Drawing cards off top or from a fan

[lawguy51]

Hello all: I'm brand new to the forum and have just recently begun to study Tarot. I'd like to hear some feedback regarding forum members' preferences regarding selecting cards for a spread. Do you prefer having the querant choose cards after shuffling from a spread out fan of cards or off the top of the deck. I find when I'm reading for myself that I switch back and forth between the two. Sometimes with the cards fanned out I feel very intuitively which cards to choose and other times it feels like I'm trying to be a bit too clever so I switch and draw off the top of the deck. I recently had an amazing reading from a clairvoyant and she said she always drew off the top because she was a Gemini and would take forever choosing from a fanned out deck. Comments?

[SherryZoned]

I cut my deck for each card..i see it in my mind where it is at and cut to it.

[zorya]

welcome lawguy,

i cut three piles to the left, dropping them from the bottom. pick up the piles from right to left, so the right pile ends up on top. then i draw from the top.

we had an interesting thread on this several months ago. if i remember correctly, more members in europe and australia, fanned. most of those in north america, drew from the top.

aha! i found it;
http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread...g&pagenumber=2

[cjtarot]

Hi all,

What I do is have the person shuffle for me then hand me back the deck (without making them a perfect square). From there I find the card or shift that I am drawn to and and cut the deck there.

once in a while an extra card or cut will draw me..I usually draw that one out and set it aside.

It works for me..do what works for you..

Cj

[juice]

I guess its too late ot add to the other thread...

The first book I read very specifically instructed me to shuffle,another thread, till it felt right, cut 3 times and "deal" the cards. I always felt flipping/turning more than one was not allowing your subconcious a chance to pick the cards it really wanted. Fanning was too messy.

My current stile is to sort of start a cut and work for their, top or bottom, for a card or 2 trying to see what feels right. Then I close the deck up and "cut" again. Cards that fall out are worked into the spread somehow but maybe only as extras.

[Jenny-Li]

Originally posted by RedWood
I cut my deck for each card..i see it in my mind where it is at and cut to it.

Lawguy - welcome to the forum! This is an interesting question, I've been thinking alot about this too lately!

RedWood, I've basically done this too lately, but only for three card readings - I cut the deck in three, and feel out which pile goes in which position, then I take the top card from each pile, and that's it. But how do you do it for larger spreads? Cutting 10 piles for a CC-spreads seems a bit over the top... Or do you just cut the deck, pick one card, re-cut the deck for the next card, and then again for the next and the next etc...? *just trying to picture the process here...!*

Thanks!
Light and love,
Jenny

[catlin]

I do both in readings.

[Trogon]

Lawguy; welcome to A.T.!

My personal method is to shuffle, have the querrent cut the cards, then deal off the top. Perhaps this is just my card playing history coming back to haunt me though... Also, since we're basically talking simple mechanics here - I take the card and turn it over flipping it from top to bottom as I deal it. Just in case you were wondering about that as well...

[Kazz]

Originally posted by catlin
I do both in readings.

Yes I also do both.
When reading for myself i like to cut them, and when i read for others I give them the cards to shuffle then i fan them out and they then choose the cards for a specific spread.( sometimes when reading for friends and they don't like the reading, I say ..well you chose the cards!!!...LOL)

Cheers
Kazz

[lawguy51]

Thanks everyone for replying and welcoming me. It seems that the answer is...do what feels right for you.