Sample Reading

I have been asked to do more with readings and layouts here, so for the first post of this kind, I am sharing a distance reading I did yesterday for someone I don't know personally.  I post this in part to define my reading style, in part to give a sense of what the tarot can offer.  I used the Celtic Cross layout, which is the one I use most, and will be writing more on that layout and the relationships of the positions at a later date.  The 1,600+ words of this reading were enough for one day.  

"Dear (name removed for privacy),

First off, let me say, that due to an unintended hiatus, I didn't get this done before Mercury went into storm, (and this is a storm, indeed, astro weather's raging, lol)  so, given the static in the lines when Mercury does his dance, please take this with a large grain of salt, because I"m not going to censor or soft pedal anything I got, in hopes that somewhere in here is some clarity for you.

As I centered for the reading, recalling you mentioned health,  I saw three cards in my mind, 5 wands, 10 swords, and 7 cups, and I cleared them, asking not to have any preconceived notions coming in to the reading but to give as clear and healing a message as I could.  I was most surprised to see two of them in the reading itself.  Another strange thing about this reading (which has never happened before) was as I was working with position 7 (inner) my right arm got extremely weak, it became difficult to hold my pen, and the pain seemed to radiate out from my shoulder.  When I returned to that card for a final message, the pain disappeared. 

I used the celtic cross spread, and since some people do their order differently, here's the list at the outset, with interpretation to follow:

1) Situation : XIII - Death

2) Covers or crosses: 8 Swords - Interference

3) Above: 5 Wands - Strife

4) Below: 7 Cups - Debauch

5) Behind: XI - The Hermit

6) Before: VIII - Adjustment

7) Inner - IV - The Emperor

8) Outer: Queen of Disks

9) Hopes and Fears: 8 Cups - Indolence

10) Outcome: 2 Disks - Change

The very first thought I had upon turning the first two cards (XIII – Death and the 8 of Swords), is "a possible exit point, two ways to go" also the aspects of that card as "inevitable transformation" but I wrote "transition" so I get the suggestion here that you may have scheduled a health crisis exit point in case you were ready, but you also have the chance to heal and transform instead of/because of/through it and that choice is up to you.  But that is certainly the most extreme sense in which to read this.  Whether manifest in the physical body, the emotional body, the mental body, or the etheric body, there is a definite "transition" from an old, unfulfilling way of being, to a clearer, healthier one.  I get that this is the last "challenge" like this in your path (all things as they are now) so this clearing/change will definitely create a "rebirth" of sorts.  The Gemini aspect of the 8 of Swords prompted me to question where Gemini is in your chart, (which is odd, since I'm not an astrologer, but was told it would have meaning for you).  Also, let's not lose the twin aspect of Gemini here, and while you are looking at your own health, your partner factors in here as well. He mirrors your own "stuff" so he either "covers" or "crosses" you, but because the card embodies Jupiter in Gemini, either way, it's an opportunity.  Again, you get to choose how you experience it.

In above and below, we see the crux of the matter, an energy block stemming from resistance.  The energy of the 5 of Wands deals with a stubbornness about thinking things can only work one way, sort of a "my way is the only way" energy, which clogs the solar plexus with anger and resentment if our "reality" is thwarted, or with fear that we won't like another option, "what will I do without this . . . (thought pattern)? The message I got was "resistance to wellness" and when combined with the 7 of cups, speaks of an addiction to toxic emotions, residual patterns that persist, like a lingering cough long after we think we should have cleared this up.  (Also I should note that physical symptoms of the 5 of Wands in the above position could indicate tension, blockages, and so a caution about headaches, migraines, aneurisms and stroke is advised. Likewise with the 7 of Cups, the physical indications could be toxicity or infections in the blood stream, kidneys, liver, female organs.  The two combined could indicate kidney or gall bladder stones or blood clots.  I must note here that NONE of this came through in the reading, but rather upon awakening the next day, I was told to include this information in the interest of “full disclosure”  for the blog post, and to advise any who resonate to that information to seek medical assistance.)

The fact that this is a designated point in your blueprint came in the major arcana being spread across the positions 5,1,6 in the layout. Behind you IX - The Hermit, before you VIII - Adjustment, on either side of XIII - Death.  No going around this one, I'm afraid, only way out is through.  Atu IX - The Hermit spoke of unfinished business from the past, especially emotions/beliefs about wellness, deserving, past patterns resurfacing and unfinished business of closure on the past and coming to balance in the now.  That the VIII – Adjustment card comes before IX – The Hermit in the deck, but after it in the reading pointed out the retrograde(s) we are in.  The message I got was "Use the double retrograde (Mercury in Aries concurrent with Saturn in Libra) to clean up old business, shift emotional patterns and voices from the past, childhood.  How do you fill in "I AM ______" (this is also a caution to be sure you don't reinforce any health concerns by invoking the I AM in  statements such as "I am so tired", I am so sick of , ,  " etc.)  The energy of VIII – Adjustment here is to bring to balance the 8 energy (of the swords - and later of cups) thoughts and feelings, harmoniously balanced, without judgment on thens or nows or yet-to-bes,  The two 8s, one representing Jupiter energy and the other representing Saturn energy speak of the opposition happening right now between those two giants, and so for the next week or so, you will feel the pulls and see how they can balance each other  So this section of the layout says you are in a process of coming into perfect balance, but the ups and downs are a right nightmare, and so you resist the shift and react from old emotional patterns,  However you have the opportunity to choose how to balance these energies and clear this block/resistance once and for all, which will manifest as wellness on all levels.

The Inner postion’s IV - Emperor speaks to a rigidity of not wanting to act, of holding the rod too tightly. This energy refers back to the 5 of wands’ sense of resistance.  Also this is Aries, which, referencing the retrogrades, speaks to this particular season as being most beneficial for you to work on an inner level.  When I turned this card, and saw the dominant male energy (so contrary to what you're trying to accomplish in the VIII balance: The Emperor’s Aries/Adjustment’s Libra), I got the impression that there is some Father energy here, such as a pattern, physical or emotional, that you have inherited from the paternal side of your family, (and here is where my right arm went limp) so there might be some bursitis, arthritis or the like (in him, you, both?).  Also I got the energy of your husband here, in that he is the Divine Masculine in your life, and therefore serves as that mirror, reflecting patterns from males in your past (until you've cleared them).  Likewise, the energetic reflection of your pain appears in him, so any work you do on an inner level will protect and heal him as well.  After the reading when I went back to see if there was anything further, I got "resistance to treatment" in reference to this card, and then the pain stopped. The message I got was if there is a condition for which there is a medical remedy, particularly regarding pain, that taking it is well-advised, as easing pain will allow for the thoughts to shift where true healing can occur.

The Outer position’s Queen of Disks showed her shadow side to me, and spoke of repeating patterns of the past by looking back and seeing "the way it was is the way it will be' and not seeing the true abundance of NOW. Staying in the energies of "is that all there is?", the thoughts of  "that's the only way it can be" etc, (again resonating the 5 of Wands) keeps one from seeing wellness and wholeness in the present.  The image of this great horned woman reminds me that the horns serve as antennae and asks "to what are your antennae tuned?"  Another aspect of her shadow is fear of overreaching, of hoping for too much, knowing in the negative sense that "this, too, will pass" -  but likewise, this too, will pass.

Hopes and fears 8 of Cups echoes these fears, that this dark night will never end, but the image here shows a new dawn on the horizon and the reminder that each new day offers hope.  The energy of the 8 here is the deep emotions of Pisces bound by Saturn (who is also the ruler of the 5 of wands), and the Capricorn energy of the Queen of Disks.   Again, the sky’s current Saturn-Jupiter opposition holds out the opportunity for these energies to shift ( and as you know from Roman/Greek mythology, Jupiter wins). 

And here he does, huzzah for Jupiter!  The Outcome card is the 2 of Disks which is Jupiter in Capricorn, and is called "change'   Here we see beneficent change in the material, physical world, and where once was darkness, now turns to the light. Like the vernal equinox, the balance is shifting to the lighter side of things, and the "this, too, will pass" is an offer of hope.  Jupiter is also the ruling card in the 8 of swords, offering the opportunity to take a new road, to think a new thought, to turn a new leaf.  Shifting the energy to find that VIII - Adjustment balance keeps you poised in equanimity, which will reflect in wholeness on all levels.  However, once past, remember this period (only) as a time you don't want to return to, according to the guides. Staying in now keeps your balance intact and your energy flowing openly and clearly."

 While anyone who uses tarot or follows this blog will know there are many ways to interpret these particular cards in these particular positions, a great part of what I got felt "guided" to me and so, while I could "add" to this from the intellectual database or spin it a little more brightly, I feel that as a reader, it is my duty to "give it as I get it" and add as little of "my" energy to the mix as possible.  

Also, I would like to thank my daughter Julia for having the tech skills and desire to create the image of the layout, and for assisting me in proofreading the document for typos.  By the time I had written it all out, I could barely see it clearly, in part because as mentioned above, it was guided rather than "thought out" and in part because as a writer, I am aware that I become "text-blind" (meaning we think it says what we think it says, when in fact, it may say something else).  

I would also like to publicly thank the person I read for who has allowed me to post this reading.  May the brightest of blessings shine forth in your life, now and always. 

point of note: while I do offer paid readings privately, I do not do it here because of copyright infringement issues.  The reading I've posted here is $100 if done in writing, $50 if done on skype, $30 if done in person.  If you are interested in contacting me for a private reading, please email me at tarot(dot)inspiration(at)gmail(dot) com.