Dud readings?

lantana

I'm one of those people who think decks can get tired. (It's an animism thing.) So if a deck keeps throwing jumbled readings no matter what I do, I know it's time to put it back on the shelf and let it sit for awhile.

Of course, jumbled readings can be user error as well. Sometimes when a reading comes up jumbled I'll put the deck down, do some breathing exercises, and try to ground myself. They'll usually be fine after that. I should probably start doing this before I start pulling cards, but I'm scatterbrained. :p

I have noticed that with time and experience, I've had less and less readings that felt like pure rubbish as I've gained connections to the cards and started learning how the cards play off each other. So experience does help, but sometimes you (or the deck) just have a bad day. It happens!
 

ilikeskittles

I have one deck that always gives me dud readings, not sure why but I never use it anymore! lol. I only tend to pull duds if I'm reading for myself, I have a strong personality so I think sometimes my energy is too strong to read clearly or in an unbiased way. I will say though, sometimes pulling cards that appear to be random make some sense down the road, or apply to a different situation... Like I may ask about one thing, but the cards are trying to tell me about something else entirely. Not always, sometimes the reading is just a dud, but it's happened. I always make sure to write down the cards I got even if I suspect a dud reading, because sometimes they make sense down the road. Then I look back and I'm like oh! duh! that's what that meant.
 

JDusk

Most of the time, if I get a reading that doesn't make much sense it's because I rushed it and didn't take my time shuffling until it "felt" right. Sometimes I feel silly shuffling and reshuffling and splitting the deck in weird places until I feel it's ready, but the cards always seem to reward me with a more accurate and nuanced reading when I do. I guess my theory is that I need to give it time to let the right cards come together in the right order.
 

nisaba

Hi everyone,

I wonder if I could get people's views on dud readings? That is, laying out the cards and getting nothing more than a jumble.

Age and experience tends to make them rarer and rarer.
 

DJP

lantana,

Thanks for the input. Talking of animism - I only clicked last year (much to my surprise) that I've always been an animist to some extent, as a sort-of default position . It was a strange realization.

ilikeskittles,

Thanks for reiterating a consistent theme in this thread - be prepared to give some readings time to develop..... I shall remind myself of this daily. Interestingly, my 'duds' seem to mainly appear when reading for someone else, but thankfully not often..... For me, it's easier to make sense of things when reading for yourself as you've got a lot more info to use when trying to find relevance. Or maybe that just means I'm self involved!

JDusk,

I know what you mean. Shuffling and when to stop is a strange thing. I try not to think about it too much.

nisaba,

Well, at least I'm making daily progress on the first half of that formula.