Open Reading 1

LOL! I grounded, I connected, I shuffled, I cut the deck, got an "unh unh" from spirit so cut it again, and this is what I drew.

Look familiar? 

Now, I always slide my cards individually back into the deck when I finish a reading. So they wouldn't have started out together when I began shuffling. Clearly there's more to that "intro" reading than I thought.

So where do we go with this? - Don't hold back. You've got something worth sharing with the world and now is the time to do it. Allow yourself to be seen and heard.

I noticed a strong "purple" vibe when I set up for this reading. I grabbed a lilac votive, my amethyst cluster wanted in on it and the first card up was Violet. Purple is associated with the 7th or Crown Chakra. It's the colour of spirituality and wisdom. - Free your thinking.

And just in case it means something to someone, this image popped into my head just before I started shuffling. (source: Wikimedia)

Ok, I love Van Gogh, but - random.

Open Readings

I’ve gotten a wild hair to start posting occasional open readings for whoever might inadvertently stumble across my blog. ☺ A bit of cosmic synchronicity. An “If you’re seeing this, it’s for you*” sort of thing.

When the idea popped into my head I thought it would be useful to run it past the cards I intended to use.

These are Madame Dora’s Fortune-Telling Cards. I like them because they give straightforward, homely advice. Or a slap upside the head if that’s what’s needed.

So, it looks like I’ve got Madame Dora’s seal of approval – Say your piece, you’ve got it in you. Besides, you know you want to, so why not?

Actually, I’m not entirely sure why I want to. I think some of it is an attempt to get myself to use my cards more. I can’t seem to motivate myself to do a “daily draw” for myself, even though I know it would be beneficial**. Perhaps by offering a simple reading for others I’ll feel, not obliged, but let’s say lightly committed to keep it up. We’ll see.

So - I may use these cards, I may use others as the mood strikes. 

I may do this daily, weekly, never again, who knows?

But assuming I do do it, at least once more, if my interpretation doesn't strike a chord, take the image and see what it says to you. Perhaps even this pre-reading reading speaks to you. I just hope you, and I, will get something at some level from this little exercise.

*IF it resonates. If not, click away, thanks for stopping by.

**Since I wrote this I’ve read Beth Maiden’s “How can we make time for tarot when we’re super-busy?” and have embraced the idea of photographing a daily and setting it as my phone background for the day. Fun. ☺

SHARE: 278. Self-Love September: Trust Your Intuition and Make Empowered Choices

Go to 7:02 for a sterling explanation of how synchronicity can be applied by people with differing world views. And for anyone (everyone) who has ever thought "How could I have trusted by intuition on that decision?? It was a complete disaster", check out from 18:36. x

(I've shared this on Facebook and Google+ as well as here because I believe the ideas are that important)

When?

The question of Timing, answering those pesky When queries, came up in a discussion group, specifically about the Pages of Shustah, but the issue spans all cards that have specific time period indicators, by astrological association, tradition, etc. The poster said they used the "timing energy" of a card, eg. Aries = soon, Libra = undecided, Pisces = whenever (LOL) with the comment that experienced readers probably had success applying the classic time periods, i.e. Aries = mid-March to mid-April.

Judy said,
I tend to use "timing energies", too - love that description, so stealing it. If I'm really pushed for a specific time point I'll throw out the standard meaning as a "could be". The 'intuitive' in me says "What does Spirit know or care about Time?" but the 'fortune teller' in me kinda thinks this is a cop-out, that if I actually committed to using timings I would eventually become attuned enough to get it right. Dilemma. :)

I'd love to open this discussion up to "my readers" (I can dream). What do you think and why?

32-Card Fortune Telling Spreads?

If you scroll down to the very bottom of this page you'll see that I have a "visits" counter, powered by StatCounter. I was checking said stats when I noticed that someone from Nevada stumbled across my blog by Googling "32-card fortune telling spreads". They were directed to my "German Method" post.

Fair enough, but if you should wander back this way my Googling friend, I have to confess that I actually don't use those two spreads. (Sorry Oma, but I just haven't clicked with them.) If I were to recommend a spread for 32 card decks (other than your basic "line of n") it would be the spread that uses all of them - the 8x4 Grand Tableau.

I don't know whether you're interested in read playing cards or another "small" deck, but I'm a fan of GTs generally - see this post. I've certainly had good results reading playing cards this way.

Apart from that, as long as it doesn't require more than 32 cards, I suppose you could use any spread that appeals to you. If you were searching for something specific or have any questions I might be able to help with, drop me a comment. And if anyone else out there knows of a purpose-built spread for 32 card decks, we'd both like to hear from you! :)

Hexe Claire: "Who answers the cards?"

This explanation works for me. :)

Blue Moon Through a Willow

The blue moon, 31 July 2015, photographed through the branches of a big willow tree in Stonham Aspal, Suffolk (image highly manipulated).

I'm a Kapherus fangirl

I'm fortunate to have been given my grandmother's meanings for reading playing cards. But if I were starting from scratch I would adopt the meanings and methods of J David Arcuri, aka 'Kapherus' and 'Cardseer'.

As it is, Oma passed on diddly-squat about HOW to read cards, so I augment my meager natural abilities by following Kaph's clear and informative blog posts on the subject. Such as this one, which I highly recommend -

Card Pairing in Cartomancy: Basic Lessons in Reading Playing Cards


(image from post)

The universe isn't fussy

“It’s my belief and experience that the cosmos at large is overwhelmingly full of willingness and desire to speak to you. It’s as if we were sitting in a small, cosy room, with all the doors and windows tight shut …and we open one of them just a crack, and it turns out to be broad daylight out there, and the light comes flooding in!

 …I don’t think the universe is very fussy if you open the wrong window, open the window the wrong way, open the door by mistake, dislodge a brick, fall over and accidentally knock the shutters open with your head… I really don’t think it minds.”

Hilary Barrett - http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/index.php

Go with the flow

Despite the general fondness amongst card readers for precisely defined, purpose built spreads, I've come to the conclusion that once you truly connect with your cards you'll see that they actually give their answers through interpretive dance.