Tarot

Preparing a reading

To ask the cards in a way that helps you decide.

You need

A tarot deck · Paper and a pencil

Time

Fifteen minutes

1. Write the question down before you shuffle. Choose “What can I consider?” over “What will someone else do?”.
2. Shuffle and draw the cards.
3. Look at the image, then look up the card's meaning in the system you use.
4. Write one possible interpretation.
5. Then write another, a different one.
6. For facts, health, money, consent and other people's intentions, go get direct information: the cards suggest questions, not facts.
7. End by choosing an action in proportion to the matter.
8. If the reading leaves you more confused, put the deck away and come back to the matter with direct information.

Putting the deck in order and knocking three times

To leave the deck clear between one reading and the next.

You need

A tarot deck · A cleared table

When

When a deck is new, after a heavy reading, or when someone else has handled it.

Time

One minute for the knocks; fifteen to put it in order

1. Gather the cards and turn them all upright.
2. Put them in order: the Major Arcana from 0 to 21, then each suit, from ace to king.
3. Hold the deck in one hand and knock on it three times with the knuckles of the other.
4. Say the words.
5. Shuffle well before the next reading.
6. Keep the deck in its box or wrapped in a cloth, somewhere dry.

“What was asked has been asked. This deck is in order for the next question.”

The card of the day

To begin the day with an image and an intention.

You need

A tarot deck · Your notebook · A pencil

When

In the morning. If your mornings are hectic, at night, to look back over the day.

Time

Five minutes

1. Shuffle while you ask yourself: “What do I want to pay attention to today?”
2. Draw a single card.
3. Look at it for a moment before you look up its meaning.
4. Write down the date, the card's name and your first impression.
5. Write an intention for the day that grows out of the image.
6. At night, add one line: what you did with that intention.
7. Each week, reread the pages and see which cards and which themes keep coming back.

Three-card spread: Clarity

To look at a situation and choose one small action.

You need

A tarot deck · Paper and a pencil

Time

Twenty minutes

1. Write your question, shuffle and lay three cards in a row.
2. Read each card with the question for its position.
3. Describe what you see first. Don't turn a hard image into a verdict.
4. Write one option you would accept and one you would rule out, with your reasons.
5. Say the words, or a sentence of your own, to close.
6. A few days later, go over what you did, not only what the card seemed to announce.

“I can listen to an image without giving up my right to decide.”

Four-card spread: The threshold

To walk yourself through the passage from one stage to another.

You need

A tarot deck · Your notebook · A pencil

When

At a change: of job, of home, of stage in life. Repeat it only when there are major changes.

Time

Twenty minutes

1. Before you draw, write down one fact about the change you are living through, something that can be checked.
2. Shuffle and lay four cards in a row.
3. Read each card with the question for its position.
4. Compare the images with the fact you wrote down, without forcing them to match.
5. Record the spread in your notebook.
6. Choose a single task.
7. Don't keep asking until you get an answer you like: wait for something to change.

Five-card spread: A conversation

To get ready for an important conversation.

You need

A tarot deck · Paper and a pencil

When

Before the conversation, not during it.

Time

Twenty minutes

1. Shuffle and lay five cards in a row.
2. Read each card with the theme for its position. They all speak about your preparation; none of them says what the other person thinks.
3. Turn what came up into questions and sentences the other person is free to answer in their own way.
4. Put the deck away before you talk.
5. In the conversation, listen to what is actually said.