At first I thought the Hermit was a reading I’d done for a person, but actually it was today’s short on YouTube. There is a LOT of overlap between the blog and the channel, but not 100%. Following the blog is the best way to get everything, especially blog exclusive, print only content – but if you can spare a like, sub, or share on the ‘tube I’d sppreciate it!
Tag: major arcana
Cartomancy is back
Tarot is cartomancy.
Cartomancy is just a fancy name for an intuitive reading with cards. Any cards. RWS Tarot, Lenormand Tarot, gaming cards, oracle decks, anything. I suppose you could use baseball trading cards or greeting cards if you want. The key part of it all is intuition. The important part is you, your heart, your mind, your imagination and your spirit. Cards in any style are just a tool to help us access our intuition more easily and communicate it better. As Tarot and oracle cards have become more popular and well known, the term cartomancy has become a more specific term. Cartomancy has come to mean a reading with the modern game playing deck in particular.
Tarot and the gaming deck have a long history together, albeit a fuzzy one. Some sources say the modern gaming deck is a pared down poor man’s Tarot that used only the minor arcana ostensibly to make it affordable and portable, especially for soldiers. Other sources say that the gaming deck is far older, and Tarot is an expanded gaming deck embellished to appeal to the wealthy who could afford the more intricate printing, the extra paper and had the leisure time to use it. Over time, it seems both stories carry equal weight, but personally I don’t think either story really matters.
Either way, the real upgrade in Tarot came with the Waite Smith Tarot deck in 1909. Waite Smith is the first, it seems, to put detailed unique images on the numbered cards of minor arcana.
The well-known Tarot de Marseille, dating to the 17th century, didn’t have intricate artwork on the numbered 1 – 10 cards. Instead they only showed the given number of suit symbols. The two of coins had two coins drawn on it and so on. The minor arcana of the Marseille deck is styled just like the pips of the gaming deck. Or vice versa. The “face” cards of the game deck are very akin to the “court” cards of Tarot’s minor arcana.
A modern game playing deck is, basically, an old-style Tarot deck without the major arcana or the knight cards. Do you need the major arcana to do a good reading? Not really. People do major arcana only readings all of the time. In the early days of computers and the webbernet, computerized Tarot programs would often give major-only versions for free or low cost with full price full decks – kind of like in-app purchases.
Major arcana only, minor arcana only, classic Tarot or dollar store playing cards, all cards serve the same purpose. They are just the springboard and projection screen for our innate intuition.
So why do do game-deck cartomancy at all?
Kindness, gentleness, and a light touch.
As silly as it may seem to those of us used to Tarot, the occult, and pagan aesthetic, some people are genuinely nervous about Tarot cards. Usually it stems from some old, long held religious indoctrination. Those are not easy things to overcome. Cartomancy is a kinder gentler way to explore intuition and spiritual exploration and personal growth for those who are nervous about Tarot for whatever reason.
Cartomancy is like intuition training wheels. Gaming decks have been used as a beginner deck, just like the ‘student’ line in musical instrument. Once you’ve learned your art, you can upgrade.
Personally, I think it is the exact opposite. Teaching someone to do readings with playing cards is kind of like teaching someone to swim by throwing them in the deep end of the pool. Having primaily only pips to work from, you have no choice but to rely on pure intuition.
Luckily the deep end is a good way to train in Tarot and intuition even if it isn’t so much for swimming. It’s a little like swinging a weighted bat. To mix sports metaphors, throwing a student in the deep end of the card-reading pool makes reading image laden Tarot cards seem like a breeze by comparison.
If you take Tarot lessons with me, we will learn cartomancy first. Bring your snorkle.
And yes, that is a big tease for the Autumnal Equinox roll-out announcements.
Meanwhile….
I’m bringing cartomancy readings back. If you would like a taste (or if you know someone who is interested in exploring card readings but is worried about Tarot’s oogie boogie reputation) they are available for purchase HERE . Get a three card cartomancy pathway for $10 (instead of $15 for the Tarot three card pathway reading)
An no, it isn’t a cutesy pants promotion. That’s the permanent price.
YouChoose Interactive Tarot: Work Your Magic
New Clairvoyant Confessional is up. Buying your friendly neighboorhood clairvoyant a mug of coffee supports the blog, the podcast and everything else brewing around here.
Zoom/phone tarot by appointment is OPEN! Just PURCHASE -> SCHEDUE -> ENJOY
NO APPOINTMENT NEEDED for email distance Tarot readings. Order 24/7 on the home page.
Stay tuned….you know, follow / subscribe … to the blog to be the first to know when in-person readings return.
YouChoose Interactive Tarot: Big Simplification
Pick a card, any card. Well, any of three. Take your time or choose quickly. It’s your choice – like everything. If you want some extra time to ponder, pause the video then restart to see the reveal.
The weird thing is that I am finally, finally getting a sense of how to dial into these YouTube videos. The intuitive signal is on a completely different wavelength than working with an individual or writing for the blog. Actually, download speed would be a better analogy for how it feels to intuition. If doing a YouTube video is OG dial up, speaking in person is broadband. Typing on a keyboard is cat 5 hardwired cable. The message is the exactly the same. The core, underlying process is the same. It is a subtle difference from my side of the table, but on your side of the table the only difference is how artfully I verbalize your spirit message. Not that you need to know that – but I wanted to give you fair warning. I want to try something and YOUR feedback would be very, very helpful.
I’m thinking that for “YouChoose” posts, I’ll post the video and let it stand on its own. That way, you can choose your card with no potential spoilers on the page below. If anything, I’ll put a general energy, zeitgeist kind of read, like the speckled stones image that returned this week. That image may hint at a longer wave of energy akin in length to the hurricane image from last year (although certainly much different in meaning and tone.)
Once caveat in doing things that way: locality. The general cultural energy impression might be very local. It most likely will be limited to the US, the eastern time zone or possibly my million or so close neighbors here in Allegheny County. I won’t know about that part until we work with this format for a while.
I would like to know what YOU think!
Do you like the YouChoose format at all in any iteration?
Do you like the cards in print under the video or the video alone?
Is there anything else that you want to see in the blog? Tell what content you want to see, and I’ll create it. Easy as that.
Q&A: Change or Persist?
yes or no career tarot reading with behind the scenes explanation
Yes or no questions seem predictive: Will X happen, yes or no?
Yes/no readings are a fun to play with. I could sit here, play Zombie Cat* and make predictions all day just as long as everyone realizes that it is all really coin-toss random-ass probabilities and not really a serious “prediction.”
Yes/no Tarot readings can be much more than a magic black ball entertainment prediction. They can give legit, genuinely helpful, short term guidance. It is all a matter of focus and application.
Tarot’s greatest value is overarching, big-picture, life path guidance. It is all about spiritual enrichment, spiritual expression, personal cultivation….you know – generally trying to be a better person and live a good life. Tarot readings, especially the bigger 3, 5 and 7 card layouts, are all about understanding the current situation, making better choices and moving ahead in the best way possible. Big readings are like GPS directions to where you ultimately want to go.
Instead of long term GPS, a yes/no reading is like a single sonar ping of any given moment. It gives a very helpful, but short term, close range nudge in the right direction when you are choosing between two seemingly equal things or want a quick follow up to a previous big reading. Yes/no readings help you deal with right here and right now, but not much else.
Today’s question is a little bit of both. It is one of those all-else-equal things, and also follows up a longer reading from a few weeks ago. It is about a fine tuning a current solo project, nothing to do with long term plans or that would affect other people. Considering all of that, a yes/no reading is ideal for this question.
Q: Should I switch _____ back to _____ or should I continue as it is?
Ok, to start with, a yes-or-no layout can’t answer a this-or-that question. I don’t mean for that to sound harsh. I get it. It is hard to distill things down to a yes-or-no question when you have all sorts of options and resources and different possibilities all swirling around in your head. If you could focus things down to a clear yes or no question, chances are you wouldn’t need a Tarot reading to help make up your mind.
In the early days of my professional practice, I would ask the questioner/sitter to rephrase the question, thinking that it was important for them to put the question into yes/no format in order to properly connect to their spirit message. Learning from experience, I don’t do it that way anymore. They’ve got enough on their mind. That’s why they are here. I convert the question into yes/no format and then proceed with their consent.
Today’s question has two main components; changing and continuing, which begs the question of which part do you ask yes or no about?
After all these years of experience, I’m totally comfortable with just following intuition, and focusing on the component part that seems to carry the greatest energy signature….in other words, which part seems to step forward to carry the weight of the question. If you are reading for yourself I suggest doing the same. If you don’t feel comfortable with shoot from the hip pure intuition, there are lots of different randomizing strategies you could use to help you pick between “Should I change yes or no?” and “Should I persist, yes or no?”
In a two option question like this one, it really doesn’t matter which you choose. A no on one automatically gives you a yes on the other and vice versa. If it is a multiple componant question, things get a lot more complicated. You could do a series of yes/no readings on each of the components, but that gets muddy, convoluted, contradictory and very confusing super fast.
Don’t.
Trust me, just don’t. Write down the components and pick them out of a hat. Triage, and take the most time critical piece first. Do eenie meenie miny moe….anything. Just don’t do strings of of yes/no readings in a row. If the question is too complex, either use a larger, more nuanced layout OR simplify the question and focus on one key part.
The process of dealing into 3 stacks until you either get an to an ace or to 13 cards (whichever comes first) is an old, common knowledge, nobody knows where it came Tarot reading. I like to take it one step further and interpret the final three cards together as if they were a pathway reading in order to get more guidance from the whole process than just a yes or no answer alone.
If that seems like a big, complicated, pain in the ass process to get a good result from a simple yes-or-no question…it is. If you don’t want to yes/no read for yourself, please, order a yes/no reading from me. It’s affordable and I could sort the whole thing out in half the time it took me to explain it all just now.
New Q: Should I change?
A: Maybe but lean yes. Probably yes, actually.
The Fool card speaks to the fresh start and a new infusion of energy and enthusiasm that the new direction would bring to the project. Being a major arcana card, the Fool lends an extra push in the “yes” direction.
The Ace of Swords speaks to the creative and intellectual energy a change could bring. There is a very upward, uplifting quality to the energy.
Of course, seeing the Ace of Pentacles is always a good sigh in any kind of work or career related reading, even a quick yes/no like this one.
All things considered, this hints that making the change in the project is a good idea. Intuitively I feel very positive about it. My attention is drawn to the gold color on the Pentacles card. It isn’t so much about the precious metal as it is the color psychology and the resonance with the solar plexus chakra which in turn has to do with confidence and optimism and personal power. Wear gold or gold tone jewelry if you can. Pyrite or Tiger Eye are also good crystal energies here. It feels temporary…not a long term alliance between you and the tiger eye, however. Again the gold tone feels like a better fit. Grounding, centering woody scents seem important, like sandalwood in particular comes to mind. Pretty standard kinds of recommendations. After a time, I get the sense the tiger eye energy will drift back to the light blue and blue lace agate for communication that we talked about before, but for now the sun / yang energy and warmth of the brown and gold feels more forward.
Thanks again for your permission to do your reading as an example. I’m pulling for you and hope this works out really well, especially for a financial and name recognition boost.
Best Wishes – Ronda
*AZCA is still a thing . You can ask Zombie Cat Anything for free. Use the contact form HERE to ask anything, even for a prediction. Your answer will come in a redacted-for-privacy blog post (like this one, but without the video.) All Zombie Cat answers are for entertainment only, 100% guaranteed to contain words, and have a 50% chance of being dead wrong.
YouChoose Interactive Tarot: Heads Up Display
Sorry for the slight delay getting this up today. Did a little impromptu website setup for the hubster’s new site PGH Tai Chi.
There are reasons why my Tarot work is named what it is. Taoist philosophy has been a big part of who I am and how I live since I first learned of it in the late 1980s. That in turn lead me to Tai Chi and Wushu, which is where we met and the rest, as they say is history. We taught martial arts together and even owned a martial arts school for a time. Although a medical concern has prompted my retirement from teaching and competition, it is a deep pleasure to return to practice and to see my husbands progress in his martial arts teaching career. I am grateful for all that I’ve received from Chinese culture and how it has enriched my life. I stand in gratitude and solidarity with the AAPI community. Between my southern evangelical upbringing and what I’ve learned from exoteric Taoism, I’ll choose the Way of Virtue every time. Xie Xie.
That being said, back to this week’s cards.
Take a look at the cards in the video. Pause the video if you would like a moment to think. Restart when you are ready to see the card you choose. Or just pick quick and roll with it. Either way, I send all good wishes for your week.
All three cards together: Heads up, pay attention, look for change and be ready to act. I don’t know why, but the word “latchkey” comes through. If that makes any sense to anyone, I’d like to hear what that is about.
Left: The Chariot. This is the jet pilot card. This week life may need a heads-up display. The advice is to pay attention. If you aren’t into jet piloting, maybe a pirate will do…keep a weather eye on the horizon, changes may be coming. Pay attention to subtle signals or synchronicities that can give you valuable information for the path ahead.
Center: Death. Remember the Simpsons episode? You gotta watch out for that happy squirrel card before you have to worry about the death card being a literal thing. It is all about change. Nevermind the horizon, change feels like it is on the doorstep, and the Grim Reaper probably wants some chocolate hobnobs in a nod to Dave Turners most excellent How To Be Dead book series. Read it. You’ll need it this week from the way this card feels. Need it meaning a good laugh. Death means change. My mind is strongly drawn to the humor of the books. Stop, drop and roll with it. A spoonful of humor helps the changing go down in much more palatable way. Not all change is bad. Keep your head – and your sense of humor.
Right: Knight of Swords. Knights are action. Swords denote action – thoughtful, incisive, precise, daring action. In martial arts there is a saying that you fight like you train. If you pay attention, if you don’t fear change, if you put your heart and mind into what you do (especially if it is something you love to do) then when you are thrown into a situation where action is needed quickly, your muscles and reflexes are well trained to act. Practice, prepare, think so that if the unexpected happens you can act quickly, the right thing to do will flow from you.
All in all, heads up – Pay attention to details, prepare for change, prepare for action.
My Tarot Valentine: Each Breath
Take a breath.
No, really, take a deep breath. You stopped for a moment to read this (thank you for that) so use it to stare at the screen, look busy but take a deep relaxing breath.
Thanks. I did that too.
The Judgement card is my nemesis. It seems like everyone has a card that resonates with them, that seems to signify where they are in life. Some cards are just comfortable, familiar or welcome. Sometimes a card resonates with an idea or an old battle or some constant struggle…a nemesis.
I won’t introduce you to that particular skeleton in the closet. We’ll get back to that when I get around to writing “Arcana in Balance.”
Still, it is a challenge to connect this card to Valentine’s Day without being overly harsh. So I’ll connect it to a thread of yesterday’s card instead.
Yesterday, the six of cups reminded us of innocence, and the in-the-moment sweetness of simplicity. To taste that sweetness we adults must first release judgements, expectations and pre-conceived notions of what a moment should be. Valentine’s Day this year isn’t business as usual. Let it be the moment it is. Let go of judgement to find your way to the sweetest present moment that you can.
My Tarot Valentine 2021: It’s been a devil of a year
That’s fitting.
If there is a time in history for the Devil card to be the first Tarot Valentine’s card of the season, I suppose this would be it. The separation imposed by the Pandemic has been a devil of thing for a lot of people, especially those with very social or extroverted personalities. This year you can go out with your love interest and risk their death. At least it seems so here in the U.S. where so many people have done so many things so wrong.
If there is advice in this card in this context, it would be the same as every other year and Valentine’s season…don’t let loneliness drive you into making bad decisions. Never go into a relationship that you know isn’t right or safe just for the sake of being in a relationship with someone. Lonely hurts, but alone isn’t lethal.
In a sense the advice is also to be a Devil. Not to other people, but to preconceived ideas. Be a pink hearts and lacey romance rebel. It is OK to be alone. It is OK to not be in the mood for kissy kissy romance after the past year. It is OK to be an dark expresso latte in a candy heart world. Harm none, and do what thou will. Find love in what is, not what is wished for.
What the actual….
Whelp. I guess that tornadoes fading image hasn’t started to fade yet. So what say you my sensitives? What is your read on the funky mojo energy here in the U.S. after yesterday’s armed insurrection at the capital and continuing political frakus? Both logic and intuition say this is it – buckle up for the end game. THEN we can crawl out of the wreakage, survey the damage and begin the beginning of the very early phases of clean up.
I can’t think of a card that captures any meaning or guidance for anything like this, except maybe…
Top image via bitmoji free app, Devil card image from the public domain
Devil in the Delights
It’s not the most cheerful card.
Intellectually, I know better. Still, when I draw cards for the blog this time of year, it’s generally from a place of celebration. I love this time of year. October through December is the cinnamon flavored everything BEST.
The old trope about needing the dark to see the light blah blah balance, not our judgement to make, blah. The energy here is nowhere near that nuanced.
Shit happens and it sucks. Life doesn’t stop for the holidays. Reality can slap us in the face any time, but this year seems particularly adept at it *gestures to American politics* Yes, by all means don your matching pajamas, and raise an eggnog to your chosen holiday.
If you are not having such a good time, if you are broke, broken, or brokenhearted, know that we see you. We are with you. Tarot readers stare down the barrel of cards like the Devil, Death, the Ten of Swords, the Three of Swords and so on and so on – at all times of the year. Tarot gets in all of our faces sometimes and reminds us that life gives downs to go with the ups and, thankfully, vice versa. The calendar never dictates whether life is headed up, down, or in a level groove / rut.
You, your heart and mind dictate it.
It’s OK to be in pain when life hurts. It’s OK to be happy when it is all good. It’s OK when either one – or both – of those things happen at the holidays.
Sage Sips / TaoCraft Tarot 
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