Detail the Reading

Thus far, in the previous pages under the heading of About Rider Waite Tarot I have shown you the techniques of Synergy Tarot reading by introduction to certain concepts that parallel the craft of storytelling. I have shown you how to structure your reading according to the format of the Gypsy Tarot Spread which lends a recognizable structure to the reading, providing a firm beginning, middle and end to work with which to work. Paying heed to where the cards fall and noting the kinds of cards that fall by suit and number concentrations tell you the mood of story.

Through the process of identifying people represented by the court cards, you become aware of whom the characters in the story are and the characters provide the framework of interpreting the plot of the story. The only element missing in our discussion so far is the fabric of the story itself: the weave of incidences and events that comprise the content of the situation the questioner brings to the cards.

Incidences and events are revealed when you read the individual cards and interpret them in context of their positions and proximity to the court cards that represent key players in the story. Studying the incidences and events depicted in the cards will enable you to identify the topic of the questioner’s query.

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Since the kinds of questions people typically bring to the tarot involve either romance, home and family life, special projects, work, money, education and travel, I have compiled a list of cards to look for in each category of inquiry and they are as follows:

Romance:

              • Any of the cups cards which show high emotion.
              • Eight of Wands, often interpreted as “the arrows of love”.
              • Three of Pentacles, suggesting pragmatic liaisons.
              • The Lovers, a card that shows love.

Home and family life

              • Six of Cups for happy family gatherings.
              • Ten of Cups for peace and contentment in the home.
              • Four of Wands for a comfortable home.
              • Ten of Pentacles describe ancestral homes and shared family wealth.
              • The Empress is a sign of fertility and material abundance.

Enterprising projects

              • Three of Wands, indicating new starts and projects.
              • Seven of Wands show victorious outcomes and honor.
              • Three of Pentacles suggest closure on a deal.
              • Four of Pentacles assures possessions.
              • Seven of Pentacles indicate pauses to reassess financial circumstance.
              • The Emperor sometimes brings important opportunities with overall improvement in circumstance and status.

Work and money

              • Six of Wands herald promotions and recognition for hard work.
              • Seven of Wands show competitive situations at work.
              • Ten of Swords can mean slander is the cause of job loss.
              • Six of Pentacles indicate a small raise, reversed shows unfair conditions at the workplace.
              • The Hierophant can indicate temporary work with potential for permanency.

Education

              • Ace of Swords shows clear and decisive thinking about ongoing learning.
              • Eight of Pentacles marks new starts in retraining where a sacrifice is an issue.
              • The Magician speaks of learning and increased levels of mastery.
              • The Hermit represents orthodox learning and knowledge.

Travel

              • Eight of Cups indicates a journey, often a departure of spiritual significance.
              • Eight of Wands depicts carefree leisure holidays.
              • Six of Swords show travel by water.
              • The Chariot is a literal vehicle of travel but reversed can mean trouble with travel plans.

Certain cards also tell of particular phases in life circumstance including: opportunities, plans, decisions, new beginnings, periods of inertia and endings. Here are some cards to look for that mark various phases of life circumstance:

Opportunities

                • Six of Cups
                • Three of Wands
                • The Fool
                • The Magician
                • The Emperor
                • The Wheel of Fortune

Plans

                • Two of Wands
                • Three of Wands
                • Five of Wands
                • Three of Pentacles, reversed
                • The Star

Decisions

                • Six of Swords
                • Eight of Cups
                • The High Priestess
                • The Lovers
                • The Chariot
                • The Hermit

New Starts

                • Ace of Cups
                • Seven of Cups, reversed
                • Ace of Wands
                • Three of Wands
                • Ace of Swords
                • Two of Swords, reversed
                • Ace of Pentacles
                • Three of Pentacles
                • Eight of Pentacles
                • The Lovers
                • The Wheel of Fortune
                • Death
                • The Star

Periods of Inertia

                • Four of Cups
                • Two of Wands, reversed
                • Two of Swords
                • Six of Swords
                • Eight of Swords
                • Seven of Pentacles
                • The High Priestess
                • The Hierophant, reversed
                • The Chariot, reversed
                • The Hermit
                • The Wheel of Fortune, reversed
                • The Hanged Man
                • The Devil
                • The Star, reversed

Endings

                • Ace of Cups, reversed
                • Two of Cups, reversed
                • Four of Cups, reversed
                • Eight of Cups
                • Three of Swords
                • Eight of Swords, reversed
                • Ten of Swords
                • The Hanged Man, reversed
                • Death
                • The Devil, reversed
                • The Tower, reversed

Careful study of the individual cards will yield key information about the incidences and events that shape the questioner’s inquiry. You can infer what that topic is by consideration of the nuances of certain cards named above but it is also necessary to go through the cards one by one and row-by-row to ensure that you have the broadest possible perspective of the question at hand.

I recommend that in the beginning you concentrate on interpreting the cards on basis of what the cards present rather than what your intuition tells you. Intuition is a wonderful tool and indeed, lending intuitive insight is a prime function of the tarot reader but intuition must be disciplined and trained to be truly effective. Work with the information conveyed by the cards and as you read them one by one, interpret the meaning of each in context of the row it occupies in the layout pattern I have shown you.

Cards in the first row describe incidents and events that have occurred in the past. If you are working with the six-month period, as recommended, each card represents just less than three and a half weeks in time. By identifying the incident that you asked the questioner to think of when shuffling, gives you a time line for that past and into the future. The first card at the left will often reveal a defining incident that gives rise to the overall question concerning the questioner.

When you are first practicing, you will not use the second line, or the General Atmosphere. When you feel comfortable adding them, read the cards, one by one, to form a composite picture of the overall conditions influencing the question of the questioner. Here you will find a description of the general tone and mood of the questioner’s environment. A concentration of wands show a busy environment with concerted effort devoted toward the achievement of some growth oriented goal. Cups in this line reveal emotions are running high and that feelings are driving the action. Swords speak of high-level intensity, anxiety and possibly even anger and conflict. Pentacles describe the workplace and efforts involving the accumulation or loss of wealth.

When you are first practicing, this line you will not use the third line. The Outer Influences describe the various factors at work in creating the situation. Read these cards individually, looking for court cards and descriptions of people whose attitudes or actions are affecting the questioner. As in the previous row of cards, this line reveals the details about the questioner’s environment and most commonly, those factors beyond the questioner’s control – namely, the actions of others. This line can also include descriptions of prevailing social or economic conditions that affect not just the individual but also the community at large. The cards in this line give the big picture showing the environment in which the questioner interacts.

Next, examine each card in the fourth row representing the present. Here you will find a great deal of information about the questioner and the matters of greatest concern to him. These matters may or may not be directly connected to the events portrayed in the past line. After you have added the general atmosphere and the outer influences lines, you should look to find connections between all of the lines that will let you know how the issues involved are connected. In many instances, there will be issues involved whose connections are not apparent but that may be just an independent topic to show that there is more than one important circumstance. I believe that the more you become adept at connecting the issues, the more your story becomes apparent. Continual focus on this will help you to ultimately find success.

The fifth row and the third line you will add later, is Future Possibilities and it shows what good can come of matters and areas where the questioner can take consolation.

Sometimes the content of this line will show that the concerns of the questioner are misguided, or inappropriate, in light of her true path. It can also show what it will cost if the questioner does not release and let go of present unworthy preoccupations. For example, in the case of a woman involved in an unhealthy and destructive romantic relationship, this line might show that better possibilities await her, if she makes the choice is to move away from the relationship. Read these cards one by one, bearing in mind that the value of the information gathered is to point the way to alternative possibilities that are beneficial and will broaden the horizons of the questioner. The Future Possibilities points out the best interest of the questioner.

The final row of cards gives some indication of how matters profiled in the present will evolve. Read each card and attempt to make sense of its message by reference to the people, conditions and activities portrayed in the present. What we see in this line can give you some indication of the worthiness or permanence of matters pursued in the present. I offer a word of caution in the interpretation of this line. People are vulnerable to suggestion and any pronouncements you make about another’s future could become a self-fulfilling prophesy by expectation alone and it is best to refrain from creating exorbitant expectations about your questioner’s future and most especially if unfavorable conditions are indicated. If this is the case, do warn your questioner that the times ahead will necessitate strength but also assure him that he is empowered to effectively resolve whatever problems come his way. Be gentle and frame whatever news you have about the future, as revealed in the cards, in a positive, supportive and encouraging manner.

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