Tarot A-Go-Go

So, like so many of us, I do tarot readings.  Most frequently, I do tarot readings for myself and gods know I just about never do them professionally (although I’ve had a few points where I’ve set up in a coffee shop and ended up doing readings in exchange for coffee and lemon squares, which is not a terrible thing).

Anyway, sometimes I’ll draw a spread for myself, but I won’t actually have time to do the interpretation, so I just pack up the reading and save it to look at later.  Maybe that’s weird, but sometimes I find that it helps because it lets me look at what I drew from a fresh perspective.  Case in point:  This morning, I had a look at a spread a drew something like a week ago.  I only vaguely remember what had been on my mind when I pulled the cards, but looking at what I drew I can see what the reading is actually about.  Know what I mean?

Anyway.  I did a “Question and Answer” spread – as I’m fond of short-and-to-the-point when it comes to stuff like this. (FYI: I use the Osho Zen tarot deck – minus the Osho Card (because I did not sign up to promote someone else’s guru). I do really like the art work – as you’ll see, since I’ve linked to pictures of all the cards I drew – and find that the way the cards are named is actually far more useful to me than the more traditional terms like “Four of Wands” or whatever).

This is what I drew (given that I’m doing this reading around a harvest time – read: a time of thinking about abundance and hope for the future – I think it’s surprisingly timely):

Signifier: No-Thingness (five of major arcana), Upright.

Question: The Miser (four of earth), Reversed.

Answer: We Are The World (ten of earth), Reversed.

Hindrances: Projections (seven of water), Reversed.

Helpers: Rebirth (ten of air), Reversed.

Outcome: Adventure (page of earth), Upright.

Overarching (current) Influences: Sharing (queen of fire), Upright.

Underlying (rising) Influences: Receptivity (queen of water), Reversed.

What I think all this stuff means (that’s the lovely thing about cardboard: It doesn’t actually know anything, but it sure gives you a good way of getting your non-verbal self (who totally knows what’s going on) to talk to your verbal self (who just thinks it’s in charge), know what I mean?):

Okay. First thing: No-Thingness is basically the Card Of Potential for me. So I read this as me being sort of on the cusp of something, with all my options open. (Because I try to be positive like that).

The Question is, pretty obviously, all about “Will I Be Okay???” which has been a question/fear of mine since time immemorial and, of late, is fairly relevant to my situation BUT

The Answer is also pretty obvious: Yes. But the “Yes” involves a change in perspective (see the following two cards) to include the reality that I’m not alone and that people have my back.

The Hindrances are really familiar. That emotional tendency to project my fears onto other people so that, when I’m afraid I won’t be able to look after myself adequately, I start freaking out that maybe the people I’m counting on are going to up and disappear on me. Getting it through my head that this isn’t actually going to happen will – given the Reversed position of this card – be a challenge BUT

Getting it through my head is what’s going to Help me. The reversed Rebirth card – since it’s reversed and since it’s an air card – is, as far as I can see, saying “Change your thinking”. Not that it’ll be easy, but that’s the trick of it all. If I can do that, THEN

The Outcome will, essentially, be a degree of fearlessness and exploration that I need to get myself through everything and do what I’m meant to do. That the Adventure card is upright tells me that (a) it’s an outward adventure, rather than an inward exploration (of self, or whatever). Which, in this situation, is a really good thing. Beyond that, though, I also read it as being an easy thing to take on once I’ve dealt with my internal Issues around fear and hiding and playing it safe. This is also a good thing. I have something fairly big to look forward to.

The Overarching and Underlying Influences cards are an addition to every tarot spread I do. I picked them up from a friend of mine, as they are a bit like Advisers to a given situation (though I’ve been known to draw a context/adviser card as well, from time to time). I have to admit that, in this deck, the queen cards (except the queen of clouds, who is just a scary and nasty individual – she corresponds to the suit of swords in the trad deck, so I’m not surprised by this) are among my most favourite pieces. Taken together, I read this combination of the out-going queen of fire and the receptive queen of water (that they are respectively upright and reversed just adds to this, I think) as meaning: If I put my stuff/self/talents/work Out There right now, I will in time (measurable time, visible time, no less) be able to Bring In the benefits of what I’ve put out. Which is, of course, exactly what I need to hear. 🙂

All in all, I think this spread is incredibly positive.
(An old anthropology teacher of mine once said, in a guest-lecture about divination, that if you are doing a reading for someone else, you always have to put a positive spin on it, because a stranger will believe you because you are in the position of Expert, and a friend will believe you because you are their friend and wouldn’t lie to them. I like it when I don’t have to spin things to find something positive in a reading).

If I were to summarize the whole thing, I think I would say something like:
“Whatever you’re setting up and trying to do/start right now is going to work. It’s going to take some effort – duh – but it’ll happen. Act despite the fear and the wobbles and the uncertainty, fake it til you make it (so to speak), and you will make it. Everything you want to do, you’ll do. Everything you want to get out of it, you’ll receive. The world is with you on this one. Go-go-go! :-D”

As such: To action! Up-up-and-awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

– Cheers,
– Meliad the Birch Maiden