QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Wands
Cups
Swords
Pentacles
Back to index
Court cards

From: Krystlhawk
Merry Meet everyone!!
I hope you are enjoying the studies on Cups!! I know I am!

Friday night, my girlfriend gave me The Witches Tarot, by Ellen Cannon Reed and Martin Cannon. When she handed me the deck, I immediately loved it. I love decks without borders. This is important to me as I feel that I am in the card. This deck reminds me of my all time favorite, The Morgan-Greer deck because of this aspect.

The card stock is perfect. The back is black with a Pentagram 3/4 of the way up. Easier to see if a card fell into reverse when you don't use reversals!!

The court cards, I have a question. I don't have the book, if anyone does, can you explain why the artist did the faces the exact same , just changed the colors of dress??

And the six of Swords!!!!! Wow, what a completely different card!! I was in a trance until I got to this card. It looks like something out of a cartoon, like it does not belong here!!

Anyway, it's a beautiful deck, not like my Morgan-Greer or The New Palladini, which is becoming my daily deck. Any insight on The Witches Tarot would be helpful !!
Thanks and have a fabulous day !!!!!
Love,
Krystlhawk

From: "Sarah Moon"
Krystlhawk,
I borrowed the book that goes wih the Witches Tarot from my daughter to answer some of your questions .....perhaps. Part of what this deck is for and half of the book is on the concept of the Qabala. So some of what is "confusing" to the tarot reader is understood for the Qabala reader I think. In the Witches tarot the six of swords is Tifareth manifesting through Fire will/action in the sphere of illumination.

The description of the card given is as follows " The lower right-hand section shows a pelican "in piety," ie feeding her children with flesh taken from her own breast. The upper left-hand section of the card shows a phoenix rising from the flames Those two depictions are divided by six swords.

Interpretation is Self-sacrifice, the right action, a step toward spirituality, one who tries to better the world by action. If querant or subject of the reading has not made this step, he or she will must (re-birth) reversed Selfishness failure to do what is right, perverted sacrifice, ie sacrifice of another or sacrifice for the wrong reasons. (remember the Goddess says, "nor do I demand ought of sacrifice.")

The Court Cards are designed the way they are because in the system of divination given here the court cards do not "occupy a space of their own in a layout, but are used to modify the card that the card that is dealt next. Whenever a court card is dealt, the next card should be placed on top of it"

All Kings represent the world of Atziluth- Archetypal World (winter choosing directions)

All Queens represent the world of Briah- Concept Archangel force (spring and first steps of journey)

all Princes represent the world of Yetzirah Formation Angelic force (summer journey is underway)

All Princesses represent Assiah World of manifestation (autumn end of journey) Be sure as you look at each of the court cards to focus on the differances, the clothing, the scenery, what they carry and what adorns the crowns.
I hope this helps
Sarah Moon

From:Sunraven
Gently meet,
I'm not familiar with that specific deck, but here are a couple of speculations.

The court cards can be viewed as different aspects of us. We can play any and/or all of their roles at any given time. Perhaps the artist is emphasizing this point by keeping the faces the same. That way, you will be encouraged to ask, for example: "How am I being the Queen of Wands in this situation?"

As to the VI of swords. Well, one of its meanings is getting away from the situation, or even escaping. Could be that by making it totally different, the artist is emphasizing that sometimes, in order to gain perspective on a situation, we need to get into a completely different "place" mentally. HTH, ideas, anyhow.
Gently part,
Sunraven

From: Sunraven
Gently meet,
OK. I wasn't going to get into this until we'd finished the suits, but ...

ATZILUTH. pronounced without the final H. The world of emanation. The World of the God force. It is here, in this world, that the spark occurs which will, eventually, manifest itself as a created form in the physical world. To understand this, let's take the example of baking a cake. In this world, we have the desire to bake a cake. That's as far as it goes, right yet. (grin.) Traditionally, all Kings are said to reside here, because they are the manifestations of will. Some will tell you also, that this world contains all the Aces, and the wands.

BRIAH: (which I always thought would be a lovely name for a daughter. (smile.)) the world of Creation. Here, we find the archangels. Here, also, we find the templates for things, and as I learned it, this is where we also find the archetypal patterns. This is also the sphere of the archangels. Now. In our analogy, this is where we decide on our cake recipe, and choose that recipe. Cups are said to reside in Briah, as are queens, because women carry the template of life, and life is held within the womb. In other words, it is the female force which gives energy a pattern.

YETZIRAH. The World of Formation. The angelic Sphere. In our analogy, this is where we gather our ingredients, mix them and bake them. Notice I didn't say we take the cake out of the oven, yet. most of what we understand as creation actually occurs *here.* This sphere contains, among other things, the astral planes. The Tarot itself is said to be a product of this world. It is also said to contain all swords and all knights.

ASSIAH. (another lovely name. Too bad I don't have girls to name. (grin.)) This is the world of manifestation. It is the physical plane. As I tell my beginning Cabala students, if we were considering the Universe as a mall, there would be a sign next to this world, saying: "You are here." This is the world we know and love. But don't get confused, here. I'm not talking about Earth. I'm talking about the entire physical universe. In my analogy, this is the cake, taken out of the oven and ready to eat. Here, we find all Pages (or, more correctly, princesses) and pentacles.

For those of you who are studying the Tree of Life:

ON THE TREE:
ATZILUTH contains Kether and Chokmah. It also contains Aces, wands and kings. BRIAH contains only one Sepher, and that is Binah. All queens are found here, as are all cups.

YETZIRAH contains all the Sephiroth from Chessed through Yesod. Also all swords, and all Knights.

Assiah contains only one sepher. That is Malkuth, the kingdom, or the place where we live. Here are to be found all Princesses and Pentacles.

Later, if you wish, I will go more deeply (a *lot* more deeply) into this subject.
Gently part,
Sunraven

From: "Indra"
Merry Meet all!
I need some help here. I've been asked by an acquaintance (she's a member of a list I've started but I don't know here very well) to do a long distance tarotreading for her. The only long distance reading I've done before is the "group reading" we did on this list so I'll need some help. There isn't a better way to learn something than to through yourself into it right? I know her question and I've decided what layout to use but what to do next? How do I "make contact" with her, "connect" or what ever to call it? How do I make my deck inspired by her so that the cards will answer HER question. When I've got the querent right beside me I have them to hold the deck and focus about the question and then shuffle it but how do I do this when it's a long distance reading? (BTW She doesn't have a deck so I can't ask her to pull the cards)
Indra!

From: Prairie
Indra~~
Do you have a picture of her, or a letter that she has written or someting with er personal "vibes" in it? Concentrate on that while you shuffle.

From: Armande
Hi Indra!
I recently had a lot of practice with this (did several readings for ppl I only knew thru the net) and I have ppl word their question by the page I made and I print the text. I focus on the text while shuffling and say, when I cut the cards "this is for ... (name of the person)".
I seem to have done pretty good, judging by the responses...
Armande

From: Armande
Question for everybody.
Someone told me that if there were 4 or more major arcana in a spread, that there was more information that was needed and that you had to stop the reading right away-as soon as you noticed the 4+ Major Arcana and do a reading with all Major Arcana cards. I never heard about that and I never did so far and wanted to ask all you experts! (great to have people around to ask! HUG!)
Armande

From: Prairie
Armande~~
Tarot reading, like everything else, is a personal thing. You will develop your own style in time. Meanwhile, do what feels comfortable to YOU. If your intuition tells you to stop & do a Major spread, then by all means, do it. It depends on the circumstances. A lot of the time, a lot of Majors simply means that it's an important question & that fate is involved. Things are out of the querant's hands. The gods will decide. A Major card is like a red flag. Sit up & take notice of that particular position & card. 4 or more Majors in one reading says,"Hey, wake up! Something important is happening here!"

From: "Wicce" (Gina M.Pace)
Armande, and everyone else: When I am doing readings for clients (and this is taught in my classes as well) *3* or more Major Arcana cards is a significant number (presuming you're using an average of 10 cards) The significance of the Major Arcana is this: whatever is going to happen, has a heightened sense of immediacy and an importance which the client cannot ignore. This is not bad, however. The critical point that a preponderance of Major cards indicates is that the client will be entering a period of increased control over the outcome of their lives, and while usually this comes with a period of intense change, it is to be noted that the change is always something which leaves the client empowered. I like to think of this as the "Quantum Leap" effect. How many here have watched that old tv show? Remember how the gist of it was, the guy would "leap" back into the lives of other people in their pasts and "fix" something that happened and went wrong, basically resetting the course of their lives to the way it should have been all along? He was fixing "shouldn't-have-beens." Naturally the client isn't going to be able to go back into their past, but if you think of our lives as a train rolling along on a track, imagine that at certain points in our lives we get routed off onto side tracks and end up going in different directions than what we "should have" been on. When you see the preponderance of Major Arcana cards in a client's spread, that client is approaching a "switching-point" in the railroad track, whereupon they are coming up on an opportunity to switch their trains back onto the track they SHOULD have been rolling along on all along. This means that they get a second chance, so to speak, to do with their lives what they should have been doing all along. This is a very strongly empowering time, when they regain control of their lives and also get to straighten out a lot of "shouldn't-have-beens." Of course you can interpret this preponderance of Major Arcana cards any way you feel right about, but note one thing: you should NEVER abandon a reading you've laid out without determining the meaning of the spread, so whomever told you to quit the reading and start over with Major cards isn't really doing you any favors. Whether you think at the time that the reading you've laid out makes sense or not, in the grander scheme of things, it always turns out to have been significant and you should always pay attention to it. Hope this has been helpful.

From: jinks
Hi. I'm scheduled to do the 7 of swords, so I got out my learning deck (Rider-Waite) and studied the card. Just for the heck of it, I got the same card out of some of my other decks.
Big mistake.

The Tarot of the Old Path is obviously based on the Waite - no problem there. But two other decks, the (mini) Connelly and the Witches' Tarot have an entirely different scene for the 7 of swords, that gives a vastly different impression to me.

The Waite-based decks have a man stealing some of the seven swords, leaving some behind. The other decks have people in a relaxed setting playing musical instruments.

I'm totally confuzzled. Any explanations (of why they're so different), suggestions (as to what I should do about this as regards the lesson), and/or chocolate (to ease my wearied mind) gratefully accepted.
Jinks

From: "Stacey"
I have been having the same problems... I use the Sacred Rose and well I have been reading through the definitions on the web page... Has left me completely lost!!! LOL About to go back to the little book and just learn that :s)
With Love, Warmth and Light,
Stacey

From: Sunraven
Ah! Each deck will have it's own slant, and each deck designer will have *their* own slant, as well. Yes, there is a whole range of meaning, which is why it is so important to become acquainted with the cards from your own perspective, first. If you read too many varying meanings, you run the risk of total confusion and overload.

One of the things you can do is make a dossier for each card. Jot down all the different meanings for each card you come across, and then read them to gain a consensus. Then compare that with what you, yourself feel about it. But remember, always, that Tarot is not a cut and dried science--and that each person who comes to it brings with them all their cultural, racial, Karmic, and experiential history. The important thing is what the cards mean to *you*, and so long as you are within the range of um, traditional accepted thought on the subject, you're fine. HTH,
Gently part,
Sunraven

From Feisty Kat
I drew the judgement card from the Celtic Dragon Tarot last night...I can't make heads or tails of it even with the book's help. I've always had problems understanding the difference between Judgement and Justice. But this deck's Judgement card really threw me for a loop. Hubby bless his heart tried to explain it...he understood it right away.

It has an elderly looking man laying on a bed writhing in convulsions. Next to him is a green dragon with a kind expression who has a paw on the man. In the background is a window with the Tree of Life symbol. The key words given for this card is rebirth and karma. Now all I see in this picture is pain and do not see how it relates to Judgement, rebirth or karma. Made me want to knock the guy out so that he is no longer in pain. Comments?

From: Prairie
Kat~ You wrote..... "The key words given for this card is rebirth and karma. Now all I see in this picture is pain and do not see how it relates to Judgement, rebirth or karma." ...... In the Rider deck, Judgement pictures an angel blowing the horn to summon the souls of the people below him. Think of the dragon as that angel. The man has lived his life, and is ready to pass on. The dragon cannot actively 'help' him, but he can be there to understand and make the passing easier. Judgement has to do with what karma you have accumulated in this life. After death, there is rebirth. The endless cycle, so this card also has to do with rebirth and renewal. You also asked about the difference between Judgement and Justice. Think of it this way. Justice is what happens while you are young and have lots of choices. Judgement is the result of those choices. Justice happens while you are still actively doing. Judgement happens after you have done, and it's time to start again. Does this make any sense?

Okay, let me see if I can get my thoughts together and make this clearer....

Justice represents our system of laws. In the Mythic Tarot, Justice is Athene. This card is the first of the four Moral Lessons cards. This card has to do with developing your own individual code of ethics. When it shows up in a reading, it represents a need for impartial decisions, and a need to be true to yourself, because you cannot make this decision without an honest self-appraisal and self-knowledge.

Judgement, on the other hand, represents the resurrection at the end of life (or the end of a situation). This is the card of karma and rebirth. Once a person has drawn the Justice card, and made an honest and impartial decision in the matter, the Judgement card points to the effects of that decision. In the Mythic Tarot, Judgement is Hermes, the Guide of Souls. In the Rider deck, Judgement is the angel Gabrielle, who awakens the dead for their final judgement before God. When this card appars in a reading, I would tell the client to be on the lookout for the rewards or consequences of a decision or action that they have taken. This card is a wake-up call that says "you made your bed, now you lie in it". This is either a 'good' thing where you reap the rewards of the good things you have done, or it can be a 'bad' thing, where you reap the consequences of poor choices and actions.

So, Justice is 'before' and Judgement is 'after'. A decision is made, and the consequences are reaped. Think of it this way, Justice is the decision whether to break the law or not. Judgement is what happens after the law has been broken, or kept.

Question from Prairie
I have just been surfing various 'professional tarot readers' sites, and I've noticed that the on-line readers charge about the same as the professional readers around town. That is to say, anywhere from $30 to $100, depending on the depth of the reading. What do you think should be a fair price for a reading? Do we have any professionals in this class?

Some sites claim to have 'psychic for pay' services, as well. One lady I know in California does palm reading in addition to the Tarot. What do you all think about this practice of combining Tarot with psychic or other types of readings (like palm reading or tea leaves, or whatever)? Do you think a profesional reader should stick to Tarot, or do you think s/he should branch out into the other 'intuitive' 'psychic' fields, as well?

From Armande:
Interesting discussion-topic! :)
As for the first question, I once read in a book that a good price to ask for a reading was about the same amount that people are willing to pay for a good haircut. I thought that was a useful suggestion. I myself have only once done a reading for money so far. I also have a practice in alternative healing and it turned out that the person preferred having a reading done. So I charged the same price as I do for a healing, which is about $ 40 for an hour. I did 2 readings in that period of time though.

About the other question, my personal inclination is that all sorts of divination work alike for me. I consider it a tool, so tarot is workable just like any other way of divination. I do "keep it clean" however, not to mix them up altogether. When I do cards, I do cards. Should I want more or other information, I might use the runes on the same subject. Sometimes that puts things in another perspective. But I consider that a new reading/spread whatever. I am curious how this works for other people!
Armande

From Willow:
I read professionally and I'm on the cheaper side of the pay scale. My reads, online or in person, range in price from $3.00 to $25.00 depending on the spread used. I charge by the spread, rather than the time. My theory is that why should someone leave a read with questions just because they can't afford to pay for an extra half hour. I also keep my rates low because I feel that my services should be available to anyone who needs help, not just those who have lots of money.

I often have visions while I read for a client. I think adding something like runes or tassiography add extra depth to a read; especially if the client is confused. I always carry my pendulm.

I hope this answers some of your questions. I've seen too many readers charge incredible rates and do shoddy readings, but since they tell the client what they want to hear the client keeps coming back. I also feel that tarot should be accessable to everyone, not just the privileged few.

Just as an additional note, I donate 25% of each read fee to a local charity. I feel that it is important to give back to the community. It's something I started when I began reads and kept up.
Blessed Be!
Willow CrowAngel
  Welcome to Angel's Pagan Haven

From: Carissa:
I've had very good luck with palm readings and have always left anyone I read for very..surprised...with some of the things I've told them. I can tell, for example, if a woman has miscarried in the past, had multiple births, or how many children she has or likely will have.   Tarot is a learned art, for the most part. Every person has some intuitive abilities. For some they are easier to tap, others must work at it. Any type of psychic reading- tarot, tea leaves, palm reading, etc., is a way to get in touch with those abilites. I see all these methods as being merely tools to let one's own intuitive abilites function.   Some tools work better for some people.   An excellent tarot reader is not necessarily a good palm reader, or vice versa. If any method works well, why not use it?   Each has its own strengths and can be useful for answering different sorts of questions. BUT: it is better to master one method than be "sort of" accurate with several. As for charging...there are a lot of con artists out there. They prey on needy, often desperate people. I don't think someone's fears and doubts should be taken advantage of (just think of the bad karma!).   Then again, it takes valuable time and energy to give a reading. A fair price should be set, taking into account the average pay-per-hour in the reader's area, the time it takes for a reader to work, and the prices of local readers. Fairness, not big profits, are the key :o)

From: Patricia:
Greetings, Is anyone out there familiar with the Barbara Walker Tarot Deck? And if so, would you please critique' it for me. Thanks a bunch.
Love & Light,
Patricia

From Prairie:
I no longer own the Barbara Walker Tarot, although I have no idea why! Maybe I traded it or something.

Anyway, I liked the deck, although I didn't always agree with the 'key word' they put on the top of the Minor Arcana. I understand they do this so the beginning reader can understand the meanings better but I've always felt that just because the card has one meaning in a particular reading, doesn't necessarily mean it'll have the exact same meaning in the next.

I understood the images, and I liked them, however, these cards are not for everybody. Some of the images are rather dark, but then, so is life. In life we accept the bad with the good, and these cards reflect that.

I would not use these cards to read for my mother-in-law. She would freak and go running to the nearest church to pray for my soul. If you can handle the bold imagery, I would recommend this deck.

These cards are especially good if a person wants to get in touch with the shadow side of their personalities. The Queen of Swords depicts Kali eating the entrails of a man. How many of us would like to do this to the person who hurt us? (And then admit it. That's the hard part. Admitting you have this side of your personality)

I also wanted to mention the size of the cards. They fit rather well in your hands, making them easier to shuffle. This is a plus, because you can concentrate better on the issue at hand if you aren't struggling to handle the cards.

All in all, I don't think I would recommend this deck to a beginner. And I would be careful who I read for using it. But, in the hands of an experienced reader, I would have to say this is an exceptional deck and I recommend it.

From Patricia:
PrairieMoon,
Thank you so much for your feedback and for critiquing the Barbara Walker Tarot Deck for me.

I'm still vacillating on whether to purchase them or not! Love & Light,
Patricia

From Prairie:
Before you buy any new deck, ask yourself what you want to use it for. Is this deck for personal readings? Will you be using it to read for others? Are you interested in using it for meditation? Are you going to use it in Tarot spells? Do you want it because you like the images, the artist, or because Suzy Nextdoor raves about it? Have you actually seen and felt the cards? Do you feel drawn to this particular deck, or are you just curious about it? Have you considered the size? Do they fit comfortably in your hand? Are you familiar with the culture of the cards? (For instance, some decks are Egyptian, some are Native American, etc) Are you comfortable with the focus of the cards? (For instance, the Mother Peace deck is strongly feminine in nature. Is this what you are looking for?) Do you understand the imagery? What does the Minor Arcana look like? Does the Minor Arcana have images or just pips? Are you comfortable with all the images? (For instance, I traded my Witches Tarot simply because one of the Minor Arcana cards disturbed me, and every time that particular card showed up in a reading it threw my concentration off). Are you comfortable with the "feeling" of the cards? Are they durable? Plastic coated? How easily do they shuffle? Will they age well? (I have one deck I've had for several years, and it wears beautifully and becomes more comfortable every time I use it. I have another deck that the images started to fade and it looked terrible. I bought one deck because my daughter-in-law had it for years, and it looks better the older it gets.) Are you a collector? Are you considering this deck as a collectable item, or for practical, every day reading? Will the deck be displayed on a shelf or actually used? There are a lot of factors to consider. If the deck you are thinking about buying fits all the criteria you are looking for, then, by all means, buy it! Remember, you are choosing a friend that will share your innermost secrets and desires. Choose wisely.

From Patricia
I guess I just wanted the deck to sift through them. It's hard to buy a tarot deck - most of the time they are sealed up in the box. Thanks for all of the tips, though, as to questioning why I want a new deck! Makes sense.
Love & Light,
Patricia

From Armande:
Hey, couldn't agree more! :-) I have one deck I don't really use, it's the unicorn deck. I was at a fair with someone and she loved that one. I must have picked up on that. I used it ONCE, for a reading for her. It really was a waste of money. So if anyone is interested in a unicorn deck, I have one... As for getting a feel, I have the same problem. Usually you are not allowed to feel the deck, if you're lucky you can look at the pics in a brochure. And even then, not all of the pics usually. I have the Haindl deck that I use most. I also have a Rider Waite which I sometimes use.

I usually buy items like that on intuition. And when I doubt, I muscle test which is right for me.
BB,
Armande