my new way of looking at reversals

Molly

I also do not have anything of worth to add, but I did want to say thank you for explaining this concept so clearly. I am very uncomfortable with reversals, being such a beginner. I did a reading this weekend for my aunt. My first "official" reading... and I let her use the shuffle where you spread the deck out on the table and "mush" them all around. Naturally reversals came up, and I really had no idea what to say about them. I used two possible outcome positions, and both were reversed. I felt that as I looked at the overall spread, that there was a lot of blocked energy and that it would take a while for the situation to work out. This thread really reinforced my impression.

I really prefer to use positive and/or negative interpretations for each card, depending on the position in the spread... I really liked this explanation of reversals because it allows me to use my understanding of the meanings AND use reversals - and not memorize whole new meanings.... Thanks again.
 

Ravenswing

major arcana--kabalah reversals

great food for thought being presented. thanks guys-- and here's my slant on the majors.

if we consider the majors on the tree of life, they are pathways connecting the sephiroth. the influence of a major card is to move from a 'higher' sephiroth to a lower. so a reversal could be seen as going up the tree rather than down...

raven
 

Jewel

Re: major arcana--kabalah reversals

Ravenswing said:
if we consider the majors on the tree of life, they are pathways connecting the sephiroth. the influence of a major card is to move from a 'higher' sephiroth to a lower. so a reversal could be seen as going up the tree rather than down...

I do not understand why the reversal would indicate going "up" vs. "down" or even of stagnation. I would think the flow (for lack of a better word) of an upright major would be ascending a pathway ...
 

Thirteen

Energy flows up and down...

Actually, according to Wang, "there is a constant flow as energy passes down from one Sephira to another and up again. The universe is like a gigantic circuit, where power flows into Kether from the Unmanifest, down through the Tree and up again. There is a continual renewal of energy."

So I would say that a reversal would imply that the energy is simply blocked, not flowing.
 

starfish66

Re: Energy flows up and down...

Thirteen said:
So I would say that a reversal would imply that the energy is simply blocked, not flowing.

This is how I see reversals - a blockage.

:TWHEE Starfish
 

Adjustment

Keslynn said:
I've been working with reversals for a while, and I could quite easily spout off the meanings that I gathered from books, etc. However, I finally synthesized my own view of what reversals mean, and I wanted to share with you all. This is probably not a new way of looking at this issue, but I'm still proud of it. ;) Here goes:

If the reading is a river in which one card flows into another in a sort of story, then a reversal is an eddy. It calls attention to that particular card. Since the regular cards flow smoothly, those things require less effort to come into being. But reversals are not so straightforward. They offer a choice. The choice is to move either forward or backwards (not placing a value judgement on direction). In other words, you can choose to go back to the card before it or to go to the one next in number. For example, you get the 2 of Swords in a reading. This offers a choice to go back to the potential of the Ace and to deal with it in perhaps a different way. Or you can move forward to the 3 which will cause pain but ultimately enlightenment. Either way, the querent will no longer be stuck on the blocked 2 energy.

So far this method has been working for me in my readings, in majors as well as minors. For 10 cards, you can go back to the 9 or to the Ace. The only thing it doesn't really work for is the court cards. In the case of a reversed court card, I see it (as Janina Renee outlined in Tarot for a New Generation) as someone who is not comfortable acting out a particular role, or a part of you that is not comfortable.

So that's my theory on reversals. I'm still working with it. Any of your thoughts would be appreciated.

:) Kes
What smart new perspective to look at reversal cards. very positive.
 

Free Flight

Thanks for sharing these theories with us Kes. Very nice way to look at reversals. I always follow the Blocked / immature energy theory with reversals but I think you have eloquently phrased a way how to solve them

I often get the ace of cups reversed for myself which I interpret to mean that the cup is wrong way up and things are leaking out of it. My energy, love etc. I have not before known how to right this cup again but if I use your theory all I need to do is look at the 10 cups or the 2 cups & these cards indicate that I need to focus on partnerships and the positivity they can bring (2C) or that I have from this union a happy family (10C) and I should be more thankful for what I have created.

Thank-you you have just solved a major blockage in my life
 

Requiella

Wow... posts like this validate my decision to return to reading these forums. (Even though I'm still wasting too much time...) Seriously, these are some great ideas. I'm looking forward to trying them out. Thanks for the insights. :)
 

Skydancer

I just wanted to say thank you as well -- I am still working with how to incorporate them into "story lines" and your thoughts here (sharing them) have been very helpful. :)

I'm gonna run off and do a practice reading!!

Ann S:OL
 

MercyMe

I am just beginning to consider using reversals in my readings because I finally feel fairly confident in knowing the general meanings of the cards now, so reversals are the next step. I don't always use them, but I'm occasionally throwing a spread and if a card comes up reversed, I don't automatically turn it around anymore. I just go with whatever my gut tells me at the moment. This way of viewing reversals makes so much sense! One of the reasons I chose not to use reversals in the first place, besides having to learn two meanings for all the cards which seemed overwhelming at first, was because most cards have a wide range of meanings, some positive, some negative, and there are such a wide variety of cards that reversals just didn't seem necessary to me. But this approach seems very helpful in that it not only shows the energy being blocked but gives a way to unblock it. So helpful!

~Mercy