AUTHOR'S NOTE: It is generally accepted in professional tarot circles that the cards should not be consulted for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes related to matters of health and wellness. However, in keeping with my belief that divination can be used to address any question as long as it is phrased with sufficient care, I see … Continue reading A Comprehensive Wellness Assessment Spread
Thoth Material
Cards of Momentum and Metamorphosis
AUTHOR'S NOTE: "Movement" and "change" are recurring themes in tarot reading and some cards express it more eloquently than others. Aleister Crowley believed that any request for divination means that something needs to change for the better, so the message in these cards is one of encouragement for the seeker. (There are other cards to … Continue reading Cards of Momentum and Metamorphosis
Applied Tarot: From Anxiety to Empowerment
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I recently came across the opinion that fear as expressed in a tarot reading is not necessarily a bad thing because it keeps us sharply focused on our challenges while galvanizing us into action. In addition, fear in the form of anxiety is often the driver that brings a sitter to the reader's … Continue reading Applied Tarot: From Anxiety to Empowerment
An “Upside/Downside” Situational Reading
"I've got a feeling, and I know I'm rightThat tomorrow will bring the darkest night.I've been around too long,I've got to get away."- from I've Been Around Too Long by Marmalade AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is an example reading to test the spread I posted yesterday. I inquired about a situation that has been vexing me … Continue reading An “Upside/Downside” Situational Reading
The Separation of Church and Fate: Taking Religion Out of Tarot
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry about the clumsy malapropism, it was the best I could come up with as a riff on the "separation of Church and State" in tarot terms. As everyone knows if they have even a smattering of knowledge about tarot history (or just the eyes to see), the traditional cards have a strong … Continue reading The Separation of Church and Fate: Taking Religion Out of Tarot
A “Life’s Big Questions” Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is a tarot spread that should be useful for exploring any profound existential issues confronting a seeker. In it, the analytical shares equal billing with the mystical (which is my customary approach to divination). The five-fold architecture of the layout is more philosophical than pragmatic in a "fortune-telling" sense. It is to … Continue reading A “Life’s Big Questions” Spread
Gender Parallels and Partitions in the Court Cards
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In the fourfold elemental world of the occult tarot that is symbolized by Fire, Water, Air and Earth, there is a fundamental separation of the elements into two divisions of two elements each that share the same polarity (positive or negative), the same mode of operation (active or passive) and the same key … Continue reading Gender Parallels and Partitions in the Court Cards
Small Steps: The Wise Man’s Journey Through the Minor Arcana
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Since the rise of the Jungian approach to tarot during the early days of the "New Age" era, a sea of literary ink (both physical and digital) has been spent on explanation of the "Fool's Journey" as it applies to the Major Arcana. Here I'm proposing a similar concept for the Minor Arcana. … Continue reading Small Steps: The Wise Man’s Journey Through the Minor Arcana
One Oar in the Water: Reversal as “Rowing in Circles”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: In common slang, failing to have "both oars in the water" carries a meaning similar to "not playing with a full deck," but in tarot terms this nautical metaphor could imply rowing in circles, unable to find a direct route to one's destination. Here I'm applying it to the conundrum of reversed cards … Continue reading One Oar in the Water: Reversal as “Rowing in Circles”
The 5 of Cups: Disappointment or Loss in Pleasure?
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is another instance where Aleister Crowley's tinkering with the Golden Dawn's title for one of the Minor Arcana does not really capture the original intent (or so it seems to me). The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn presented the 5 of Cups as the "Lord of Loss in Pleasure." Use of … Continue reading The 5 of Cups: Disappointment or Loss in Pleasure?
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 