This is a follow-up to my observation that, rather than foretelling inevitable events of a life-altering nature, the trump cards most often serve as profound "background themes" or big-picture "stage-setters" for the minor-card actors, much like a theater backdrop. They invoke a climate that is ripe for certain occurrences, but the querent must still command … Continue reading Trumps As Situational “Wallpaper”
Trumps
More Thoughts on the Trump Cards
Not long ago I posted a detailed essay on how I think the Major Arcana (aka "trump" cards) operate in divination. https://parsifalswheeldivination.com/2020/03/21/much-ado-about-nothing-the-problem-with-trump-cards-in-prediction/ Since that time I've had occasion to further consider their significance in readings that explore situational developments where external factors are likely to play a part. As before, I seldom see them as … Continue reading More Thoughts on the Trump Cards
Much Ado About Nothing? – The Problem with Trump Cards in Prediction
Although I've been working up to it for a while, I recently decided to take a more measured stance regarding the significance of trump cards in my personal readings (but not in those for other people since I won't presume to tinker with their destiny; that's for them to decide upon seeing the cards). I've … Continue reading Much Ado About Nothing? – The Problem with Trump Cards in Prediction
“Pin the Handle on the Perp ” – A Suspect-Identification Spread
This method first appeared in a "whodunit" reading for a murdered New Hampshire woman that I posted in October of last year, but I can never find it when I want it so I broke it out into its own post. The court-card representing the suspect will typically have come up in an earlier spread … Continue reading “Pin the Handle on the Perp ” – A Suspect-Identification Spread
The “Two-Trump Tango” Example Reading: A Study in Determination
In this example pull for my new life-reading spread, I used the Spanish Tarot TdM deck without reversals. The question I asked was "Where will my guitar-playing initiative take me in the next six months?" Last week, completely out of the blue, I decided to resume the guitar-playing ambitions that I dropped shortly after buying … Continue reading The “Two-Trump Tango” Example Reading: A Study in Determination
The “Two-Trump Tango” Life-Reading Spread*
*(So named for no other reason than that it has a pleasing alliteration to it.) I've long held that, when they appear in a prediction, the tarot trump cards usually presage "matters of greater import" emerging in a person's life, while the rest of the cards are more about routine experiences and attitudes arising within … Continue reading The “Two-Trump Tango” Life-Reading Spread*
The Grand Illusion
My understanding from numerous on-line conversations with European tarot enthusiasts is that many of them use only the 22 trump cards in divination. I've tried this approach but it seems a bit too much like reading a text message that is all capital letters and exclamation marks (like a Donald Trump tweet). There can be … Continue reading The Grand Illusion
Decimal Counterparts: An Alternative Approach
If I recall correctly (which may or may not be the case), a few years ago I encountered - very briefly in the writing of Anthony Louis and then more exhaustively in that of James Wanless - the notion of decimal counterparts among the trump cards of the tarot. The assumption is that the two-digit … Continue reading Decimal Counterparts: An Alternative Approach
Recombinant Trumps: Hierophant and Star
The Hierophant and the Star are not cards that would normally be mentioned in the same breath. The former, as the mundane channel for divine inspiration, has its feet on the ground and its head in the clouds, while the latter is about as removed from earthly concerns as one can get while still remaining … Continue reading Recombinant Trumps: Hierophant and Star
Archetype, Archetype, Who’s Got the Archetype?
It appears from the on-line conversations I've been following that there are two distinct chains of archetypal descent in the tarot. One of them - the older one - is culturally-specific, symbolizing conventions that were widely understood and accepted during the pre-Enlightenment era when they were first captured in the trump cards. Their appeal to … Continue reading Archetype, Archetype, Who’s Got the Archetype?
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 