Now we will examine the most common use of the tarot, reading one’s
fate. Or as it’s more commonly known, fortune-telling.

Before one begins a tarot reading, one’s mind must be calm. Try to
unify your consciousness while relaxing it at the same time. You must
also keep in mind the goal of your reading, so as to avoid wishful
thinking clouding the result. Once you’re relaxed, begin.

For now, let’s keep to the simple one-card spread, where you draw and
interpret a single card. It will suffice for learning the basic methods of
the tarot.

Now, a quick word on the deck… For best results, you’ll want to use all
78 cards… But for now, we’ll limit ourselves to the 22 Major Arcana.

The procedure for telling fortunes via the tarot goes like so: shuffle,
cut, spread, and read. That means mixing them all up, putting them in
a pile, lining up the drawn cards, and examining them.

When I say “spread”, I refer to how they will be presented. It’s a
concept I’ll come back to several times. Place the cards face-down on
the table to hide the pictures… Then the client of the reading will
shuffle, or mix, the cards. If you’re reading your own fortune, then you
perform this step yourself.

The most common method is to spread them on the table, mixing
them in a circular motion with your left hand. The left hand is the
agent of the subconscious mind, you see. Though if you’re clumsy, or
lost a hand, or what-have-you, you can use either or both hands. It all
depends.

When the client is satisfied, make a single pile, which completes the
shuffling phase. …And by “pile”, I mean a neat, orderly stack.

Now, on to cutting the deck. Split the stack you’ve made into three
piles, each one roughly the same height. Normally the client also
performs the cut, but the fortune-teller is free to perform this step as
well.

Just let the spirit move you. It may be your own feelings, and it may be
occult inspiration. Reorganize the three piles in the order of your
choice, and stack them into one pile again.

Once this is complete, the reader should take the pile. Be very careful
on this step. You must preserve the direction that the cards originally
faced. If the client is someone else, turn the pile so the cards face the
same direction that they were facing.

And now, it’s finally time to draw a card. This is the spread phase.
We’re doing a one-card spread, so turn over the top card, and place it
on the field to the side. In some methods, you specify which card from
the top… but that’s beyond the point. The card on the field provides the
answer to the client’s question.

Now at last, the reading phase. First, we must understand the card’s
meaning. What the card represents depends on if it’s reversed or not…
You do remember that much, yes? There are a few exceptions, but in
general, a reversed card is negative, and has a different meaning.

Once you understand the drawn card’s meaning, apply it to your
question… Let inspiration rise to the surface of your mind, and… Well…
Form a story around it!

Simply telling the client the card’s meaning isn’t considered a true
reading. Using the clue derived from the card, the reader must use his
inspiration to look into the client’s future. It’s important to converse
with the client as well, to assist with your inspiration. Tarot is about
reading both the cards and reading people…

One more thing. Always seal your inspiration after the fortune has
been told. Say farewell to the cards, for instance, or imagine cocooning
yourself into a sleeping bag. If you don’t seal your inspiration, you may
draw unwanted attention...

We’ve covered the basics, so now I’ll teach you how to use all 78 Major
and Minor Arcana… As well as the basic spread.

To review, the tarot is made of 22 Major Arcana and 56 Minor Arcana.
For a total of 78 cards. Is that clear?

All of these cards have their own meanings. Many are daunted by the
full deck, because there are so many cards… But take heart!

It is difficult to learn all the meanings, but having them all actually
makes your reading easier. The more fine detail one has, the easier it
is to create a story…

I already explained about the Major Arcana, so let me give you an
outline of the Minor Arcana.

The Minor Arcana are divided into four classes, called suits. Do you
recall when I told you that this is what common playing cards were
modelled after?

Wands, Cups, Swords and Coins correspond to Clubs, Hearts, Spades,
and Diamonds. Each suit has 10 numbered cards, ranging from Ace to
10… As well as four face cards, or King, Queen, Knight, and Page,
unlike the three face cards in common decks. The Page is sometimes
called Prince, though he’s essentially a knight in training.

The four face cards are called court cards. This term will come up
again, so remember it well. There are 14 types in total, between the
pip cards or number cards, and the face or court cards. These 14 types
have four each, for a total of 56 cards in the Minor Arcana.

And now you know the makeup of the Minor Arcana. Now, as to how to
use them in a reading… It’s actually the same way as the Major
Arcana.

Keep in mind the meaning of each card and the direction it faces, and
use your inspiration to create a story. In the Minor Arcana, each suit,
number, and court type has its own meaning. The best way to
memorize these may be to imagine them in a 4 by 14 grid.

Each of the four suits’ meaning, in brief…

Wands for planning and growth;
Cups for love and sentiment;
Swords for trials;
Coins for wealth.
As for the basic meaning of each of the number cards…
Ace is the beginning;
2 is balance;
3 is growth;
4 is stability;
5 is change;
6 is balance;
7 is a new start;
8 is success;
9 is attainment;
10 marks a terminus, or the end.

Court cards represent people and their strengths. It could be the client,
or other people involved.

The Page represents children, and the offering of information.
The Knight is youth, and overflowing energy.
The Queen represents adult females.
The King represents mature males.

It’s said that to grasp the meaning of the cards, it’s important to
communicate with them…

Now then, let’s move on to the method of using all the Arcana to tell
fortunes. The basic procedure is the same… You’ll just be using more
cards. Even for the full deck of 78, you must first shuffle, then cut,
spread, and read.

The type of spread you use affects the procedure more than the
number of cards in use. But don’t get me wrong… The spread I’ll be
covering is done with this procedure, too.

Now for a change in subject… I’ll explain the types of spreads. First we
used the one-card spread, so now we’ll examine the other typical
spreads.

First, remember that the spread is chosen according to the nature of
the question. Do you want to answer to a single question? Or do you
want an overall picture of the general future…? Use the spread that
best fits the request you have in mind.

For example… If you want to tell the client’s past, present and future…
Why not use a three-card spread, where you simply lay out three
cards? Adding a card produces the four-card spread, identifying the
past, present, nature of the problem, and future.

If you use the seven-card hexagram spread, with a single card placed
in the center of a hexagon… You can read both the nature of the
problem and a countermeasure against it.

There is also a spread called Question-And-Answer, involving two
choices. This reading is done by setting two countermeasures against
the question.

Finally, the most well-known spread is the classic Celtic Cross. It’s
suited to telling fortunes with only the Major Arcana, and used often by
both beginners and experts. Arrange two cards crossing each other in
the center, then one more on all four sides of the cross… Then, place a
pillar of four cards, known as the “Spear of Destiny”, next to it to the
right. The cross of six cards represents the overall situation, with the
four to the right making it concrete. Again, this forms the 10-card
spread known as the Celtic Cross.

There are other spreads, like the Horseshoe, Witch’s Diamond, or the
Seven Candles of Life… There are far too many for me to teach you, so
look into it yourself if you’re interested.

Now, we’ll talk about a slightly advanced way of reading the tarot. I
want to explain how to lower many factors’ probability, while being
able to foresee a more solid future.

Basically, it’s a way to combine the power of tarot with other
precognitive methods. The result is kind of a compound method of
telling fortunes. The most well-known fusion with tarot is astrology.
Before we advance any further, I will explain to you the use of a
“significator.”
Before shuffling, you choose one card that best fits the client’s image,
and place it on the field. This is the significator. It’s very effective in
heightening the client’s inspiration.

Do you remember the court, or face cards? The significator is selected
from the Minor Arcana face cards. For a high schooler, the Page card
would be best. An adult man would select Knight or King. An adult
woman would select Queen.

More experienced readers may use one of the Major Arcana, but the
court cards are suitable most of the time.

Now, back to the ways of fusing the tarot with other fortune-telling
methods…

For example, there’s the almost self-explanatory Horoscope Spread.
After shuffling and cutting the full deck of 78… Spread them in a circle
consisting of 12 cards, then place one more in the center.

The 12 in the outer circle correspond directly to the 12 signs of the
zodiac, also known as Houses. Each House shows an answer to a
different problem, such as family and work marriage, friendship, and
money. The card in the center represents your overall fortune.

This spread has a variety of uses, since you can gain an overall
understanding of life.

An even more advanced application would be to use it in conjunction
with dowsing. That means to use a pendulum to find what you’re
looking for.

Make a number of piles, with the cards face-down of course, and
perform the dowsing ritual on them. If the client’s significator is found
in the selected pile, you continue with the reading. If not, try again until
you do. This is to confirm that your inspiration has been heightened.

Some elementary understanding of the Qabbalah may be in order first.
The spread based on the shape of the Qabbalistic tree of life is another
well-known method. It’s spread where you distribute the cards
according to the 10 trees of life, or the Sephiroth.

However, to actually put this method into practice, one needs a deep
understanding of the Qabbalah. Not only do the positions of the cards
have meaning, but the lines or paths connecting them as well.

For example, Chokmah, Chesed, and Netzach on the right represent
the conscious… While Binah, Gevurah, and Hod on the left represent
the unconscious. The balance in between them is represented by the
paths of Keter, Tiphareth, Yesod, and Malkuth.

Proximity to Keter at the top reveals the spiritual side, with Malkuth on
the bottom showing the bodily side.

I’m afraid it’s much too esoteric to fully explain.

Here we conclude our lesson. Thank you for paying attention.