How to Do a Reading
Is it weird to explain how to do a reading before introducing the cards in detail? I don’t think so. You see, a reading is so much more than simply interpreting the cards. By learning the specific card meanings first, it is easy to focus on that exclusively and miss out on learning the other skills. I can’t tell you how many people contact me, saying “I know all the card meanings backward and forward (and sometimes upright and reversed), but my readings seem so disjointed. I just don’t know how to tie it all together.” These other skills that get skipped when we go straight to interpretations will actually make the overall interpretation easier. I call this collection of other skills “scanning” because it involves just that: scanning the cards in a reading in order to gather information. Plus, you already have a lot of knowledge about the cards just from reading and doing the activities so far.
Beginning a reading by interpreting individual cards is like putting the cart before the horse. Think of an artist creating a sketch for a painting. A sketch is a great way to get a sense of the overall composition of a piece. It is easier to see how all the parts fit together to create a meaningful and coherent whole. Scanning creates a framework and gives focus to the reading as well as provides useful information.
Scanning relies on the numbers and suits and other symbols separately from their role in shaping the cards’ meanings. I’ll explain the different layers of scanning in an order because otherwise it would be a chaotic mess. But you should remember that when I do a reading, I don’t go through these step by step. Instead, I simply scan the cards all together and note the patterns. Until you get used to all the layers, try going through step by step, but I promise after some practice, it’ll be second nature for you.
You already know how to begin a reading, so we will go directly to the scanning portion and then follow-up with some tips for ending the reading in a useful way.
Scanning
When you scan a reading, you look for patterns and connections. You also look for anything that is disproportionate. That means, for example, given that there are twenty-two Major cards, which are approximately one-third of the cards, if more than one-third of the cards in your reading are Majors, then that is something you pay attention to.
A. Look for Major Arcana Cards
These cards represent energy and events beyond your control. If there are a disproportionate number in the reading, then you have less control over events and are likely in the midst of learning an important life lesson. If there are no Majors in a reading, that means a few things: the situation isn’t as dire as you think (many of us have a tendency to make mountains out of molehills) and that there is plenty of opportunity for you to affect the outcome.
B. Look for Court Cards
If there are a disproportionate number of Court cards (that would be about 25 percent), too many people are involved or perhaps you have identity issues regarding this situation.
Multiples of certain ranks give clues about the situation:
• Two or more Pages indicate that a willing ally or helper is near. This person may not be influential or experienced, but they are enthusiastic.
• Two or more Knights mean that there are others involved who are trying as hard (or harder) as you to achieve your goal, perhaps creating interference.
• Two or more Queens shows help and guidance from an experienced and perhaps influential person. This one can be tricky, as this person or people might be more interested in controlling than supporting.
• Two or more Kings indicate an energy similar to that of the Major Arcana cards. Someone with authority or power above your own and who is outside your sphere of influence will make decisions or take action in a way that will affect your life.
C. Analyze the Suits Present
You’ve already spent time working out your ideas about what the suits mean. You’ll use that information here, whether you are using all your own ideas, traditional ideas, or a combination of the two.
When you scan the cards, notice if the four suits are equally represented. If not, what does that say about the situation? If many Swords are present, then perhaps you are relying too much on your intellect or the issue is one of communication. If there are lots of Cups, there is a heavy emphasis on emotions or relationships.
Don’t forget the importance of what the absence of a suit might mean. For example, in a reading about a romantic relationship, you would expect to see a few Cups. If there aren’t any, I would assume there is little emotional connection or intimacy.
The suits and the elemental energy they represent work another way as well. Using the suits can also help determine to what extent you can exercise control or influence in a situation. It is rare that a reading contains only one suit. Usually there are several, if not all, of the suits present. This means there is more than one type of energy present in the situation. Understanding how the elemental energies of the suits affect each other can give you an idea of the conflicts in or harmony of the situation. We did touch on this earlier and now we’ll round that out. Here are how the suits affect each other:
Cards of the same element intensify each other.
• Wands (fire) and Swords (air) are active and support each other.
• Cups (water) and Pentacles (earth) are passive and support each other.
• Wands (fire) and Cups (water) are opposites and weaken each other.
• Swords (air) and Pentacles (earth) are opposites and weaken each other.
• Wands (fire) and Pentacles (earth) have little effect on each other.
• Swords (air) and Cups (water) have little effect on each other.
When an element is intensified, that is not always positive. It means that the experience is stronger or intensified, whether positive or negative.
Wands and Swords are considered active. This means the energy is active, it moves, it creates, it acts; it also indicates swift movement. That is, if this energy is present, it is moving around making things happen and happen quickly.
Cups and Pentacles are considered passive. That is, the energy is passive, it is still, it is reactive, it is shaped; it also suggests slower movement. Passive energy waits for something to happen, hence the idea of slowness, and then reacts.
When either Cups and Wands or Swords and Pentacles are present, the result is a weakening of both. They are opposites, fighting against each other, causing conflicting energy that will be evidenced in the situation.
D. Reading by the Numbers
Like Court cards, multiples of any particular number shape the theme of a reading. The numbers, remember, are on the Minor Arcana cards as well as the Major Arcana cards. When there is more than one of any number present, these are the different energies suggested:
• Aces herald new beginnings.
• Twos indicate relationships or, more often, choices or decisions you must make.
• Threes suggest creativity, growth, and teamwork.
• Fours are a sign of stability, structure, or stagnation.
• Fives bring about conflict, loss, or chaos.
• Sixes promise plenty of communication and problem solving.
• Sevens suggest reflection and assessment.
• Eights race through with movement, speed, and power.
• Nines reflect completion and sometimes solitude.
• Tens show that something is poised to end or resolve.
Looking for multiples of numbers in your spread is one way to get a sense of timing, of where a situation is in terms of its organic evolution. Looking for timing in a reading does more than let us know when a situation might finally be resolved; it also lets us know how much control we may have to influence the final outcome.
We have some control over our lives but not total and complete control. As we’ve seen, Major Arcana cards and Kings, for example, indicate an emphasis on external forces controlling a situation. When a situation is in an earlier stage of development, the easier it is to change course. For example, in a relationship, if a woman has just begun dating someone, it is easier for her to break up after just a few dates. As time passes, and she and her partner start making long-term plans, like buying season tickets to a theatre or sporting event, more complicated ramifications occur if she wants to exit the relationship. If they’ve moved in together or merged their finances, the consequences, both material and emotional, are even larger. If it is the week before the wedding, it will take a great deal of energy to change direction. Therefore, it is useful to know how close a situation is to resolution, as that will let you know to what extent you can control or change that particular outcome.
• Multiple aces, twos, and threes mark a situation in early stages of development.
• Multiple fours, fives, and sixes are present in a situation in the middle phase of development.
• Multiple sevens, eights, and nines show up when a situation is nearing resolution.
• Multiple tens show that events are mostly finished, with just a few loose ends to wrap up.
E. Reversals
If you do not read reversed cards, simply skip this step. If you read reversals, they play a role in scanning as well as individual card meanings, just as numbers and suits do.
Regardless of how you interpret reversals with each individual card, as an energetic marker in a reading, reversals indicate a few items of note.
First, a single reversal in a reading represents an energetic block. Identify the flow of energy throughout the spread and determine how and why it is stopping at this particular point.
Second, multiple reversals, especially if the number is disproportionate to your usual number of reversals, show not just a blockage but a slump or stagnation. While a single-card blockage might easily be removed, a larger one, like a huge, immovable weather pattern, sometimes can only be endured or moved along by a lot of work.
F. Look at the visual pattern the cards make
Step back and look at your reading as one large picture. Look at the colors. What do they tell you about the situation? Look for repeated symbols and consider their significance. Squint and look at your reading as if it were an Impressionist painting. From a distance, what image emerges? This is a good time to look for energetic blockages, especially if you don’t use reversals. A color or shape that stands out from the rest of the pattern bears further investigation.
Looking at your reading in this way also often triggers intuitive responses. It is a bit like yoga. After you spend time disciplining your body, your mind can achieve Zen-like states that it could not have without the physical experience. After analyzing a reading in such a systematic way, that part of your mind feels satiated and relaxes, allowing your right brain to have free rein.
Complete this part by stating aloud or in writing what you’ve learned about the question or situation. Really look at what you’ve discovered, seeing it the way an artist sees her initial sketch. Identify the structure and prepare to fill in the details.
Post-Scan
After you’ve scanned your spread, it’s time to dig into the individual cards and wrap up the reading.
A. Read sections of the spread
Some spreads divide naturally into smaller spreads. For example, the Celtic Cross (which you can find at the end of this chapter) has several smaller spreads within it. When you get there, you’ll see specific examples.
Whether or not you have a large enough spread to break into sections, the other thing to do at this point is to pay attention to how cards near each other interact. This includes noticing which directions the figures are facing or if the images blend together to create a larger image.
In this step, you are filling in broader strokes, like a color wash over a sketch.
B. Interpret each card
Work your way through each of the cards, weaving the card’s meaning with the spread position and making it relevant to the question. See each card as a detail added to the sketch to create a final painting.
C. Prepare the answer
Many readers think that once they’ve finished these steps, they are done. However, at this point you have a ton of information and it still needs to be articulated in order to make the answer clear and complete. Review the information from the reading in a logical way—out loud or in writing. Organize your thoughts the way you’d organize any answer. Even though the detailed answer will likely be several paragraphs, at the end summarize the answer in one sentence.
This last step is, like the scanning, often overlooked. But it is always important to review, organize, and summarize the information that you worked so hard to obtain. The raw data is useful, but giving it shape helps the client more easily understand and even accept the answer.
Once you’ve worked with these steps for a while, I hope you will modify and tweak them to better suit your needs and beliefs.
Playtime
Try your hand at a spread that has been around since the early 1900s (although the man who invented it, Arthur Waite, claimed it was much older). Some readers simply love this spread and use it a lot or even exclusively. Other readers dislike it. You should try it yourself a number of times before you form your opinion. Not only is it a classic spread that all readers should at least be familiar with, it has enough cards to really let you practice some of the techniques you learned in this chapter. The original version of the spread includes a significator. You may handle that however you like, even if that means simply eliminating it.
As for the step in How to Do a Reading that says interpret the individual cards, you should do that, but resist the temptation to look up the book meanings! This is still your pure exploration period. Keep working on figuring out your own responses for now. Don’t worry if this stresses you out. First, it means you’re growing and that’s good for you. It’s okay to feel uncomfortable and it’s okay to push yourself. Second, we’ll start getting into the card interpretations in the very next chapter.
So think about a question, shuffle your cards, and give it a try!
If you are using a significator, lay that card down first. Card 1 goes on top of it (I usually only overlap it a bit, so I can actually see the significator. Card 2 is laid horizontally across the significator) and Card 1.
S: Significator. You (or the querent).
1: What covers you. This is the energy that is most influencing you in this situation.
2: What crosses you. This is the main challenge in the situation.
3: What crowns you. This is your primary goal or ideal outcome. If this cards seems negative to you or not in alignment with what you think you want, dig a little deeper, either in the card or in your own thoughts. It could be that subconsciously you don’t believe it will play out the way you want.
4: What is beneath you. This is the foundation of the situation, the root cause.
5: What is behind you. This is energy from the past that is affecting the present situation.
6: What is before you. This is the energy that is coming into the situation.
7: You. This card represents how you or others see you in this situation, which may not accurately reflect reality. Compare this card to the significator card if you used one.
8: Your house. This is the environment around you and the situation.
9: Your hopes and fears. This can be your hopes or your fears, but remember that sometimes these are the same thing.
10: What will come. This is the likely outcome of the situation unless action is taken to change the flow of events.
After you’ve scanned your reading, examine the smaller spreads that make up this larger spread.
The small cross in the middle is a good place to start, as it provides a nice snapshot of you in this situation. The small cross is created by the significator and cards 1 and 2.
The significator and cards 1, 2, 5, and 6 create a Past-Present-Future spread. Read these cards as a simplified version of the whole. Get a sense of the linear flow of energy before adding dimension with the rest of the cards.
The significator and cards 1, 2, 3, and 4 create a vertical line and are also a smaller spread. This one shows your motivations (card 4), your current state of being, and your aspirations (card 3).
You can move cards around, too! For example, it is interesting to put the significator card next to card 7 and explore the differences and similarities between your true self and how you see yourself (or how you are perceived). Additionally, look at cards 3, 6, and 10 together. These are all cards about the future. Don’t forget to compare cards 3 and 9, too. These will reveal a lot about what you really think about the situation.