Cosmic Whispers Tarot

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Reading Accuracy: 30-Question Tarot Challenge Q 24

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Q: How accurate do you believe your readings are (or, do they accurately convey messages from spirits/deity at all)?

This question gets into the debate over Tarot as fortune-telling tool and Tarot as psychospiritual development tool. I come down kind of in the middle on this one.

Fortune-Telling Mode and Accuracy

Well, I’ve actually gotten quite a bit of validation on my readings to free reader applicants at the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI). Specific real-world validation that the cards spoke to the external circumstances surrounding the question. Gives me a bit of goosebumps just remembering some of the feedback from querents.

But, self-fulfilling prophecy on the part of querent and reader? The symbols on the cards being so malleable that they can be used to explain anything (given concrete info from the querent)? I’m not sure.

I think I will continue to take these validations at face value, although I never start a reading with the idea that I’ll be telling a person if their mom will die in a week, or if their boyfriend/girlfriend will come back. I think querents should be empowered to make their own decisions, with the Tarot maybe reminding them of the options they have in any given situation. I also won’t read on a third person’s projected feelings or actions directly for ethical reasons, but I don’t read strictly on a psychological enlightenment basis, either.

I do believe that we can get an idea of what the emotional energy of a situation is and even some of the specifics around the situation because of my belief in empathic energy communication through the quantum field. But that’s just my theory.

Psychological Mode and Soul Work

Osho Zen Tarot

I like these kinds of readings best. We get to have a deep conversation about the inner work of the querent. I like to read the cards together with them and discuss their meanings in general and how the querent sees them. Feels more like an equal partnership seeking enlightenment.

The validation or “accuracy” here is in the response of the querent to the cards and their meanings. Again, self-fulfilling prophecy may very well be at work, but the symbols are designed to awaken what is already within (they are archetypal for a reason).

I also believe that the quantum field and the entire field of energy of the universe feeds into our interpretation. We are all star dust after all. I agree with Carl Jung that there is a collective consciousness that we can tap into either with or without symbolism (but symbols are nice cues), and that consciousness affects us energetically, as we affect it.

I think the accuracy of Tarot is built into its symbolic connection to the collective human unconscious (regardless of religious tradition). If it weren’t “producing” interesting results, decks would simply collect dust on the shelves.

Accuracy can be interpreted in a number of different ways, but I definitely find the Tarot useful in bringing out information and options that might otherwise remain hidden.

If you are a fellow reader, I’d love to know what you think of accuracy, and whether or not you read for specific concrete answers or just personal reflection. I will also be asking this question over at my new MeWe group, The Cartomancer’s Salon if you’d like to join the discussion.

I found the questions for this series at a Tumblr account that no longer exists. A lovely person named Rhee started the thing. These are great prompts for telling stories about one’s journey through the world of Tarot, so I’ve started the series again on a weekly basis so you all can get to know me better, and also share your own answers to the questions in comments or links to your own posts. I’d love to hear from you!

The Energy Exchange: 30-Question Tarot Challenge Q22

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Q: Do you charge money (or other ways of compensation) for your readings/services?

I actually do charge for professional Tarot readings (see my Readings page for details), and I have also done free readings as part of my work with the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI). Some folks think that we shouldn’t charge for spiritual or esoteric guidance at all, but I disagree. Tarot readings have value for the recipient, we hope (or they wouldn’t have asked), and querent and reader are part of a value equation that needs to be solved for it to be complete.

Energy Exchange in Nature

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Abell 399-401 Galaxy Bridge

Energy exchange is not inherently evil. It’s a natural part of how the universe works, balancing energy and matter. The two galaxies in the image are sending matter and energy back and forth as they get closer. With this energy exchange, they both put out more “stuff” to be made into new stars, new planets, new . . . life. And this is what we’re all made of, of course—star stuff.

Deserving and Undeserving

Universal Waite © US Games, Inc.

So many spiritual messengers, energy healers, inspirational authors feel like their channel is a gift and therefore should be given away to others “for free.” Well, the universe doesn’t work that way. It seeks balance. You paid certain prices to be a messenger, a healer, a writer. You made a deal with that channel or whatever you call the still, small voice that feeds your work. So, when you release that energy to another being, they need to give you some back in exchange (doesn’t mean you can’t have a sale, or use barter, of course). It gives your gift more value to the recipient.

Ultimately, it’s not about whether or not you “deserve” compensation for your time or energy; it’s a simple equation of balance; psychological, physical, and spiritual. Besides, you do your client a total disservice by not gracefully receiving an appropriate exchange; they are disempowered by your lack of grace.

This ethic of giving without exchange is a leftover from our Puritan ancestors, for those who come from European folk. And it was based on guilt and the idea that we should suffer in this life (and be slaves to those folks in power or to our inner fears) in order to “deserve” a reward in the next. We should be long over this by now. Long over it.

Balanced Marketing

On the other hand, selling your stuff at every opportunity without developing real relationships (again the balanced exchange is missing) is counterproductive in a lot of ways. People will get tired of you real quick if you don’t market with balance, transparency, and integrity. There are just two things I firmly believe in:

1) Asking questions to find out what you can do for your clients rather than simply broadcasting your services. It pays to be curious.

2) The 99%/1% rule. Your business-related communication should be 99% interaction and conversation and relationship-building, 1% broadcast advertising.

Be visible, create value for people and care about them. They will find you. Then offer them a reasonable energy exchange, and you’ve got a win-win. The trick is to be as wise as the cosmos. 🙂

I found the questions for this series at a Tumblr account that no longer exists. A lovely person named Rhee started the thing. These are great prompts for telling stories about one’s journey through the world of Tarot, so I’ve started the series again on a weekly basis so you all can get to know me better, and also share your own answers to the questions in comments or links to your own posts. I’d love to hear from you!

My First Readings: 30-Question Challenge Q5

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Q5: When and where did you give your first reading?

Well, I’ll have to think about that one. I did some readings for friends and family when I first started in the 1998–1999 time frame, but I don’t remember which was the first one. I mostly read for myself at that point.

One reading from that initial period that stands out in my mind is one I did for my ex-husband (when he was still my husband, or course!). Don’t remember all the particulars of the reading itself except, like most of my readings for others, the accuracy of the results and the flow of the interpretive process surprised me. It was just done at the dining room table in my house back then.

I was actually surprised that he wanted a reading; he’s a very intellectual scientist and I expected him to poo-poo the whole idea. So I still give him kudos for keeping an open mind. 🙂

I do free readings for the Tarot Association of the British Isles, and my first one of those was in March of 2013. It was a bit scary being responsible for someone’s emotions doing readings for the general public. I do have ethics to consider like making sure the querent knows that they are empowered to decide/change things based on the reading and that fate is not a rigid, predetermined thing.

The lady asked about a common issue, love life: “What do I need to know about a possible relationship in my future? (my future love life and a new love, or past love, who may enter my life)”

I do try to strike a balance between a practical, “fortune-teller” answer, and a psychological approach that focuses on the querent’s feelings and mental attitude. I don’t remember if I got feedback from this querent, but it was interesting to deal with these practical questions after being mostly about the spiritual journey with my Tarot readings.

And, just for fun, the first professional (paid!) Tarot reading I did (in 2016, so it took a while to get started) was seriously overwhelming, and I had to put on my spiritual “channeling” self to come up with a final message for it. Another relationship question, but this time the querent was quite familiar with Tarot and as it turned out, Lenormand reading methods but wanted an “outsider” view on their situation. I wasn’t expecting to be doing a Lenormand Grand Tableau (!!!) as part of the reading (client did pay for a long session, though), so I felt like I was scrambling to come up with a good interpretation with that system after covering the Tarot territory. I still consider myself primarily a student when it comes to the Lenormand. I did learn from that session the importance of getting everything from the querent about what they expect so I can prepare properly for the reading.

So, baptism by fire on the professional front, but that’s my set of stories about first readings.

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I found the questions for this series at a Tumblr account that no longer exists. A lovely person named Rhee started the thing. These are great prompts for telling stories about one’s journey through the world of Tarot, so I’ve started the series again on a weekly basis so you all can get to know me better, and also share your own answers to the questions in comments or links to your own posts. I’d love to hear from you!

© 2013 – 2020 Joanne Sprott