21 Ways To Read A Tarot Card -- step TWO

Bumpy_Boo

21 ways, step two

Savage Tarot - High Priestess

The card I selected is sparse, visually, but this is what I got:

I am a young woman, and seemingly alone in this room. The room itself is bare. The old, yellowing white walls are cracked with age and decay. I am in a place nobody ever really goes, this is my first impression - it is in a total state of neglect.

I am on my knees in the room, holding my head - am I troubled, or just trying to concentrate? It is difficult to say for certain whether I am here of my own free will, but I AM here alone. If there are others here, they do not make themselves known. They could be watching me in here, but there is nothing visible to suggest it. I am alone in here with my thoughts, whatever they may be. There is nobody here with which to share my knowledge, should I choose to - nobody to listen.
 

Ivy Rhiannon

Step Two

Druidcraft Tarot - The Fferyllt

I feel a bubbling within me as the cauldron starts to boil under the scrutiny of my eye. I have prepared everything in advance. All must be perfect to create this elixir. Outside a blessing from the Goddess fills the sky, and fills me with hope. My life's work is brewing before me now, waiting for this very moment. I hold the cylinder gathering a tiny amount of the blood red potion and pick up the other prepared vial full of another precious liquid. Then in a moment of pure anticipation, I must hold quiet in my steady hands, I slowly begin to pour. I hold my breath, watching the two combine in pure balance of a perfected equation.
 

Minnie

21 ways Step 2

Radiant Rider Waite -Judgement


I am the angel of resurrection i am,high up in the sky i am blowing my trumpet for all to hear that it is time to rise up from the dead to be reborn as a time of new transformation is ahead. I feel the soft clouds that are surrounding me , i see the men , woman and children looking up and raising their hands in awe of me as i hover in the beautiful blue sky .The white flag that is hanging off my trumpet is gently flapping in the breeze ,it has a red cross on it, which is a symbol of peace that is letting the people below know that i mean them no harm . There are huge mountains in the distant in which i have a birds eye view i can see for miles and miles . The water below me is the colour of a turquoise blue which has a rippling effect representing all the overwhelming emotions that are radiating off the peoples excitement and joy of being reborn .
 

poopsie

Step 2 etruscan tarot three of swords

I am the Greek hero Ajax and I have captured the high priestess and Trojan princess Cassandra and am stabbing her, plunging my blade into her heart as she begs for her life. I have finally achieved victory after long years of fighting for something I still am wondering about -- I do my duty as a hero and soldier but I am somehow unclear as to whether there is a sense of rightness or wrongness in all of this. Be that as it may, she has succumbed.

From the High Priestess' perspective --

I am nearing my end... I beg and ask the warrior to spare me but he has stabbed my heart ... three swords hang behind me and as my life slowly fades away, I am wondering if I have truly lived my life to the fullest or are there still things and issues I have not yet resolved, have remained hanging and undone.
 

MaineGirl117

Step 2 Gilded Tarot - Temperance

I am rising above the clouds. I’ve adorned myself in vibrant orange silk which clings to my body, and my hair reflects this color. Clouds, murky and dark roll beneath me. They do, however, have silver edgings. Behind me a large red planet looms, half exposed to the light, and half in the dark. In my left hand I hold a gold goblet. Fire springs from the rim of the goblet, and water pours forth? Or to? The bottom. I am looking somewhat curiously into this goblet - what have I missed or what fascinates me? In my right hand I hold a silver cup. Water rises up from this cup and joins in a stream with the other. Wrapped around my right arm are bits of fabric. I have a large bump beneath my right ear, and on my right elbow.
 

Soaring Eagle

21 Ways...Step Two

Step Two: Celtic Dragon - 8 Strength

I am wearing a yellow dress with green trim. I am wearing a brown belt with green strings and a red necklace. The top of my dress has a brown trim. Around my shoulders I wear a green shawl. | am standing on two rocks, and there are small dragons sitting on the rocks around me. I am reaching my left hand out and touching a large orange dragon under its jaw. He has his wings spread, and is breathing steam at me, but I am determined to show him that I am not afraid, that I have earned the right to continue past him, on my path. The hillside behind me is rocky, and two trees are growing on the rocks over a cave entrance.
 

pacificwaters

21 Ways: Step Two (RWS-Queen of Pentacles)

I am the Queen of Pentacles and am currently sitting on a hard brown wooden throne. As a Queen I feel I am royal and elegant. My throne has intricate carvings on it and which are also visible easily from afar. I feel I have a good height. There is a headgear on my head from which a long yellow cloth flows. This cloth is almost as long as my height, rather I think it is even more longer as the cloth flows on to the ground and besides my red shoes when I stay seated on the throne. My headgear has a simplistic design and the only minimalistic decoration it has is a small piece of art on its top in the centre. The headgear has carefully concealed my hairs but even then a small lump of hairs do seem to come out, cover my ears (the left one in the picture) and then disappear behind the neck again and never to be visible again. Don’t you feel I have long hair and hence an attempt to keep them covered??

I have a large Pentacle in my hand which I have held firmly with my right hand as it rests on my right thigh. The left hand and the left thigh help me support it. I am intensely looking at this Pentacle and concentrating very hard which I think others can understand as even my eye-brows are twitched when I watch over this Pentacle. I am wearing a white inner suit with full sleeves. There is a red royal gown that I have worn over it. The hues/color of my shoes and the gown are the same. The left hand-rest of my throne has the carving of a goat’s head.

In the background of my throne, there is a creeper that grows and which appears to be dry initially but full of life and bloom as it reaches the height of over my throne, where on the upper side it is laden with red flowers and berries and which stop appearing again as the creeper starts descending and reaches a height that is less than that of my throne. From in between the gap of my throne and the creeper, you can see a mountain in the far backdrop. Even on my right hand side there is another mountain in the backdrop. There are also 2 streams that seem to come from afar and pass by this mountain. There are surroundings that scream bountifulness around me –red flowers, berries, foliage, streams of water, mountains, etc. Also there is a red rabbit that is sitting on the left side beside my leg. I am sure you all can see it :) The time of the day is also when the sun is up there in the sky..!
 

SatuGustafson

Step 2: Fairy Tale Tarot (Lisa Hunt): 7 of Pentacles

2.1
A man is standing barefoot and in shabby clothes in a forest surrounded by lots of knarled trees, one of which resembles a human figure raising its hands up in despair. The man is wearing a red vest and has his hand raised to the back of his head as if he is scratching it. In his right hand he is holding an axe with a silver blade. Before him is a tree stump with a hole in it and a golden goose is sitting in that hole. To the right you can see part of the tree that was probably cut down lying on the ground.

2.2
I am standing in a forest surrounded by trees. I am barefoot and my clothing is ragged. To my left, there is a knarled tree, which resembles an old lady throwing her hands up in the air lamenting. I am holding an axe in my right hand and my left hand is raised to the back of my head. In front of me, there is a tree stump with a hole in it and a golden goose is sitting in the hole. There are pentacles engraved around the hole. To the right I can see a cut-down tree trunk which also has a hole in it.

Adept:
2:2 (What items from the sample description of the King of Cups seem worth investigating further?)

Waterfall coming through gap in rocks (where does the water come from - water = emotions; waterfall - emotions breaking their way)
Scene seems solitary - is anybody else except for the bird there? Why not? Is the King of Cups alone because he chose to?
What is he fishing for? What are his chances of success?
What does the bird signify?

2:3 Marking the statements

a/O; b/S; c/S; d/O; e/S; f/O; g/S; h/S; i/O
 

SatuGustafson

So many posts! Wow! I started reading the whole thread and gave up. I have decided to just read this year's replies. But it is great how many different cards/decks are present here. I'm sure I'll return every now and then to read the rest of the descriptions.

Something I observed is that it is very hard to stay on the merely descriptive level. I have had some practice with this as I teach communications/linguistics and scenic interpretation among other things, which involves talking about body language. Doing that requires a description of posture and facial expression that is as neutral as possible in order to be able to speculate what posture and expression could mean. My students always start with "The man looks happy/sad". And it always takes a while to leave that ground and get them to "just observe".
"The corners of the man's mouth are pointing upward" or "The man's eyes are cast down and the corners of his mouth point downward" rather than "He's happy" or "He's sad". I myself find it very hard and often use the "he seems to..." cheat. ;-) But my experience is that when you force yourself to really only observe and note down what you can really see objectively (or as objective as human vision can ever be), you get better results when you interpret what you can see later on.

I am aware there are still some subjective speculations in my description, too like the word "lamenting"...it should probably be "with her hands raised above her head and what appears to be a face contorted so that it looks as if she is screaming or lamenting" and even that is still a bit subjective because I'm using the "as if" cheat again.

So...what sounds fairly easy, i.e. "Describe your card" is in fact very difficult. But I think it's an important step because as a tarot reader I should practice not to jump to conclusions too soon and try not to judge.
 

Lady Indigo

STEP TWO: Sun and Moon Tarot, The Hermit

There is an elderly woman standing in front of a great wall in which Hindi script is written several feet up. She is wearing a loose-fitting and skirt, in pink and orange respectively, secured by a brown belt. She's wearing two strands of beads around her neck that appear to be pink and purple in color. She is carrying a gold trident in her right hand, and a large lantern shaped like an hourglass in her left. Attached to the trident is a drum and a bell. The woman appears to be indoors standing before a yellowed and cracked wall, as if in a cave, but her feet are bare. She appears to be the guardian or interpreter of the script behind her.