or "chains" … Continue reading The “Threepenny Opera” Multi-Deck Selection Method
The “Tarot-Cartography” Relocation Spread
Here's a little less-complicated fun with reversals. It's based on the "Astro-Cartography" model from the 1970s. This approach to relocation assumes that we have an urge to move but don't know exactly where we want to go to find the best "fit." It uses a process of elimination based on the appearance of reversed cards … Continue reading The “Tarot-Cartography” Relocation Spread
Lurkers on the Threshold
There is an old cliche that "a bad penny always turns up." This aphorism perfectly describes the barely civil dispute about the practice of reading reversed cards that is currently simmering on one of my more advanced tarot forums. The weary consensus is to just "pick your poison" (I'm full of platitudes today) and move … Continue reading Lurkers on the Threshold
A “Mercury Reversed” Example Reading
As luck (or Fate) would have it, Mercury went retrograde on the 14th of January, 2022, giving me a perfect opportunity to test this spread. During much of the period, Venus is also retrograde but there were no Venus decan cards in the draw. It might be worthwhile to set up the "Archetypal Pattern" for … Continue reading A “Mercury Reversed” Example Reading
The “Mercury Reversed” Retrograde Period Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I split this spread off from yesterday's post for better visibility, saying three times "I promise not to repeat myself . . ." As discussed at length in my previous essay, I don't buy the popular notion that Mercury going retrograde as part of the evolving "sky pattern" is automatically a harbinger of … Continue reading The “Mercury Reversed” Retrograde Period Spread
The “Hidden Path” Situational Awareness Spread
I'm fascinated by reversals and am always looking for creative ways to take maximum advantage of their subtle influence. Here is a spread that uses reversal to further the "hidden" story-line. The reading will be from two to five cards depending on how many reversals appear, and the first reversed card will set the topical … Continue reading The “Hidden Path” Situational Awareness Spread
