if there is lots of the same suit

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 10 Jan 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

PIXXYUK	10 Jan 2003
I saw in a book once that if there is lots of the same suit then this adds added meaning to the reading but I don't know where I saw the book. I was wondering if anyone else knows what the meanings were. Thanks Pixxyuk

lupo138	10 Jan 2003
if there are more of one suit it can tell you a story about a certain aspect - either growing or diminishing. The aspects would be (just examples): swords: communication, intelligence wands: emotion, sex chalices: fears, unconscious pentacles: money. job On the other hand the numbers as such are given certain meaning and combined can enhance your understanding of the reading. Of course this is just a personal view and one can see it different.

HudsonGray	10 Jan 2003
You can use what feels best for you. If a predominance of cups show up, it usually means matters of the heart are to the fore. Swords are communication (or doctors if it's a health reading), etc. As Lupo says. You can ignore this, of course, if you want to. Some people don't give it attention, preferring to stick with what each card says to them. Others focus on elements, or numerology, or any of a number of other added factors. If you don't want to use any of them, you don't need to. We each come up with our own way of reading the cards.

tarotbear	11 Jan 2003
I usually scan the whole layout first for any repeats of suits and then recurrances of any numbers before I start speaking. This only takes seconds to do, though. For example - if there are lots of Fives I know the Querent has many unstable influences around then at the moment, regardless of what the question was about.

Trogon	11 Jan 2003
Howdy Pixxy! Welcome to the forums! In the book I began learning with ("A Complete Guide to the Tarot" by Eden Gray), the author states the following; Quote: Many Wands - Change Many Cups - Love, goodness Many Swords - Strife Many Pentacles - Political action or intrigue She also goes on to state; Quote: The presence of many of the Major Arcana indicates that the answer to the Querent's question is largely controlled by other people. I would also say that the thread "DC's Tarot Notes" might be very helpful. DollChica has put together some very good information, gleaned from several sources, on the 4 suits of the Tarot (Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles). The write-up on each suit includes some notes on how "more or excessive" of a given suit might affect a reading. For instance, on Cups she writes; Quote: More or Excessive-Too much focus or overwhelmed by specific matters Being smothered by others; over-possessiveness; emotional claustrophobia Large family gathering; family reunion; big party Having to manage several relationships at once Emotional self-indulgence; being manipulative or petty; being a martyr Hope this helps...

WolfSpirit	11 Jan 2003
I always automatically see if there are a lot of one suit in one spread or if a suit is significantly missing (for example in a question about emotions and you would not have one cup, that would strike me). Also I always look at how many majors I have; however I don't see this as influence from others (I know some see many majors as "fate", things the querent can't do anything about), I see it more as really important matters that will have a strong impact on the querent. I use this information as additional information on the reading.

Khatruman	11 Jan 2003
I see a big part of any spread being to look for patterns. tarotbear's advice is really good, to scan the whole spread and see what repetitions and so forth that you have. Context is important in anything. I view things myself as a literature scholar (being an English teacher) and look at things in context. Books may tell you "meanings" of cards, but a definition of anything needs to be taken in context. When a student asks me what a word means, I have found that I can not really spill out a definition. I thought at first that this was a deficiency on my part and would often ask the student, "well, what is the sentence the word is in?" I have discovered that, after all, that is better. I understand how to use words intuitively, by what fits in a context, but I can't spill out a definition as on a vocabulary test. For example, take the word fall. What does it mean? Well, actually it can have one of over 50 definitions, from a season of the year to a spiritual loss. Poets will often use words which can have more than one meaning and a poem opens up because there may be different ways to read a specific word. I guess what I end up wanting to say is, if you see a repetition of any kind in a reading, examine that which is repeated, whether it be a suit or a number, or lots of major arcana, and examine what that repeated element might be saying. Peace!

Rhiannon	11 Jan 2003
Wands: action, passion Swords: communication, thought Cups: emotions, longing Pentacles: money, or material (day to day) things Majors: out of your control or a majorly important issue WolfSpirit, I'd never thought of taking what ISN'T there into consideration! I'll have to experiment with that. R :)

Khatruman	11 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Rhiannon WolfSpirit, I'd never thought of taking what ISN'T there into consideration! I'll have to experiment with that. That was a good observation that I didn't think of either, and I should, as a literature scholar, because what isn't said can often have great significance. Though I am replying to Rhiannon, I must thank WolfSpirit for that deepening of my tarot analytical skills...*jotting this down quickly in my notes!!* :) Peace!

tarotbear	11 Jan 2003
Also, when I scan the spread, I do count how many Majors there are. In a Celtic Cross or 10-card spread, I feel 3 or more Majors is significant (3:10) since that is a third of all the cards laid out. It is rare to NOT get at least one Major in 10 cards. I feel that fewer Majors means a 'weaker' reading or at least says the question/events are not strong or earth-shattering at the moment.

Trogon	12 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by tarotbear Also, when I scan the spread, I do count how many Majors there are. I a celtic Cross or 10-card spread, I feel 3 or more Majors is significant (3:10) since that is a third of all the cards laid out. It is rare to NOT get at least one Major in 10 cards. I feel that fewer Majors means a 'weaker' reading or at least says the question/events are not strong or earth-shattering at the moment. Well... WolfSpirit and rhiannon commented on this as well. And I guess I have started looking at the number of Majors in a reading as being an indication of how important an issue is for the person more than Ms. Gray's take on it. This has been a recent revelation for me (since finding my way to Aeclectic Tarot). After reading other comments of this nature (more Majors - bigger issues) I have come to realize that this fits in much better for most of the readings I've been doing than the "more Majors - outside querent's control" idea. Quote: originally posted by WolfSpirit ... or if a suit is significantly missing (for example in a question about emotions and you would not have one cup, that would strike me). Excellent comment WolfSpirit - thanks for bringing it up. I usually look at this more as "oh there's bunches of this suit, but none of this one... so this majority of ___ indicates this. I hadn't necessarily thought about what the absence might mean. I know that DollChica's notes and thoughts included comments on it, but I hadn't really put it in that perspective. Thanks

sagitarian	13 Jan 2003
I never really read into too many of the same suit, or the lack there of, or too many major arcana. More recently I learned that any major arcane cards represents a life changing event such as, pregnancy, career change, marriage, or buying a house. Many of the major arcane could represent one word of many of these ideas. Too many major arcane cards though would bring concern to me. For instance, if the querent was expecting a child, her husband recently passed, and this caused for a career change as well as a location change, I would be concerned that this is too much for her to handle, and that she's worn to the bone, completely spent and is or will be taking effect on her child and career and perhaps any family relations she has. Just one or two major arcane cards could be pretty hard to handle.

The if there is lots of the same suit thread was originally posted on 10 Jan 2003 in the Using Tarot Cards board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Using Tarot Cards, or read more archived threads.