Tarot Reading Example: Love Reading

When reading Tarot you feel overwhelmed? This example from real life will clear things up…

When reading cards for my friends, most often they want to gain insights about one of two things. Either a relationship issue they have or some financial situation. I will show you here how to do a love reading.

The Reading

My friend Dave asked me what the problem was with him and Mia, the girl he started dating recently. Everything looks fine and they are obviously very much attracted to each other, but they seem to be stuck at the very beginning. Dave feels the emerging relationship doesn’t go anywhere, but can’t think of a reason why.

I haven’t met Mia, but I know Dave for years. I suggested a simple spread with cards helping us to decipher the following:

1. The obstacle that Dave perceives
2. The obstacle that Mia perceives
3. The important factor that Dave overlooked
4. What is the real issue?
5. The solution

Dave was very eager to start. And the cards showed the following:

1. XX Judgment is the obstacle he sees
2. Nine of Pentacles is the obstacle she sees
3. Three of Cups is the important factor that he overlooked
4. XVII The Star is the real issue
5. II The High Priestess represents the solution

What we immediately recognize as relevant is that we have three major arcana cards. So the issue obviously has nothing to do with daily concerns. What we should focus on are life choices and the journey we all take through life.

The obstacle Dave sees is XX Judgment. Everything seemed (and was) fine and crystal clear. But now there is one thing stopping things to progress further to the next level. And that is integrating all the lessons learned and rising above one’s ego.

The obstacle Mia sees is represented by Nine of Pentacles. Mia doesn’t have the stability she craves. But her goal is near. She invested much effort in it and she might be even too focused. In fact, Mia doesn’t need distractions right now.

And the surprise for Dave comes with Three of Cups. What he has overlooked is that they have much already, at this very moment. He and Mia have real emotional connection and are in balance. He obviously wants more, but maybe what they already have is the best they can at the moment. They shouldn’t take it for granted, but enjoy in what they have right now. It seems pretty good under circumstances; otherwise he wouldn’t want to progress further.

This got Dave thinking. “Bizarre.” he actually said, seeming just a bit frustrated, “But we might be onto something.”

Now, the real issue is represented by XVII The Star. Both Dave and Mia started new period of their lives, more free and true to themselves.

Now they both have clear path in front of them. Hopes are high. But is it the same path for both? Is Dave sure at least his goal is real? It’s very much possible their goals are different. In any case, he should avoid false hopes and the coming period to really try and recognize the truth from illusions.

And the solution, II The High Priestess? They both learned to manipulate external world and get results. But they must not calculate now, nor manipulate each other. They should both listen more to their intuition and learn to trust from the feeling inside instead of cold analysis and calculation. And this is only the prerequisite to come to terms with one’s emotions, which is yet to come.

To summarize what cards seem to be saying to Dave: Don’t calculate but go with the flow. Be true to yourself and ready to discern the truth from illusion. And relax, don’t create great expectations from the future – but simply enjoy the present.

Dave got quiet towards the end. When we started, he was curious and expectant. But now he was calm and deep in thought. “Good.” I said to myself, “The cogs are spinning; there is no doubt about that.”

Notes

First we had to come up with questions that are relevant to the problem and it will give us additional insight. When the query is a concrete problem, it’s useful to have one card pointing to something that is overlooked, and another pointing to the real issue underneath.

When we have opened a spread, I noticed that three of five cards are Major Arcana.

This suggests the problem lies in the lessons taught by Major Arcana. Those are big lessons in life, so there isn’t much to do to take control of the situation.

In a spread, we have three cards representing something negative, such as a problem. When reading these particular cards, we look for their negative implications. Maybe we lack the main theme represented by the card, or we are too focused on something. Sometimes, too much of a good thing can be bad, or things are simply not as they seem.

Summary

Dave had several insights, so reading the cards really got him thinking. It’s not about what the cards said but the exact opposite. It’s about what Dave have heard. His subconscious filtered the story so Dave recognized new lines of thought. They resonated so true, that Dave couldn’t help but start analyzing the situation from those new angles right away.

You can do that, too.

Follow your intuition and let the story unfold. Do it together with the person you are reading for. You are not doing an exercise in creative storytelling. You are helping another person to come in touch with his or her own subconscious knowledge of the situation.

And remember, each card is part of a progression.

Cards represent a story told by each suite. So for each card in a spread, think of a situation (i.e. card) that was before, and of situation that comes after this particular card. In this way, you will have much more of a context for your associations triggered by each card.

Reading tarot cards is simple as that.