Spreads without predicting?

[romanticdreamz]

Hi all,

Wanted to ask whether anyone could suggest a spread for me that could give me good general reading or even also answer specific questions but without any predictions... (I'm not one for fortune telling and predicting the future and so on.)

I'm fairly new to tarot but open to small or large spreads really. I have adapted one spread to change the future card to one which indicates "things you may have to work one for the future" but the spread itself can be quite confusing... (I saw it in a book somewhere but have no idea what it's called now... *blush*)

Thanks!

 

[Lain_82]

maybe you can adapt spreads like the celtic cross by changing the outcome or near future card for something that you might find better....

3 card spreads are also great for all sorts of purposes, on the forum you can find a lot of them that don't really talk about future.....

I like one that takes the colors of the traffic light: -1: red light, -2: yellow light -3: green light. it can apply to all sort of situations and be very general without needing you to predict the future.

If I see anything else I'll let you know.

 

[Disa]

How about changing the outcome card to be called an "advice" card?

 

[romanticdreamz]

Thanks for the replies so far. I'll be doing some more searching on index as well.

An advice card could be great. Will give it a try later on today!

 

[Sammie]

Often times, I use this simple little spread:

1. What you Have
2. What you Want
3. What you Need

Then if you are feeling brave you can draw a 4th card:

4. What you Get

Lately, I haven't done the 4th card very much as sometimes it isn't fun to know the future and I've had some too accurate results. So, I just do the 3 cards.

This spread is nice because you don't need a question. I've had some very good insights with it.

I did a really interesting reading with this spread and the Vanessa Tarot on my blog.

 

[Sebavin]

There are so many ways to use tarot without bringing in any type of predictions. You can use them as a mirror, to reflect ways you can improve, to find out hidden things about yourself, and for therapy. Tarot can help you understand hurt feelings, and provide optimisim for the future without 'predicting' per se. The celtic cross is sorta generic; you can adapt the postional meanings for whatever personally works for you. I think this is why there are so many versions of it, lol . I'm certain there are many spreads available, offered by other ATers in the spread section. I suck at making my own spreads, but have found many that help, and love trying new spreads! Best wishes in your journey

~Sebavin

Here's a link to the spread index, I've found it very helpful. I especially like the Personal Growth section.

 

[Ligator]

If you feel uncomfortable with the positions that indicate the future in the spreads because you dont believe in predictions, you can do like this:

View it as forecasts!

A forecast works like this. You are doing things today, good, bad, reasonable and foolish things. Everything you do gets consequences. The positions indicating future has to do with the present. Because it is about what will happen if you continue to do what you do today (and the surrounding world does not change things for you)... A forecast. And a forecast is about analyzing things that you do today. Things that you might not even be conscious about today...

It is actually in a sense so that the future decides the present. Our views of the future today, what we do to shape the future today (consciously as well as unconsciously) creates our present as well as our future. We shape our present so that we get the future we want.

That is why I would say that it is a mistake to avoid looking at the future in tarot. Because when you look at the future positions you look at the things you do today, in the present, that shapes the future.

/Torbjörn

 

[avalonian]

Courtesy of the "Songs for the Journey Home", the Bridge spread:

1st (to the left) where I am now

2nd (to the right) where I need to be

3rd (in between the two) how to get there

If needed you can draw extra cards for each position for further clarification.

Simple, straightforward and frequently extremely enlightening.

 

[romanticdreamz]

Thanks everyone! Definitely some things to think about and try!

 

[WolfSpirit]

I often do readings without predictions as well. And even if it is a spread with a prediciton as last card, I often interprete it as advice as well: this is not what is set of stone, but an indication whether you are on the right path or not.

Here is a spread I made to help break bad habits, I found it useful:

................1..............
.............2.....3..........
..........4..........5........
........6..............7......
................8..............
................9..............

1. Where you are now
2. Where you went wrong
3. First step towards breaking the habit
4. Your blind spot - what you just don't see
5. Changes in your everyday life that will help you
6. Bad influences that draw you back
7. How to stay motivated on the way to improvement
8. What you should avoid
9. What you should do instead.