I’m still learning how to read tarot. I’ve developed my own personal shortcuts and worked with different decks in different ways; I have a pretty solid understanding of the suits and most of the numerology. One of the things I’d like to improve upon is reading the spread as a whole based on the actual look of the cards. I will keep some notes here.
4 of Cups, 9 of Wands, Page of Swords
I read this spread as meloncholy, perseverence, enthusiasm upon first glance. The first and last card are almost the opposite of each other. Someone absorbed by their own apathy and unwilling to change versus someone filled with enthusiasm about the potential of life. Between the two ideas of a person is a card of persistance. So perhaps the message is that the difference between apathy and happiness is fighting for oneself (hello, anxiety monster), standing up for what you believe in, or just not giving in to apathy/complacency.
But look at the cards: there’s a visual of a person sitting and looking down, then meekly standing and looking around somewhat defensively, then standing confidently and looking outward – moreso at distant things perhaps, rather than nearby obstacles. With the 4 of Cups the person isn’t holding anything. They are being offered something and refusing it. The 9 of Wands shows a person gripping a wand tightly – it’s a defensive, protective posture. The Page of Swords isn’t simply holding his sword – he’s wielding it. Instead of hanging on for dear life, he is using this tool with confidence.
So it’s a clear evolution no matter which way you look at it, but I really enjoyed the visual depiction here.
10 of Swords, 10 of Wands, 7 of Swords
Defeat or collapse, overburdened, and deception. But the first thing I notice is piles of long things. Just bunches of swords and wands. In the first two cards, you can’t see the person’s face. In the last two cards, the person is carrying a heavy load.
It seems fairly obvious that this spread as a whole indicates a low point of struggle and failure with a touch of trickery. But an interesting alternative read might consider it a narrative of recovery from collapse through some clever tactics. Perhaps the collapse was a result of betrayal (stabbed in the back), where the betrayed used everything they had left in them to pull out and gather the swords, then use them in a revenge scheme.
Maybe that’s a little wild. But the imagery can’t be ignored!
Knight of Pentacles, 8 of Pentacles, King of Pentacles
Efficiency, improvement, abundance. What I like about this spread is the idea that the hard-working knight wasn’t satisfied with his pentacle, so he spent a lot of time working on it until it was good enough for a king.
Hard work and efficient, slow and steady craftsmanship lead to abundance and prosperity.
Ace of Wands, 6 of Wands, 7 of Wands
Look at all those wands! Inspiration, victory, standing your ground. There’s a lot of fire in this spread. Visually, I find it interesting how the six looks like it’s sort of moving into the seven – as if a helpful, victorious knight is on his way to assist the fighter on his last stand. From the context of my question in this reading (looking for ideas), I interpret something like: you can find inspiration through a recent victory, a challenge you fought hard against.
However, it’s interesting that the victory card comes before the stand your ground card. My visual interpretation leads me to believe that the inspiration could also come from assisting someone in need, or a victory associated with such.
When asked to elaborate, the deck gave me…
Improvement, unknown, chaos. Interesting because my original question had to do with the upcoming full moon.
I really like the 8 of Pentacles in general because I enjoy improving all different kinds of craftsmanship in my own life. So a general read here to me is something like: seek ways to improve, don’t be deceived, and do not fear change -or- don’t let the chaos of uncertainty get in the way of improvement.
Or, to get more specific to my feelings as of late (lots of desire and energy without specific direction on what to do with it): you’re improving. It’s new and unknown. Don’t allow your fears of uncertainty to stop you. Instead, let your weaknesses fall. Embrace change in order to understand it.
I asked for one more. It gave me the Four of Cups. Fair enough; that certainly reflects my stagnant feelings as of late. I should open my outlook and take any chances I’m offered.
The Pink Moon tomorrow has me feeling crazy. Guess I’ll spend some time determining where to direct this energy.
Ace Of Wands, The Magician, Ace Of Swords
A lot of holding pointy objects up in the air. I typically associate aces with beginnings and breakthroughs. Wands for fire and passion, swords for air and intellect. Inspiration, capability, breakthrough. This spread feels very positive and I enjoy the parallelism.
Funny that the last time I added to this post was the day before a full moon. Tomorrow is the Hunter’s Moon.