To allow reversals or not - that is the question!

I "correct" any reversed cards I notice when I shuffle or go through the deck. I do it without thinking; I just like things to be in order. So on the rare occasions when there are any reversals I read them as such. Like with upright cards, I literally look at the card upside down (the card, not me) and let it tell me what it means. Then I look at its prescribed meaning. But I almost always like to go with my first impressions, usually in combination with the written meaning.

I voted 'No - but on rare occasions I do'.

I just can't get along with reversals, in the few times I have used them I end up reversing the card back to its usual position so I can read it anyway. I like to be able to see the card upright as I read and I also think that there are enough negative cards in a deck to be able to give an accurate view of a situation. I also shuffle my cards so as not to get reversals.

I don't read reversals at all

I've been a student of astrology much longer than tarot - but for me the same principles apply - everything has an opposite or contrasting facet to the one initially presented. I learned long ago with astrology that the majority of cutesey little daily horoscopes in the newspaper are pretty much based upon the perceived attractive elements of Sun signs, and are very limiting.

Tarot (and astrology) is for me a way to prompt my intuitive and psychic nature to look fully at a situation or question. That naturally means that I have to consider all the angles when I interpret a spread. I don't think that astrology or tarot impart knowledge to us that we don't already possess - the knowledge has simply been buried in our subconcious minds, and is brought to the surface during a reading.

????

I still don't know what is meant by 'allow.'

When I shuffle, my method does not produce reversed cards at all.

However, then querents shuffle, the invariably reverse cards, so I always let them stay that way.

Voted No but always read the full meaning of the card as you dont always know what makes sense for the querent!
There are rare times however when a card has been drawn or fallen out during shuffling in a reversal situation I feel it should be left as it makes sense to the spread, possibly more for visual purposes!

Love Wendy

I voted no, but sometimes I do.
I only use reversals when I do a spread with one or two cards.
That doesn't happen very often.
Mostley the cards show me the way in an upright position.
Reversals make me convused.

I always allow reversed cards. I figure that they're reversed for a reason, and have discovered that if I ignore this the reading doesn't ring true. I don't think that reversed cards always have a negative meaning. Often, the reversed cards have to do with the upright meaning, but indicate that there is something more problematic, complicated, unconscious, etc. about the issue.

I’m new to Tarot, and this is an issue I’ve already had to deal with. After my first couple of months, I decided not to use reversed cards. That was mainly to make things simpler as I learned to see a story in the cards. But in one area it had the opposite effect, and that was the area jmd pointed out in the first post of this thread.

Say I have a three-card, Past, Present, Future spread, and the middle card is the Hermit. If the hermit were free to face either direction, I’d probably determine whether his time as a hermit was mostly due to a response to his past, or to a search for something still ahead, on the basis of which way he was facing. But for now, I don’t have that hint.

Still in other ways, using all upright cards simplifies things for me. So I’ll probably stick with that for now. But I’m sure I’ll enjoy the day when my court cards and trumps will be able to turn their heads and look the other way again.

I'm quite new to tarot, myself. Reversals (and if i should/how often use them and how do i tell) have been a cause of [i dont want to say stress, but for lack of a better phrase: confusion] for me, and this thread has been absoluetly helpful. I'm learning to trust my intuitions more and I don't worry so much about the reversals as i did when i first began. If the card wants to reverse i guess i'll let it, especially if it makes more sense that way (even if it is more for me to study up on). I don't go around mixing it up on purpose though. Now that i know i'm not alone in this I'm even more comfortable with myself and my cards.

Sulis said:

I voted `no` as I don`t deliberately turn my cards so that some of them are reversed. I do think that most cards have a spectrum of meanings and as others have already said it depends on the spread and the surrounding cards as to how I interpret them.

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That's what I wrote in 2002 and that's how it was at first.

Nowadays I do use reversals. I've been using them for about 18 months and I think they add more detail to a reading and make it easier to pinpoint exactly how to interpret particular cards.

I used only upright cards for a couple of years and I'd definately advise a beginner to get a good grasp of the card meanings in their upright positions before they start turning them upside down.

Love

Sulis xx