Chapter 6: The Skeptic from the upcoming audio book by Dan Pelletier read by the author.

The woman stepped over to the booth where I was sitting; she was well dressed and coiffed, and carried a look of concern.

Linda, the bartender told me to talk to you. She said you read cards. Can you read mine?”

“It would be an honor.”

“I don’t believe in this psychic stuff, you know… the only reason I’m talking to you is because Linda spoke so highly of you. She said if anybody could help me find answers, you could.” She slid into the booth.

Most people believe that as Tarot readers, we are all “psychics.” Few are aware that there are different styles of reading. There is (for lack of better terms) the ’standard reading’, whereby meanings are ascribed to each card, and to each position where a card is placed. The memorized meanings are translated into a’ reading’. Archetypes provide a venue into which the sitter is able to see their life and experiences.

The intuitive (or psychic) reading uses the cards as a focal point - information comes to the reader from “out there” (different folks have diverse theories on where the knowledge comes from).

Both styles, and you may disagree with me and that is fine, are valid. When I read, it may be either type or both, and my regular clients not only cannot tell, but do not know …

Dan Pelletier

Dan Pelletier lives north of Seattle Washington with his wife of 22 years, Jan, his two cats, Spook and Pookha, and 32 rosebushes. He has been reading Tarot for himself and others for over thirty years.

Dan is also co-owner of The Tarot Garden, a highly respected resource for tarot decks and related information on the Internet. He has written articles appearing on the Tarot for Life website newsletter, Seeker’s Journey, and Tarot Passages; and has published interviews with deck creators on the tarotgarden.com website library.

Hermit’s Journey with Bonnie Cehovet - Tarot Spreads

Welcome to the Hermit’s Journey. This is Bonnie Cehovet, and today I will be discussing Tarot spreads … their purpose and how to develop them for yourself. I love using different spreads, and am very grateful to those in the Tarot world that are willing to share their own creative endeavors. I really enjoy the act of creating spreads … something that I began doing primarily to enhance my client readings, but discovered that it also allowed me to view my decks from a fresh perspective.

What do you get out of designing your own spreads?

• The right sized spread for you … whether that is three cards or thirty-three cards.
• Spreads that provide options, rather than outcomes.
• Spreads that represent your own thought process.
• Spreads that are tailor-made for the Seeker, and the Seeker’s issues.
• The ability to modify existing spreads.
• The ability to work sequentially with several smaller spreads.
• Spreads tailored for use with specific decks, or geared towards special times, such as holidays.

There are probably as many ways to design a Tarot spread as there are people designing them. Each person is going to develop their own individual process … one that works for them, and their clients. The process that I am going to discuss is one that I have developed over a period of time, and one that works for me.

Whether I am reading for myself, for a friend, or for a client, the first thing that I want to know is what area of life the question is addressing. It can be romance, relationship, finances, career, decision making, spirituality … whatever it is, once I know the area that the question is in, I can determine what kind of answer the Seeker is looking for. (I use the term Seeker for the person being read for, as the term Querant … just makes me cringe, and is a term that I never, ever use!) Soooo …is the Seeker looking for insight into a specific issue or problem? Are they looking for actions to take? Are they looking for tools to work with? What the Seeker is looking for helps me determine how the questions should be worded.

Your question may be very general (as in “Is this the right time to make a move?”), or it may be quite specific (as in “Is it in my best interest to move to Florida next month?”). Work with the Seeker until both of you are satisfied with the question. As Teresa Michelson notes in “Designing Your Own Tarot Spreads”, one of the first things that you want to decide when formatting a question is the nature of the question: do you want it to be predictive, or empowering. A predictive question would be: “When is my house going to sell?” An empowering version of the same question would be: “What can I do to make my house more salable?” Go over this with the Seeker (or yourself, if the reading is for you) until both of you are sure what you want. Clear as mud doesn’t get it!

The next thing that you want to do is word the question so that the answer will be as specific as possible, and give as much information as possible. If the question that the Seeker is asking crosses ethical boundaries (i.e. legal, medical or financial, or personal boundaries in that they are asking about a third party) speak up. Either suggest a rewording of the question, or refuse to read for it, and explain why to the Seeker. If the question that the Seeker is asking is either vague, or very general, and this is what they want to ask, then work with a general spread, rather than one that is specifically created for the question. From my personal experience, a general spread puts this type of client in their comfort zone, and some truly empowering questions can come out of it.

Rather than asking a straightforward question, sometimes the Seeker will essentially tell you a story about their situation, and then ask you what they should do, or what they should know. Michelson points out that in such a case, make the different parts of their situation positions within the spread. Another thing that you can do here is to do several smaller spreads, collating the information into one flowing story once the individual readings have been completed.

Questions that I really hate run something like this: “Will I get the promotion, and if I do, will I get the salary that I want?” Here there are a couple of options: Break the questions down into separate questions, and/or separate the questions and reword them to be more empowering, something along the ones of: “What do I need to know about applying for this promotion.”, and “How can I best present myself to get the salary that I want?”

Tarot of the iPod

There are issues using the shuffle setting on some iPods if the file are ‘podcasts’. I’ve created this download archive: symbolism.zip

It has all of the files from the first edition Symbolism of the Tarot. The other reason you might want this copy is that the Artist shows who read the card. The iTunes feed removes this information. I will create an archive of the Pictorial Key to the Tarot when it is complete.

Music Credits

• Opening Music: The Oracle Speaks by William Wilde Zeitler from Elegy for Atlantis
• Transition Music: Serpent’s Kiss by Solace from Nagari (Magnatune)
• Hermits Journey Music: Dark Moon by Suzanne Teng from Enchanted Wind (www.magnatune.com)
• Closing Music: Sorrow & Veil by Solace from Nagari (Magnatune)

Play or Download the Episode

This Podcast Episode has been archived. It is available for purchase at shop.tarotconnection.net in the Year One Archive mp3 DVD.

Myths, legends… Each myth, each legend had a basis for beginning. To simply say, Ah it’s a legend, don’t believe it’s is a knee-jerk reaction.

It’s a mythtake in my opinion. A blind knee-jerk in the name of rationale.

Stating something is not true because it’s a legend, or a myth, may be as heinous as blindly accepting a myth or legend as fact.

In fact it may be worse.

Debunking myths blindly (Hey I bought my first deck and it didn’t affect me!) does few any favors; students find no wisdom in such lessons. You may very well obstruct growth by imposing your world view upon them as opposed to allowing students to find their own view.

For instance, why SHOULD someone be given his or her first deck? Does it make a difference? Will they be a better reader? Will the deck work better?

Without exploring the root of the myth your syllogism is fallacious. Or as we said as a kid, Are-Oh-En-Gee WRONG.

I really want to see folks stop simply stating, It’s a myth! Don’t believe it!

I used to be one of those folks. And I now know that my prior stance was wrong. I no longer hold those beliefs.

Myths have a root.

Fables and myths are what we use to describe what we don’t comprehend. They are our attempts to make the impossible possible.

Wisdom often lies in the undertones. That’s where we find truth.

Dan Pelletier

Dan Pelletier lives north of Seattle Washington with his wife of 22 years, Jan, his two cats, Spook and Pookha, and 32 rosebushes. He has been reading Tarot for himself and others for over thirty years.

Dan is also co-owner of The Tarot Garden, a highly respected resource for tarot decks and related information on the Internet. He has written articles appearing on the Tarot for Life website newsletter, Seeker’s Journey, and Tarot Passages; and has published interviews with deck creators on the tarotgarden.com website library.

Hermit’s Journey with Bonnie Cehovet - Symbolism of the Chariot and Strength

Welcome to the Hermit’s Journey. My name is Bonnie Cehovet, and today we will be continuing on our journey through the symbols in the Major Arcana. As I noted in the first Pod Cast of this series, that of the Fool, the imagery and symbolism in the Tarot is what connects us to its archetypal qualities and wisdom. It acts as a gateway between our conscious and our unconscious worlds. Each deck carries with it its own unique brand of imagery and symbols. For the purposes of this discussion, I will be referring to the Waite-Smith Tarot (also known as the Rider-Waite Tarot), as it is a
traditional reference, and quite often used for teaching purposes. Interpreting the imagery and symbols is done in two ways: through the intent of the author/illustrator (and here we need to remember that the background for the Rider-Waite deck is that of the Golden Dawn), and how the Seeker sees it through the veil of their own personal life experiences.

Let’s continue our journey through the symbols of the Chariot and Strength. The major theme for the Chariot is that of independence and self-sufficiency. As the Charioteer, each of us attempts mental control over our emotional and physical selves. This is a card of challenge, of confidence, and of being prepared, of developing our innate skills. The Chariot is the final card in the first series of seven Trump cards, and indicates that the Fool, the one taking the journey, has emerged from this phase a victor.

In Tarot Symbolism, Robert V. O’Neill places the Chariot as symbolic of the body, the horses as symbols of human instincts, and the Charioteer as symbolic of the mind. The horses pulling in different directions indicate that duality is still present.

In The Tarot - History, Symbolism, and Divination, Robert M. Place notes that the chariot is the cubic stone, and the Charioteer is the spirit emerging from the stone.

In The Heart of the Tarot, Sandra Thomson speaks of the Charioteer’s shield, with the symbols of yoni and lingam (tantric sexual symbols) below the winged sun, showing that he has the power to move energy from the base chakra to the crown chakra at will. The Egyptian winged solar disc itself represents aspiration.

… From the Chariot, and the ending of the first third of the Fool’s journey, we move on to Strength, and the beginning of the second third of the journey. Strength is where we begin to refine our personalities. The theme of Strength
is that of dealing with contradictory emotions - of acknowledging them, and then either resolving them, or bringing them into some sense of balance. We exert control over our world by using the right form of strength at the right time.

The female figure in this card represents feminine spiritual energy. Her purpose is to tame the masculine energy of basic instincts and brute force.

Tarot by the Numbers: The Four’s by Ginny Hunt

I’ve always liked the number four. Not sure why, but I do. Fours have a certain nice sound to them and they’re orderly and you can pair it off into two two’s. It’s just a nice number. And it’s true that fours represent stability, orderliness, practicality, patience, responsibility and all those nice things, so it’s no wonder our dear Mr. Emperor of the Major Arcana is the supreme IV of Tarot. Fours are very solid and dependable, like a square. In fact, the word, “square” has come to mean things like “fair, proper, honest, and straightforward.” We say we got a “square deal” if it was an honest exchange, a “square meal” is a proper one and if you’ve won something, I hope you won it “fair and square.” (read the full post)

Music Credits

Opening Music: time release by the Droney Tones.

Hermits Journey Music: Dark Moon by Suzanne Teng from Enchanted Wind (Magnatune)

78 Notes Music: Steamy River by Rhonda Lorence from Winter Moon (Magnatune)

Closing Music: Only Begun by Artemis from Gravity (Magnatune)

Play or Download the Episode

This Podcast Episode has been archived. It is available for purchase at shop.tarotconnection.net in the Year One Archive mp3 DVD.

Dan Pelletier lives north of Seattle Washington with his wife of 22 years, Jan, his two cats, Spook and Pookha, and 32 rosebushes.

He has been reading Tarot for himself and others for over thirty years.
Dan is also co-owner of The Tarot Garden, a highly respected resource for tarot decks and related information on the Internet.

He has written articles appearing on the Tarot for Life website newsletter, Seeker’s Journey, and Tarot Passages; and has published interviews with deck creators on the tarotgarden.com website library.

A few of the decks mentioned:

• International Icon by Robin Ator
• Gothic Tarot of the Vampires
• Gothic Tarot by Joseph Vargo
• Tarot of the Underworld
• Japanese Egyptian Tarot

Hermit’s Journey with Bonnie Cehovet - Symbolism of the Empress

Welcome to the Hermit’s Journey. My name is Bonnie Cehovet, and in this Pod Cast we will continue on our journey through the symbols in the Major Arcana. As I noted in the first Pod Cast of this series, that of the Fool, the imagery and symbolism in the Tarot is what connects us to its archetypal qualities and wisdom. It acts as a gateway between our conscious and our unconscious worlds. Each deck carries with it its own unique brand of imagery and symbols. For the purposes of this discussion, I will be referring to the Waite-Smith Tarot (also known as the Rider-Waite Tarot), as it is a traditional reference, and quite often used for teaching purposes. Interpreting the imagery and symbols is done in two ways: through the intent of the author/illustrator (and here we need to remember that the background for the Rider-Waite deck is that of the Golden Dawn), and how the Seeker sees it through the veil of their own personal life experiences.

Let’s continue our journey through the symbols of the Empress. The major theme of the Empress is that of abundance. The symbols that surround her reflect that abundance. The first thing that catches the eye is the literal field of abundance that surrounds this figure. The lush grasses, trees and plants speak of fertility, life and living. The Empress represents the feminine principle, fertility and sensuality.

Music Credits

Opening Music: time release by the Droney Tones.

Hermits Journey Music: Dark Moon by Suzanne Teng from Enchanted Wind (Magnatune)

Closing Music: Dark Tower from music of the waters by Shira Kammen