A few questions! Knowing the question VS not knowing, and more!

I very curious about this topic. I have done some research and I did not get to a solution. I took about 30 minutes looking around the forums for this and did not find anything. The search engine did not help either.

I have been giving readings to clients for quite some times. When I learned Tarot at first, I was told that there is no need to ask the seeker what question he or she is looking for.

Usually, the reading would reply directly to what the client asked, and sometimes, even if it did not reply to the seeker's question, it provided a picture that made sense for the seeker. But I've found out that on some readings (not many though) the Tarot did not have much to say for that seeker or the question has not been formulated properly. I always thought that there was nothing I could do about, since I am not supposed to know the question.

I've been doing some research, because I seek growth and improvement. After all, we are all students. For me, the LWB is hard sometimes to understand and a pain to memorize, so I just jumped into the readings following my intuition and interpreting the cards the way they talked to me instead of trying to learn the LWB guidance (without knowing the seeker's question) I've found this forum and I found on many sites that I am supposed to ask the seeker what he or she looking. I read that it is even good to help the seeker formulate the question in order to get a more complete reading.

What are your thoughts about this? I always thought, that one "fun" thing is being able to reply to the seeker's question without knowing it, like it would be something "more psychic"

Also, I read that the seeker is supposed to cut (and some even say shuffle) the deck, but I really do not feel comfortable having other people tapping or touching my decks. I feel it disturb the Inner Consciousness of my decks.

Thanks for the replies guys!

I'll answer the last comment first. I like people to touch my cards, either shuffling or just cutting cards or choosing cards from a fan. After all, I'm reading for them so why shouldn't their energy be infused into the cards? It seems to me that letting them choose their own cards makes better sense than not. After all, wouldn't their hands be guided to the right cards better than mine? But it's whatever works for each person and the only "right" way is the way it works best for you. Even if they don't touch the cards, as in phone or email readings, the Universe works it out.

I like the sitter to ask a question. I'm not necessarily one who guides the sitter to the "correct" formation of the question. However, if they're vague about it, then it really helps the reading if we can sharpen it up so that they're asking a precise question. Lots of sitters, when you ask them what their question is, will say something like "umm, I'm not sure. I was just wondering about---(whatever)" so then if you can ask them a question or two to help them get at just exactly what it is that they're wondering about on the vague topic they've come up with, it helps the reading to answer just what it is they need to know.

I guess it's like you say---that the lack of a question makes it seem more fun and maybe more psychic on the part of the reader if they can hit on the right things without a specific question. That's perfectly fine if it works for the reader the best. But I like a question the best because it helps me to get to the point and give them the best information on their present concerns. If something else comes out that they didn't ask---and it will if it's in the cards for them---then that's great, too. It does happen to me pretty often. Usually the question they came with is important to them as well as the unexpected message being important to them, so that way I've covered more ground than if I just didn't get a question and only gave them the information I could see. Don't know if that makes sense, but I like happy sitters and haven't had an unhappy one yet.

Some readers don't like background information and prefer to read the cards first, then have the sitter chime in with any information they care to give about background. To me, it doesn't make any difference. If they give it before, along with their question, that's fine but if not, giving it later in the reading is fine, too, or not at all, as they see fit.

In short, whatever works for you and your sitters is the "right" way for you to do it.

I do most of my readings here in the Exchange Forum, so yes, I will either get a question, or be told "Just give me a general reading". However, I do have one real-life friend that I frequently give in person readings. She truly believes that you don't need to verbally state a question when receiving a reading. She believes that it is enough to "send energy into the cards" while thinking about the question.

When she does this, I sit there watching her holding her hand on top of the deck, with her eyes closed and a look a concentration on her face. But after I pick up the cards, I must say that there is no instant feeling that "oh, this reading is going to be about X". In fact, I often begin my reading for her as if it was a "general". Sometimes, part way through, she will say to me, "well, I was asking about this" and suddenly the cards I'm looking at make more sense.

For the few times that the card images seem to be pointing toward something specific, it is more likely because I know what she's been worrying about recently than anything I received psychically/energetically.

I prefer asking what the question is, and most often, I will create a spread to go with the question. Then I'll share the positions to the querent and ask them if it satisfies them. I try to make a max 10 cards spread. If the question is general then I could use any general spread, like the celtic cross, 7 shoes horse-spread, The Oracle of the World spread, etc.

AstralSoul said:

I have been giving readings to clients for quite some times. When I learned Tarot at first, I was told that there is no need to ask the seeker what question he or she is looking for.

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<nods> I agree, but I ask out of politeness if they have a question. More than half the time they say no. The reading covers whatever tehy passionately wanted to hear about, anyway.

... or the question has not been formulated properly.

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Never been an issue for me. There are some subjects I politely refuse to read about (like "how to make so-and-so love me") because the client is being manipulative and I don't like that, but the shape or wording of a question doesn't seem to matter - at any time, the right cards come up for a client's situation, and it is up to me to make sense of them. Often that's not difficult.

Also, I read that the seeker is supposed to cut (and some even say shuffle) the deck, but I really do not feel comfortable having other people tapping or touching my decks. I feel it disturb the Inner Consciousness of my decks.

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<curiously> So how does your deck know to read for them and not for you since you're shuffling, and how do you tell when the client would have stopped shuffling if you are shuffling for them?

nisaba said:

<curiously> So how does your deck know to read for them and not for you since you're shuffling, and how do you tell when the client would have stopped shuffling if you are shuffling for them?

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So how do YOU read for people HERE if you can't have them shuffle, nisaba ? (not being funny; I really need to know !)

Ill-formulated questions can be a problem, if the sitter has asked one. I wish I could remember the thread here just a couple of days ago, where someone posted their take and said they couldn't quite agree because this... - and the OP said oh but I meant such and such, I should have said - and the reader immediately said - oh in THAT case I would read the cards as saying THIS - and the OP said WOW YES, wish I had expressed myself better in the first place. It can happen...

gregory said:

So how do YOU read for people HERE if you can't have them shuffle, nisaba ? (not being funny; I really need to know !)

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I shuffle a certain number of times that never changes, and just hope-to-Hell that the deck realises, and puts the right cards on top.

I prefer to work with intention. I don't necessarily need a question but I like to have some idea of what the querent is looking to get out of the reading or what their focus area is. I personally feel it helps me to help them get the most out of it. If they have no focus area and simply want to see what comes up, that's fine too.

I don't ever let the querents shuffle. Not for any particular reason, it's not like I think it throws the energy off or anything, I just have a shuffling technique that I like and I think it works fine. (Plus, to be honest, the cards are not the same shape as playing cards, they're more cumbersome to shuffle and many a querent will just find it a bit fiddly.) If I'm reading face to face I like to cut the shuffled deck into three and ask the querent to select one pile from which I'll draw cards for the reading, but even that doesn't exactly feel necessary to me, it's just nice to involve them in that stage if it's possible (obviously I can't do that if I'm reading for someone online).

It really depends... i know some very advanced readers who just lay the spread and just talk and talk and talk and talk and they immediately know why the person came to them... I dont think your way is any worse when you do not know the question, so dont feel down...

In reading exchange some people asked me for general readings. I tried to go deeper and analyze various concrete areas of their life and based on feedback i could say i did successfully...

Questions usually make the reading clearer since there are various aspects to look at cards but its not mandatory...

nisaba said:

I shuffle a certain number of times that never changes, and just hope-to-Hell that the deck realises, and puts the right cards on top.

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But seriously - do you prefer the sitter to shuffle ? I can't feel it makes a real difference, myself...