Advice and outcome

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 23 Mar 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

WolfSpirit	23 Mar 2003
Many of us use spreads that have an "outcome" and also an "advice", or maybe the whole spread is meant as an advice. But how do you connect these two ? For example, if the outcome is something you want to happen it is not so difficult, then you follow the advice to get the desired outcome. But what if the outcome is something you don't want at all ? Is the advice what you should do to avoid this outcome ? This is how I often read it, but it seems wrong to just switch the meaning of the position around. Another possibility is that the outcome, although not desired at the moment, will still be the best in the long run ? Or do you read it as it feels right at the moment ? Or am I missing something very obvious ? *feeling puzzled*

Diana	23 Mar 2003
WolfSpirit: I use an advice and outcome in my daily spreads (I use four cards in all). The outcome is not something one can always change. There are sometimes outside influences that are more powerful than anything you can do to really change things. So I take the Advice as to what is the best way for me to cope with, or handle the situation. For instance, it can advise me to stay calm whatever. Or it can advise me to speak up strongly. Or it can advise me to take a break from the situation and let things adjust by themselves. etc. etc. The Outcome to me is most often the best possible outcome I can expect if I follow the advice. If I don't follow it, then I have wasted my reading.

spunch	23 Mar 2003
I'm really new to this, so don't take it against me if I'm on the wrong track here, but it seems to me that you should take the advice card as an option at a given moment. If we believe that the Tarot gives you guidance, than he will give you some advice in a spread. If you follow the particular advice in question, than the outcome is shown in the last card. If you decide to ignore the particular advice, then the outcome might be quite different. There are some spreads that have positions outcome1 and outcome2 (the outcome2 being the one if you decide to follow your own advice, regardelss of the advice card). I hope I didn't get this to complicated and that I'm going into right direction! :)

Alex	23 Mar 2003
spunch Diana made lots of sense in her reply to you. Sometimes, when we get stuck with questions like the ones you still have about the issue you have raised, it helps to reduce the situation to a ficticious "absurd. Let's all agree that each one of us is going to die. In a reading on "life", the "outcome"_death_ can't be changed. Right? However, HOW you are going to live your life, or cope with your mortality, that's the "advice" part. Not all outcomes can be changed. Some can. It's your job to correctly evaluate each case. Alex.

sunflowr	25 Mar 2003
I guess I would see "advice" as to how best to approach/act in the situation.. no matter what the outcome card is.

Ravenswing	26 Mar 2003
spunch-- one thing to remember: if you feel that any of the 'rules' of tarot are written in stone, break the tablets. fly well raven

skytwig	26 Mar 2003
Wuhoo! Yes! Haven't yet heard anyone state that the 10 commandments were given to Moses to prove that we CAN'T be perfect!!!!! Like lemmings, they just jumped in and tried to follow the rules in stone!!!! If that isn't a way to avoid Shadow, I don't know what is. Let's just call it evil and pretend we have nothing to do with it...... Anyway .... outcomes. I tend to only regard Major Arcana as outcome cards. If one doesn't appear, then the outcome is unknown. Also, with any card that i don't fully understand, i draw more cards on top of it, for clarification. Sometimes the outcome has a whole 'next' reading that explains further. And, of course, the olde 'rule' is the best for me - go with my gut; assume the best. Nothing, after all, is in stone, unless we want to put it there!

The Advice and outcome thread was originally posted on 23 Mar 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.