The cards are not there to advise you what to do. What they can offer is deeper insight into aspects surrounding the issue and indicate the probable outcome of patterns that are currently in place. Please note: the future is not fixed, you have freewill, choice and the ability to change these outcomes.
I had read that disclaimer out to people who wanted to have their cards read hundreds of times. At this present moment, I doubt that freewill exists. Well, not when it comes to matters of the heart. You most certainly have choices. I have stood at the crossroads, winds blowing through my grey hair. Made good, bad, and downright ugly choices. But here is my dilemma. Will knowing the probable outcome (that someone will break my heart) be enough to make me assert my allusive freewill, so I can be an architect of my own future?
I did what I always did when faced with questions the size of mountains. I made myself a cup of tea and sat down to read the tarot. For me, one cannot exist without the other. There is something comforting about wrapping your hands around a hot cup. Taking that first sip of wet tea and feeling it begin to wash away your troubles. Bliss.
Reading tarot is a ritual. Readers (that is what they call us) are ritualistic people, who like to do things in a certain way. Many believe this is the difference between a mundane or magical reading. There are all sorts of secret little things that we do before a seeker (those that want a reading) is invited to take a seat at the table.
As for the cards, a cynic might say that they are just 78 images on bits of flimsy cardboard. In fact, they are the keys to the inner kingdom of the psyche. On their own they can do nothing. A bit like a teabag without hot water but pair the cards with a good reader and they can open the door to the hidden realms of the heart and mind.
However, it is not always easy for a reader to dive into their own depths. Do not judge me harshly. I used to ride across sparkly rainbows on the back of a unicorn but since I lost my love, life is more like a muddy puddle. Today, I am tired of swimming around in my murky misery. Time for tea and tarot.
Before I go any further, I should explain that the death card does not mean a literal death. The reaper on the horse, standing on top of skeletons might look scary (I completely understand why) but it can indicate a time of new beginnings. Today, I want the death card. Time to put heartache in a coffin and bury it six feet under. The sun card would also be good, it indicates joy, plus we do not get a lot of sun in Scotland.
Most questions are centred around the issues of the heart. Love makes the world go around, or is that money? I do not get paid much for a reading. For me, it was always love. Like the fool card, ready to take the leap of faith into the unknown but right now, I am done playing the fool. I am ready for a freewill charged change of direction.
I ask my question while I shuffle, watching out for jumpers (not the woolly kind you wear) but cards that jump out the pack. I always get jumpers; they are welcome predictors. Then, I cut the pack into three bundles before carefully laying out ten cards on my best velvet cloth. After all, I need all the help I can get. Black velvet it is.
Before I read for a seeker, I always say the following:
‘If you could give yourself a bit of advice what would it be?’
That is because, deep down we all know what we need to do but, like that huge pile of ironing, we mostly avoid it. I am no different, but my heart needs to see “the probable outcome of patterns that are currently in place”. It needs to know that I can assert my freewill and in doing so change my destiny. The problem is my heart and head have always been totally incompatible.
One by one, I slowly turn over the cards. Drinking in all the images and devouring all the symbolic meanings like they were little bits of chocolate. It appears that the archetypes of the Major Arcana will lead the way. Wait a minute, who is that in the underlying influence position? Could that be the secret lover I long suspected existed? I always knew my ex was up to no good. That Empress must have bewitched him with her big bowls of fruit and lustful looks. How could I ever compete with a daughter of Venus?
I give a little bow to the two court cards. The Knight of Water in the position that represents the past. A good sign. My ex is soon to be a thing of the past. Oh my, the Knight of Fire is in the position that represents the near future. A bit unpredictable, but come what may, I will be ready to ride on the back of his black stallion in approximately three months. According to the cards.
But what about the most probable outcome due to all these patterns that are in place? I did not get the grim reaper on his horse. I got the Wheel. The card that represents the never-ending cycles of life. Enough is enough! I made my mind up there and then, that this woman will not live her life like a hamster on a squeaky wheel. No more heartache and misery for me. Instead, I will wait for my knight in fiery armour and, until he comes along, make do with another cup of glorious tea.