reading three card spreads

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 09 May 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

TheoMo	09 May 2004
So after reading the "accidental reading" thread in the "your readings" section (and checking out the site), I was curious what techniques people use to interpret sets of cards that aren't really attached to any specific meaning of a spread. So far example, you have a "situation of the querent" category that contains three cards. Is it just a question of using one's intution to guide one through the meanings of the cards to come up with a single message? Theo [mods, feel free to move this if it's more appropriately discussed somewhere else]

yve	09 May 2004
Well, although I haven't personally done it, many have talked about the cards telling a story. Use the 3 cards, to relate and interact with each other to give an overall picture or story of the situation. There will be others on this forum that have more experience, and that can explain this better, but many times a card can have a different or more intense meaning if it occurs with another specific cards in the deck. Some readers use certain pairings to indicate certain events/activities/meanings. So, in this way, it is possible to use a spread of cards to portray a story.

hedgecub	09 May 2004
I try to imagine the cards as all being different camera angles on the same movie scene. They blend together into one big screen, and as their meanings mix and interact, the overall meaning of the scene becomes apparent.

Shalott	09 May 2004
Hi, TheoMo, I just want to make sure I'm understanding: you meaning 3 cards but not desingating each position, like "mind-body-spirit" or "past-present-future?" I often do this with 7 cards...do you read reversals? Part of how I read them is Joan Bunning's energy cycles, that reversed has to do with a waxing or waning energy...I think this is why I get so many reversals so often, it's the cards way of making the non-designated positions into a more complete story complete with chronology. If however, this isn't what you meant, sorry for my non-sensical post... :| :TQS

TheoMo	09 May 2004
Shalott, no that's exactly what I meant - just cards pulled out without any specific "position" as it were...

hyatt	09 May 2004
In 78 degrees of wisdom, Rachel describes a "work" spread that uses three cards without any specific meaning (there are other cards too). I really like the spread because it gives you options. It's a great one to try if you are looking for another one.

Umbrae	09 May 2004
I love ‘free form’ reading. No positions, no set number of cards. You can read for yourself or others…and it takes practice. What follows is opinion…it works for me, it may work for others, it may work for you. I have to really empty my mind (some would say that this is the easy part for me), and then begin turning cards over as I shuffle. When the deck feels ‘right’ a card gets flopped. Here’s the trick. What’s it mean. I don’t mean ‘what does the card mean’, but what’s it mean? What’s it in relation to? What is it’s context? For this there are no hard and fast rules, no black and white, no books to turn to. The book is in front of you – the deck. So you have to listen to the deck – which is why emptying your mind is so important. If you listen, you will be told. However if you attempt to force an ego-enforced meaning to the cards, your reading will make no sense. I remember doing a reading on-line live (in chat) one time, using a four-card story spread. I honestly had no idea what I was looking at, but I began typing the reading. I told the sitter that the cards were telling me one thing, and my intellect was telling me something different (however similar). As it turned out, the cards were right. My ‘thought process’ was wrong. So just keep working at it…and listen… BTW: Story spreads rock...toss the books.

skytwig	10 May 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Umbrae I love ‘free form’ reading. No positions, no set number of cards. You can read for yourself or others…and it takes practice. For this there are no hard and fast rules, no black and white, no books to turn to. The book is in front of you – the deck. So you have to listen to the deck – which is why emptying your mind is so important. If you listen, you will be told :) Yes.

Imagemaker	10 May 2004
The HRIH site hrih.hypermart.net/divinations/tarot/openings/ and freeform reading are (for me) like holding up a mirror to the human drama. Empty your mind, as Umbrae says, and just look at what appears. Then let thoughts float up and imagine connections, both between cards and between cards/querent. When the tarot mirror shows us something, we may or may not understand it, or want to accept what it shows, but if we're ego-free (in that moment), truth is always there. Then we can decide what to do with it (ignore, avoid, deny, accept, pursue, develop, hide . . . many responses are possible). Then you might want to do a specifically defined question/spread.

Kahlie	11 May 2004
Quote: So after reading the "accidental reading" thread in the "your readings" section (and checking out the site), I was curious what techniques people use to interpret sets of cards that aren't really attached to any specific meaning of a spread I only just saw this thread. (The Accidental Reading Thread was started by me) The set of cards do have a meaning in the Spread I used. I more or less had a problem with the fact I didn't have a specific Question. I did get a lot of clarity on my current situation, but I felt I had little handle on what I should do/know to move forward. I feel a Question with a reading helps to find more guidance and understanding. Or maybe it's just hard for me to accept the fact that I should go for my dreams...

Ravenswing	11 May 2004
Three cards is my usual morning toss. Sometimes I'll go looking for a particular triplet, sometimes not. Many times I'll be looking for one triple and the cards give me a different one. Most times when this happens, the cards know better what I'm 'really' looking for. Free-form for me floats from one triple to another-- sort of like cloud watching fly well Raven

The reading three card spreads thread was originally posted on 09 May 2004 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.