The Importance of the Question

JMI_Tarot

I was just reading in Hannah Arendt's "The Life of the Mind" in the part where she examines the Will.
She writes about how everyone thinks they understand "time" and take for granted we know what it is, until we are asked the simple question, "What is Time" and suddenly we are faced with an intricate riddle where previously was a fairly mundane concept.

All learning and understanding, starts with the questions we ask. A math teacher can show us a formula and we know it works, but until we ask, why or how it works, we won't really understand the formula, will we?

This led me to think about how we go about asking questions in Tarot. Whether we are asking for ourselves or helping someone else, the forming of the question is fundamental. To dig down to the real question is an important skill for any tarot reader.

For example, someone asks, "Does _____ love me?" A common question. I bet I am not alone in trying not to just roll my eyes at someone who asks this kind of question. But of course, that won't help anyone. So what if we ask, "Why do you want/need to know that?" Now, the person is really thinking. And we can keep digging until we get to the the REAL question and at that point the learning, the understanding can begin.

I think this is a very fundamental part of Tarot reading, as important a skill as knowing what the cards mean. It's a real test of your skill and intuition before you ever lay down a card.

I wonder if any of you have any opinions on this or any techniques you employ to get to the right question with yourself or with others.

Farzon

You're so right about this! I even dedicated a round of the Newbies Exchange Circle only to posing questions (speaking of which, I should do this again).

I think a well chosen question is at the center of a reading. Of course general readings hold a value of their own, but a question is a challenge for both, the reader and the querent.

The querent has to confront themselves with why exactly they want a reading, as you say. And for the reader, it can be quite challenging to put the cards into the context of the question. Challenging because the question might shift the tone of the interpretation. On the other hand a question enables the reader to become very precise with their statements and really tell a story.

Barleywine

Call me "old school," but I use an approach that goes back to an earlier era. I let my clients keep the specific question between themselves and the cards. Although details of their area of interest may come out during the dialogue, I don't consider my knowing it in advance to be crucial to the cards "speaking their piece." In my view, there is a subconscious "communion" between the querent and the cards that occurs during their handling of the deck and emerges in the cards pulled for the spread; my job is to translate their private conversation into a coherent narrative. Usually I never learn what the exact question was, but the readings have never failed to be relevant to the inquiry and my sitters have gone away satisfied with the insights provided.

One main advantage of this method is that it avoids the ethical dilemmas we as readers sometimes agonize over. They could be asking anything from "Does John love me?" to "Should I poison my husband?" and the cards will provide the answer they need to hear at that time. What they choose to do with it is their business, since "ownership" of the reading lies in their hands. In most cases, though, they get much more than they bargained for from the "higher wisdom" invested in the system. The reading serves to "explain them to themselves" in ways that may be consciously inaccessible to them; it can go right to the heart of any "blind spot" they may be willfully avoiding.

JMI_Tarot

Barleywine said:
Call me "old school," but I use an approach that goes back to an earlier era. .... I don't consider my knowing it in advance to be crucial to the cards "speaking their piece." In my view, there is a subconscious "communion" between the querent and the cards that occurs .... Usually I never learn what the exact question was, but the readings have never failed to be relevant to the inquiry and my sitters have gone away satisfied with the insights provided.

.... What they choose to do with it is their business, since "ownership" of the reading lies in their hands. In most cases, though, they get much more than they bargained for from the "higher wisdom" invested in the system. The reading serves to "explain them to themselves" in ways that may be consciously inaccessible to them; it can go right to the heart of any "blind spot" they may be willfully avoiding.

So I have to ask Barleywine, you use a lot of "quotes" in your reply. I sense a general detachment in your communication, not really committing to what you are saying and I wonder if that serves well in readings. It kind of goes with not needing to know the question, which is something I have tried as well. I do see the beauty of it. Detachment is not necessarily good or bad. Call it a "style" or maybe, a style, without quotes.

This technique assumes there is a question, you just don't need to know it in order to commune with the cards and intuit the higher wisdom invested the system.

Sometimes when I go without a question, I have success, but often, to be really honest, without invested input from the querent in the form of a well thought out question, I feel like what I am saying is kind of fake and directionless, like a newspaper horoscope, kind of generic information that anyone could apply anytime.

I find it remarkable and commendable that as you say your "readings have never failed to be relevant to the inquiry and my sitters have gone away satisfied with the insights provided."

I wish I could say the same. I guess what I am getting at is that I see helping someone (and one's self when doing self-readings) to get to a good question, puts a bit of a fire under things, and that energy is helpful to me. It feels real and sparks something in me. Being too detached does not serve me well. I've tried it and have not been pleased with the results and I found it kind of unsatisfying.

I know you have a great deal more experience than I do reading for others and clearly the more detached style works for you, but getting to the heart of a question is a technique I am interested in perfecting.

JMI_Tarot

Farzon said:
I think a well chosen question is at the center of a reading.

Yes, because isn't the point to learn something, and learning starts with a question. So, it makes sense to me that the better the question, the more complete is the learning.

Many great ideas seem to just pop into the heads of inventors and philosophers, but it only happens because they'd been thinking about it and pieces suddenly fit together into "eureka" moment.

Think of the cards as those pieces, fitting together for a "eureka" moment. It doesn't come from thin air. One has to be engaged.

Barleywine

JMI_Tarot said:
So I have to ask Barleywine, you use a lot of "quotes" in your reply. I sense a general detachment in your communication, not really committing to what you are saying and I wonder if that serves well in readings. It kind of goes with not needing to know the question, which is something I have tried as well. I do see the beauty of it. Detachment is not necessarily good or bad. Call it a "style" or maybe, a style, without quotes.

This technique assumes there is a question, you just don't need to know it in order to commune with the cards and intuit the higher wisdom invested the system.

Sometimes when I go without a question, I have success, but often, to be really honest, without invested input from the querent in the form of a well thought out question, I feel like what I am saying is kind of fake and directionless, like a newspaper horoscope, kind of generic information that anyone could apply anytime.

I find it remarkable and commendable that as you say your "readings have never failed to be relevant to the inquiry and my sitters have gone away satisfied with the insights provided."

I wish I could say the same. I guess what I am getting at is that I see helping someone (and one's self when doing self-readings) to get to a good question, puts a bit of a fire under things, and that energy is helpful to me. It feels real and sparks something in me. Being too detached does not serve me well. I've tried it and have not been pleased with the results and I found it kind of unsatisfying.

I know you have a great deal more experience than I do reading for others and clearly the more detached style works for you, but getting to the heart of a question is a technique I am interested in perfecting.

Guilty as charged!

I tend to use quotes when I'm expressing an idea or using a phrase that isn't completely original or is common usage. I try to discipline myself to minimize them, but I also want to be honest. As far as reading for others, I'm always 100% committed to pursuing the truth as shown by the cards, but as part of the story-teller's art I do use a fair amount of metaphor and also what James Ricklef calls "literalisms," in which the quotes are implicit. I don't do written readings (except my input to readings here) so it doesn't present much of a problem.

But of course, detachment is part-and-parcel of how I work, since I want to keep as much of my subjective (and subconscious) bias out of the reading as possible. I try to just read the cards, not the person, since focusing too intently on the querent can come uncomfortably close to what is called "cold reading" these days, or maybe simple psychism. My approach is more analytical than intuitive, at least by a narrow but decisive margin.

I take a utilitarian view of the "question" question: if the client is gaining useful insights from the reading, the question doesn't need to be optimized in my mind, and perhaps not even in theirs. If nothing meaningful is coming through, then we have a dialogue centered on the cards until something does. I never read for others in a vacuum, there is always some form of validation available to me and I take my cue from that when necessary.

magicjack

I think it depends on the "querent" (how's that for old school). Some people know what they want to know and do not care to share the details. Others are very welcome to give you their whole lifes' story. Sometimes the more you dig, the more everyone can get confused. Some just wanted to ask a question. Some don't really know what they really wanted to know if I do change their question (did that make sense?). I always let them know instead of getting black or white, they may get a lot of grey. I do understand what you are saying and I think it's best at that time both people agree on the question, if any, and no matter what it is. That way there is no confusion. Im not sure it's always wise to dig deeper. I think it helps to read the person even before you pull the cards ( do you get the feeling there is something else going on?). A lot of times there is a backstory. I'm not sure I need to know what it is. I'm still going to get the same cards anyway. If you feel there is more to the story, just come out and ask them, is that what you really want to know or is there something else? If it helps you to read the cards better than I would change the question. The main thing is to agree on the question asked if any.

Barleywine

magicjack said:
I think it depends on the "querent" (how's that for old school). Some people know what they want to know and do not care to share the details. Others are very welcome to give you their whole lifes' story. Sometimes the more you dig, the more everyone can get confused. Some just wanted to ask a question. Some don't really know what they really wanted to know if I do change their question (did that make sense?). I always let them know instead of getting black or white, they may get a lot of grey. I do understand what you are saying and I think it's best at that time both people agree on the question, if any, and no matter what it is. That way there is no confusion. Im not sure it's always wise to dig deeper. I think it helps to read the person even before you pull the cards ( do you get the feeling there is something else going on?). A lot of times there is a backstory. I'm not sure I need to know what it is. I'm still going to get the same cards anyway. If you feel there is more to the story, just come out and ask them, is that what you really want to know or is there something else? If it helps you to read the cards better than I would change the question. The main thing is to agree on the question asked if any.

In fact, I do tell my clients there are three basic ways to approach the inquiry: with a specific question silently held in the mind while shuffling; with a particular life-focus area such as romance, work, family, etc, similarly contemplated while shuffling; or with a wide-open, general life-reading focus on upcoming circumstances. Which one they choose usually surfaces at least to some extent during our in-process dialogue. Not having the details in advance is part of the fun and challenge of reading for others, and often produces some surprising revelations since I don't automatically try to fit the interpretation narrowly to the stated subject from the very beginning of the reading. It's a liberating way to work and doesn't short-change the querent in the least. I agree with others here who think the best way to frame a question is "What do I need to know about . . . ?"

arcange

Everytime I've asked for a reading I always asked for a general reading. Readers acurately predicted moving away permanently, a divorce and all kinds of things. I can appreciate Barleywines style. As a querent I tend to be reserved and don't usually want to share too much beforehand, but when the reader unfolds the story it opens me up.

I have noticed that asking specific questions (for myself) for each position in a spread gives amazing insight.

JMI_Tarot

arcange said:
As a querent I tend to be reserved and don't usually want to share too much beforehand, but when the reader unfolds the story it opens me up.

I totally get that. Not every querent and reader are going to be a good match, and some will be great matches. If I had a querent like you, I'd go with the slower, softer approach.

But for the people who do like to open up right away, are maybe a bit effusive, are there any suggestions for helping them hone their question to something that can be most helpful to them?

Whenever I get some variation of "Does _______ love me" my heart kind of sinks. To be honest, I think I just find it boring or banal and would like to try a little harder to make it more interesting and useful for everyone.