Create Your Best Future with Tarot
What are we looking for when we go to a tarot reader, or any other sort of reader? When clients come to me for a reading at a local new age shop or psychic fair, I’m often viewed as a fortune teller. That’s actually why I’ve often struggled with the phrase Psychic Fair for these events - I think it creates a level of expectation that readers will have all of the answers. People have the sense that a psychic reading will produce the answers they need to fix their lives. And yes, it’s absolutely true that when you ask questions tarot will provide answers, but to get the maximum benefit, you’ve got to go a little deeper than that and be willing to be a part of the solution.
For one thing, if you are only asking about your future, you’re limiting what tarot can do for you. Sure, tarot can tell about your future but in my mind, what’s so much more important is what tarot can tell you about your present because that is our point of power. Tarot is a fabulous life tool that will guide and assist us as we make our way through life. When viewing our lives through the cards, we can get deeper insights into our soul journey. We can peek around the corners of situations, trying on “what happens if this” vs. “what happens if that” so that hopefully we can make wise and informed decisions. Therefore, the clearer we are about what’s going on right now and why, the better choices we can make to shape our future.
Nonetheless, querents sit down at my table and when I ask them what they want to work on or find out, it’s often a struggle for them to come up with a question. “I don’t know, tell me my future!” they say. I do know how that feels. When I’m on that side of the table, I may have one or two challenges that I’m dealing with but what I want is to be told that regardless of what challenge I’m facing at the moment, all I need to do is wait a month or two and Everything Will Be All Right!
That very well may be true, but it also may not happen unless I help the client see what she needs to work on to get there. So, I shuffle the cards and gently help my client re-phrase the question to one that my friend and tarot mentor Christiana Gaudet often uses when people don’t know what to ask: “What does the Universe want me to know?”
Even though this is still a rather wide-open question, it helps to shift the energy toward the querent obtaining something useful that conceivably she or he could use to make a positive change in life. And that right there is one key to good work with tarot. What usually happens is that whatever is on the querent’s mind will show up in the cards and now we have a launching point; we have something that we can work with. Now we have a rudder with which to steer our reading more effectively.
The flow of cards and questions will begin to point in one direction or another. Recently when one client was unsure of where to take the reading, we shuffled and the first card up was the two of cups, so I knew there was a relationship issue on her mind. Another client asked about her love life but wands and pentacles kept popping up, so we were able to drill down and find out that her relationship was suffering a bit because all she could focus on was her new business. See how that works? The cards meet us where we are.
Now we can pull cards to see what actions might work best for us. What does my partner need from me at this time or what do I need from him/her? How can I help my partner feel secure while still focusing on my business? What can I do or say to help improve the outcome over the next few months? Knowing the answers to these questions now in the present will empower you to act in ways that bring the results you want.
The next time you get a reading, think of it as a consultation with your Higher Self. Focus on checking in to find out how you can fine tune your energy for the best possible outcome. Be ready for whatever cards you may receive, even if they indicate challenges. You don’t need tarot cards to know that there will be challenges in life. The trick is figuring out what to do when they occur and how to be more successful at shaping the future you want, and tarot is immensely helpful with that.
