Getting confused doing a spread!!!!

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 17 Jun 2005, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Priya	17 Jun 2005
Hello, When i do a option spread i.e Yes or No and sometimes my both cards appears reverse what does that mean? or sometimes they both appears upright what does that mean? Also, When i do a celtic cross spread how do i explain them should i have to start with 1 then 2 then 3 and so on... how does it go? Is it necessary that i should use high english words to make them feel i know tarot.. Can you please help me!!

FireRaven	17 Jun 2005
Hi Priya (a beautiful name by the way)... Getting to know the language of the Tarot can be confusing. I hope my thoughts here help you a bit. First, the Yes/No or option spreads. I've learned that you have to be very specific with the position meanings, and factor in how you will handle reversals. Reversals are a personal thing. For some, an upright card will be read as a "Yes", the "Pro" side of an issue, or and indication to go forward, and the reversal would be "No", the "Con" side of an issue or an indication to hold off and rework your plans. Other readers might consider an upright card to represent the "Surface" issues in a reading, with the reversal representing "Hidden" issues. You have to find a system that works best for you. If I had a two card Yes/No spread where both cards came up in the same direction, I would read the cards from the perspective of the reasoning behind each answer, not the answer itself. In the end I'd still have to make my own choice using the advice I received. As for the Celtic Cross, depending on how advanced you are as a reader, it's not the best spread for beginners, even if it is published in nearly every tarot book out there. You have to be able to not only interpret the cards in their various positions, but drawn connections between them. It's hard to develop a story when you don't have a lot of experience. If you have your heart set on doing a Celtic Cross spread, try one of the shorter, modified ones on this site under the Tarot Spreads topic forum. Otherwise Mark K. Greer gives a great description of the full Celtic Cross from a variety of perspectives in her book, Tarot for Yourself, 2nd edition. The ISBN # is 1-56414-588-3 should you have trouble finding it. Don't let language intimidate you. Speak and read the cards in the way that's most comfortable for you and/or your querent. When I read for another, my "readings" are more like conversations rather than "almighty predictions." I ask questions, admit when I'm stumped by somethings, have my querents free associate on a word or image, and do all sorts of other things that aren't "traditional" but that work well for me. There's nothing worse than someone using big words, or putting on airs just to prove they know their subject. Be confident, of course, but be yourself. Feel free to get in touch with me any time. I hope this post helped a little! Blue skies and blessings, - FireRavem

caridwen	17 Jun 2005
Hi Priya! Welcome to aeclectic:) I don't do Yes/No spreads but I guess that: both cards reversed is NO and both cards upright is YES. When you do a Celtic Cross who are you explaining it to? I don't know why you have to say the positions in English unless you are trying to communicate with an English speaker. Do you mean when you describe what you see in the spread with someone? There are many variations of the Celtic Cross but all usually have 10 cards and the first two cards, in the centre of the cross, cross each other. What they mean depends on the cards. For example, the first card is The Fool and the second card or crossing card is, Death reversed. Maybe the querent needs to move on, take another path or road and reversed Death means they don't want to make the necessary changes. These two cards then resonate with the other eight. They outline the problem and the others show what lead to the problem and how to resolve it etc I hope that helps:)

PlatinumDove	17 Jun 2005
Hi Priya... 1. The Yes/No Spread: It depends on how you interpret the spread. I found a yes/no spread in the Witches' Tarot book that goes a little like this: flip the first 13 cards down in one pile, or until you get to an ace, once you get to the ace or the 13th card, star on the next pile, and do the same, repeat until you have 4 piles. If you have 4 Aces, the answer is yes, 3 aces means possibly yes, 2 aces means probably not, and one or no aces means no. I haven't tried it yet, but you may be able to use the cards that weren't aces to explain further...not sure though. 2. The CC is a doozy for me, so I'll let someone else answer that question. I usually start with card 1, then 2, then continue to the end and then mention anything in particular I notice. 3. Use whatever language is comfortable for you. If you try to use "high" english words to make you look smarter, you'll most likely just end up looking silly.

spiral	17 Jun 2005
Well it means whatever it means to you. I'm sure everyone on this forum could give their own interpretation - personally I don't use reversed meanings. Remember that in reality, tarot is accessed via _your_ subconscious and that means that it will speak to you in your own terms. To begin with the language is difficult and broken - like two people speaking different languages, sharing only a few words. Over time, you learn to get by and the ultimate goal, I suppose, is fluency on both sides. In other words, choose whatever meaning you are happy with. What makes sense to you? Quote: When i do a celtic cross spread how do i explain them should i have to start with 1 then 2 then 3 and so on... how does it go? Think of it like a story - working your way from start to end and try to string a little story together. Let your imagination run wild, prompted by what you see in front of you. It can seem like playing, like a game - and that's the most naturally creative frame of mind. Quote: Is it necessary that i should use high english words to make them feel i know tarot.. My aim is not to impress someone with my tarot abilities - so if you ask me then I say "to hell with their opinion". I read tarot purely out of a will to understand more about myself and the world, and sometimes out of a will to help others. If that doesn't meet other people's expectations then that's fairly irrelevant to me. Use whatever language/words you are comfortable using and make most sense to you, and that you feel communicate an idea. Remember there are no absolutes. You can ask yourself these questions and get a much better answer than from me or anyone else on here.

Eco74	17 Jun 2005
Hi Priya, The Celtic Cross can be read any way you please. The order of the cards as they are lain out in the reading are "logical" in the way that they address the issue in a kind of Background-Present-Outside view-Outcome way. Still you're free to read it any way you want, three across (past-center-future), three upwards (beneath-center-crown), checking for patterns within the spread (a certain suite, futurecards only, pastcards only, personal perspective, outside perspective etc.). This is something you will discover as you go aswell. Try out some different methods and you will eventually find one that works for you. Also, look at all the cards lain out to see if they are "asking for" a particular way of reading them. Sometimes there's an added combination-message, such as lots of one particular suite, a suite that is cleraly left out, courts or majors looking at or pointing to a particular area of the layout.. I also agree with PlatinumDove that you should use whatever language you are most comfortable with. Adding an explanation such as "this card is called XX in english and can be translated as YY" can be interesting for the querents that show an interest in how you read the cards but is in no way a must.

Priya	17 Jun 2005
Thanks everyone for guiding me through spread and language.. I wanna be a good tarot reader atleast i should be confident on wat i tell others!! one more thing i wanted to ask is how do i make my own spread?

Fudugazi	17 Jun 2005
Hello Priya, welcome! I would start with a three-card spread when you do your own (and in any case it's a good way to learn to read cards together - more manageable than the CC at first). You can ascribe whatever position you want to the cards - e.g. "Past, present, future"; or "querent, advice, outcome", etc. Or you can do without position names and learn to use your intuition as to how to read these three cards together. Look at how they go together - e.g. the position of the people in relation to each other (do they face each other or not? what are they looking at?, etc.); or what suits come up (e.g. two cups but no wands - lots of emotion, lack of action). Try several methods - with or without named positions. Note all your readings in your notebook, so you remember. And I agree with others - it makes no difference which language you use as long as you are conveying what is on the cards. Your relationship with your querent is the most important thing.

Eco74	17 Jun 2005
There is a fabulous book, "Designing your own Tarot Spreads" by Teresa Michelsen. A bit more for people who are familiar with the cards and with some experience but it has a wealth of tips and advice on what to think of when making your own spreads. The main thing is to have Set Meanings for the positions. Make different 2 or 3-card spreads to see how many you can come up with. There are lots of options, and you can lay them out a little differently too. A mini-path-choosing spread with two cards next to eachother for each path and a card for "what you need to keep in mind" on top (pyramid-style), three cards all aligned in a row, forming a stair, having the first-to-third-prize-setup to determine which of three options is the best, up to down.. And then the meanings. Situation Advice Outcome - He said She said Advice - Situation What I can do Help I can get from others... and so on. Start small and customise the 2-3-card spreads to match the topic for the question. It will help you get familiar with the cards and will give you a better understanding of other spreads and what the thought behind them is aswell. "Free spreads" where you just lay the cards out are great for storytelling or "off the top of your head" type readings so again, good practice. In this type of reading, the cards tell the story on their own and you need to get more familiar with them. And I second Helveticas advice to get into the details of the cards. What they face, if they seem to have any kind of "communication" between them, what is the "movement" in the spread (if any), if one suit seems more prevalent etc.

Ace	17 Jun 2005
Priya wrote: Hello, When i do a option spread i.e Yes or No and sometimes my both cards appears reverse what does that mean? or sometimes they both appears upright what does that mean? I am not sure what the yes/no spread is. For me, yes/no is one card: upside up is usually yes, and reversed is usually no. I have seen three card yes/no spreads, where if 2 of three are reversed it means no, and if 2 out of three are upright it means yes. But my thought is, decide ahead of time, what reversed means TO YOU and force yourself to stick to it. As for the rest, others have given you better advice than I can, but my first spread (as I was taught) was even bigger: it was the celtic cross surrounded by the Horoscope spread, 22 cards total! it took a bit of work but WITH PRACTICE, it becomes easier. So just practice, practice, practice, and don't worry about impressing anyone. Welcome aboard! Ace

PlatinumDove	18 Jun 2005
Priya wrote: one more thing i wanted to ask is how do i make my own spread? Look at things around you, in normal life. All types of things can be made into spreads...for instance, look at the newbie thread for this week's spread in the Reading Exchange Forum....it's "Red Light, Green Light, Yellow Light", which is interpreted as "Don't do this, Do this, Be cautious of this." I would have NEVER thought of that as a spread, but you know...I saw it, and I thought "wow...that's a good spread."

Priya	18 Jun 2005
i cant access to reading exchange.. :(

Fudugazi	18 Jun 2005
You will once you have 25 posts, dear Priya

The Getting confused doing a spread!!!! thread was originally posted on 17 Jun 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.