"And if I claim to be a wise man, well/That just means that I don't know." - from Carry On Wayward Son, by Kansas AUTHOR'S NOTE: I realize that I already used this quote casually in a recent essay, but I wanted to bring it front-and-center in this one as a reminder that even a … Continue reading The Diviner as Sage and the Curse of “Voodoo Metaphysics”
Does It or Doesn’t It?
( . . . or to be less opaque, does "shit happen" randomly or not?) AUTHOR'S NOTE: If you gag on a bit of good-natured barnyard naughtiness, you can give this one a pass. But scratch the surface and you’ll find a substantial, divination-based discussion of fate versus causality. Those who tout the legitimacy of … Continue reading Does It or Doesn’t It?
“Wang Hai’s Cattle”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: While contemplating the Chinese legend of Wang Hai, who lost his livestock (not once but twice!) to jealous rivals in the kingdom of Yi, I decided to create a tarot spread that addresses this possibility in present-day terms. In the past I've used the upright or reversed orientation of the cards in a … Continue reading “Wang Hai’s Cattle”
“Home-Court Advantage” in Tarot Reading
AUTHOR'S NOTE: A staple of tarot reading is the "dual-path" spread that is intended to highlight the more auspicious of two choices for the querent's consideration. They come in many shapes and sizes (typically parallel rows or columns, and sometimes "forked" arrays) but are usually brief. Ideally, each path will be neutral before the cards … Continue reading “Home-Court Advantage” in Tarot Reading
The “Chinese Menu” Tarot Timing Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Recalling the raucous furor that attended the colloquial renaming of Covid-19 as "the Chinese flu" (in which many people chose to demean the source of the presumed gaffe and dismiss the mounting evidence), and the more recent rallying cry over "cultural appropriation," I might have felt some trepidation about the political correctness of … Continue reading The “Chinese Menu” Tarot Timing Spread
Devil, Devil, Who’s Got the Devil?
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sometimes you just know something fishy is going on but you can't put your finger on it where to look for it. Here is a spread that mimics the Clue motif (we recently attended the stage performance in Boston); it uses the Golden Dawn's method of deciding on a "significator" card, then dealing … Continue reading Devil, Devil, Who’s Got the Devil?
Playing to Strength, Caving to Weakness: Aspiration and Temptation in Tarot Reading
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is a spread that offers a "high road" and a "low road" for approaching the outcome of a reading; these are parallel routes, each with an itinerary that features either optimism for a successful arrival or pessimism over the risk of being detoured into failure. It could be useful when contemplating whether … Continue reading Playing to Strength, Caving to Weakness: Aspiration and Temptation in Tarot Reading
Multiple Reversals as “Covert Operations”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've written often about the myriad ways in which one can interpret reversed cards in a tarot reading; I now have over 200 general keywords in 15 major categories to describe it that go well beyond "blocked" or "delayed." One common assumption is that reversal suggests a covert influence entering the matter, usually … Continue reading Multiple Reversals as “Covert Operations”
The Awakening: A Spiritual Transformation Spread
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is a tarot spread that uses the concepts of entrenched inertia (pip cards), personal make-over (court cards) and mystical transformation in the form of both transcendent opportunities and spiritual pitfalls (trump cards). It is one of my "mixed-media" spreads that employs both tarot cards and dice in its execution. Begin by separating … Continue reading The Awakening: A Spiritual Transformation Spread
“No Blame” – A Useful First Principle in Divination
AUTHOR'S NOTE: There is a handful of what might be called "first principles" or "prime directives" in reading the tarot cards, broad concepts to which I mostly adhere. One premise, for which I am indebted to Dr. James Wanless, is that "There are no 'bad' cards, only opportunities" (in a forthcoming essay I make the … Continue reading “No Blame” – A Useful First Principle in Divination
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 