How to Get the Best Out of Tarot Readings.

If you have visited my page before you already know that I use Tarot and other divination cards to discover hidden knowledge, uncover patterns of behavior and attitude as a means of self exploration, and that I encourage others to do the same. If you are not familiar with the Tarot or divination cards, are someone who has seen the cards in movies but never had a reading, or has had a reading but didn't get much out of the experience, today's blog is especially for you. 

You don't have to be a Psychic to use the Tarot

Everyone can use the Tarot or other divination cards but there are some people who seem to get more information out of them. These people are often psychically gifted or are educated and interested in the symbols, imagery, and allegorical language of the Tarot. You do not have to be a psychic to use or receive benefit from playing with the cards and you don't have to believe in the spiritual/futuristic aspect or the mystical to go to someone for a card reading. There is much benefit to be gained through self-awareness and examination simply by playing with them as a game. However, the pass time is more fun, and often more insightful, when you get a reading from someone who has invested time, interest, and effort in learning about and practiced use of the Tarot.

What a Psychic brings to the table

The world of divination and the spiritually gifted is widely varied. Just as with other arts, every practitioner has their speciality and talent. Not all "Psychics" practice the same skill or form of divination and not all gifted persons share the same talents or degree/level of talent. 

The term psychic is rather a broad label used to cover a range of spiritual gifts and people who use those gifts. One could use any number of other titles.  Some of these labels describe the kind of talent or method of divination used. 

Psychic  (online dictionary)
adjective
1. relating to or denoting faculties or phenomena that are apparently inexplicable by natural laws, especially involving telepathy or clairvoyance, "psychic powers."
Similar:  supernatural, paranormal, otherworldly, supernormal, preternatural, metaphysical,  second sight, with a sixth sense
2. relating to the soul or mind. 
3. a person considered or claiming to have psychic powers (unexplainable knowledge of. . . through extra extrasensory perception.)
Similar: clairvoyant, fortune teller, prophet, seer, soothsayer, forecaster of the future, crystal gazer, astrologer, prognosticator, prophesier, oracle, augur

While I do possess several spiritual gifts, I am primarily Clairsentient (clear-feeling, strongly empathic), and Claircognizant (clear-knowing) using divination cards, including the Tarot, as the tool for drawing out information.  Real psychics usually don’t claim to be literal mind readers. They pick up on energy and may sense strong emotions or stark images using their gifts/talent. Some receive information from spirits that they hear through Clairaudience, others receive knowledge through scent which only they are smelling - Clairalience. (These are examples and do not cover all the possible psychic gifts.)

I have a strong gift of empathy, the ability to feel what others are feeling or experiencing. If the emotional emanation is strong enough a person's emotional projections may contain images which I will see mentally and be able to work with. When a client is cut off from their emotions or is intentionally shielding their emotions, the divination cards act as a door or entry point for claircognizance and assist me with interpreting what comes through.  

Focus Wheel and Pyramid of Influences

The cards allow me to open a dialogue about the client's particular area of focus, their question, and to explore the energies around them, so that we can both better understand the situation – namely, where that energy is coming from and why.  While you can ask very specific yes/no questions, divination cards and the Tarot are better suited for exploring whole areas of life, such as career, family, friendships, love life and personal or spiritual goals.

How to get the best out of a Tarot/divination card reading

First of all, is a Tarot or card reading the right form of divination tool for your needs?

As I have already said, Tarot or card readings are not the best form of divination for yes or no questions. Cards are best used when looking at broader areas of life, reading patterns of behavior, looking for or at resistance, problem solving - how to remove or address obstacles/blocks, and for gaining objectivity/insight about a situation. If you are looking to find a lost puppy, take their blanket or favorite toy as a "focus" to someone with the gift of psychometry. They may be able to "see" where the lost pup is using the energetic connection between the dog and the toy/item used as a focus. A tarot reading would not be the ideal choice of divination tool for that need.  

Once you know that Tarot is the best tool to explore your area of focus, take a moment to think through a line of questioning. This is especially important. The cards reveal more if you have a line of questioning. 

Sample Focus Wheel

Lines of Inquiry

Come to a reading with an area of focus or a line of questioning.  It is very helpful for the reader if you are able to narrow the focus for your reading. If you are too vague about what you are looking for or don't have a question in mind, the reading could be very general indeed. A line of questioning is helpful for the reader and assists them in weeding through all of the information they are getting from your energy and the cards. 

Here are some examples for lines of inquiry that work well with divination cards:

I'm in a new relationship. I'd like to see what the cards have to say about my love interest, where they are in life, what they are looking for, and what’s in store for this relationship.

I’d like to look at my career. I'm - considering another position/up for promotion. Can we look at that? Is this good timing? What can I expect? Any advice?

I am feeling very isolated and want to make some new friends but every time I open up I get let down. Why is that? How can I find people I can trust?

I am thinking about . . . moving/changing/pursuing _____ (fill in the blank). I’d like to know what the cards suggest I do: move, not move, change, not change, or to pursue, not to pursue and any spiritual reasons, material influences etc.

I’m trying to get pregnant, and it hasn’t happened yet. What can the cards tell me about my present and future in relation to getting pregnant? 

Other Tips 

Readers put a lot of time into educating themselves and practicing with the cards. If you decide to play with divination cards yourself, you will discover that there is no end to the amount of learning that can go into their study and use. The best readers are always seeking to expand their knowledge and awareness level, in order to serve their clients better.  Readers put themselves out there and it pulls on their energy to do so. There is an energetic price to be paid when exercising a psychic gift and it costs them to read for you. Add to that cost the mundane aspects of organizational and business expenses required for them to practice, and you get one very invested reader. A monetary exchange of energy currency is expected and reasonable for their time and efforts. 

• If you respect their investment and are mindful of your reader's efforts as a matter of courtesy, you will get the best they have to offer
• Schedule an appointment
• or if a Reader offers walk-in sessions at shop, take advantage of their availability.

Go For It!

Now that you have a better idea of what to expect and how to get the best out of Tarot and divination card readings, it is time to have some fun. Go play!

Refusing The Call. . .

The Fates

"The fates lead him who will; him who won't they drag." ~ old Roman proverb.

Have you ever wondered what your life would be like if you followed your dreams?

Have you ever considered the cost you will pay by not pursuing them? If so, perhaps you already have an inkling.

Our ancestors understood there were consequences to avoiding the call of inspiration and the desire of our hearts. Mythos from the ages prepare us, using the allegoric anchor of the Hero's Journey stories, to face the psychological repercussions associated with refusing this call.

The Call of the Gods . . .

You may be familiar with the bible story of Jonah and the whale. . . ? 

Jonah's failed escape . . .

Jonah1:1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.

Well, Jonah --the hero of the myth, doesn't want to answer the call to adventure. In the beginning of this bible story, he refuses to follow the quest given him by his god, Jehovah. The people of Nineveh are the enemies of Jonah's people. He would rather they were destroyed. Instead of accepting the task laid out by his god, trusting that there is some greater purpose at hand, he high-tails-it in the other direction, hopping a ship in Joppa headed for Tarshish. Not the most well thought out of plans. In Jonah's story, running the other direction only succeeds in pissing his patron god off. Jehovah basically sends a hurricane to sink the ship Jonah gets on.

Joseph Campbell

According to Joseph Campbell's research of world mythology, when a hero refuses the call to adventure or denies the ability to move beyond the status quo, something, usually some type of magical intervention, is then needed to plunge the hero into the unknown. Where the reluctant hero requires supernatural forces to urge him on, the willing adventurer gathers amulets, power tokens or magical items, and advice from a protector or spirit guide as aid for the journey.

A modern example of a hero refusing the call to adventure/change can be found in the movie STAR WARS.

The Call in STAR WARS

When Luke Skywalker first finds the droid R2-D2, and discovers the message from Princess Leia, he has no intention of investigating the mystery. He is more concerned with the work he has to finish for the coming morning and even mentions wiping R2's hard drive in preparation for re-purposing.
R2 runs away and while Luke is willing to come after him, meeting the Jedi Obiwan in the process, it takes returning home to find the storm troupers have wiped his home and only known family off the planet to send him on his quest.

In mundane life when we refuse the call of inspiration we don't always experience a dramatic or magical event to push us out of the stasis we are in. Sometimes what we experience is an intense feeling or realization that something is wrong in our world, a lingering dissatisfaction with the way things are. The urge to follow our inner calling and visions intensifies, and life events seem to push us to make changes. If we remain unmoved and continue to ignore these feelings, asserting an effort to maintain the status quo, at the expense of our dreams, Life quite often will shift the circumstances around us in ways that force us to grow in new directions. If we continue to ignore the deeper guidance of Source, which is trying to move us towards our highest good and potential, we become blocked energetically and create disease in our lives. Dis-ease can manifest as physical illnesses or chronic poverty, accidents, debt thinking, depression, emotional turmoil, traumatic events, or simply a deep abiding dissatisfaction with life. Our personal hero story becomes one of tragedy, loss, and pain.

It is only through embracing The Call of Life, the inspiration of Source, and engaging in the adventure of living fully that we fulfill the potential of our Be-ing.

The Tarot and the Hero's Journey

The Fool is of the tarot represents Joseph Campbell's monomythic hero at the beginning of his journey cycle. The Fool is given the number placement 0, the number of unlimited potential, which does not actually have a specific place in the sequence of the Tarot cards. The Fool can come either at the beginning of the Major Arcana or at the end, as the hero must return to the society or place of origin to complete his journey of enlightenment. The Major Arcana is often considered as the Fool’s journey through life and as such, he is ever present and therefore needs no number.

The Fool is shown at the beginning of his journey with unlimited potential. The sun rising up behind him represents the beginning of his journey. He is facing north-west, the direction of the unknown. He is looking upwards, toward the sky, or Spirit. He is about to step off a cliff into the material world but is he prepared? He has all the tools and resources he needs in the bag on his staff but he has not opened the bag yet. The white rose in his left hand represents purity and innocence. He has a guardian in the little white dog who will protect him throughout his journey but who will also push him to learn the lessons the Fool came here to learn. The mountains behind the Fool represent the realms of Spirit that he has just left and will spend his life trying to regain.