Y is a crooked Letter!! and Z 's no better?

[Rosanne]

I guess in the line of importance to a Tarot reading, first you have the Reader- or is it first you have a Deck? Then you have the questioner/Querent
or is it next you have the Question? Aha! you are not just looking at the cards! You want to know something from them? They are painted peices of card, they cannot mind read- so a very important part of a Tarot reading is the framing of a Question.
I have spent the last two days looking through as many Tarot Books as I could and it seems to me that this important aspect is largely ignored. In general the books seem to say "when using Tarot cards, its preferable to have a question in mind, even if it is a general one. Be specific" So your Querent doesn't have a question? Well you would have to have one then? would'nt you? Or are you just going to look at the cards? So this aspect of the reading takes up about one paragraph in every book I have looked in.
I was looking back over my reading records for when I read for others and I was astounded at the questions asked that I do not think Tarot can answer. For example- Should I tell my friend this or that?, Will I be happy in my new Home?, When will I win Lotto? etc etc all seemingly impossible to answer. Or was it the way the question was specificly put? The dreaded one for me was always "Is my partner having an affair?" It seems I would have turned that around a bit to "What are my options if my partner is having an affair?" or something along those lines.......
Maybe you can give me ground rules as to questions- how to frame them accurately, especially when reading for oneself......which reminds me...am I ever going to win Lotto? the cards will not tell me. ~Rosanne

 

[Ace]

I have spent the last two days looking through as many Tarot Books as I could and it seems to me that this important aspect is largely ignored. In general the books seem to say "when using Tarot cards, its preferable to have a question in mind, even if it is a general one. Be specific" So your Querent doesn't have a question? Well you would have to have one then? would'nt you? Or are you just going to look at the cards? So this aspect of the reading takes up about one paragraph in every book I have looked in.

Cards can't read minds but you can and I believe do. Cards can't answer what the future WILL be, since it doesn't exist yet. but it can answer: what is something this querent would want to know? Will are the possible consequences of telling this to my friend? and What will it take to make me comfortable in my new home? (if the answer is a Million dollars, you might want to reconsider the purchase.)
Ace

 

[raeanne]

Hi Rosanne,
I have also notice how tarot books don't spend much time on "Question Selection". This is, I believe, a very important topic. Tarot can be blindingly literal. The question "Is my spouse cheating on me?" is a simple Yes/No question. Flip a coin if you only want that kind of answer. Most of the people who ask that type of question already have a gut feeling about the answer anyway so I feel it is just a pointless waste of time. Personally I prefer to start with a statement such as: "I believe my spouse is cheating on me." Then you can build a spread that will address the specifics of the case.

 

[Rosanne]

Hi Rosanne,
I have also notice how tarot books don't spend much time on "Question Selection". This is, I believe, a very important topic. Tarot can be blindingly literal.

Thanks raeanne for your observations. (also Ace for yours) I never used to worry to much about the question, because it was brought to me by the querent; I changed it in my mind if I felt it was 'a flip the coin' type anyway. In a flippant brain storming with some friends about asking the Universe for a specific request- it was felt that -'be careful what you ask for, you might get it' ,made requests for answers mindful of how the question was framed. So I related how the same applied to Tarot. But there was such a dearth of good solid advice in the books we looked for the information. We looked in a wide range as well. It occured to me that maybe a lot of the readings that could not be applied (for myself included) were due to the way the question was framed.
As Tarot in my mind is about the 'possibilities' it seems to me that questions should be started with - 'How' not 'will I.." etc. I wondered, with the wide diversity of people here- how much thought was put into the Question? Also why authors seemed to skip blythly over this and spend so much time on spreads? Was it because spreads inherently were a question in themselves?
So many people have difficulty verbalising a question I thought it worthy of discussion. ~Rosanne

 

[Kahlie]

I have a whole section on my Website especially about framing Questions. I often have Questions that are filled with subquestions (muddles the water) or are yes/no or are in any way unclear etc.

I also noticed almost nobody puts it in books, but every Reader talks about it with their Querent =)

Kahlie

 

[Rosanne]

Hi Kahlie- I went to your very clear and articulate website-thank you. It was probally due to the fact I am not very Computer lit. that I could not find the section on framing questions. I would very much like to hear/read that section. As you said 'the question ' issue comes up for every reading! - if anyone can point me towards other sources that talk about 'the Question' I would be grateful. ~Rosanne

 

[Penelope]

A thought from Penny

I've found that it's very hard to unask a question once you've
realised that is what you are really concerned with just then.
How too can you honestly block what truly matters from your
thoughts or rephrase your feelings to satisy a technical itch?

...and Rosanne Hope this helps...

Link to Questions:
Rianne's Tarot and Oracle Readings
http://homepages.ipact.nl/~Rianne/question.htm

 

[Rosanne]

Thanks Penelope for your reply and a correct link. It is true about unasking a question once it pops up for a reading. I only rephrase a question occasionly when it is narrowed by the start "Will I........" I have had people come and you ask quietly what they would like to ask of Tarot; they sometimes get a blank look on their faces as if formulating a question is Mount Everest to climb. I have noticed they are mostly likely to ask the "Will I...? or Is My.. ?" Questions. Now others seem to be able to do a reading with that start, but not me. Well the gears in my brain click on and I think "hmmm Tarot cannot answer the question put like that, and I will only read mumbo jumbo or explain the cards, and not do a coherent reading"
So I guess questions are a matter of what philosophy you adhere to with Tarot and I was bemused with the lack of comment about questions in the books. I thought correct intention/question was alongside the reader, the deck, the spread, in importance. Kind regards~Rosanne

 

[Moongold]

Dear Rosanne ~

This is a very thoughtful question.

Mary Greer in her book Tarot Mirrors Newcastle Publications 1988, has a chapter called The art of asking questions

She says ......there are no stupid questions, simply thos ewhich are not phrased in a beneficial way so as to aid you in achieving your real goals. Therefore part of your work in Tarot, whether reading for yourself or another, is to transfer all questions and statements into forms that are empowering . And she continues with some suggestions about doing this.

This book is out of print now, I think, but the author also gives a very interesting analysis of the various methods of reading. These are very important because I think the way you read may influence the way the question is framed. They are:


1. Analytic: analysis of corespondences between symbols and meanings to determine relevancy.

2. Psychic: intuitive use of inner "sight" and subtle sensory feelings to know things.

3. Therapeutic: assisting the querent to discover personal, meaning, options and goals.

4. Magical: affirming the querent's ability to create what she finds worthwhile and valuable.


Greer goes on to comment that there are also four dimensions one might consider when looking at each card and these might also inform how the question is phrased, if one is aware of such a framework.


1. LITERAL: Historical, factual. Answers the question What is happening?

2. ALLEGORICAL: Figurative, deductive, what is animated by a symbol. Answers the question What does it mean?

3. MORAL: Homilectic (sermonizing). inductive, emotional. Answers the question How does it feel?

4. SPIRITUAL: Anagogical (spiritually uplifting), esoteric, mystical. Answers the question Why is it happening? For what purpose?



It seems to me that how one receives questions from querents may depend on how one reads. If the frameworks Greer suggests were inherent in the reader, the reader would negotiate the question that would match the Querent's concerns with the his or her skills and approach. This would be part of the preliminary dialogue with the Querent I imagine.

Now I have only done about 40 face to face readings in my Tarot life, so I am not anything like an expert. I have sometimes used this aproach in on-line readings as well.

Hope all that has been of some assistance ~

Moongold

 

[Umbrae]

I've said it over and over on these forums...the reason I hate most books - is they never talk about READING tarot. They go on and on and on about meanings and symbology and blah blah blah...they obfuscate...what about the sitter?

Nobody ever talks about the sitter!!!!

And you, my dear Rosanne, just nailed it...

What about reading.

Mary K. Greer in some of her books does a wonderful job. However she is the exception.

So we are inundated with "who shuffles", "how do I cut', "What's this mean", "what spread do I use" Spreads? I prefer the Martini Glass with Two Olives spread.

It's not about the mechanics.

I don't care about the allegorical or alliterative...I've got a sitter crying her eyes out...

What about the reading...what about the sitter?

"Should I tell you my question" she asked? On one hand, no. I don't really care about the question. The cards will answer it just fine. On the other hand I'm not playing 'psychic mind reader guess my question' games.

What about reading? Or what about the new dicky-do-dandy deck that just hit the market? Seriously. I used one and only one deck for many years. Now I've got more than I know what to do with - cuz I only read with a couple of them. You know why?

Cuz it ain't about the deck, or the history, or the meaning, or why Temperance has a geometric figure on the breast or how the feet are placed.

It's about reading.

That's what I started to talk about back when I did "The Process" threads...about reading...

But they always drift back to...what does this mean - what does that mean...Oooo the Black Camel on the Hot Sands Spread...and you know what...

Some of us will always ask, "Y"

and we get zzzzzzzzzzzzz



Edited to add: Further - I've hoped we'd have more discussion of 'Reading' (with a capital R) in the Pro. Reading forum. My Essay and Exercise, and Combining Divination Types posts were essentially created with the face-to-face reader in mind.

You know, I walked into the Post Office to send off some packages the other day, and the clerk looked at the packages and looked at me and blurted out, "Do you read? I need a reading!" So while she processed my shipping needs, I did two brief one-card readings (no spread there...). She was my sitter. Two questions (both pressing) and two-cards.

It's about the sitter - it's about reading FOR them.

I now return this thread back you...