Ootk

[Rosetta Stoned]

Does anyone here practice the first operation of the Opening of the Key?

[Barleywine]

I figured I would revive this thread since I have a question about the OOTK spread. I use the first step of the first operation regularly (cut into four packs, find the significator, and tell the querent what area of life the reading will focus on). I don't use the rest of the operation much (counting and pairing to make "stories"), and I've always had a question about the description of this in the Book of Thoth.

Let's say the significator is the Queen of Swords facing to the right. I count four cards from (and including) the significator to the right and make a story about the beginning of the matter. So far, so good. Then I'm to pair the cards on either side of the significator, then the two cards outside of those, and so on to make another story.

My question is, do I only work outward until I reach the card that the count ended with (that would mean a group of three cards to the right of the significator and three to the left in this example), or do I go all the way to the ends of the pack containing the significator? The former seems more manageable, but I'm not clear on what was intended.