A plea for sanity: beginners, DON'T use the Celtic Cross!

Talisman

"My suggestion for everyone - new to tarot or not - is to adapt a spread to suit you... " -- Kayne

I absolutely agree with Kayne here. Doesn't matter whether you take a known spread and simply adopt it, or adapt it, or start from scratch. You can do what Kayne did. Take the Celtic Cross, file off the registration number, change the plates, give it a new paint job, drive it across the state line, and it is yours forever.

In any case, once you have adopted/adapted/created your very own spread, it can be very valuable to you. And doing this will enrich your whole understanding of tarot.

Talisman
 

Liliana

isthmus nekoi (05 Feb, 2002 03:25):
I also think that the type of deck you use can influence what sort of spread would be appropriate. i.

I dont think a cc would be appropriate at all for a round deck, doing the crossing card while still getting the direction the card should be facing would be hard, but a round deck would do well for a tree of life spread
 

Umbrae

Thanks for the post Thirteen.

You know, after 30 years of readings – I still do not use the Celtic Cross.
 

Thirteen

Umbrae said:
Thanks for the post Thirteen.

You know, after 30 years of readings – I still do not use the Celtic Cross.

Hey, thanks for ressurrecting it. Especially with such a great message--not because I want to drive folk away from the "evil" CC, but because people should know that it's all right not to "get it." Just because the CC doesn't work for you, or you find it difficult, doesn't mean you're not (or can't be) a true tarot reader.
 

Alissa

This is a great thread revival. I weigh in agreeing with Thirteen, it's an awful hard spread to start with.

I've always used the CC, but only because of the exact reason Thirteen mentions -- it was the only one in the LWB, which was my only resource at the time. I was an absolute beginner, and often boggled at the spread results early on.

I have often added 4 clarifiers to the bottom of the celtic cross, just to help me figure out how the heck all the other info fits in. (great more cards!) But it did help when I did.

Now, I feel absolutely LIBERATED to find this abundance of all these other fantastic spreads, ones which made EVER SO much more sense~, here at this site (and in the Tarot library I'm building).

I've been ignorant of allllll these fantastic other spreads until landing at this site (vive le Aeclectic) and since then, I've not used the CC for months, and don't feel the need to. i might in the future, but it's so GREAT to have options. It has changed the way I read completely, and for the better I think.
 

Sinta

Strange... this was the first spread I ever made and it had genuine exact results.. I didn't know it was a hard spread... At that time I didn't even have my own deck, but borrowed my boyfriend's deck. It was the only spread I knew about because I saw him use it a lot of times, so i tried following it..

So far, I'm quite pleased with the Celtic Cross ;) Eitherways, I hope I'm not the only one... it is a wonderful spread. But as i say, to each their own.
 

LeahG

Re: A plea for sanity: beginners, DON&#39T use the Celtic Cross!

Thirteen said:
Warning: The following is a personal bias diatribe :)

I've long had a beef about this--the little white books that come with tarot decks all emphasize one spread: the Celtic Cross.

The problem? This is a VERY HARD spread. It has weird designations, like "This crosses you" and two "outcomes" as well as a "near future," some times a "basis" or "Above/below" (what the heck does this mean?) and ten cards (a lot for a beginner!). Very vague, very complicated, very confusing. Even the layout (why the cross in the middle then a line to the side? Do you read the two parts together or seperately?).


Hi Thirteen,

I have to agree with you, when you are a beginner, the Celtic Cross can be overwhelming. I would say over the past few months I have really started to understand it better, I can see the pairs of cards, what cards are influencing others etc etc. But fully agree for a real beginner, try three card spreads first, they give you the confidence you need...
 

Macavity

I think it's very sensible advice. My approach to learning was to almost immediately look for a smaller spread. I think the thing is... the sheer quantity of cards. I *could* make up a story (to myself) but simply found that by the time I'd got to the end, a degree of mental exhaustion had set in (sic), plus I'd forgotten what happened at the beginning. Maybe it has something to do with the basic notion that most human beings can only concentrate on about seven "things" at the same time! There are exceptions to this rule of course and doubtless practice helps... :)

Mac
 

Alex

I think 13 is right

but I like a simplified version of the celtic cross that only takes the cross into account. Then you have a temporal component (past-present-future) as well as conscious and unconscious factors (above and below). If you wanna go one step further, you can add a card "crossing" the present situation. It's simple and gives a bit of more info than a 3-card spread.

Yet the more I learn the more I like 3-card spreads.
 

LeahG

Umbrae said:
Thanks for the post Thirteen.

You know, after 30 years of readings – I still do not use the Celtic Cross.

Umbrae - 30 years - I knew you were wise - but wow!

sorry I know this is not related to thread - will start one, actually will search to see if one has already been done.....