This reading is a great example of how a sincere effort to work with the message in the cards can create positive change in a situation. This summer, a colleague of mine enlisted the help of Lisa and myself to help him in the creation and realization of a video on Beethoven, to be broadcast in Asia to thousands of viewers. He is a brilliant professor and we knew his video was going to bring his whole career's worth of experience to so many Asian pianists. The morning of the first video shoot, I did a star spread with the following question: "How will today's recording for W's Beethoven video go?" I used the Sibylle des Salons and got the following: My first impressions were that in the end everything will be ok - but specifically I was concerned seeing Sickness in the Answer position. With a total of three quite negative cards, it was obvious that something wouldn't be right, but would be saved by the Protector influence in the final outcome card. At this point, I reflected on what I already knew: 1. that the videographer was someone we didn't yet know or work with and so possibly the biggest variable, 2. Lisa would be playing the musical excerpts - not at all worried about her. 3. W is a brilliant and compassionate teacher, so again, not much to worry about. Nevertheless, I kept the reading in mind and we left for the session. After an entire work day, we arrived home, and I immediately wrote in my notebook "Today went well but lacked focus (45 Illness). Lisa and I decided to suggest to W that we postpone the recording session for tomorrow to next week and help him focus and structure the project (Protector). " We called W that evening, and he was immediately receptive and happy to go that route! W canceled the remaining sessions for the week with the videographer that very evening, and everyone called it a night. The next day, I got out my Pages of Shustah cards and asked the following :"How to successfully complete the video project?" Here is the resulting spread: The meanings for the cards follow the pattern
4 1 2 3 5 1-2-3 are Premise - Problem/Situation - Result 4 is what to do, and 5 is what to avoid. For the premise Blue 3 indicated that there is a lot of potential, but that everything is too unstructured. It was true that the first day's video was unfocused. Blue 8 indicates that we need to put our minds together and work - to put more collective effort into a concrete final product that will benefit many people. This card is suggesting that W not shoulder all the burden for creative content of the video. Even though it is a huge milestone project in his career, as well as his own creation, the cards are suggesting we step in to help more. While we want to be sensitive to his authority, we also feel we need to guide him so that the video has more structure. The result, Yellow 10 says the resulting video will be a very valuable and informative video. This is possible because W has so much to offer, and Lisa's playing will add another refined touch to it. What not to do - Red 13 reminds us not to be lax or let W get discouraged about the first day's work. We need to make sure momentum is not lost. Focus on what qualities of the video will appeal to viewers and give them a reason to watch. See how the page is happily playing a tune on the guitar in Blue 11- Our video needs to reach out and pull the viewer in, and W needs to be the one masterfully and happily playing that guitar. After this second reading: Lisa and I met with W. We presented our ideas, and he was very receptive. We talked together for one hour and came up with a new approach. W then spent another two weeks, diligently structuring and completely typing up the script, which he ended up reading from an ipad during filming. He selected photo inserts, musical excerpts, and planned with Lisa what Beethoven works she would demonstrate. The video turned out to exceed W's expectations, and in the end, he has received very favorable feedback. This truly became a capstone project in his teaching career. I can say for certain that the project would not have turned out this way without the reading, because W told us that without our ideas and feedback, he would have just forged through it as it was. The reading is what gave us the confidence to "intervene" in the creative process, and we are grateful for the message as delivered in the cards.
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My sister's dog fled the dog sitter this evening, and I received a frantic call to come help retrieve the dog. What the sitter perhaps failed to fully understand is that the dog had been abused prior to my sister adopting it. As a result he is uncomfortable around all strangers, men, and even family like myself who have known him for years but don't live with him. I had a feeling I would not be successful, but at the same time perhaps he would feel better around me than complete strangers...right? Not sure, I turned to the i ching. Receiving 43, line 1 as indicated by the card and dice roll in the picture, the warning was clear: you just may be wasting your time trying to catch Dusty. About 43, Christensen's version reads "Adapt your measures to the circumstances. Otherwise you may be rejected, and not get the message that you are determined to convey through to the receiver." An apt response already, considering the fact that it will exactly be a question of rejection on the part of this dog whether he responds to me or flees! The Illustrated i ching says of the first line: "he is ill-equipped to carry out the task and will only run into fierce opposition." Consulting the text gave me both great advice on softening my approach to coaxing the dog back to me, and lowering my expectations of success. It made it much easier when I spent a fruitless hour and a half hunting for him and having him run away from me after crossing paths by chance. After that, I completely lost him again among the many trees, mounds, tall grasses and buildings of the area. I certainly am ill-equipped to carry out the task, as I am not my sister! This reading was for Meredith, a colleague whom I would cross paths with in music from time to time. Her significator is the central card, Queen of Clubs ( Qc). The cards to the left, Chariot ( clubs ) and Emperor ( spade ) show background information. Generally speaking, they show restricted freedoms ( spade topping clubs) due to responsibilities. The Charioteer wants to drive and the Emperor is saying "but first you must..." This is when the client revealed that her spouse had an accident years ago and was wheelchair bound. Since then she has been taking care of him, and this has indeed hampered her personal freedom and sense of progress. The Page of Spades ( Ps ) underneath indicates the impact of negative thinking is worthy of serious attention. She admitted that she always sees the negtive first. The Wheel ( clubs ) above indicates an abrupt change in a new direction is on her mind. She is ready for change! The final cards give this reading its future bearings. I told her she risks missing out on things that are very good for her and that are important for her health of mind and her life path, then regretting it later. She needs to embrace some upcoming opportunities. The spades ending the series indicates challenges and difficulties related to the specifics of the cards. It also means that while it won't come easy, she can still fight for victory over her former ways of living. What I really enjoyed about this reading is that I would occasionally hear from Meredith, who carried a copy of this reading with her everywhere. She said the tarot changed her life, namely in that it made her constantly aware of when she was likely to turn down significant invitations to do something new, which she began accepting rather than declining. She felt herself become a new person, much happier, with much more energy to care for her husband as well. Going back through my older journals, I found this reading. It was the heart of the cold season, and I decided to use this spread since it allowed me to get a glimpse of my entire household at once.
My question was simply: "Our health for the month of January." What I was looking for in particular were the houses that related to my daughter (house 5 for children), my wife (house 7 for spouse) and my 1st house. I was happy to see that the 5th house representing my daughter contained the Queen of Clubs - a high energy card that told me she would be just fine. My wife in house 7 also had a club - the 8 of clubs. She also had a great month of good health. In fact, the two of them passed the winter in good stead! Unfortunately for me there was the 7 spades in house 1, which represents the querent (myself). One of the meanings of the 7s is frustration. At that time, I was indeed going through a lot of stress from multiple sources, and was trying to take good care of myself, but failing. The Jack of spades in house 2 hints at the fact that my income/finances were a major source of negative (spades) thoughts (jack). The nail in the coffin came in house 6, another house of health, which contains the Page of spades. This card can mean just plain old "Bad News." And in my case, two days later I came down with a fever, body aches, a cough, and an inability to even get out of bed for almost four days. This can be seen in the 4 spades in house 3, which reflects an inability to travel! I will post more of this spread again soon. It is a useful spread, containing lots of information with only 12 cards. This past week I spoke with B, who owes me a sum of money for work I did in the past. B said that he would have it for me a couple days ago, but I didn't hear from him. However, today I had work in the same building as B, who knew I would be passing by. So my question was "Will B have the money for me today?" Here was the trio I pulled. 8h-Temperance (clubs) - Star (hearts) Seeing it as Red-Black-Red was already a good sign, so my first impression was most likely I would get paid today. However, a few other details left me scratching my head. First of all, no money cards. That was telling enough, but looking at the central focus card, it is a club, and in my readings Temperance means mild disappointment. 8h at the beginning indicates B is all too happy to pay me and appreciates my work, but Temperance indicates him being disappointed that he as of yet isn't able to. With Star at the end, it indicates a plan. So I figured my presence there would get him into action (clubs) and that he may ask me to come back later today. As it turned out, he saw me on my arrival, but we didn't have time to talk due to work. He then left the work site to go to the bank, and by the time I had finished with work, he went out of his way to pay me. So technically, the money wasn't on him at the time of my arrival (mild disappointment, clubs in the center), and he followed through in the end, expressing generous appreciation of my work as well (hearts). We have had some winter, full of snow and more school cancellations than I have ever experienced in one season. My drive to work is not an easy one; the road the students and employees must drive is very hilly, narrow and dangerous, so I like to be prepared. I asked what my school will do regarding tomorrow's classes, and got the following trio: 2-21-14. I don't think the actual situation is yet so clear-cut, whether or not it will be entirely canceled, and the cards are responding. After all, the predicted storm is still over 14 hours away. However the message is indeed that there will be some kind of disruption in the schedule. Here's what I see: 2-21 (Clover-Mt.) can be early problems, and quickly developing problems. It also shows that pressing one's luck results in problems and delays. Getting off to an early start is not a wise idea. 21-14 (Mt. Fox) Mountain Fox can be "tricky" terrain, especially given our geography. Fox is deceptive, and so the true nature of the danger could be worse than people realize. This could mean ice, or a weather prediction that is not accurate. Clover is one of the plants, and this card indicates "early." Mountain is one of the movement cards, and it indicates that travel will indeed be treacherous and dangerous. It also indicates the development of the situation, suggesting there is definitely going to be interference in the school day. Fox is a warning card. They are indeed going to be cautious and take everyone's safety into mind, "sniffing out" the problems and making a judgment call. Overall, I am certain of at least a delay, which means I will have time to make a judgment call of my own tomorrow. If it is too dangerous, I will simply stay home. I just love consulting with the I Ching - the symbols are so rich, and you can delve very deeply with only one card and one dice cube.
Today I asked about pursuing the involvement of a very well known professional in a music project I am involved in. The said professional is a female, and one link away in the "six degrees of separation," so I would have to go through one acquaintance to get to this person. Focusing on the question, I drew one card, and then rolled the dice for the changing line. The result, as seen in the photo, was 44, Encountering, with line 4 changing. Heaven above Wind. It is composed of one yin line entering the situation from the bottom, while the five lines above are all yang. Traditionally, this symbol is seen as an early warning. Line 1 is the very beginning of a situation, or its foundation. This line is usually favorable when yang, unfavorable when yin. What this is telling me is that the idea to include X would weaken an otherwise very strong project. It's a strange first impression, because this person has a worldwide career. I must look for other clues to refine my first sentence. Each hexagram is composed of an inner and outer trigram. In 44, the inner trigram represents a female, the wind, soft plants, and things taking shape. The trigram with the changing line shows where / how change comes about, and in this case it is in the outer trigram, heaven, which represents a man, a leader, planning and business, round metal. The fact that I asked about pursuing this professional means that I would be the impetus for change, and so I am represented by the outer trigram. Here is where the symbolism of the elements can reveal a bit more detail. The outer trigram heaven is metal, the inner trigram is wood. This is a destruction or control relationship, and my metal trigram is too harsh for X's wood - it is like a cannon ball assaulting a basil plant! I can see that I would probably stir things up if I were to go through my acquaintance. A much more ideal elemental relationship would have been that her trigram birthed mine, for example an earth trigram that birthed my metal. That would be the equivalent of an ardent supporter. Also, when the fourth line changes, the outer trigram also becomes the same as the inner Wind, two yangs atop a yin. This means that her energy wins here, and mine disappears. We know that she is a professional with worldwide repute, so that could mean that she overtakes the project, or that her influence suddenly dominates the project, whether or not she actually means to. Another unfavorable sign for my question. Looking at the fourth line, it represents the situation specifically - the position I am considering hiring her for would be accomplished by myself if I didn't hire her. In fact, I am much more intimately acquainted with all the elements of the project, and sometimes too much, which is why I considered hiring someone from the outside. However, the only line that is an energetic match to a yang is a yin. Line 4 only responds to line 1, who is very far away and not yet inside the situation. This perfectly describes X's current level of familiarity with my project - zero! The I Ching is warning me that my level of preparedness should not be sacrificed at this point; X is too unfamiliar with the project to jump in at this point. Point taken - I will not pursue this person's involvement in the project. Thank you, I Ching! Further analysis is also possible using the nuclear trigram, which is composed of the inner lines of the original. Also, one can look at the hexagram formed by changing the changing line to its opposite, but this is already a thorough enough view for this situation. With all the school violence in the media, it makes me wonder as to the safety of my own daughter at school. So back in December, I had posed the question "Will her school be free from any acts of violence this school year?" Here is a great write-up of the Yes or No spread by Kapherus, the one who taught me the spread: http://cartomancy.wordpress.com/2012/09/19/cartomancy-spread-for-yes-or-no-questions/ The cards were: 7 clubs (black), Father Time (spade = black), Temperance (clubs = black), Page clubs (black), Ace diamonds (red). According to the spread, with four of the five cards being black, that indicates quite a likelihood of some form of violence at her school in this school year. While her school is well-protected, it is not in the best part of town, and so there is always such possibility. Looking through the cards, none of them reflect any major form of violence, and so I was already relieved that even though it is very likely that something unpleasant happen, at least it would not be something to truly worry about. Just last month, in April, as I was picking up my daughter at dismissal, the school suddenly locked its doors and would not let anyone in or out, and so many of us sat patiently in the lobby, not really knowing what was going on. As it turned out, there was a loud skirmish on the sidewalk just in front of the school by two rough townies, however no one was injured and it was nothing serious. There was not even an arrest, and after about 15 minutes, we were all free to go. The 7c points to a struggle, while Father Time points to everyone retiring into the school for a brief wait. Temperance says it could have been worse, and the kids (Page clubs) are looking the other way at the Ad, so they know nothing of what is going on. Since a diamond (red) card tops the spread, it indicates a quick solution to the situation as well. I can't say that I remembered having done this spread five months earlier while in the situation, however, I was reminded of it shortly thereafter and was glad to know that it had finally revealed itself as the event predicted in December. Thankfully no one was hurt. If only that were always the case...
U.S. Games 1864 Poker Deck
In the late summer of 2012 a female client had asked me about moving from one state to another, and this was the resulting Star Spread. The first thing that struck me about this spread was the abundance of spades, suggesting lots of difficulties and problems surrounding this issue. Of equal importance is how the answer card is the only red card, the Ace of Hearts. One way to look at this is that the move to the new state is going to happen, and it will indeed be good for the seeker, at least in some respect. It is as if the one red card is providing an outlet for her happiness and healing among a very stressful or problematic situation. At the minimum, being the only positive card in the bunch, it means the way is open for the move. Add to this the fact that the Ah represents a new home, and the cards are already screaming the answer: yes the move will happen! It is always interesting to pay attention to card multiples in smaller spreads, where the odds of multiples occurring are small enough to make them more meaningful. I advise any reader who truly wishes to expand their vocabulary and eye for nuances in a situation to establish a list of what multiples will mean for each rank in the deck. Two aces mean this, three aces mean this, four aces mean this, etc... I have developed mine over time, from multiple sources such as Regina Russell and Etteilla, plus my own experience. Many published authors throughout the decades of card reading have their own lists of multiples and some good research will reveal multiple lists that you can peruse and try for yourself. When I see two aces, that indicates a birth or simply strengthens the idea of a new period in one's life. And as it turns out for this female seeker, such a move would indeed entail many new things for her, including a new lifestyle. She could move out from the family home to a more independent daily routine - a major development for her. As revealed in the 7s, she had long felt frustrated and stuck living with her parents. And that is why I believe such details reveal themselves in the cards - they reveal something because it matters in a significant way to the one for whom the cards are thrown. The only unfortunate piece of information tempering the good news is the 5s in the final position. It indicates that beyond the new home, there would be another conflict leading to separation. Since it is the 5s, it is not an easy break. (Note - since doing the reading last year, I have learned that she did indeed move to a new residence in the new state. The new living arrangement developed conflicts of its own, but haven't heard if she still lives there or not. To be updated.) Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg, U.S. Games In January a client had asked if a specific spider-vein treatment of injections would be beneficial. ( Click here for details on how to interpret the Answer Spread. ) The first thing I noticed was that out of six cards, four are diamonds / coins. Diamonds attributes, when taken into consideration against the background of the question, indicate that this is more about appearance and self-confidence than about a real health issue, and also speak to the importance to the client of money in this situation - since all the cards are low, I assumed that the client is happy about a low price for this service, or that they are saving money by going this route. Additionally, it can be assumed that the veins are not causing pain or any real trouble other than aesthetically. The client confirmed that those points are all valid. The first card, the 4d, comes up for me most often to indicate an appointment. Falling in the first column, it indicated that indeed an appointment had already been scheduled. Therefore, the client was most concerned with simply getting a validation that they had made the right decision. Ace of diamonds topping that indicates the injection, and the combo of 4dAd literally described the situation "An appointment has been set up for an injection." Looking immediately at the card in the answer position, the 2h, it indicated a resounding yes to her question of "Will it be beneficial?" The 2h indicates a happy solution to a problem. The Hierophant (c) card indicates that this is not some experimental procedure that the client needs to be wary of. It is also the only club card of the six, which means five of six cards are red (four diamonds, one heart, one club) and that the whole process should be problem free. The cards are all small $ cards, which reinforced the fact that this was not an expensive procedure. Result: in March, the client reported that after 2 treatments, she was very happy with the results - that they did wonders and that she is happy that she went through with the procedure. |