zhan.thay
The Spread
This is a spread for gaining an overview of the current situation. It is not laid to get an answer for a specific outcome, although that may arise in the course of the reading. The general scheme of the spread and its places is described below.
For those who don’t know the spread, it was created by Dr James Wanless and appears in the Voyager Tarot Guidebook which accompanies the deck. Many thanks and admiration to him and Ken Knutson, the designers. I have varied the layout. In regard to the ‘Inner Self’ spread I put Spirit in the centre, Mental at the top, Yang on the upper left, Yin on the upper right, Physical lower left and Emotional lower right making a pentagon. (In the published layout, 3 Emotional ‘covers’ 1 Spirit slightly with 2 Mental at the top, 4 Physical at the base, 5 Feminine on the left and 6 masculine on the right – making a cross.)
The varied layout:
--------------------------------
---------------7----------------
--------------------------------
---------------2----------------
--------------------------------
---------6-----------5----------
---9-----------1------------8---
--------------------------------
------------4-----3-------------
--------------------------------
---------------10---------------
--------------------------------
First card is drawn from a fan of the Majors only and placed face down. After the other 21 Majors are sifted back into the deck, repeat the following process 5 times to fill the other ‘Inner Self’ places: shuffle, fan and draw a card. Turn the cards one by one, then contemplate the whole ‘Inner Self’ reading. For the ‘Outer World’: shuffle and divide into 4 separate stacks placing at 7,8,9 and 10. For each stack: shuffle, fan in a rainbow-like arc, face down. The 4 arcs make a circle of possibilities (72) around your inner self. Turn over one card from each arc for 7,8,9 and 10.
Inner Self
1 Spirit: Archetypal personality – character – who you are
2 Head: Mental State – mind – creative, analytical, dull, curious, peaceful, confused etc
3 Heart: Emotional State – feelings – love, anger, depression, joy etc
4 Legs: Physical State – body – health, energy, appearance etc
5 Left Side: Feminine-Yin – receptivity, sensitivity, magnetism, nurturing
6 Right Side: Masculine-Yang – assertive, dynamic, initiative
Outer World
7 Finances – actual, real state of finances, goals & ambitions
8 Work – real work situation and goals for the future
9 Home – actual situation, hopes and goals
10 Relationships – actual situation, hopes and goals
For those of an astrological bent the ‘Outer World’ spread could be substituted with 12 arcs for each of the houses. These sort of spreads are described elsewhere in AT forums. Obviously, it would greatly extend the time needed for what is already a long process.
I would also be tempted to use a Tree of Life spread for ‘Inner Self’ and a circle around as a ‘body of Nuit’.
The deck
Published in 1986, Voyager’s images consist of photo-collage and the card labels and interpretations include various ‘New Age’ concepts and philosophies. There are also different labels used than the ‘traditional’. VIII is called Balance and corresponds to Justice or Adjustment in other packs; XI is called Strength; the suit of Crystals relates to Swords/Air/Spades; the suit of Worlds relates to Pentacles/Earth/Diamonds/Coins; the court cards are Sage, Child, Woman, and Man which, from their general attribution in the guidebook, do not easily relate to ‘traditional’ courtiers. In the same order, I would tend to relate the courtiers as Page, Prince, Queen and King but the fit is not good especially for Sage and Child.
A sample reading inviting comments has been posted in the Your Readings forum under the same title: Voyager Tarot – Whole Self Mandala spread
This is a spread for gaining an overview of the current situation. It is not laid to get an answer for a specific outcome, although that may arise in the course of the reading. The general scheme of the spread and its places is described below.
For those who don’t know the spread, it was created by Dr James Wanless and appears in the Voyager Tarot Guidebook which accompanies the deck. Many thanks and admiration to him and Ken Knutson, the designers. I have varied the layout. In regard to the ‘Inner Self’ spread I put Spirit in the centre, Mental at the top, Yang on the upper left, Yin on the upper right, Physical lower left and Emotional lower right making a pentagon. (In the published layout, 3 Emotional ‘covers’ 1 Spirit slightly with 2 Mental at the top, 4 Physical at the base, 5 Feminine on the left and 6 masculine on the right – making a cross.)
The varied layout:
--------------------------------
---------------7----------------
--------------------------------
---------------2----------------
--------------------------------
---------6-----------5----------
---9-----------1------------8---
--------------------------------
------------4-----3-------------
--------------------------------
---------------10---------------
--------------------------------
First card is drawn from a fan of the Majors only and placed face down. After the other 21 Majors are sifted back into the deck, repeat the following process 5 times to fill the other ‘Inner Self’ places: shuffle, fan and draw a card. Turn the cards one by one, then contemplate the whole ‘Inner Self’ reading. For the ‘Outer World’: shuffle and divide into 4 separate stacks placing at 7,8,9 and 10. For each stack: shuffle, fan in a rainbow-like arc, face down. The 4 arcs make a circle of possibilities (72) around your inner self. Turn over one card from each arc for 7,8,9 and 10.
Inner Self
1 Spirit: Archetypal personality – character – who you are
2 Head: Mental State – mind – creative, analytical, dull, curious, peaceful, confused etc
3 Heart: Emotional State – feelings – love, anger, depression, joy etc
4 Legs: Physical State – body – health, energy, appearance etc
5 Left Side: Feminine-Yin – receptivity, sensitivity, magnetism, nurturing
6 Right Side: Masculine-Yang – assertive, dynamic, initiative
Outer World
7 Finances – actual, real state of finances, goals & ambitions
8 Work – real work situation and goals for the future
9 Home – actual situation, hopes and goals
10 Relationships – actual situation, hopes and goals
For those of an astrological bent the ‘Outer World’ spread could be substituted with 12 arcs for each of the houses. These sort of spreads are described elsewhere in AT forums. Obviously, it would greatly extend the time needed for what is already a long process.
I would also be tempted to use a Tree of Life spread for ‘Inner Self’ and a circle around as a ‘body of Nuit’.
The deck
Published in 1986, Voyager’s images consist of photo-collage and the card labels and interpretations include various ‘New Age’ concepts and philosophies. There are also different labels used than the ‘traditional’. VIII is called Balance and corresponds to Justice or Adjustment in other packs; XI is called Strength; the suit of Crystals relates to Swords/Air/Spades; the suit of Worlds relates to Pentacles/Earth/Diamonds/Coins; the court cards are Sage, Child, Woman, and Man which, from their general attribution in the guidebook, do not easily relate to ‘traditional’ courtiers. In the same order, I would tend to relate the courtiers as Page, Prince, Queen and King but the fit is not good especially for Sage and Child.
A sample reading inviting comments has been posted in the Your Readings forum under the same title: Voyager Tarot – Whole Self Mandala spread
