Tarot Tips: Freedom from Spreads
Published: Fri, 01/01/16
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![]() Newsletter of The Tarot School
http://TarotSchool.com ISSN: 1529-0565 Vol. 8 #1 / January 1, 2016
In this Issue: - Welcome
- Tarot Tip: Freedom from Spreads
- Tarot School Aphorism
- What's Gnu?
- PsychWise: Four Elements Tarot Counseling Spread - Best Practices: Top 5 Ways to Measure Business Success
- Upcoming Events ![]() Welcome to a new issue of Tarot Tips! And a special welcome to our new subscribers.
January offers us a chance to wipe the slateclean. Often a new year signifies a chance to do something different with the hopes of improvement. The interesting thing about tarot is that it offers a variety of ways to explore our inner selves. Over time, this use has becomes increasingly flexible and as varied as each user. The talented Angelo Nasios has crafted a superb tip on freeing oneself from the dependence on tarot spreads. Angelo’s new book, Tarot: Unlocking The Arcana (Schiffer Publishing) now available for preorder, will soon be gracing the shelves of your favorite tarot bookseller. We are delighted to have him contribute to this month’s edition. In the Best Practices Column, Gina points out ways to measure your business success, and Dr. Elinor Greenberg explores issues through the elements. And one more thing...
Are you a fan of New Year's Resolutions? Even if you're not, you can choose to make this a year filled to the brim with tarot. Be sure to check the Upcoming Events section at the end of this newsletter for all the ways we can get 2016 off to a great start — including our annual "Keep the Holidays Going" party! Happy New Year! Ruth Ann, Wald, Gina & Elinor
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FREEDOM FROM SPREADS
by Angelo Nasios
Spreads, there are countless numbers of them. Small spreads, big spreads and everything in-between. Some readers have “go to” spreads for questions on love, career and so on. Spreads are mostly built on predefined positions, such as past, present and future, or problem, advice, outcome. What if you could use three cards without positional meanings, and you could give a reading on just about any question? This method of free-form reading is my go-to method and is an adaptation from Robert M. Place where I learned to read in this way. Ask a question, and pull three cards, placing them in a line as you normally would do in a three card reading. Reversals are not used in this method. With this method you want to see the images on these cards as a single whole image, rather than three independent images. When looking at your three cards consider the following: Primary & Secondary Look for the primary card. This can be done intuitively by choosing whichever card your eyes are drawn to, or you may designate it to always be the card in the center. When you find the primary card the other two become secondary. The primary tells you what the focus is, the subject, the issue or main influence. The secondary cards gives support to the primary; they may provide advice, resolution, direction, development or interaction. For me, Majors are automatically the primary card. If you have more than one Major, the highest ranking Major could be the primary or use all the Majors as a combined primary. Sometimes two cards can be primary. This happens when one card “is not like the others.” Then the third card supports the prime two. The above rules of primary and secondary still apply. Court Cards Courts play important role. In addition to their normal meanings the way they face can indicate agreement or argument. When the courts are face to face, it can mean communication, meetings, commonality and/or agreements. When the Court Cards are back to back (faces not meeting) it can mean different ideas or argument. Majors When a Major appears between two cards, it can have special implications. For example, if the Wheel of Fortune appears in the middle, the card on the left may indicate what is rising in importance, while the card on the right may indicate what is waning in importance. Temperance in the middle may indicate that the two side cards are elements which need to be blended or harmonized together. Overall, this system of reading is open to your interpretation and intuition. Working outside of predefined positional meanings can be fun and exciting. ![]() Angelo Nasios is the author of TAROT: Unlocking The Arcana (Schiffer Publishing), which can now be pre-ordered on Amazon. Angelo is Tarot Professional’s Tarosophist of the Year (2011) for his contributions to Tarot through his series of videos on YouTube. Subscribe to his channel. Amazon listing http://amzn.com/0764350374 YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/AngeloNasios Tarot School Aphorism ![]() ![]() THE YEAR IS NEW! The possibilities are endless!
PsychWise – Tarot & Psychology Q & A with Elinor Greenberg, PhD, CGP, CPTR EXPLORE THE ISSUE THROUGH THE FOUR ELEMENTS: A TAROT COUNSELING SPREAD ![]() QUESTION: I already use the Tarot School’s “Elemental Array” with some of my clients. How do the four Tarot suits and their associated elements fit into your Tarot Counseling approach? Is there an insight oriented Tarot Counseling reading that I could do that utilizes the four elements and their suits? ANSWER: I often use the four Tarot suits and their associated
============================================================elements in Tarot Counseling. One of the virtues of using Tarot cards for personal growth is that the four Elements (Fire, Water, Air, Earth) as expressed by their associated Tarot suits (Wands, Cups, Swords, Pentacles in the Rider/Waite/Smith deck that I use) allow us to talk about people and suggest new approaches without seeming too critical or judgmental. I always say that I would rather someone tell me that I am low in Pentacles, and need to work more on developing the traits associated with that suit, than hear that I am too scatterbrained and impractical! Having said that, we all come into the world with our preferred approaches for dealing with situations. We tend to use whichever approaches come most easily to us, even when a different approach might be better suited to a particular situation. Modern neuroscience has shown that whatever we do regularly gets ingrained in our brain as a group of interconnected neurons that tend to fire together almost automatically. These well-functioning neuronal networks then compete with ones that could have been developed but were not. The natural result is that the familiar approach usually wins out and it becomes less and less likely that we will use other possible approaches that have not been practiced nearly as much. The late Gerald Edelman (1927-2014), a Nobel Prize winning neuroscientist, called this idea “Neural Darwinism” and elaborated on it in his 1987 book, Neural Darwinism: The Theory of Neuronal Group Selection. If we simplify this idea and put it into Tarot language, we could express it like this: Highly practical, detail- oriented people who are able to complete things in an organized way can be said to be “high” in Pentacles. The skills associated with the suit of Pentacles either come naturally to them or were encouraged by their early upbringing. As they use these same skills over and over again, the brain’s neurons in the areas that relate to these skills develop into smoothly functioning neuronal networks. As a result, other potential neuronal networks (such as those utilized by people who are naturally high in Wands, Cups, or Swords) become less likely to be used and do not get a chance to fully develop. This further increases the likelihood that the person who is high in Pentacles will choose to use a Pentacles approach to life’s problems, rather than some other suit’s approach that does not feel nearly as “natural.” Most of us tend to have a couple of favorite approaches to life problems that we utilize over and over again. The above is equally true for those of us who prefer to use the skills and approaches associated with the other three Tarot suits—Wands, Cups, or Swords. Those of us who depend on our well-developed mental abilities (the element of Air) to plan, categorize, judge, reason, and verbally express ourselves can be said to take a Swords approach. Those of us who instinctively lead with our emotions (the element of Water) and who tend to be romantic, idealistic, dreamy, and creative can be described as preferring a Cups approach. Those of us who initiate (the element of Fire) new projects, relish competition (or at least not mind it) and who can be quite energetic, brave and single-minded in pursuit of our goals can be said to take a Wands approach. We are all equally likely to get stuck in a rut of our own choosing and dig that rut deeper and deeper unless we consciously decide to try a different approach to our life issues, and by doing so develop the underlying brain networks that support the new approach. Wald and Ruth Ann Amberstone’s Tarot Psychology technique, “The Elemental Array,” helps us quickly see which approaches we instinctively use most and which we might choose to develop in the future. It gives a great deal of useful information very quickly. If any of you reading this article are unfamiliar with “The Elemental Array,” I suggest that you go to the Tarot School’s website and read my article, “The Elemental Array: Move an Ace and Change Your Life.” You can also purchase very detailed lessons on how to understand and utilize “The Elemental Array” on the Tarot School website. It is not only our querents who rely too much on familiar approaches, but also Tarot readers. Most of us tend to use the same spreads over and over because we know them well and can read them quickly and easily. (Translation: our brains have developed a smoothly operating group of neurons which fire together, that underlies our ability to do our favorite spread quickly and easily). Although I have my favorite spreads, such as the Celtic Cross or my basic Tarot Counseling spread, I also like to shake things up a bit and invent new spreads that encourage me to do something different with my querent’s question. As a psychotherapist, I find the same things hold true. Therapists and clients can get into their own rut where each therapy session becomes an all too predictable dance. In therapy, as with Tarot reading, I find it useful for both client and therapist to occasionally break out of the familiar. New approaches are more likely to lead to new insights. The following Tarot Counseling spread is designed to expand the Tarot reader’s way of approaching the querent’s initial question. It also inhibits querents from relying only on their preferred approach to their problem by forcing them to choose a face-up card from each of the four suits. The Major Arcana card that is chosen from the face-down stack of Majors allows a bit of mystery to enter the process. INSTRUCTIONS: Step 1: Before beginning the reading, sort your deck into 5 piles; one pile for each of the 4 Tarot suits including their associated Court Cards (the Minor Arcana ) another for the Major Arcana. Put each of the four suits face-up and the stack with the Major Arcana cards face-down. Make sure that all the cards are upright. I do not use reversals with this spread. Step 2: Have your querent ask his or her question. Then have the querent look through the four face-up suits for a card that represents the basic issue that the question involves (Card 1). Step 3: Place this card face-up. It will become the center of the spread and the other cards will be arranged around it. Notice which of the four suits this card is from. Step 4: Now ask the querent to go through each of the 4 suits piles and pick a card from each that relates to their question. This encourages querents to go beyond their usual way of thinking about their problem. I sometimes introduce this step by saying: “Let’s see what the four elements as represented by their Tarot suits have to say about your issue.” Step 5: Lay out the cards as follows: Put the Wands card above the center card, the Pentacles card below it, the Cups card to the left of it, and the Swords card to the right of the center card. Ask the querent to tell you how each of these relates to the central issue. (Take notes). Step 6: Have the querent shuffle the face-down group of 22 Major Arcana cards and choose one card from this deck without looking at the picture. Step 7: Place this Major Arcana card so that it crosses the central card that represents the issue with which the querent’s question deals. This is Card 6. The Major Arcana card’s meaning and its associated attributes suggests the basic approach that the querent should take to the issue. THE LAYOUT: Card 2 (Wands) Card 6 (Major Arcana) Card 3 (Swords) Card 1 (Issue) Card 4 (Cups) Card 5 (Pentacles) RECORD OF READING: I always try out any new spread on myself first. Below is a reading that I did for myself about an issue that concerns me right now. Background Information about my question: I am in the process of publishing my first book: Love, Admiration or Safety: Collected Papers on Borderline, Narcissistic, and Schizoid Adaptations. Book publishing is very new for me and I am working with other people and do not have full control over the entire process. My part of the work is essentially done: I have written all the papers and also an introduction to each paper. Now I have to work with other people, primarily an editor and a publisher, to bring the book into being. There are lots of decisions to be made, ranging from the look of the book (font type and size, line spacing etc.) to how the book should be marketed. I realize that all of this is making me very nervous, and I would like a Tarot Counseling reading to give me greater insight into this whole process and what approach would be most useful. By the way, the one thing that I am no longer nervous about is my book’s cover. The wonderful Robert Place (artist, deck designer, jeweler, alchemist, Tarot teacher and Tarot historian) designed a fantastic cover for my book and I look at it whenever I want to be cheered up about my project. My Question: I would like to feel calmer and more competent. What is the best way that I can approach my book project right now? CARD 1-Issue Card: Knight of Swords Why Chosen: I was surprised that I wanted to choose this card. I thought I would choose a card that was more traditionally associated with worry, such as the 9 of Swords. However, the Knight of Swords conveys my concern that I have to rush in and get the book done and make a lot of decisions quickly based on limited knowledge. CARD 2-Wands Card: 5 of Wands Why Chosen: I am used to working alone and writing and teaching whatever I choose to. Now I have to work with other people to get my book done. I am worried that our energies and ideas about my book may not always align easily. In the Rider/Waite/Smith deck, this card shows five people with long staves. Their intent is ambiguous. They could be fighting with each other, competing, or they could be trying to build something together. It is unclear. Reading this card now for my issue, it expresses my fear that I will have to fight very hard for my vision of my book and get everyone else’s energy on board with my ideas. CARD 3-Swords Card: 2 of Swords Why Chosen: The picture on this card shows a seated and blindfolded woman holding two swords with her arms crossed on her chest. There is turbulent and rocky water behind her and it is night. There is a crescent moon in the sky between the two swords. This picture expresses my sense of indecision (the two swords) and my current lack of knowledge (the blindfold and the darkness) about what is best for my book project. CARD 4- Cups Card: 2 of Cups Why Chosen: The loving couple shown on this card expresses how I want things to go with the people that I work with on my book. I want a harmonious exchange of good feelings. CARD 5-Pentacles Card: 10 of Pentacles Why Chosen: This card shows the Kabbalistic diagram called the “Tree of Life.” One of the things that this diagram represents is the complete path of an idea from first inspiration through all the steps necessary until it is finally completed and manifested in physical form. Also, there are three generations of people present on this card. The different generations represent my wish that my ideas be accessible to a wide variety of people, not just experienced psychotherapy clinicians. CARD 6-Approach: Major Arcana Card: Key 1 The Magician Interpretation: I was really relieved when Key 1 The Magician turned up. It immediately clarified for me the approach that I need to take towards my book. I find this card very empowering. The message that I am taking from this card is that I hold all the power that I need to manifest my project. (In esoteric Tarot one of the attributions of this card is the power of Life and Death. In other words, whatever, we pay attention to, we bring to life; whatever, we ignore is as if dead to us.) The book is my project, I am willing it into existence, and I need to stay in charge of what happens. As the Magician, I am a vehicle for Divine Energy that flows through me and makes flower whatever I point to in my garden. This card also suggests to me that whenever I feel anxious about the book or a decision that I need to make, I can empty myself of egotistical concerns (in esoteric Tarot the Magician is associated with the Transparent Intelligence) get out of my own way and ask God to work through me for the best outcome for all. Resources: "The Elemental Array and Psychotherapy: How to Move an Ace and Change Your Life" by Elinor Greenberg, Ph.D. http://tarotschool.com/ElementalArray.html The Elemental Array - mp3 audio course http://www.tarotschool.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_10&products_id=28 ![]() is an internationally renowned Gestalt therapy trainer who specializes in teaching the diagnosis and treatment of Borderline, Narcissistic, and Schizoid adaptations. She has been studying tarot since 1995 and is psychology consultant to The Tarot School, where she earned a Third Degree in Tarot. She is a member of B.O.T.A. (Builders of the Adytum) and has been certified as a professional tarot reader by the American Tarot Association. Best Practices for Professional Readers
TOP 5 WAYS TO MEASURE BUSINESS SUCCESS
By Gina Thies
As I write this column I am thinking about what I plan to do
in 2016 to top my 2015 business. Most businesses, if not all, measure success in quarterly or annual profits. Of course, not all successes need to be measured by the zeros in the bank account. No matter the size of your practice or what you do as a practitioner, here are some ways to measure the success of your thriving tarot business. 1. New Clients. Adding new clients is important to measuring your success because it can mean your marketing efforts are working or some part of putting your services out there is benefitting you by bringing new customers your way. Take a look at the number of new people you have worked with and perhaps try to increase that number by the end of the year. 2. Supply and Demand. Are you selling out seats to your webinar? Are your products easily sold out or repeatedly demanded by your client base? There is no need to reinvent the wheel. If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it! 3. Adding Services/Products. This goes along with supply and demand. Are your clients requesting that you offer something they want that is not a regular part of your repertoire or on your menu? It may well be worth it to start doing it! 4. Drop a Service/Product. This may be something that was not a success. You may have to discontinue something because another product or service is more successful or you no longer have a need to offer it. 5. Price Increase. There are so many reasons to increase your prices, and I say if the question “Should I raise my prices?” enters your mind, the answer is likely yes! These are just a few of the ways you can measure success in your practice. I wish you all a busy and profitable 2016! Tarot Salon
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