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OVERVIEW BY CARISSA:
Learning the Tarot is a daunting task at first. There are a multitude of books around on what each card means, reversals, corresponding herbs, stones, runes, oils, planets, divinities, etc. Most only give a brief look at spreads. I think this is really tragic! The cards themselves are only half the story. Their archetypical meanings, combined with the specific application of their meanings as shown by the position the card appears in, gives us a useful, clear, and more specific reading. I know of many people who bought tarot decks, spent countless hours learning what each card means, and then couldn't give themselves or anyone else a decent reading. The problem wasn't their abilities or deck, but the spreads they were using. Most tarot books show a few layouts and briefly state what each position means. The most common of these, and shown in almost every tarot booklet/book, is the Celtic Cross. It's a lovely spread, but I can't use it. A three-card, "Past, Present, and Future" spread is also very common. Once again, it is almost completely useless to me. The layouts are too rigid, too unspecific to my problem and what I want to know. These are MEANT to be general spreads, not spreads for looking into a specific situation or problem.
Just like it's okay to go with your gut instincts on tarot cards, it's also okay to make up your own spreads or even to use none at all. As long as you know, while you are shuffling, that "this card is going to mean..." and then pull it. You can get as specific as you need in order to understand your situation (within limits, of course, of the tarot itself...we'll discuss tarot and free-will later). I make up my own spreads all the time. Before I do a reading, I sit down and think about what I want to get from the cards. If it's a problem, I probably want to know what strengths and weaknesses I am bringing into the situation, how I can best deal with others to solve it, what pitfalls to watch out for in myself and in the actions of others, etc. I design my spread on a piece of paper, writing down which position (and you can make up any layout shape you want!) will mean what. Then I perform the reading, using my newly designed spread. I've found these readings to be the most clear and accurate. I've also found that I end up using certain spreads over and over again, because they make sense to ME.
If you've made up spreads that you love, I would love to hear about them. If you haven't ever used your own spread, try it! I'd also love to hear about how it worked for you.
Happy reading!
Carissa the Maniacal Tarot-Collector (who just acquired a new Goddess deck!)
PENTAGRAM SPREAD I
From:Prairie
Visualize a pentagram (5-pointed star).
Now, the first card is at the point on
top.
The 2nd card is the bottom
left.
The 3rd card is upper right
point.
The 4th card is the upper
left point.
The 5th card is the
lower right point.
The 6th card is
on top of the 1st card.
If you use a
significator, it goes in the middle.
Okay, you've just "drawn" a pentagram
with cards.
Card 1: Your goals
Card 2: (water) That which is hidden
Card 3: (air) What obstacles need
to be overcome
Card 4: (earth) What
led up to this point
Card 5: (fire)
What action needs to be taken to reach
the goal
Card 6: Final outcome. Read
this in conjunction with the first card
(goals)
PENTAGRAM SPREAD II:
Same layout, but..
Card 1 is a
possible outcome of the situation.
Card 2 is sub-conscious (What is unseen
or needs to be thought about).
Card
3 is near future.
Card 4 is past
(what led up to this situation).
Card 5 is conscious (what is seen or
needs to be done).
Card 6 is an
alternate possible outcome.
These
are my own spreads.
THE GODDESS SPREAD
From: Prairie
This is my Goddess spread, using 13
cards. Basically, it looks like a clock.
Lay the cards in a circle, with the
thirteenth card in the middle. I usually
start with where the nine would be on a
clock face, then lay the cards
counter-clockwise. This, however is a
personal decision. You can start at the
top and go clockwise, if you wish.
The first three cards relate to the
Fates, the daughters of Nyx: Clotho,
Lachesis and Atropos.
Clotho is the spinner. She tells
you what led up to the problem at hand.
Lachesis is the measurer. She
tells you what the current situation is.
Atropos tells us what's in the
near future regarding the situation.
The next three cards are Sul,
Luna and Nyx.
Sul
tells us what influences are at work for
us. Luna shows us what influences
are hidden from us, and Nyx tells
us the best course of action to take in
this situation.
The next three cards
are Arianrhod, Erishkegal and
Athena.
Arianrhod, the
Lady of Caer Aranrhod, is the place of
our hopes and dreams. Erishkegal,
as Goddess of the Underworld, shows us
our darkest fears. Athena, the
Lady Justice, shows us how to balance
between the two. She also shows us how
other people see the situation. (In a
relationship problem, She would
represent the other person in the
relationship).
The next three are
Corn Mother, White Buffalo Woman
and Spider Woman.
Corn
Mother shows us what our goals are.
White Buffalo Woman shows us a
possible future, while Spider
Woman shows us another possible
future. Which one you actually end up
with depends on your choice of actions.
The Tarot is a road map showing the
different paths to follow. It's up to
you to decide which road to take.
The final card is the Great Goddess Herself and goes in the middle to tie everything together.
From: PrairieMoon
I think it's interesting that a lot of people found the Goddess spread reading a difficult one. Tell me, was it because the cards were unclear, or was it because the spread itself was difficult? Did you have problems with the number of cards, and therefore the amount of time needed to interpret it? Tell me why this spread was difficult for you. Do you have a suggestion how I can improve the spread itself?
From: Sunraven
Hi Prairie,
I looked at the spread, and here are my impressions, for whatever they are worth.
It's basically a good spread--but I think it is much enhanced if you know something of the Goddesses you use. For example: both White Buffalo Woman and Grandmother Spider show alternate future paths. but what is the um, nature of those paths? To me, White Buffalo Woman walks the more spiritual, intuitive, mystical path--so those things color whatever card one receives there. Grandmother Spider, as the giver of writing, and the weaver of dreams, is more, um--intellectual. Not exactly--but hr path is more, um--left-brain. Both futures contain the potential for creativity--but if you know about these two Goddesses, you understand more about that potential--so you can zero in on what exactly the card is telling you. The Empress would be saying something slightly different in each position.
Also, this spread requires considerable thought on the part of the reader, because it raises and addresses issues that go fairly deep. I can see why some found it a challenge--and me, I think that's a good thing. (evil grin.)
Gently part,
Sunraven
From: Bast
Hi Praire,
OK, for *me*, it was challenging, but not *difficult*... it was difficult in the sense that it was challenging! Oh my goddess... that came out *terrible*!!!! But do you know what I'm trying to say?
I certainly do not understand the names of the Goddesses... so I basically had to ignore the Goddesses and you know... I do have a *habit* of getting ahead of myself. I'm very used to doing the Celtic Cross spread and I look at the cards, get their meanings, then I put the pieces together, very much like a puzzle... I also do other spreads like this (depending on the spread)... well this spread was challenging because it would *not* let me get ahead of myself... this particular spread made me sit tight and review one card at a time, because the one card would complete the whole story before I go go to the next... then when I got to the next, it got easier... This was a challenging spread and would I use it again? I probably *would* use the spread again but for *very, very* serious personal issues. This would be a good spread for that. I am very glad you presented this spread to us. I appreciated the challenges and it has taught me to appreciate *each* card that is laid out and not to just skip a card... every single card is laid out for a very specific reason. BTW, the number of cards and the time it took to read was not at all a bothersome to me. I for one, *like* more cards in a spread.... it just works better for me. Again Prairie, thank you *very* much for giving me the opportunity and challenge to work on this spread. Can you tell me how I did with the spread? I'm anxious to know!
Bast
ARMANDE'S NEW SPREAD
From: Armande
Subject: new spread (?)
Hello friends!
I made up a new spread, see below. Let
me know what you think. For a bit more
fancy explanation, check out my page:
http://www.homestead.com/tarotlegging/sp
reads.html
New spread ..working title: the
dilemma-spread
The kind of issues I personally like to
do a tarot reading on are usually of the
action / no action variety. I generally
know where I stand in a situation and
the emotions involved, but I want some
idea as to what action is a good idea
and which isn't. I haven't found a
spread in books yet, so I thought this
one up.
I still have my doubts as to whether it
needs a significator, but it probably is
a good idea. So the central cards 1 and
2 are the same as in the celtic cross,
telling you something about the current
situation. Nr. 3 says something about
the base of the situation, what caused
the current situation to be what it is,
something in the past. Card nr. 4 tells
you something about what you did /
didn't do etc. to cause the current
situation as it is. And card nr. 5
indicates what the other person(s)
and/or environment contributed to the
situation at hand. Then, to the top
left, cards 6 and 7 tell you which
action to avoid, what is not a good
plan/direction to follow. Cards 8 and 9
tell you what course of action is
recommended. This spread does not have
an outcome, because that is still
undecided while you think about what you
are going to do. Once you made up your
mind, you can do another spread on how
this would turn out.
