Tag: tarot layout

You have to make it before you can break it.

Layouts are easy. Titles are hard.

Tarot layouts are no great secret. You can write one any time you want. We pro (retired, semi-pro, just reads cards a lot) tarot readers do it all the time. This is where you ask the questions you want answered. Basically you name what you want the cards to tell you. When you go into a reading with a clear, firm idea about what each card represents, then you get a clearer idea and a more usable message

Owl and Bones Tarot and Daily Tarot Girl are especially good at it.

Granted, Lenormand and some readers are a little more chaotic and free-form, but in my experience it pays to have a layout in mind before you start a reading. It is a foundation and reference point that keeps things anchored when you are in the flow of intuition.

If you are going to pull a message out of the aether, it pays to have some place solid for it to land.

Last night’s lunar eclipse was a potent one, associated with closure, release, and transformation. That Glasgow Witch describes it as the bookend to the September 2024 eclipse. If the past two years are a cycle, a liminal space in time, a phase of transformation, now that the second bookend has been set in place it begs the question of “now what?”

Chances are you already have a good idea about the direction things are headed. If not, however, that can spark a little worry and that is where the Action Eases Anxity layout comes into play. Coming up with an idea about what to do can reduce anxiety just as much as actually doing the thing. Action Eases Anxiety is a good, fast look to help bring things back to center when life is going off the rails

But what about making the original plan before it all goes sideways?

I wrote a four card layout for just exactly that. I tried to call it “Timeflow” or something overly clever. Now I think I’m just going to call it “The Plan”

I’m more of a Marvel fan, but I am a bigger fan of adaptability, so my planning is always going to be in the vein of DC comic’s Captain Cold:

  • Make a plan
  • Execute the plan
  • Expect the plan to go off the rails
  • Throw away the plan

So if Action Eases Anxiety is for step three when it all goes pear shaped, The Plan is for step one. This is for making the plan that you expect to eventually toss and the method for making a new one in its place.

The four cards layout spots are:

  • Let it rest (things to set aside for now. Come back later when the time is right)
  • Let it go (things release. Cut this loose and move on)
  • Cue it up (things that need some attention or preparation)
  • Let it roll (put your attention here. Conditions are good)

Another reason that Tarot works is because a picture truly is worth a thousand words. Subscribe to Sage Sips on WordPress or Substack (it’s free!) so you’ll get a notice when a post an example Reading of “The Plan” layout sometime over the next couple of days, probably Sunday (it’s Friday now) That will give you a good picture of what “The Plan” layout is like.

See you at the next sip!

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The Layouts, Explained

private tarot readings

When we talk about the “layout” or “card spread” in Tarot, we are referring to how the cards are physically placed on the table during a reading. The photo above shows a three card layout.

Some layouts are ancient and ubiquitous and no one really knows how they originated. Others are brand new and purpose written by the tarot reader. All are equally valid.

Regardless of its origin, the layout adds context and structure to a reading. It is the framework that connects the different cards into one, larger, cohesive message.

The real key in any layout is to have a clear idea what each position within the layout pattern will signify before the reading begins. You have to have a clear, fixed intention for the layout positions before you even pick up the cards. It serves as a solid foundation, which allows the individual card meanings to adapt and flow with intuition. Those two important things together elevate the quality of the reading as a whole. The card layout (along with a consistent overall reading format) helps to put the purely intuitive Tarot information into real world language we can actually use.

Here are the layouts that I’ve written for my private Tarot readings:

Year Ahead
  • five cards
  • advice over prediction – gives a sense of the energies ahead to help navigate the year
  • four cards for each upcoming season in order, no matter what time of year the reading is done
  • One card above the others to summarize the year as a whole
TaoCraft Path
  • Five cards
  • Intended for understanding the current situation and guidance navigating your life path ahead.
  • It goes right to left: influence from the past, the current situation, advice to move forward, how to keep this path, how to change this path if you want.
NEW! TaoCraft Taijitu
  • Three cards
  • Yin card: energies drawing toward you
  • Yang card: energies moving away or that need pushed away
  • Harmony: advice to take your next step forward in balance with all of the energies.
Yes or No
  • Three cards
  • Straight yes or no answer plus advice
  • inexpensive
  • fun and lighthearted, “Zombie Cat” style

Image credits:

  • Top and Taijitu image from the public domain
  • “Seasons”photo by the author using Witches Tarot deck by Ellen Dugan and Mark Evans copyright 1996 used with permissions on Llewellyn publishing
  • TaoCraft Path photo by the author using public domain image tarot cards

Weekend Oracle: Yin, Yang and Harmony

Sage Sips is Tarot in the time it takes to sip your coffee

Think of any question that is on your mind, or think of the weekend ahead. This “Weekend Oracle” is the premier of my newest layout, TaoCraft Taijitu.

Inspired by the famous yin yang symbol, this three card layout shows yin (energies you are pulling in) yang (energies you are pushing away) and harmony (a way to be at peace and flow with all of these energies)

As usual, I read the cards right to left. This disrupts the deeply ingrained, logic-driven pattern of reading English left to right. That small cognitive shift helps to improve intuition and keep thought-habits at bay.

Of course, if your native language is Arabic, Hebrew, Chinese or other language that reads right to left, then reading Tarot left to right would make more sense.

With today’s cards we get:

Yin, The World. The World from the major arcana is a very positive, hopeful energy. It points to the big picture, the Gestalt, the everything. This is the energy you are drawing in.

Yang, Seven of Swords. This is energy that is moving away from you, or better still, energy you have been empowered to release and push away. The Seven of Swords card is associated with mischief by others and self-serving deception. In the picture a man is stealing away with swords. I intuitively ‘hear’ the old song “Steal Away” – I forget the artist, it is so old.

But in any case, there is a validating energy. You have been taken, deceived or a general victim of our collective chaotic circumstances just as much as you thought.

Harmony, The Fool. Traditionally the very first card of a RWS Tarot deck, this symbolizes fresh starts and new beginnings.

Taken as a whole, the message seems to be very hopeful: Things have been as bad as you thought, but are getting better holistically even if the changes in any one area of life seem very small. To be at peace and to help this transition along, look for any opportunity to start new .

Thanks for reading! See you at the next sip!

Confession 9: I am Zombie Cat

Transcript:

I’m a clairvoyant and I have a confession. I … am Zombie cat.

scratch/oneip

Welcome to Clairvoyant Confessional. I’m Ronda. I read Tarot, write stuff and make things. Happy Halloween season 2021. 

Every Halloween as part of celebrating TaoCraft Tarot’s grand opening anniversary, I like to do something with Zombie Cat  readings. 

Because Halloween. And Zombies. This is Pittsburgh after all.

What is a Zombie Cat reading?  I’m glad you asked! 

It’s my particular spin on a classic, ubiquitous, nobody knows exactly where it came from yes or no style of Tarot reading.

Zombie Cat is a fictional character, a sort of alter ego that emerged from a blog post from 2015. The post was inspired by a combination of Schrodinger’s Cat thought experiment and the Test Tubes and Tarot decks episode of the Menage A Tarot podcast. 

Don’t worry, there are links to that and all sorts of other supplementary stuff in the episode description. 

Tarot readings are one thing, but the process of doing a particular layout isn’t great material for an audio podcast. So let’s get back to Zombie Cat. Why Zombie Cat? 

****

Why not?

Part of the original post was instead of only dead or alive, what if BOTH was an option for Schrodinger’s experiment?

No no no….don’t go all pedantic on this and tell me that quantum states are binary and the experiment really is JUST one or the other. It’s a THOUGHT experiment. If nothing is impossible, what’s the harm in thinking about the wildly improbable? Especially since, in this case, the experiment is being applied to abstract metaphysics, not didactic ACTUAL physics.

But on second thought, maybe binary quantum physics is a better mascot for a yes or no Tarot reading than I originally intended. 

Anyway, the Zombie Cat blog post mostly talks about predicting the future  and how so-called accurate predictions are themselves all but impossible and not very helpful.

So OF COURSE I name the most impractical, prediction oriented, pure entertainment layout that I do after our friend, Zombie Cat. 

These layouts are a ton of fun to do. I deliberately set aside all the usual caveats and complications that come with old fashioned horror movie predictions and have at it. Any question goes, all predictions will be made all in the name of entertainment all with the knowledge that these readings are 100% guaranteed to contain words but have a 50% chance of being DEAD WRONG.

The short version of how the layout works is 

Step 1. Ask a question. Any question. If it isn’t a yes-or-no questions, Zombie Cat will change it into one.

Step 2. Shuffle the deck

Step 3. Deal the cards into 3 stacks, stopping a stack when it gets to an ace card or a total of 13 cards, whichever comes first Why 13 cards? I dunno. Why aces? I have no idea. That’s just how I learned it, and it works. It’s as good of a method as any and any method will do for these kinds of Halloween shenanigans.

If you get  3 aces your answer is yes, two aces showing means maybe, but leaning yes. Only one ace showing is maybe but leaning no. No aces showing is a straight up no answer.

Zombie cat will lay the answer out plain & simple, with a light touch of humor. I will warn you, ZC has a tendency to get a tiny bit snarky with these readings. But it is all intended in good fun.

*****

If I’m doing one of these as private reading for an email client, I’ll add some of the serious stuff too, like individual card meanings, additional thoughts for the non-ace cards plus any purely intuitive thoughts that come through like crystal energy or aromatherapy suggestions…just like the way I summarize all of my readings. 

Zombie Cat readings are all for just for fun. I enjoy these readings in a lot of the same way I enjoyed those non branded mysterious black pool ball toys we all had as kids.

I’ll make you a deal. I’m in a Zombie Cat mood this afternoon. Send me a question either on spotify, on anchor fm voice messages, or at the contact in the show description, I’ll do a Zombie Cat style reading for your question in the next recorded episode of Clairvoyant Confessional.

Short outro. 

Thank you all so much for listening! I hope you’ll stay tuned for the ALMOST daily sip of tarot nano episodes that are generated by the print blog. 

The music you hear is the song dimension by the Pittsburgh band Dinosoul, all copyrights reserved, used here with permission. 

I’ll talk to you the next time on Clairvoyant Confessional. Meanwhile, I’ll see you on the print side. 

Long outro

https://dinosoulmusic.com/

Tips in the virtual coffee mug support the TaoCraft Tarot Blog and Clairvoyant Confessional podcast

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What’s in a name? Could be a free reading for you

Help me to re-name the layout-formerly-known-as-seasons-of-the-year and I’ll do one of those readings for you by email (typed version with photo) at no charge. Detials here: https://taocrafttarot.wordpress.com/2020/11/09/new-deck-new-year-new-giveaway/

It’s just too soon. After the infamous Four Seasons Total Landscaping press conference, I can’t see the word “seasons” without giggling. ‘Year Ahead’ reading works, after all that’s what it IS, but something more creative might be fun for the holidays don’t you think? I got nothin’ so I need your help coming up with a new, fun name.

Comment on the page linked above, and the winning layout name (as chosen by me) will be announced here and on social media December 1, 2020. If multiple people submit the same idea, the first one received gets it. No monetary value, entertainment only, all policies and restrictions apply, void where prohibited, swim at your own risk, no lifeguard on duty, wash your hands and wear a damn mask.