T here are many variations on card layouts or spreads. Ceremonial Tarot includes several different ways to answer questions. After you have created your space and discovered your question, choose a layout that best suits your question or questions.
Celtic Cross and Variation
The Celtic Cross is one of the most common, traditional tarot card layouts, and it involves a long look at life’s bigger questions. This layout is appropriate for looking deeply into relationship or career issues or having a query around longer term problems or life path journeys. This layout looks at two aspects of ourselves: the internal soulscape and the external path unfolding. I include both the classical ten-card layout as well as an eight-card variation. For future outcome cards, I always include the word “possible,” as I prefer not to be concrete or heavy on future prediction. We always have a say in the unfolding of our own destiny, and even tarot readings will influence the outcome, as does each and every decision we make.
Ten-Card Layout
Inner Soulscape
• Card 1: Self or querent, the person asking the question.
• Card 2: What is moving through in the current moment.
• Card 3: Conscious mind. The ideas, thoughts, dreams and intentions that the querent is aware of.
• Card 4: Subconscious mind. Ideas, thoughts, dreams that the querent is unaware of, buried beneath the surface. These are possible manifestations in the coming months.
• Card 5: Past and specifically what in the past is affecting the current situation and question at hand.
• Card 6: Action to take to help embody, heal, and transform the situation at hand.
The Path
• Card 7: Querent on the path and how they are relating to their external situation at hand.
• Card 8: External influences.
• Card 9: Hopes and fears that the querent may or may not be aware of. Often that which we are secretly hoping for we are also fearing.
• Card 10: Possible outcome or future card. It can be helpful to pull cards until you get a major arcana card to get a fuller sense of the potential coming future.
Eight-Card Variation
Inner Soulscape
• Card 1: Self or querent.
• Card 2: Issue at hand.
• Card 3: What is guiding the issue.
• Card 4: What is supporting or grounding the issue.
The Path
• Card 5: What the situation needs or is lacking.
• Card 6: Action to take to creatively grow the issue.
• Card 7: Potential immediate outcome.
• Card 8: Long term outcome.
Three-Card Layout (Past, Present, Future)
This layout is a quick look at an issue concerning a relationship or job question. It is helpful when trying to make a decision whether to continue the relationship or the work in question. This layout can also be used to asses a particular arc of a relationship that has a longer history such as a parent, sibling, or long-term partner; the past card is especially relevant in determining the effect on the current issue. It can be useful to separate out and use only the major arcana for this reading to achieve a more powerful and spiritual look at the arc of the issue.
• Card 1: Past energy that is affecting the current issue or problem.
• Card 2: Present issue and what is currently unfolding.
• Card 3: Potential or likely future outcome.
Five-Card Layout
This layout is very helpful for a distinct current or specific issue in a relationship problem, a job or health crisis, or another type of obstacle you are finding hard to solve. This layout helps to hone in on the underlying or root cause of the situation and gives more embodied guidance in the “Action to take” card.
• Card 1: Querent or self.
• Card 2: Issue at hand.
• Card 3: The deeper issue or underlying root cause of the problem that is often unknown to the querent and buried in the subconscious or denial.
• Card 4: Action to take. This card gives a pointed way to work with the issues. Use the ceremonies found in the minor arcana or suggestions of the major arcana to create a supportive way to embody and work with the issue you are struggling with.
• Card 5: Potential outcome.
Relationship Layout
This layout is useful when working on a relationship issue, pattern, or trying to find general guidance on a problem between you and another person. This can be any kind of relationship such as a partner, girlfriend or boyfriend, friend, boss, coworker, parent, child, et cetera. Following is one option to understand the deeper connection between you and someone else. Use the five-card layout for specific issues or obstacles and add one card to signify the other person.
• Card 1: Querent or self.
• Card 2: The other person.
• Card 3: Physical issue or connection of the body, money, resources, and shared spaces.
• Card 4: Mental issue or connection of the mind, thoughts, ideas, and dreams.
• Card 5: Emotional issue or connection of the heart, emotions, health, and relational dynamics.
• Card 6: Spiritual issue or connection of the soul.
Directional/Elemental Five-Card Layout
This layout is useful when you want to look at the overall essence of a troubling situation or upcoming event, or help to deepen your understanding of a particular relationship in your life. Every card placement is associated with a direction—east, south, west, and north. To assist with your reading, create an altar inspired by your work in the Magician chapter to reflect the directional elements of the tarot.
• Card 1: East, connected to the suit of swords; symbolizes air, breath, mind, beginnings, ideas, thought patterns, conception of the idea/issue/relationship/business.
• Card 2: South, connected to the suit of wands; symbolizes fire, transformation, alchemy, growth, fullness, innocence, play, spirit, energy, dynamism, and growth of the idea/issue/relationship/business.
• Card 3: West, connected to the suit of cups; symbolizes water, healing, beauty, letting go, death and rebirth, emotions, love, sadness, joy, connections of the idea/issue/relationship/business.
• Card 4: North, connected to the suit of disks/pentacles; symbolizes earth, ancestors, guides, wisdom, clarity, strength, a neutral perspective, overall determination regarding the idea/issue/relationship/business.
• Card 5: Center, connected to the major arcana; symbolizes spirit, guidance, destiny, overall lessons of the idea/issue/relationship/business.
