HOLMES Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 ratty asked this in another thread "I need to buy some new jeans, my old ones are getting a bit tatty, but I can't decide what colour. What colour do you think I should get?" it was kind of the extreme of a trivial question for after all the colour would be kind of personal to the situation, for conjecture here.. I imagine if I did a celtic cross on this,, and I looked at the beneath you card it would deal perhaps why a certain colour might be your favourite.. this is behind you,, perhaps it might look at why you are changing your colour schemes, to this is above you, perhaps It might point to what is you best colour or reversed, why a colour wouldn't work on you. to your enviourment being you have been surrounded by dark colours or light colours to much and your aura been affected. the main reason why ratty asked this was not to do a trick to explore if a bigger spread can really offer more then a 3 card spread for this question.. or even a one card spread ? a better question might be more then a yes or no ,, but not so indepth as "tell me why I failed in my love life omg it is over " I prefer then "adviseme what I could do in this situation " I think the main thing is to avoid the client asking "what we think,, what the tarot advises ,, and instead focus on ,, going back to the original question asked.. "I am off to buy some jeans, what should I keep in mind,, "I love black jeans,, but also blue , , why am I conflicted " so I would ask them what is their favourite colour , and why aren't they just getting their favourite colour ? so not so much a poll but .. 1. what is your prefered number of cards. for what situation 2.. generally do you like 1 to 3 cards spreads (this is differnt then prefer number of cards for i like 10 sometimes and 3 cards other times ) 3. generally do you like 7 to 10 cards 4. what is your peeve about 3 cards.. 5. what is your peeve about 7 or more cards. 6. if you were learning the tarot again, what would you change about your approach to the tarot spreads. my answers 1. i like for indpeth questions like general readings like past lives, or soul purpose 7 to 12 cards depending on what spread i use as i read by the cards at fairs, and pow wow,, i like the question to be more specific for 1 to 3 to 5 cards spreads as it narrows down the possiblities and focus of many meanings behind cards. 2. to be honest i used to despise 3 cards readings, or 1 cards readings early in my tarot learning for i started off the celtic cross as a learning tool, it was my go to spread , so my mind was closed off to 3 cards for i didn't think you could get a lot of info from them.. it wasn'tuntil i started to offer them as test,, and learning tool on atf that i realized they have inheren value.. inherent in the sense you have to be more focused as to gain a lot of meaning from the card. 3. i like a good 7 to 10 cards spread for in a live situation it can an very interesting one hour talk, and it feels like we are really making a connection. plus since i come from a build a story, case approach ,, it worked for me as virgo to do things in stages. 4. my pet peeve about 3 cards, is the past present future,, it used to make a lot of sense, and it still does but now i feel heart, advice, likely outcome is more value in situational readings like what should i do now.. for more general readings like "tell me about my love life " then the past has value for it shows how they got there. 5. my pet peeve about 7 to 10ish spreads is positions made up just to fill out a spread.. it is for this reason i am experimenting with a more focused cross in the sense i no hardly ever, or no longer use self, envirotment, hopes and fears.. ( this just happened recently in my lenny experiemnts). 6. i would keep it multi approach,, trying one card spreads, 3 cards spreads 5, and 10. one thing i did for years was my readings had to have postions,, and it wasn'tunti last 8 years or so that i started to read without positions to try to do more inituative approach perhaps.. the old 9 block was handy..
ToadieOdie Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 Thank you for bringing this topic up because I've been bugging Saturn for spreads in my student thread. When I started with tarot, it was the positions in the spreads that helped me out the most. It wasn't really the number of cards used for me, just the positions and what they represent. So whatever it was that the question needed determined the spread used. I'm slowly finding my way to a more flexible approach, but at the moment I find the 3 card spread challenging. It feels nebulous to me. The way you just described your process here sheds some light on why Saturn didn't have a huge list of spreads to offer me when I asked. It's a tool that provides structure, but like the keywords for each card it's a jumping point to get you going in the reading.
Cobweb Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 If I’m reading for myself, I love to pull 3 cards in a row, no set positions, and just see what comes up. It works particularly well with my TdM style decks. I think it’s as simple as I just don’t have time in my life for 7 or more card readings! That said, I totally get what you mean about spreads that have card positions that don’t really mean anything. I kind of think that’s just a poorly designed spread though. I love a good Celtic Cross, even if I don’t often use it for myself.
Ratty Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 I think I was curious to see the effect of overkill in tarot reading. Was it like a 20kg sledgehammer to crack a peanut, or was it more like using a 5 billion dollar collider to throw an electon at a proton. In the first case you might get bits of nut all over the carpet and a smashed dining room table, but in the second you might discover a Higgs Boson. (Or that nuclear cross sections increase when you expected them to decrease - in case there are any real physicists reading.) I believe there's a real question to answer. What happens if you up the juice? I have no problem that the guy I suggested it to thought I was being stupid. I know a lot of people can't see the point in spending huge amounts of money on a collider either. Now having said that, I'll join in with Holmes's poll. 1. what is your prefered number of cards. for what situation. 10 to 12 cards for complex situations. 3-5 for more trivial. 2.. generally do you like 1 to 3 cards spreads. I don't mind 3 cards, but I don't like fewer. 3. generally do you like 7 to 10 cards Yes 4. what is your peeve about 3 cards.. It's limiting (or rather it points out that I'm not good enough to read it properly!) 5. what is your peeve about 7 or more cards. None. I can probably read 10 cards faster than 3. 6. if you were learning the tarot again, what would you change about your approach to the tarot spreads. I'm still learning the first time. Sorry.
hierophant Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 I think I was curious to see the effect of overkill in tarot reading. Was it like a 20kg sledgehammer to crack a peanut, or was it more like using a 5 billion dollar collider to throw an electon at a proton. In the first case you might get bits of nut all over the carpet and a smashed dining room table, but in the second you might discover a Higgs Boson. (Or that nuclear cross sections increase when you expected them to decrease - in case there are any real physicists reading.) I believe there's a real question to answer. What happens if you up the juice? I have no problem that the guy I suggested it to thought I was being stupid. I know a lot of people can't see the point in spending huge amounts of money on a collider either. Now having said that, I'll join in with Holmes's poll. 1. what is your prefered number of cards. for what situation. 10 to 12 cards for complex situations. 3-5 for more trivial. 2.. generally do you like 1 to 3 cards spreads. I don't mind 3 cards, but I don't like fewer. 3. generally do you like 7 to 10 cards Yes 4. what is your peeve about 3 cards.. It's limiting (or rather it points out that I'm not good enough to read it properly!) 5. what is your peeve about 7 or more cards. None. I can probably read 10 cards faster than 3. 6. if you were learning the tarot again, what would you change about your approach to the tarot spreads. I'm still learning the first time. Sorry. I did my very best to reject the request you made directly at me, as politely and nicely as I possibly could. Therefore, I find it hurtful that you compare me to an idiot here. I did not say I found it stupid, but that I didn't understand it, and that I did not want to participate in it. I still do not understand it, but that does not mean I am calling it stupid or dumb, or saying you shouldn't try it. Just that I won't. For discovering the higgs boson, why don't make a thread for those who feel like that is something they could participate in? I have so far found this a very friendly and nice forum. Please don't ruin the experience for me.
Ratty Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 No way was I trying to call you an idiot! I don't think that. I apologize unreservedly if that's the message you took away.
HOLMES Posted July 27, 2018 Author Posted July 27, 2018 hail hierophant i started a new thread on the subject of many cards instead of hijacking your reading thread for it is a good subject for people who are new to the tarot to understand the difference between many cards for a question, and fewer cards for a question. did you read my first post here in the the thread, that is the main point. and i just read ratty response as i was typing this, so what we have here is a failure to communicate despite best efforts,, let us put it behind us no real intentiosn to hurt each other is being made.
The Sibyl Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 I think that Ratty was trying to make a quite clever learning exercise there! The question is a silly question, of course, but he (or she, I'm assuming he's a he but I'm not sure. They?) already knew that. I've seen plenty of celtic crosses being pulled over a text. That's overkilling it! But attempting to see, as a learning exercise, how does not just a "silly" question, but a question that requires many less cards to be answered, interact with a large spread, is a simple curiosity that can help you see what happens when you do that, by asking a question from which answer you're totally detached from, and can, as a result, teach you how to gauge the size of your readings in the future. So nothing silly here! Now, answering the poll: 1. what is your prefered number of cards. for what situation. The vast majority of my spreads are customized, so my preferred number of cards answers to the situation I'm dealing with. For a question along the lines of "Will he come back?" 3 to 5 is my go-to number. If the question goes like "What caused this relationship to fail?" I can come up with a couple dozens of positions that give relevant information and I can happily go up to 30 cards in a blink. 2.. generally do you like 1 to 3 cards spreads. Not a huge fan of 1 card spreads. A pair so I have a combo at least. 3. generally do you like 7 to 10 cards. Yes. 4. what is your peeve about 3 cards. Nothing if it is used for a proper question. 5. what is your peeve about 7 or more cards. Same as above. 6. if you were learning the tarot again, what would you change about your approach to the tarot spreads. I would encourage myself to lose the fear to create my own spreads a few years earlier :P
Cobweb Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 Ooh, interesting! My default position is bring on your 5 billion dollar collider and let’s look at the choice of jeans from every possible angle! And, since we’re talking philosophically, I don’t think there’s anything too trivial to ask the cards. That said, in daily life: 1. What is your preferred number of cards? 3 to 5 2. Do you like 1 to 3 card spreads? yes. I like a daily draw and, if something is worrying me, will pull a card to help me think things through. 3. Generally, do you like 7 to 10 cards? If I’m reading for myself, I use less cards. For other people, I use as few cards as possible. I like to keep things simple. 4. What is your peeve about three cards? None. 5. What is your peeve about seven or more cards? It takes me the best part of an hour to do a reading this big. I rarely have the time. 6. If you were learning the tarot again, what would you change about your approach to tarot spreads? I’m still learning - I can’t imagine I’ll ever stop. But I’d quite like to pay more attention to how to design a good spread.
DDwarks Posted July 27, 2018 Posted July 27, 2018 The CC I've always thought to be an over kill. I'm not surprised to read some of the newbies here finding the 3 cards spreads a little challenging though. Less cards require a multi layered understanding of each cards whereas a larger spread provides the layers needed. It'a all about sticking with it and keeping an open mind though. Like a few have said above, we're all learning whatever level we're at! I prefer a 3 to 4 cards spread. With positions! If you know how to ask the question, 3 to 4 is all you need ;) What would I do differently? I'd start with the Thoth straight away like I felt my guts were telling me. But I wasn't brave enough back then!
EmpyreanKnight Posted July 30, 2018 Posted July 30, 2018 1. what is your prefered number of cards. for what situation 1-3 for mundane concerns or questions that I feel need a succinct and straightforward answer. 3-5 for most of my self-readings that require time frames 10 up for detailed readings that use voluminous spreads 2.. generally do you like 1 to 3 cards spreads I have no problem with these and I think that most concerns only really require up to 3 cards. In most of my readings tho, I use 3 to 5 cards. 3. generally do you like 7 to 10 cards I rarely use this except for love readings. 4. what is your peeve about 3 cards.. Sometimes, 3 cards just aren't enough if I want to fully flesh out the details of a reading. 5. what is your peeve about 7 or more cards. Nothing, but I rarely use these many cards. 6. if you were learning the tarot again, what would you change about your approach to the tarot spreads. I'd like to have learned earlier that it pays to truly understand what a specific position in a spread means, and that I must interpret the cards that I drew for it accordingly. This helps me get clearer and more accurate interpretations. Also, I would've loved to learn how to synthesize the cards in a spread as a whole, and also to interpret patterns that I see like a preponderance of Majors or courts for example, or the domination of a certain suit, etc.
gregory Posted July 30, 2018 Posted July 30, 2018 1. what is your preferred number of cards. 1-3. 2.. generally do you like 1 to 3 cards spreads Yes. 3. generally do you like 7 to 10 cards No 4. what is your peeve about 3 cards. I don't have one. 5. what is your peeve about 7 or more cards. On the whole, I don't find so many cards to be necessary - but I will use that many if the situation actually requires it. So far I have used that kind of number about 4 times, except for circle exercises. 6. if you were learning the tarot again, what would you change about your approach to the tarot spreads. Nothing about spreads as such; in terms of reading in general, I wish I had come across AT, and particularly Simone, Sulis and Alta, earlier.
sandrang123 Posted July 30, 2018 Posted July 30, 2018 1. what is your prefered number of cards. for what situation I was trained with the Celtic Cross and I use that for clients, as I feel it gives me a pretty complete understanding of their life situation/question, as well as karmic issues that are at play. That said, I would never use this spread to ask about jeans ( ^-^), nor would I ever ask the cards such a question, even if using a simpler spread. 2.. generally do you like 1 to 3 cards spreads (this is differnt then prefer number of cards for i like 10 sometimes and 3 cards other times ) Not particularly. 3. generally do you like 7 to 10 cards Yes. 4. what is your peeve about 3 cards.. No peeve, really. Just no preference for them. 5. what is your peeve about 7 or more cards. No peeve. 6. if you were learning the tarot again, what would you change about your approach to the tarot spreads. I don't think I'd change anything. I've been blessed with some great spiritual teachers, and I value what wisdom they've shared with me.
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