[The Cross] [The Celtic Cross] [Achievement Reading] [Career Reading] [Self-Analysis] [Personal Growth] [Relationship Reading #1] [Relationship Reading #2] [Astrology Reading] [Horse Shoe Reading #1] [Horse Shoe Reading #2] [The Future Mirror] [Path Reading #1] [Path Reading #1]
Drawing just one card is the easiest and probably the most common method of reading. Without a storyline like when interpreting a spread, there are no cards to compare and contrast. Simply interpret the card as the answer to the question.
Alternatively, this method may be used repeatedly in succession to let the cards tell you a story.
This psychological spread shows a person about their own mind. It is meant to provide clarity so you have a better picture of what you want out of life. Cards #3 and #4 show similar ideas, the difference being that #3 is more about fun things, and #4 is more about ambitions and what you want to achieve.
This easy-to-read four-card layout is one of the most useful of all the spreads. The first card is the significator, and the last shows the outcome, provided that the advice given is followed. The advice is broken down into two cards which can easily be compared and contrasted. Card #2 suggests what to avoid, while #3 shows the path to take.
This spread can also be used to ask about the meaning of a card from a previously executed spread that may have been unclear. In this usage, Card #2 shows what it did not mean, while #3 clarifies the meaning.
The Celtic Cross is the most well-known tarot spread and also the largest available here, involving ten cards. This spread begins with a pair of crossing cards at the center of the issue, essentially being two significators. When two significators are involved, they may strengthen or oppose each other, which speaks of the nature of the situation. Above and below the initial cross, we have two cards which are symbolic of the intellectual (top) and emotional (bottom) basis of the issue. The Before and After cards show the past and immediate future.
At the right, four cards are laid out, going upward. At the bottom you have a card representing yourself, and the next card shows how others may affect the situation. Card #9 indicates what you may be hoping for, or possibly, what you hope will not happen. Finally at the top is the outcome, meaning the distant or ultimate future.
Use this reading to assist in reaching, or possibly defining your goals. This reading explores your strengths and weaknesses, suggesting areas in which you will have to make some effort to ensure you reach your goals.
This layout forms the shape of an arrow pointing upwards, symbolic of the focus of any ambitious, career-minded individual. The first card shows where you are currently at in your career. The second shows the challenge you will need to overcome on your way up the ladder of success. You can rely on your strengths, hinted at in Card #3 to help you along your way. Cards #4 and #5 show the Past and Future Influences that affect your journey. Finally, Card #6 shows the outcome of your efforts.
This in-depth eight-card layout shows various aspects of your personal journey. It is good for exploring generalised personal questions, but can also be used to explore relationships if the couple is viewed as a whole.
This spread progresses through eight stages similar to the tarot deck's Major Arcana, beginning with birth and the realm of fertility. After birth comes the initial growth which leads to a period of adaptation, change, and re-balancing oneself. Once the process has grown enough, security comes into focus, as it is necessary to protect what has been earned. After this, once again growth is important, but concerning the mind and creativitity this time, leading to another phase of personal changes. Finally upon completion of the journey, the rewards become evident, and beyond that, one's spiritual development level will have noticeably risen.
This is a wonderful specialty layout for analysing a relationship on three levels: intellectual or rational thoughts, emotional attitudes or feelings, and postures: meaning the way each person acts in regards to the relationship.
The first card is the significator, meaning the overall personality of the relationship as a whole. On either side of the significator are two columns. The columns show how each person relates to the other on the three levels described above.
This is a specified relationship spread that uses nine cards to analyse where a romantic relationship is at and where it is headed. The first card shows where it is at now, and can be considered the significator. The second and third cards determine where your partner stands and how it relates to where you are at personally.
Above the stem, the three-card base of the layout, a cup forms. Cards #4 and #5 show each person's desires, meaning what they want to get out of this coupling. Above this, Cards #6 and #7 show the challenge that this pairing presents to each individual. The final two cards at the top form the rim of the cup, symbolic of the taste of the relationship to each person, which shows how things will turn out on each side.
The Astrology spread yields insight into aspects of the current state of your life, reading into the planets' influence on your psyche.
As usual, this reading begins with the significator and ends with the outcome. Between the ends we analyse cards which stand for the planetary influences, one by one. The Moon card represents the influence of the home. Mercury shows the side of the intellect regarding one's interpersonal skills. Of course, Venus is the planet of love, and Mars is the planet of war. These two also represent the female and male energies respectively. The final two planets both relate to Mercury. Jupiter shows the financial side of business, regarding personal gains. Saturn represents the purely intellectual aspects of a person's life, or personal thoughts.
The seven-card Horse Shoe is a convenient, basic layout that can be used to answer different types of questions, especially concerning questions where insight would be helpful. Like several other spreads, it has cards representing the past, present, and future.
The pinnacle of the Horse Shoe, looking like the top of the mountain, shows the obstacle or challenge that needs to be addressed and overcome. Card #6 suggests a course of action to meet this challenge. The final card shows the outcome or future, should this advice be followed.
Other clues are provided in Cards #3 and #5, which indicate hidden or outside influences that come into play, affecting the journey to your goal.
Similar to the Horse Shoe #1, this variant provides insight on different levels. The first two cards begin the reading with the past and present, but then the cards switch to a different focus. Card #3 warns you about possible side effects that could accompany the future outcome, #7. The base card, #4 shows desirable or undesirable actions to take concerning the issue. The external environment specifically means the people around you and how they feel about what you are up to. Things which could cause setbacks are indicated in Card #6, another more specifically focused card than what is generally labelled the obstacle or challenge card in some other layouts.
This spiraling five-card layout shows the present situation as it enters the future. The first card is the significator, meaning the overall theme and mood of the question posed. The significator is compounded by the next two cards, showing the current problem and a clue to what might offer a helping hand to overcome this problem. The fourth and fifth cards show the near future, leading into the long-term outcome.
The Path #1 is laid out in a grid utilising two columns and three rows.
The first of the three rows shows rational or intellectual thoughts concerning the question. The second row is concerned with emotional attitudes, meaning feelings. The bottom row represents your posture or stance, meaning how you project yourself outwardly, to the world.
The left column shows how you currently think, feel, and act regarding your concern. The right column suggests advice on how to change your attitudes on these three levels to provide the most beneficial outcome. The trick is to compare and contrast the two columns, which gives hints as to what the cards mean and how to make changes, small or large.
The second Path spread is a seven-level design that yields insight to achieve a high level of personal and spiritual growth. The roots of the tree, shown in the first two cards, suggest what you need to learn and where the challenge lies. Growing upward, the next two cards are about the forces that guide you and what will help boost your growth. The next two cards show the lower branches of the tree, which provide warnings about what you need to let go of in order to maximise your progress. Finally at the top of the tree, we come to the outcome, showing where this growth process will ultimately lead.
