On to the interpretations. In this post I will address a specific question I see frequently, and will look at the court cards grouped by suit. (In the future I plan to consider the cards in relation to other example questions.) I'm not going to deal with reversals at this point. Bear in mind these interpretations are guidelines only and you should always, always go with your gut when interpreting the cards in a spread.
Friday, April 27, 2012
The Tarot court, Part II
Now I will consider some specific interpretations of the court cards.
But first, a word on questions. Although you can ask yes/no questions
with the tarot--in fact, it is sometimes impossible not to--it makes it
harder for you to interpret the answers. Is the 3 of Pentacles a yes or
a no? It's much easier to interpret open-ended questions, but if in
advance you form in your mind an idea of which cards you will consider
affirmative answers and which negative answers, it will be easier to
interpret replies to those yes/no questions. If you have received an
answer to a yes/no question that you don't know how to interpret, you
can shuffle the deck and cut it into two piles. Let one pile represent
"yes," and the other "no." Go through the piles until you find the card
you originally received as your answer--if it's in the "yes" pile, the
answer is yes. Meanwhile, regarding divination of the future, the
outcome of any situation has not been decided yet, but the
possibilities, though vast, are not totally infinite, given what has
gone before. It is important to bear in mind that the answer can
influence the querent's actions and therefore the outcome.
On to the interpretations. In this post I will address a specific question I see frequently, and will look at the court cards grouped by suit. (In the future I plan to consider the cards in relation to other example questions.) I'm not going to deal with reversals at this point. Bear in mind these interpretations are guidelines only and you should always, always go with your gut when interpreting the cards in a spread.
On to the interpretations. In this post I will address a specific question I see frequently, and will look at the court cards grouped by suit. (In the future I plan to consider the cards in relation to other example questions.) I'm not going to deal with reversals at this point. Bear in mind these interpretations are guidelines only and you should always, always go with your gut when interpreting the cards in a spread.
The Tarot court, Part I
Many people--and I include myself among them--find the court cards to
be the most difficult to interpret. What makes these little stinkers
so tricksy?
They don't fit into the story arc of their suit. They don't exactly correspond to any of the Major Arcana. They are people, characters, while most of the time I think we ask the Tarot questions about what to do in certain situations, or what's beneath the surface--how do people fit in there? Are they referring to qualities in yourself, or some other person? And if another person, who? Depending on who is interpreting, you may read that the Pentacles court are dark haired, or light haired (and so on with other suits). In short, they are just not as abstract as the other tarot symbols, so they are not as easy to apply generally.
But in fact they are based on archetypes, and they can be generally applied if we just think outside the box a little. I do this by renaming the royal roles according to their archetypal qualities:
The first thing to notice here is that there are definite gender stereotypes/archetypes here (which I'll discuss more in a later post). It's important to remember that each of us has all of these qualities, and plays all of these roles, at different times in our lives. Therefore, it can help to think of the court cards according to their actions--a man can act according to the pattern symbolized by the queen, a woman can act according to the pattern symbolized by the king, etc. If you pull a court card in response to a question about what you (or the querent) should do, then act as the card's character would act.
Let's look at those actions now.
The Pages are, for me, the most difficult to interpret in context because they have a double nature: On one hand, they are students or learners, often still uncertain of themselves. On the other hand, they are heralds, announcing the first stirrings of whatever is indicated by their suit. For example, the Page of Cups is an Investigator of love, of
emotions, of what brings pleasure, beauty, satisfaction, contentment, and
fulfillment. She is concerned not only with specific manifestations of
these things, but with their ideal forms as well. You could say she is happy to flirt, but not interested in a long-term commitment yet. As a herald, she can show up to announce that information is coming to us along the Cups' main line of communication--intuition--to which we need to pay attention. The only way to determine what the Page indicates is through the context of the question and surrounding cards.
Champions are intent upon bringing their cherished
ideas and activities to your (and the whole world's) attention.
Imagine these champions up on
a soap box, preaching their gospel (determined by the suit), ready to
defend it to the death. Knights aren't just talkers though, they are also doers, so they are less interested
in the abstract manifestations of their suit than in putting them into
action. They practice what they preach, but they can also be slaves to
it. Sometimes, they just get a little carried away. For example, the
Knight of Wands is passionate about passion! He is every inch the
chivalrous knight errant, following a well-defined code of ethics. But
like a fire (wands are associated with the fire element), once his fuel
is burned up he has to move on or his enthusiasm will die.
Queens are the archetypal mothers of the court, and
they further the activities of their suit through gentle support. They
provide an environment conducive to the expansion and growth of their
suit's themes. These nurturers have a softness to them that can buoy
you up when you're down. However, if their nurturing is rejected or
taken for granted, it can turn to hurt, resentment and passive
aggression. Let's consider the Queen of Swords as an example. The
gentleness of a queen might initially seem at odds with the sharpness of
swords, and she is, admittedly, the least gentle of the queens. From
this character's point of view, sugar-coating a situation wouldn't
do you any good in the long run, so she tells it like it is. She
nurtures the growth and development of swords matters such as analysis,
reason, logic, education--the "life of the mind." No card better
symbolizes universities and libraries.
The kings have fully mastered the themes of their
suit. They embody those themes fully, and they can also direct them to
their own, and others', benefit. (We take for granted that these are
benevolent rulers.) Masters represent the pinnacle of achievement in
relation to their suit's qualities. (And yes, I know there is a gender bias here. Take it with a grain of salt.) Whenever I think of the King of
Pentacles, for example, I am reminded of this dialogue from 30 Rock:
Donaghy sums up the King of Pentacles' attitude as the master of money, luxury, comfort, status, and material goods. He's no slave to these things, but he worked hard to earn them and by gum, he's going to enjoy them. In fact, it just comes naturally to him, and there is no vanity in him (the king, that is, not Jack Donaghy!). And he is equally generous with others. This king is not too proud to get his hands dirty because he knows work has its rewards, but he is no workaholic. He expresses a healthy balance of the qualities of his suit.
So in conclusion, by combining the action specific to the court card's role--investigation/heralding, championship, nurturing, mastery--with the topics of the suit, you can get a snapshot of the character that lets you better apply the card to the question, even when the character does not represent an actual person in the querent's life. In the next part, I will look at some ways these cards might be interpreted in specific situations.
They don't fit into the story arc of their suit. They don't exactly correspond to any of the Major Arcana. They are people, characters, while most of the time I think we ask the Tarot questions about what to do in certain situations, or what's beneath the surface--how do people fit in there? Are they referring to qualities in yourself, or some other person? And if another person, who? Depending on who is interpreting, you may read that the Pentacles court are dark haired, or light haired (and so on with other suits). In short, they are just not as abstract as the other tarot symbols, so they are not as easy to apply generally.
But in fact they are based on archetypes, and they can be generally applied if we just think outside the box a little. I do this by renaming the royal roles according to their archetypal qualities:
- Pages (or Princesses in the Thoth tarot) I call Students/Heralds.
- Knights (or Princes in the Thoth) I call Champions.
- Queens I call Nurturers.
- Kings (or Knights in the Thoth) I call Masters.
The first thing to notice here is that there are definite gender stereotypes/archetypes here (which I'll discuss more in a later post). It's important to remember that each of us has all of these qualities, and plays all of these roles, at different times in our lives. Therefore, it can help to think of the court cards according to their actions--a man can act according to the pattern symbolized by the queen, a woman can act according to the pattern symbolized by the king, etc. If you pull a court card in response to a question about what you (or the querent) should do, then act as the card's character would act.
Let's look at those actions now.
Students/Heralds (Pages)
 |
| Princess of Cups, Thoth Tarot |
Champions (Knights)
 |
| Knight of Wands, Golden Tarot |
Nurturers (Queens)
 |
| Queen of Swords, Shadowscapes Tarot |
Masters (Kings)
 |
| King of Pents, Druidcraft Tarot |
Liz Lemon: Why are you wearing a tux?
Jack Donaghy: It's after six. What am I, a farmer?
Donaghy sums up the King of Pentacles' attitude as the master of money, luxury, comfort, status, and material goods. He's no slave to these things, but he worked hard to earn them and by gum, he's going to enjoy them. In fact, it just comes naturally to him, and there is no vanity in him (the king, that is, not Jack Donaghy!). And he is equally generous with others. This king is not too proud to get his hands dirty because he knows work has its rewards, but he is no workaholic. He expresses a healthy balance of the qualities of his suit.
So in conclusion, by combining the action specific to the court card's role--investigation/heralding, championship, nurturing, mastery--with the topics of the suit, you can get a snapshot of the character that lets you better apply the card to the question, even when the character does not represent an actual person in the querent's life. In the next part, I will look at some ways these cards might be interpreted in specific situations.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Notes on: 2 of Pentacles
 |
| 2 of Pentacles, Rider-Waite Tarot |
But every now and then it's like a guiding hand parts the clouds of confusion and points me in the right direction, and today it really came through for me re: the 2 of Pentacles. There are various ways of interpreting reversals and none of them works for me all the time (that will be a subject for another post). Many times when I get a card reversed, it is simply calling my attention to the fact that I must probe the deeper meaning of it, not just its superficial symbolism.
So anyway, I was looking at the 2 of Pentacles, and specifically the archetypal Rider-Waite version (at left). Almost all the interpretations of the 2 of Pents that I've ever read have mentioned "juggling" (e.g., of finances or projects) and "balancing" (e.g., balancing work and home lives). But these interpretations leave out an important element of the imagery--the infinity symbol.
The way I see it, the man isn't really juggling the coins at all--note that they are not up in the air; rather, they are in his hands AND they are revolving around him, within the infinity loop, which is centered at his heart. Thus the man is merely holding or supporting them. The coins (and what they stand for) flow or cycle around the man's center eternally. The ships at sea, meanwhile, suggest the notion of riding the tides of life, relaxing into its ebb and flow.
On the one hand, this card reassures us of the eternal availability--correction: the universal abundance--of the basic stuff we need for life (represented by pentacles). On the other hand, it also reminds us that no matter how busy we may be, trying to juggle and balance (there, I said it) all our tasks and responsibilities, this is not real reality. This isn't the level of awareness where change really happens. The juggling doesn't get you anywhere. Change happens first in your heart and soul. You have to stop focusing on the two coins and start seeing infinity, stop putting your focus "out there" and return to your center. From a Buddhist point of view I would say that while the tides will always ebb and flow (creating illusions of good/bad, having/not having, etc.), the ship will always stay on top of the water. In fact, it's the emptiness of the ship that gives it this perfect equilibrium. That is something to consider when we draw this card.
Tarot story arcs
It has often been noted that the cards of the Major Arcana (cards
0-XXI) represent a story, following the Fool's journey as he/she matures
and eventually returns to innocence.
The Minor Arcana, however, also tell stories. Each suit contains a story arc in the cards numbered 2 through 10. The theme of the story is dictated by the symbolism of the suit, but each number has consistencies across the suits. So all the 2s have something in common, all the 9s, all the 10s, etc. Story arcs are a major part of my interpretation, because by comparing a card's number position with the other cards in its suit we can arrive at a more nuanced understanding of its meaning.
There is a lot of redundancy built into the tarot, areas of overlap in the meanings of various cards, and this is important as it allows for very emphatic answers (if you draw more than one card with similar meanings) as well as elaboration on what might be too simplistic an answer if you relied on only one card. There will be some redundancy in my posts, too, as sometimes I'll be considering all the 4s, and other times all the swords, and so on. But each will come from a distinct context.
The Minor Arcana, however, also tell stories. Each suit contains a story arc in the cards numbered 2 through 10. The theme of the story is dictated by the symbolism of the suit, but each number has consistencies across the suits. So all the 2s have something in common, all the 9s, all the 10s, etc. Story arcs are a major part of my interpretation, because by comparing a card's number position with the other cards in its suit we can arrive at a more nuanced understanding of its meaning.
There is a lot of redundancy built into the tarot, areas of overlap in the meanings of various cards, and this is important as it allows for very emphatic answers (if you draw more than one card with similar meanings) as well as elaboration on what might be too simplistic an answer if you relied on only one card. There will be some redundancy in my posts, too, as sometimes I'll be considering all the 4s, and other times all the swords, and so on. But each will come from a distinct context.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
The 8s
Most of the websites/blogs I have seen relate the 8s of the Minor
Arcana to the Strength card (number VIII in the Major Arcana), literally
taking the 8s to mean strength. For me that interpretation just
doesn't work. When I say that a particular reading "works" I mean that
it makes sense in the context of the question, and the answer as I
interpreted it later turns out to have been accurate. In fact, in
general I don't find much success in relating the Minors back to the
Majors. Instead, I like to compare the same number across the suits and
see what they have in common, and where each is in the "story arc" of
its suit.
It strikes me that the 8s all show an opportunity for significant advancement in an area governed by their suit. The 7s, which I addressed here, represent decision points, so it makes sense that the 8s would take things up a notch, so to speak. However, the 8s do require that one take a step forward, a risk even--and that may be daunting. For that reason I suppose one could choose to see the 8s as offering challenges or tests of our personal fortitude. I think this is just a matter of focus--looking at the short term (challenge) vs. the long term (achievement). But hey, maybe I'm just a romantic.
Moving on...
In
the 8 of Swords, a person is blindfolded, bound, and surrounded by
swords. She doesn't dare move because it seems like any move she makes
will cut her to ribbons. She's paralyzed by fear. But, approached in
the right way, those very swords could cut her bonds, and then she could
remove her blindfold and walk away unscathed. To get out of her
predicament, she's going to have to calm down, think it through, and
then act in spite of her fear. A cooler head will prevail here. So
this card calls for a new level of courage, yes, but more importantly, for a new level of rational thinking.
In
the 8 of Cups, a person is walking away from his cups, off into the
moonlight, all alone. With his walking stick in hand, it looks like
he's embarking on a journey--a quest, perhaps. The cups represent
fulfillment, and he's leaving that all behind. This might be a
difficult parting or it might not, though it is likely to be emotional,
since emotions are governed by cups--but whether he's aware of it or
not, what gave him fulfillment before is not enough anymore. He's now
on his way to something more meaningful (and he will find satisfaction
in the 9 of Cups). This card, then, represents finding a whole new
level of fulfillment.
The
8 of Coins shows us either a master craftsman working at his trade, or
an apprentice hard at work learning that trade. Reaching this point
(note that 7 of the 8 coins have been completed) required a commitment
of time, effort, learning, and practice. Whether you look at it as
learning or as mastery, or just plain elbow grease, either way we are
seeing someone who has achieved a higher level of skill, expertise, and practical knowledge.
Finally,
the 8 of Wands doesn't show us a person at all. Instead, 8 staffs are
falling toward the earth, as if at the end of their flight through the
air. It's hard to look at this card and not see one's arrows hitting
their mark. I find wands to be the most difficult to encapsulate in
terms of the
areas of life over which they prevail, because these areas are diverse
and intangible; they encompass achievement, passion, inspiration,
enthusiasm, virtue, insight, desire, movement, communication, and
ambition. If you look at all the these disparate topics, however, you
can see that they are related. All these attributes, to me,
involve something numinous, even magical, that infuses us or
the subject of the question. Unlike the other suits, with the 8 of
Wands I think no further steps are necessary--the wands were already
launched and are just about to land. There's an element of wu wei,
or action through inaction, in this card. The wait usually isn't long
with this card (in the Thoth tarot it's called the Lord of Swiftness).
So what new level are we attaining here? In a way, we are reaching a
higher level of faith in our own efforts, and communication and connection between ourselves and our target.
It strikes me that the 8s all show an opportunity for significant advancement in an area governed by their suit. The 7s, which I addressed here, represent decision points, so it makes sense that the 8s would take things up a notch, so to speak. However, the 8s do require that one take a step forward, a risk even--and that may be daunting. For that reason I suppose one could choose to see the 8s as offering challenges or tests of our personal fortitude. I think this is just a matter of focus--looking at the short term (challenge) vs. the long term (achievement). But hey, maybe I'm just a romantic.
Moving on...
In
the 8 of Swords, a person is blindfolded, bound, and surrounded by
swords. She doesn't dare move because it seems like any move she makes
will cut her to ribbons. She's paralyzed by fear. But, approached in
the right way, those very swords could cut her bonds, and then she could
remove her blindfold and walk away unscathed. To get out of her
predicament, she's going to have to calm down, think it through, and
then act in spite of her fear. A cooler head will prevail here. So
this card calls for a new level of courage, yes, but more importantly, for a new level of rational thinking. 
The 7s
In my opinion (I guess it should go without saying that it's my
opinion--whose blog is this, anyway?), all the 7s in the Minor Arcana represent decision points. In order to make decisions, we need to first be able to accurately assess our situation and the options available to us. Thus, depending on context, there can be an aspect of reality vs. fantasy when the 7s come up, where you are called upon to be very self-analytical and honest with yourself. Let's look at each of the 7s in detail.
The
most common interpretation of the 7 of Swords is deception and even
outright theft. That used to confuse the heck out of me, because I
would get it when there was
no possible question of lying or thievery in the situation. For
example, I knew I
wasn't lying or stealing--no, not even to myself--and no one else was
involved. I didn't get
much help from the picture, either. In the Rider-Waite image, we have
an awkward-looking guy carrying swords. In the background, tents on the
one hand and some distant people on the other. It's not unreasonable
to assume that he's tiptoeing off with everyone's swords while they are
busy, looking over his shoulder to make sure of a clean getaway. But
it's not the only possible interpretation. I mean, if he's looking over
his shoulder, why are his
eyes closed? Why is he leaving two swords behind? While having my
cards read by someone else, I noticed that she was interpreting this
card as a surprise, and so in time I came around to the idea that this
card can sometimes be a trickster, like Loki in the Norse sagas or Raven
or Coyote in Native American folklore. These characters cause chaos
and disruption and are generally totally unpredictable, but they aren't
evil per se. But what if you had asked something like, "What
should I do to avoid conflict with my boss?" We can probably take it
for granted that you shouldn't lie to or steal from the boss, that
usually leads to more conflict. Acting unpredictable would probably be
equally unproductive. But if we accept that this trickster isn't always
what it first appears, we can consider other possibilities. Since 7s
in general put us in a decision-making
situation, we must be making a decision about something governed by the
Swords: thoughts, ideas, reason, challenges, information. I believe
this card can force us to evaluate different sources of knowledge and decide which one is most accurate, which we
are going to rely upon. And you can see how that could tie in with
deception--because some sources of information won't
be accurate, they will, in effect, deceive you without there being any
need for some other person skulking around the situation trying to trick
you. In fact, of all the 7s, I think the 7 of Swords best represents decision
itself, because without rationally weighing what
information is trustworthy, we can't make any of the decisions
required by the other 7s.
The 7 of Cups shows us a surfeit of riches. Our cups, as it were, run over.
These
cups represent satisfaction and fulfillment; here we are presented with
a variety of things we really want (or think we want), and occasionally
we can have them all. But more often we have to choose among many desirable options. It is easy to become overwhelmed by all the choices, even paralyzed with
uncertainty. An important point here is that the cups are all floating on a cloud, which shows that they are, as yet, immaterial. They currently exist in the realm of imagination, inspiration, potential, and fantasy. Accordingly, some Tarot readers see in this card illusion, delusion, or temptation and debauchery. I don't favor any of these readings. Imagining the reality you desire is the first step to manifesting it, and is a long way from illusion or delusion. And there is nothing sinful or wrong about getting things you desire, it's all about why you desire them and what
you do with them once you've
got them. But there's no question the 7 of Cups reminds us to be very conscious of what we
are attracting into our reality and our awareness; if you don't see
good things in your cups, you can choose to change that.
In
the 7 of Pentacles, one pauses for a moment to reflect on the action
called for at this juncture. Practical action is the domain of the
pentacles. The decision called for is a pragmatic one: What you have
been working toward is on the verge of readiness--should you harvest it now, or wait a while to let it ripen further?
Act,
or not act? Remember that sometimes, not doing anything is a way of
doing something. There's no hurrying the harvest, but you must be ready
for the moment of opportunity when it comes. There can also be
an element of looking back over the results of previous action taken, in
order to better evaluate the present situation, and some interpreters very much favor this reading. This meaning would be reinforced if one also received Judgement.
Finally,
wands represent passions and values. In the 7 of Wands, you must
decide what matters most to you, which usually comes rather
spontaneously since
this card represents the need to defend it. You've got to stand up for
yourself and what you believe in. It is often when there is a threat to
our self-image
that we realize what really defines us, what really matters to us, and
realize that we are ready and willing to fight for that. As always with the 7s, you'll need to be observant and honest about how dangerous these perceived threats really are, and thus how fiercely you may have to fight.
The
most common interpretation of the 7 of Swords is deception and even
outright theft. That used to confuse the heck out of me, because I
would get it when there was
no possible question of lying or thievery in the situation. For
example, I knew I
wasn't lying or stealing--no, not even to myself--and no one else was
involved. I didn't get
much help from the picture, either. In the Rider-Waite image, we have
an awkward-looking guy carrying swords. In the background, tents on the
one hand and some distant people on the other. It's not unreasonable
to assume that he's tiptoeing off with everyone's swords while they are
busy, looking over his shoulder to make sure of a clean getaway. But
it's not the only possible interpretation. I mean, if he's looking over
his shoulder, why are his
eyes closed? Why is he leaving two swords behind? While having my
cards read by someone else, I noticed that she was interpreting this
card as a surprise, and so in time I came around to the idea that this
card can sometimes be a trickster, like Loki in the Norse sagas or Raven
or Coyote in Native American folklore. These characters cause chaos
and disruption and are generally totally unpredictable, but they aren't
evil per se. But what if you had asked something like, "What
should I do to avoid conflict with my boss?" We can probably take it
for granted that you shouldn't lie to or steal from the boss, that
usually leads to more conflict. Acting unpredictable would probably be
equally unproductive. But if we accept that this trickster isn't always
what it first appears, we can consider other possibilities. Since 7s
in general put us in a decision-making
situation, we must be making a decision about something governed by the
Swords: thoughts, ideas, reason, challenges, information. I believe
this card can force us to evaluate different sources of knowledge and decide which one is most accurate, which we
are going to rely upon. And you can see how that could tie in with
deception--because some sources of information won't
be accurate, they will, in effect, deceive you without there being any
need for some other person skulking around the situation trying to trick
you. In fact, of all the 7s, I think the 7 of Swords best represents decision
itself, because without rationally weighing what
information is trustworthy, we can't make any of the decisions
required by the other 7s.The 7 of Cups shows us a surfeit of riches. Our cups, as it were, run over.
These
cups represent satisfaction and fulfillment; here we are presented with
a variety of things we really want (or think we want), and occasionally
we can have them all. But more often we have to choose among many desirable options. It is easy to become overwhelmed by all the choices, even paralyzed with
uncertainty. An important point here is that the cups are all floating on a cloud, which shows that they are, as yet, immaterial. They currently exist in the realm of imagination, inspiration, potential, and fantasy. Accordingly, some Tarot readers see in this card illusion, delusion, or temptation and debauchery. I don't favor any of these readings. Imagining the reality you desire is the first step to manifesting it, and is a long way from illusion or delusion. And there is nothing sinful or wrong about getting things you desire, it's all about why you desire them and what
you do with them once you've
got them. But there's no question the 7 of Cups reminds us to be very conscious of what we
are attracting into our reality and our awareness; if you don't see
good things in your cups, you can choose to change that. In
the 7 of Pentacles, one pauses for a moment to reflect on the action
called for at this juncture. Practical action is the domain of the
pentacles. The decision called for is a pragmatic one: What you have
been working toward is on the verge of readiness--should you harvest it now, or wait a while to let it ripen further?
Act,
or not act? Remember that sometimes, not doing anything is a way of
doing something. There's no hurrying the harvest, but you must be ready
for the moment of opportunity when it comes. There can also be
an element of looking back over the results of previous action taken, in
order to better evaluate the present situation, and some interpreters very much favor this reading. This meaning would be reinforced if one also received Judgement.Finally,
wands represent passions and values. In the 7 of Wands, you must
decide what matters most to you, which usually comes rather
spontaneously since
this card represents the need to defend it. You've got to stand up for
yourself and what you believe in. It is often when there is a threat to
our self-image
that we realize what really defines us, what really matters to us, and
realize that we are ready and willing to fight for that. As always with the 7s, you'll need to be observant and honest about how dangerous these perceived threats really are, and thus how fiercely you may have to fight.Introduction
Hello! My name is Alexandra and I have been reading tarot for myself
and others for over 20 years, since I was a child. I have no intention
of setting myself up as some kind of expert--I've found that the cards
are much like dreams in that no one interpretation will be correct for
every person every time. I am always learning from the tarot! I will be
posting thoughts about, and experiences with, individual cards,
images, suits, spreads, numbers, etc. in no particular order, as they
come to me. This is a work in progress and will be continually
evolving. Please feel free to ask questions or post (constructive)
comments.
I generally read from a Rider-Waite based deck, which means that the images are consistent with most other decks in use today. However, I do sometimes consult the Thoth deck, the cards of which are traditionally interpreted in a more esoteric way. Because the Rider-Waite has been the basis for so many subsequent decks, I will always include illustrations from the R-W for reference. Unless otherwise indicated, a card illustration comes from that deck. I will, however, use others as appropriate.
Although tarot is very much a product of Western (European) mystical and magical traditions, my own philosophical and spiritual background ranges all over the map, and my outlook merges many different cultural influences. Because of this, my interpretations may initially seem very different from most of those you'll see on the internet or in basic tarot books, but in fact they are a blend of traditional roots and modern experiences. In other words, they fit anywhere and everywhere. I hope you'll enjoy the product!
I generally read from a Rider-Waite based deck, which means that the images are consistent with most other decks in use today. However, I do sometimes consult the Thoth deck, the cards of which are traditionally interpreted in a more esoteric way. Because the Rider-Waite has been the basis for so many subsequent decks, I will always include illustrations from the R-W for reference. Unless otherwise indicated, a card illustration comes from that deck. I will, however, use others as appropriate.
Although tarot is very much a product of Western (European) mystical and magical traditions, my own philosophical and spiritual background ranges all over the map, and my outlook merges many different cultural influences. Because of this, my interpretations may initially seem very different from most of those you'll see on the internet or in basic tarot books, but in fact they are a blend of traditional roots and modern experiences. In other words, they fit anywhere and everywhere. I hope you'll enjoy the product!
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