Barleywine
I usually see it with cards that have figures facing directly away from the observer, such as the 3 of Wands and 10 of Wands, or otherwise clearly ignoring the observer, like the 5 of Cups.
Reversals - Random or not?
I usually see it with cards that have figures facing directly away from the observer, such as the 3 of Wands and 10 of Wands, or otherwise clearly ignoring the observer, like the 5 of Cups.
Krystophe
I like this idea a lot, and it will certainly be a valuable addition to my sense of the more shadowed aspects of a card's energy.
These are the sort of concepts that endear me to reversals because they would be more difficult to discern directly from a single card solely through intuition (although I agree it can be deduced from a chain of cards with some ingenuity). Besides, sometimes simple and direct is better; not every thought that comes out of a spread deserves weighty pondering, especially when trying to give concrete advice to a sitter. Sometimes I can be a pragmatist as much as a theoretician (but don't blink or you might miss it!)
I agree with this 100% in theory; in practice, I find (speaking only for myself and my own readings, of course) that not every thought that comes from a spread calls for such weighty pondering. I usually find that the context of the question, including known information about the situation, and the surrounding cards provide sufficient focus to eliminate a substantial number of possibilities from the very beginning of the interpretation.
I'll be the first to admit, though, that too much pondering can be one of my biggest weaknesses. I have a habit of revisiting a spread over the course of several days to reconsider what it has to offer. Less theory and more pragmatism might indeed serve me well.
Pique Dame
Yowza! 
So many replies! I wasn't anticipating this many responses! Which is a good thing! I'm seeing a lot of discussion about the many different ways to interpret a reversal but what I'm mainly curious about is how much you believe a card appearing in reverse is intentional or pure chance. My shuffling method is pretty consistent and I've always trusted the process but I'm starting to question things.
To give another example of when a reversal felt random: I did a spread 2+ years ago asking what my then-boyfriend and I would end up doing for his 40th birthday. I pulled Chariot, 8 of swords, and 9 of Wands, all upright. When he was having trouble making a decision about what to do and it was getting down to the wire with me requesting time off from work or not, I did the spread again and got Lovers, 8 of Swords Rx, and 9 of Wands. Almost the exact same cards and in the exact same order, except 8 of Swords was curiously upended that time around. What ended up happening was we took a trip together (Chariot/Lovers) to San Francisco (8 of Swords = being in a big city surrounded by tall steel structures) and later drove to Napa Valley for wine tasting (9 of Wands = being out in the countryside surrounded by trees and grapevines). The pips were purely symbolic so the 8/S appearing in reverse the 2nd time around clearly had little to do with its role in the spread. So why was it? It may have just been the way I shuffled the deck.
Grizabella and Barleywine, what is your multi-pile deal? I've seen it referenced a few times but don't know what it is.
So many replies! I wasn't anticipating this many responses! Which is a good thing! I'm seeing a lot of discussion about the many different ways to interpret a reversal but what I'm mainly curious about is how much you believe a card appearing in reverse is intentional or pure chance. My shuffling method is pretty consistent and I've always trusted the process but I'm starting to question things.To give another example of when a reversal felt random: I did a spread 2+ years ago asking what my then-boyfriend and I would end up doing for his 40th birthday. I pulled Chariot, 8 of swords, and 9 of Wands, all upright. When he was having trouble making a decision about what to do and it was getting down to the wire with me requesting time off from work or not, I did the spread again and got Lovers, 8 of Swords Rx, and 9 of Wands. Almost the exact same cards and in the exact same order, except 8 of Swords was curiously upended that time around. What ended up happening was we took a trip together (Chariot/Lovers) to San Francisco (8 of Swords = being in a big city surrounded by tall steel structures) and later drove to Napa Valley for wine tasting (9 of Wands = being out in the countryside surrounded by trees and grapevines). The pips were purely symbolic so the 8/S appearing in reverse the 2nd time around clearly had little to do with its role in the spread. So why was it? It may have just been the way I shuffled the deck.
Grizabella and Barleywine, what is your multi-pile deal? I've seen it referenced a few times but don't know what it is.
Krystophe
I understand the energy of a card in pretty much the way you describe here, I just don't normally use upside-down cards to determine exactly where along that spectrum to place them.
Agreed that my way of reading may be more taxing to the reader; that's one of the reasons why I typically prefer shorter spreads of three to five cards. With a larger spread, some sort of a "shorthand" (Barleywine's very apt term) can make things more manageable.
Amanda
I was responding more or less to this question you posed, and my answer suggesting the (non-random) significance of a reversal's placement.
I can see where there is significance between the upright and reversal (without being strictly visual); essentially you were being told the same thing in two different ways, but I cannot comment on the spread here. Pretty impressive actually, that your cards came up so distinct to split a hair like this for you while maintaining the answer.
Barleywine
Yowza!
Grizabella and Barleywine, what is your multi-pile deal? I've seen it referenced a few times but don't know what it is.
I try to introduce as much "pure chance" into the original distribution as possible by my randomizing technique, then let the querent's shuffle-and-cut choose the specific cards for the reading. I realize it's me creating the reversed distribution and not the sitter, but I couldn't hope to explain the process and the reasoning to a client sitting across the table from me during a reading, so I make that concession.
I'll let Griz explain the randomizing technique, since I got it from her - I just use more piles.
Marsy
Yowza!
To give another example of when a reversal felt random: I did a spread 2+ years ago asking what my then-boyfriend and I would end up doing for his 40th birthday. I pulled Chariot, 8 of swords, and 9 of Wands, all upright. When he was having trouble making a decision about what to do and it was getting down to the wire with me requesting time off from work or not, I did the spread again and got Lovers, 8 of Swords Rx, and 9 of Wands. Almost the exact same cards and in the exact same order, except 8 of Swords was curiously upended that time around. What ended up happening was we took a trip together (Chariot/Lovers) to San Francisco (8 of Swords = being in a big city surrounded by tall steel structures) and later drove to Napa Valley for wine tasting (9 of Wands = being out in the countryside surrounded by trees and grapevines). The pips were purely symbolic so the 8/S appearing in reverse the 2nd time around clearly had little to do with its role in the spread. So why was it? It may have just been the way I shuffled the deck.
Grizabella and Barleywine, what is your multi-pile deal? I've seen it referenced a few times but don't know what it is.
When I came to this cross road is when I decided to stop reading reversals. I didn't know if it was due to my shuffling/misplaced cards that were enabling the cards to come up reverse especially when 2 or 3 cards came out reversed right next to each other.
So I decided to turn all the cards upright to cut out the confusion and I haven't had any issues and I've actually got a reversed card pop out a time or 2 and in that instance, I knew that I needed to read the card in that way because that happening certainly wasn't by chance but tarot shouting at me sort of speak. Afterward I turned it upright and put it back in the deck and continued on as I feel there are enough cards in the deck that can reveal what is being told without needing to use reversals.
Barleywine
This is one of the better discussions we've had on reversals in a while. Usually they become the tarot-reader's version of the Monty Python "Argument Clinic," with one side insisting "No it isn't!" and the other side countering with "Yes it is!" I've sharpened my focus slightly because of it, always a good thing.
Krystophe
I've been thinking the same thing. Although I stopped using inverted cards quite some time ago, this discussion has given me some new perspective on the subject. I think it unlikely that I will go back to using them again, having developed other methods that still feel more satisfying to me, but I have to say that it's been quite refreshing to hear other viewpoints.
I think it's quite a good idea every now and then to entertain opinions from people who aren't me...
Barleywine
One thing I realized is that I really use both approaches. I read "into" the non-reversed cards for qualitative hints at the same time I consider reversals in a more "outward" or situation-oriented sense. I do the same thing with Elemental Dignities and reversals: I don't think one supplants or supersedes the other because they really tackle the issue in different ways. EDs increase or decrease the "power" and "purity" of a card's expression, for good or ill, while reversals change (often subtly) how that expression is received. One is a matter of "quantity," the other more a matter of "quality." (That's not a perfect analysis of the differences, but close enough.)
