How many readings a day?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 22 Mar 2005, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Foxyangel	22 Mar 2005
Something I have been wondering about for a while... I tend to be too tired after work to do more than one or two readings during any 24hrs... but a friend who also reads the cards has told me that I should never do more than 3 readings in 24hrs as then the cards would begin to "lie" to me... Is this the case? Is there a limit on the number of readings one can do in any period? Thanks ;)

mercenary30	22 Mar 2005
I would suggest that there really is no guidelines for that. Just like any other mental/spiritual activity you can keep it up for as long as you have the strength and energy to do so. I will compare it to studying for a test. At some point along the line you will become distracted, tired, and ready for something else. To some people that could take 5 readings to get to, for others it may be just one. Tarot cards are cardboard and ink, they don't lie. (at least not any more than lying on the table.) It is your own capacity that will falter in a reading. Well, there is my two cents!

Enchanted	22 Mar 2005
From my, all be it limited, personal experience it's not that the cards lie to you but that you wear them out! Particularily if you obsess over one question. It's like they say "excuse me but I have already given you wisdom on this question, what do you think has changed in the last two minutes. :laugh: (I am pretty sure they have a sense of humour!!!) For me the best way to learn the cards has been through a single daily spread. (I guess you can 'upgrade' as you get better at it). That way is it not to onerous on your time (especially during the working week) and you are able to focus more on that one card and what it means to you. I usually reserve time off for more complicated spreads so that I have the adequate time to review them properly otherwise I found myself "tieing myself in knots" over possible interpretations and was just ending up more confused. All in all though, I have found that you have to find what is right for you, spreads, decks, amount of readings....in so many ways tarot is a highly personalised journey. All the best to you!

Umbrae	22 Mar 2005
Finding your too wiped out? Ease back on red meats (if currently in your diet), and increase your water intake (very important). Usually, if you can only do 2-3 readings a day and you’re wiped – you’re clinically dehydrated and most likely don’t know it. Coffee, tea, soda = bad. Water = good. P.S. Cards don’t lie – we misunderstand. Your brain is 97% water…think about it.

HudsonGray	22 Mar 2005
Readers at the Spirit Fairs & other venues are usually doing a good 20 readings a day, but they make sure that they're fed & hydrated during that time, that breaks are taken and that they're focused and centered. Otherwise, yep, you can get really wiped out. I've done 3 or 4 back to back and not had a problem.

crazelion	22 Mar 2005
I think it depends on the person feel like doing readings that day. I know some days I don't feel like doing tarot reading at all. Then somedays I go all out do several. The way I do my tarot readings is I go by how feeling that day. Go with what feels right to you. You detrmine how many readings you do a day. In my case I worked 2 jobs I don't have time do readings some days.

tarotbear	23 Mar 2005
I've done twelve readings in a single night for 12 people and it takes a bit of work to make it all work (potty breaks, fresh cool water to sip, throat losenges) but it can be done. The problem is that between each reading you have to shuffle the cards and clear them or you will find other people's readings infiltrate the remainder! There is no limit to the capacity of the cards, only human limits. :smoker:

Elven	23 Mar 2005
As already said, Being healthy and in a good state of mind helps, it really does. You should be able to do as many readings as you see fit, but when there is doubt about yourself and your tools (tarot cards), you can do a couple of things: Take some time out to refresh yourself and your mind. Change the deck of cards you are working with - as long as you have another working deck around. Cleanse or smudge the room yourself and your cards, reprotect your self and the cards and then if you feel renewed try again. The cards dont lie, but we can become confused how we interpret them and suddenly the deck may become repedative - you keep repeating the same reading over and over again, thats not the cards, unless, as Tarot bear mentioned, they havent had a good shuffle. Maybe this is what your friend sees as lying. Ask her to clarify how it happens for her and what she does to clear herself and her deck. Hope this helps Elven x

Ahria	23 Mar 2005
I find I can only read two or three times a week, with everything else there is just not enought time, and I find it very draining atm. The cards just seem to stop making sense, (my brain just goes bleh).

Foxyangel	23 Mar 2005
Elven wrote: Cleanse or smudge the room yourself and your cards, reprotect your self and the cards and then if you feel renewed try again. Elven, thank you... I have changed decks and found that the new one is working better... two others in the post :) Which will give me 4 decks... But I am not sure what you mean by the above? Being a teacher I spend much of my day on my feet, answering seemingly endless questions... I guess that is what I mean by wiped out... physical and mental just knackered, so I tend to leave readings for weekends and holidays :) foxyangel x

psychic sue	23 Mar 2005
tarotbear wrote: I've done twelve readings in a single night for 12 people and it takes a bit of work to make it all work (potty breaks, fresh cool water to sip, throat losenges) but it can be done. The problem is that between each reading you have to shuffle the cards and clear them or you will find other people's readings infiltrate the remainder! There is no limit to the capacity of the cards, only human limits. :smoker: I agree with TB. I did nine in one night once and it left me wiped out for two days. I think I would limit myself to about 5 in one day now. Reading for yourself - the more times you spread, the more confusing it becomes in my experience. I rarely try and read for myself - I post my readings on here and the kind people here read them for me. Sue x

Fudugazi	23 Mar 2005
For myself: A card a day (and now I have Faery oracle, it's a faery card as well, but my approach to those is different). No more than one long reading a week, and never on the same subject twice running unless the situation (or my mindset) has changed. Two or three short (3 card) readings a week. Either way, no more than I can write down. If I can't take time to write them in a notebook or computer, it's wasted (my card a day is usually a page a day, btw, and sometimes completed in the evening with additional thoughts). For others: It depends on the intensity of the reading. Light and short readings - I can do quite a few of those in a row (and as Tarotbear says, clearing and shuffling the cards in between). But where there is an intense reading and the querent needs to talk, it takes time, so I would not do many of those in a row. In fact, I am likely to follow a deep, intense reading with a lighter one - though, of course, you never know. I recently did two intense ones in a row and was very tired afterwards - I did what Umbrae suggested, drank a glass of water and I put my cards away for the evening. The only thing I do, if I am reading for friends, is if they insist on "more, more!" to see if things will look different, I stop and say - vale!

Adjustment	23 Mar 2005
I agree with Umbrae, you need a lot of water and try to keep grounded. if you work for a psychic hot line, like i use to you can do so many readings in one day that you loose track of how many reading you have done in one day.

jentayu	24 Mar 2005
Foxyangel wrote: Something I have been wondering about for a while... I tend to be too tired after work to do more than one or two readings during any 24hrs... but a friend who also reads the cards has told me that I should never do more than 3 readings in 24hrs as then the cards would begin to "lie" to me... Is this the case? Is there a limit on the number of readings one can do in any period? Thanks ;) Hello! I also sometimes tend to be a bit tired when doing readings a lot of times. But, that depends though, I usually do readings in the middle of the night! So I guess I was sleepy, not tired...... He He :D Lie? No, that's not true, I agree with Umbrae, the cards never lie........ I used to do readings at least 4 times in a day...... Tired, yes.... But the cards don't lie of course..... So, to be honest with you, there's no limit in doing a reading in a day or any peroid of time. You can do as many as you want. Hope this helps you though Foxyangel..... Jentayu

Iamwhatiam	24 Mar 2005
I don't think there is any "magical energy draining substance" in tarot cards. And there is no magic number where the tarot stops working or that will cause you to anger the "gods of tarot". I have personally never been drained from reading tarot. I suspect that if someone is drained it is because they are thinking too hard or the tarot pointed out something in their life that was unpleasent. Some of us don't think that emotions have physical ramifications, but I think they do, look at how people in love have a ton of energy or how an argument will leave you tired. When I first started reading cards I had the bad habit of asking the same question over and over again with the same deck. This is akin to taking 6 aspirin when you only need 2 aspirin. If I get stubborn and don't want to believe what the cards are pointing to me, I will ask the same question but with different decks AND spreads. This is akin to taking 2 aspirin and 2 ibuprofen. They both work but in different ways. Reading a lot, and not thoroughly looking at the cards, the reading as a whole and focusing on one good or bad card, as well as not shuffling the cards thoroughly, is fundamentally a sloppy reading style - it has nothing to do with the cards - but the reader themselves, who is often impatient, or unhappy with the answers.

Fudugazi	24 Mar 2005
Iamwhatiam wrote: I have personally never been drained from reading tarot. I suspect that if someone is drained it is because they are thinking too hard or the tarot pointed out something in their life that was unpleasent. Some of us don't think that emotions have physical ramifications, but I think they do, look at how people in love have a ton of energy or how an argument will leave you tired. I have been drained from reading tarot for others, but that is because of their emotional demands - it can be tiring if you give yourself 100% to the moment - it's like an artistic performance. I don't think it's the cards that drain - it's the other person! But I don't regret it. It doesn't last and there are ways of protecting yourself. And as Umbrae says- drink water.

Iamwhatiam	24 Mar 2005
Helvetica wrote: I have been drained from reading tarot for others, but that is because of their emotional demands - it can be tiring if you give yourself 100% to the moment - it's like an artistic performance. I don't think it's the cards that drain - it's the other person! But I don't regret it. It doesn't last and there are ways of protecting yourself. And as Umbrae says- drink water. Exactly. Another element involved in reading for others is to understand how empathy effects you. The best readers have strong empathy skills. However, I have known people who claim that they are so empathic that they will be left with the querent's problems as if they are their own. I have nver had that problem, because coming from a family of raving lunatics I had to learn early on to distinguish between what is my emotion and what belongs to another, I had to do that for my own sanity really.

Foxyangel	24 Mar 2005
You guys... thanks :) I am going to try the centering and grounding techniques that I found here http://www.robinwood.com/LivingtreeGrove/Magic/MagicPages/GroundCenter.html I'll let you know if they make a difference :) foxyangel

SunChariot	26 Mar 2005
Foxyangel wrote: Something I have been wondering about for a while... I tend to be too tired after work to do more than one or two readings during any 24hrs... but a friend who also reads the cards has told me that I should never do more than 3 readings in 24hrs as then the cards would begin to "lie" to me... Is this the case? Is there a limit on the number of readings one can do in any period? Thanks ;) If there is any limit, in my opinion, it is to stop when you feel too tired and your focus and concentration are no longer there. If you can do 3 readings in 24 hours and not lose your focus, feel free to do it. Your cards will only lie to you if you are too tired to interpret them accurately. Or in other words, the cards we get are always right, in my opinion, but we can more easily misinterpret them or miss something when tired. It's up to you to know when you feel up to it. We are all different, and we each have to find what works best for us. For me I can only say that I could not even finish one reading in a day. But then my reading are usually between 10-20 pages typed before I am done, but that's just me. :-) Usually, when I am working I try for one a week, takes me a few days to finish one. Between the work, housework, and meditating and now learning the pendulum, not to mention catching up in e-mails that is the most I can fit in. I do read only for myself though, and always have a looong list of topics for future readings on hand.:-) Bar

satinangel	26 Mar 2005
tarotbear wrote: I've done twelve readings in a single night for 12 people and it takes a bit of work to make it all work (potty breaks, fresh cool water to sip, throat losenges) but it can be done. The problem is that between each reading you have to shuffle the cards and clear them or you will find other people's readings infiltrate the remainder! There is no limit to the capacity of the cards, only human limits. :smoker: WOW! This seems like ALOT! What was the time frame this was done in?

satinangel	26 Mar 2005
Foxyangel wrote: You guys... thanks :) I am going to try the centering and grounding techniques that I found here http://www.robinwood.com/LivingtreeGrove/Magic/MagicPages/GroundCenter.html I'll let you know if they make a difference :) foxyangel I use this same technique for grounding and centering...not only reading though...when I have an incredible stressful period, it's nice to take a few minutes and run through this excerise! Helps me get back on track! Hope it works for you!

tarotbear	27 Mar 2005
tarotbear wrote: I've done twelve readings in a single night for 12 people and it takes a bit of work to make it all work (potty breaks, fresh cool water to sip, throat losenges) but it can be done. :smoker: This was over the course of about 4 hours or so. You have to give yourself breaks! Been discussed before: if you go the the Tarot School website at www.tarotschool.com - look up the article about doing readings "26 steps" or something similar ....

SunChariot	27 Mar 2005
satinangel wrote: I use this same technique for grounding and centering...not only reading though...when I have an incredible stressful period, it's nice to take a few minutes and run through this excerise! Helps me get back on track! Hope it works for you! Thank you so much for this web page. I think it is really something I need right now. I am very grateful you sent it.:-) Thank you! Bar

satinangel	27 Mar 2005
tarotbear wrote: Been discussed before: if you go the the Tarot School website at www.tarotschool.com - look up the article about doing readings "26 steps" or something similar .... Great article, Tarotbear! Thank you for sharing!

The How many readings a day? thread was originally posted on 22 Mar 2005 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.