The Simple Cross Tarot Spread

For five-card spreads, the standard approach to drawing the cards should be implemented after shuffling. As for the four-card spread, if used, the signifier card should first be put on the stack, then Card 1 should be placed on top of it.

The spread of the Simple Cross is a flexible and easy-to-read spread that will be important for practitioners, especially novices. Start by putting Card 1 over the card with the signifier. Card 1 reflects the current situation, or the "heart of the matter." Card 2 reflects the origins or foundations that might contain memories or occurrences of the past. Card 3 illustrates effects from the past on the new situation. The speculative card, reflecting ambitions, expectations, or higher topics that need to be considered, is Card 4. The most possible potential result is depicted by Card 5.

Combination Tarot Spreads

 It is possible to synthesize two or more spreads from this section into combination spreads. The four-card spread and the three-card spread will, for instance, be mixed. Beginning such a reading with the First Operation would be the best practice. An summary reading of the Seeker's inquiry (general or specific) may be analyzed via the four-card spread after the First Operation. Then return to the outcome of the First Operation and conduct a three-card spread to classify the current, previous, and prospective future forces that in the particular problem divined from the First Operation would be most important to the Seeker.

Four-Card Tarot Spread

 The four-card spread is based on the three-card spread, with an extra card helping to round out the Card 1. signs. Between Cards 1 and 2, a cross is created, which helps to define the crux of the matter at hand.

 For the four-card spread, the conventional approach to drawing the cards should be followed after shuffling. Both general and individual questions can be answered by four-card spreads. If the practitioner wishes to use the Seeker's signifier cards, first put the signifier card on the table and then place Card 1 directly on top of it.

On top of the signifier, Card 1 goes. Card 1 indicates the present situation, or the "heart of the matter." Card 2 is the difficulty or obstacle to be met, or as a result of Card 1, it can mean what is directly ahead. Card 3 illustrates effects from the past on the new situation. The most probable potential result, or the "answer" card, is card 4.

Alternative Three-Card Tarot Spread

The First Operation will use an alternate three-card spread to not only define the subtopic that the Seeker wants to concentrate on within an investigation, but will also use the First Operation to draw the first card.

The cards accompanying the signifier are taken as a pile and put at the bottom of the pile in the hand when the signifier is found via the First Operation. Then the topmost card should be the signifier card.

The card that comes behind the signifier card directly following the signifier is drawn out as Card 1. The thesis of the answer to the Seeker's question is represented as that card. Set the signifier and Card 1 down, and face-down should be put on the remaining deck.

Fan out the cards and have the Seeker pick two more cards for you. Card 2 becomes the first card removed from the fan; Card 3 becomes the second card drawn. On the right side of Card 1, they are put such that there is now a row of cards: the signifier, and Cards 1, 2, and 3. Although the thesis was Card 1, Cards 2 and 3 are the argument, the most important success indicators, or the energies surrounding the condition of the Seeker that will most likely influence the future.

Expanding on the Three-Card Spread

The simple three-card layout is well adapted for extending into several card spreads that for the first three cards would have greater information. A seeker may ask follow-up questions on those three cards after drawing the three cards and interpreting the spread, or inquire about information. Subsequent cards are drawn and put below and above the card on which the current additional card is being created. For example, for the "past" place card, a seeker has a follow-up query about the reading given.

If the practitioner wants to answer the follow-up question, he or she will draw and put an additional card below the "past" location card and interpret it accordingly. For either of the three cards, current, former, and possible future respectively, the practice can be carried out.

Three-Card Tarot Spread

In telling the Seeker about the current situation, historical effects on the present, and the most possible potential scenario, three-card spreads are succinct. It is a brief overview of the recent past, the near future, and the present. Other definitions that can be offered to a three-card spread are also available, which will be discussed in this section.

My solution to three-card spreads is to draw the card denoting the current first. So, in each spread, my Card 1 is always the current. Card 1 is the first drawn card in the three-card spread. Card 2 is put to the left of Card 1, reflecting the present matter's prior factors. Card 3, reflecting the potential result, is put to the right of Card 1.

Notice that it is presumed that when the signifier card is not seen in a spread illustration, the practitioner first puts the signifier card down, and then Card 1 over the signifier, as follows:

Reading the three cards as one of the three actions of a play is another common method. Card 2 represents Act I of the condition of the seeker; Card 1 represents Act II; Card 3 represents Act III. Second, the general geography of the spread should be analyzed by the practitioner. In this part, how this can be achieved will be discussed later. The practitioner should advise the Seeker, "This is a story about..." and explain what the cards are about in the overall general comments.

Then the practitioner should research and notice the tale told in of distinct card to him or herself. Bridge them together the same way you would bridge a play's scenes.

In order to signify the mind, body, and soul, left to right, the three cards may also be used. The intellectual activity inside the Seeker, his or her thoughts and emotions, is expressed by Card 2. Card 1 illustrates acts and actions, or the real universe. Card 3 reflects the divine advice of the cards for the condition of the seeker.

The three-card spread can be used by starter tarot practitioners before it becomes second nature. The beginner practitioner will move on to more difficult spreads to study until the three-card spread is perfected.

Two-Card Tarot Spread

Two-card spreads answer individual questions as well. For two-card spreads, there are two proposed strategies. Next, use the Fan Technique discussed in the previous segment to shuffle. Have the Seeker pick Card 1 and position it, per the form being used, on the table as seen below. Then, pick Card 2 for the Seeker.

Think of the two-card spread system A as a simple extension. What equals Card 1 plus Card 2? The reaction to the query is that number.

Card 1 reveals the heart of the matter for the Method B two-card spread, the response to the Seeker's question. Card 2 will either suggest the challenges blocking Card 1, alert the Seeker of potential problems or situations that could blur the objectives of the Seeker, or it may display what the Seeker can expect ahead of time, a forecast of what is to come after the events of Card 1. The two cards, then, are a series of cause and effect. The indication that Card 2 carries on in a reading depends on the claimant, the purpose of the investigation, and the circumstance.

Consider the left edge as it faces you to be the bottom edge of the card and the right edge as it faces you to be the top edge, to decide whether Card 2 is upright or reverse.

In the left example, as illustrated above, Card 2 is upright and the bottom edge of the deck is the left edge as it faces you. The Seeker will soon begin a new quest, considering the recent defeats or failure shown by the Three of Blades, maybe a new endeavor that will reclaim a sense of intent in the life of the Seeker. For now, The Seeker will launch herself into her job and the results will be fruitful.

Card 2 is inverted in the proper example. In addition to the recent loses or failure, there will be more difficulties to face and failures in the current endeavor of the Seeker, in comparison to the previous reading. Continued complications may arise that tend to obstruct or discourage the Seeker from going beyond the wound of the Three of Swords. Somehow, the agony of the Three of Swords and her failure to progress in the new endeavor are intertwined, and before she can excel, the conflict needs to be overcome.

In fact, two-card readings enable you to apply simple dignities to synthesize the two cards into one coherent message to the Seeker.

One-Card Draw Tarot Spread

 For yes or no inquiries, the one-card draw is suited. Many clinicians take the method of viewing a card drawn upright as a response to "yes" and a card drawn in reverse to be a "no,"1, but be careful not to focus entirely on that oversimplified approach. The meaning relies on what question was posed and how the question was expressed, as well as what card was drawn, of course. A Three of Swords drawn upright may not be as positive or positive as a reverse-drawn Four of Wands. Thus, though one governing theory is the upright-yes/reversed-no rule of thumb, it is just one of many.

It is important to take a more systematic view. The one-card distribution is also useful for recognizing the prevailing force or powers in a situation. The goal of one-card readings is to hit at the center of the matter. With a one-card reading, a particular question may be asked. The drawn card often calls attention to unique problems, energies, or events that are important and to which the seeker should pay attention, regardless of what the response is.

When reflecting on the problem at hand, the Seeker can first shuffle the deck. The deck should be handed to the professional until the seeker is satisfied. Then the practitioner fans the cards out on a table and makes the Seeker point at his or her card of choice. Then the practitioner flips the card pointed to by the Seeker over and puts it on the table.

Another solution to a Seeker's one-card reading utilizes a signifier card. An summary of selecting signifier cards is given in Chapter 10. Once the signifier card is picked, shuffle the deck while dwelling on the query of the Seeker with the signifier. Then turn the face of the deck towards you and look for the sign.

The answer to the question is expressed by the card directly behind the signifier card. In truth, the cards "behind" the signifier are the "going forward" cards or what is to come to the Seeker. Cards from the past are the cards "in front" or accompanying the signifier. Thus, with the question at hand, the card directly "behind" the signifier is the card you perceive.