Site Update – New cycle

Tarot card - The Fool Major Arcana Reversed

It’s time to go over the site and update, fix problems and tinker. Maintaining a website such as this requires constant updating, refreshing and fixing. Over the coming weeks we’ll be adding to each card page, updating the spreads and adding new features to make tarot-explained.com even better than before. It’s unlikely that there will be any downtime, but if there is any, it’ll only be for a very short while!

This round of updates is to make sure that the current definitions of each card and spread are as good as they can be, before new content is added.

Using Tarot in everyday Life: Yes and No

tarot yes or no

One of the simplest spreads you can do with a set of tarot cards is a ‘Yes or No’ spread. Most cards have more positive or negative meaning, and from this you can simply determine the answer to a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ question. Some cards are a bit more ambiguous, and the answer may change depending on the question.

Let’s run through an example!

Jane wonders if she’s ever going to go on the holiday of her dreams. She consults the tarot and draws a single card; The Page of Swords. The Page of Swords is quite a positive card, so from this, Jane can determine that the answer is going to be yes. It’s as simple as that. The whole reading was over in less than a minute.

Lets have another example, where things aren’t so clear cut.

Jane wants to see if her weekend is going to be a good one or not. She draws a single card; The MoonThe Moon isn’t as positive as the Page of Swords, and the answer here is No. Jane might wonder why her weekend isn’t going to be a positive one, so she draws another card, or two cards for each day (Saturday and Sunday). The Yes and No tarot spread can open up this way, you may want to explore the initial answer by chaining your spreads together.

The Yes or No spread is best used to get a different perspective on a decision you need to make. Do you want to go to the cinema? Do you want to talk to this person? Always treat the spread as a separate person giving you an opinion. You don’t have to do what it tells you, where’s the fun in that!

Ten top tips for interpreting the tarot cards

tarot scene

Learning to interpret the 78 tarot cards might feel like a big task, and it can take time, effort and practice to get acquainted with the cards.

Here are my top ten tips that you can use and apply when you’re reading the tarot.

  1. Major or Minor Arcana

Have you drawn a card from the Major or Minor Arcana? This will be your starting point. Overall when interpreting the trump cards, keep in mind that these cards symbolise transformation, and growth, either in the form of a new cycle or the completion of a cycle.

The four suits on the other hand, represent events that happen in our day to day lives. For example, in a career reading, drawing the five of wands signifies healthy competition at work.

You can also provide dates for your predictions with the four suits:

  • Cups – Months
  • Pentacles – Years
  • Wands – Days
  • Swords – Weeks
  1. Universal elements and the four suits

Each suit relates to a universal element. Use the qualities of each element as a tool to assist you when interpreting the cards.

  • Cups – Emotions, feelings, love, relationships (Water)
  • Wands – New beginnings, inspiration, ideas, creativity, vocation (Fire)
  • Swords – Mental, thought, communication, logic, intelligence, mind (Air)
  • Pentacles – Money, possessions, materialism, land, health, body (Earth)
  1. Use a cheat sheet

Use a tarot cheat sheet when you practice your readings. Cheat sheets are a great way to learn more about the cards, a cheat sheet will;

  • Summarise the information;
  • Present the meanings in an easy to read format; and
  • Provide concise words to describe each card.
  1. Take your time

Don’t be afraid to take your time when interpreting the cards. Being patient will allow you to understand the cards with accuracy. You will be more helpful to your client when you can give a clear reading. Drawing too many cards at once can become overwhelming and will affect the quality of your reading.

  1. Use your intuition

Practice using your intuition. Gaze at each card and clear your mind. Eventually, you will tune into the cards and learn to trust your instincts with each answer. This method does take time, but continue with it and you will develop your own internal guidance.

  1. Combine numerology with the tarot

Each tarot card has a number and numbers have different qualities to them. You can combine numerology in your readings to benefit you. Another way of using numbers is by dividing the cards into piles of the same number and look for similarities amongst them. For example, the number two in each suit symbolise events that are playing out behind the scenes, and the number three cards symbolise new beginnings.

  1. Choose the right spread

Selecting the right spread will provide a structure to your reading and you will be able to recognise if the card relates to a past, present or future event. Learn by using a simpler three card spread, then progress to the four-card cross spread, and when you feel confident try out the Celtic cross spread.

  1. Practice on yourself

It’s not unlucky to practice the tarot on yourself and it will get your skills up to speed. You can practice by asking the tarot specific questions about yourself and by matching a spread to your question. The more you do this, the more confident you will get at interpreting the cards to fit different questions.

  1. The question under consideration

Always interpret the cards by keeping the original question in mind. This will be more difficult in general readings because of the broad nature of the question. Stick to the question and take a break if needed to get perspective on each card.

  1. Communication between the cards

Look at how the cards communicate with each other. Are the figures on the card facing each other? Or, does one have their back to the other? Look for patterns.

For example, the cards below are both Swords and relate to the mind and communication. The figure on the Nine of Swords has their back to the Ten of swords, indicating that this person was betrayed in the past, which is causing mental suffering and preventing them from moving forward. Communication is important here, they can resolve this internal conflict by confiding in someone, such as a therapist or counsellor.

As you can see, the tips given here will take time to learn, but by using these methods consistently you will begin to develop your tarot skills and your own internal guidance. Most importantly, play around with these techniques and have fun! Or even create your own methods for interpreting the tarot…

Biography

Sarah Buttery is a professional tarot reader and esoteric researcher and blogger.

News and a New Spread – 12 Month

tarot year

Have you wondered what the next year might bring? A new spread has been added; a 12 month Spread. Now that it’s coming up to the end of the year, it’s a perfect time to think about what the next year will bring for you.

There are also some other exciting features for Tarot-Explained in the new year. January 1st is the celebration of our second birthday, and with this comes a review and update of the card meanings. Recently, we added a numerology section to each card, and more card meanings will be added over the next year.

Have a happy holiday season everybody.

Spooky Halloween Tarot Spread

pumpkin Halloween Tarot

Halloween is a great season and a perfect time to do a Tarot reading. I love this time of year, the colours change and we all get ready to settle down for winter. With so much time spent indoors, it’s good to think about the future and how the next year is going to plan out. It’s good to give yourself some time before January the first rolls around to plan and think about what you want from your next year here. For now, let’s focus on Halloween and a scary,  spooky tarot spread!

Want a FREE Halloween Spread Tarot Reading?

Choose Your Halloween Tarot Cards Now!

 

Witch’s Pentagram Spread

Halloween Tarot pentagram spread

The pentagram is a symbol with many meanings. There’s even a Pentacle tarot suit! The five points of a pentacle each represent a differing element. For this spread; shuffle your deck, and then place five cards face down in the pentagram shape.  Flip them over one at a time. You can start where you like. The positions represent the following:

  • Spirit: Something to aim for, goals and achievements. The journey to take to become what you want to be. Your ideal life.
  • Fire: Instinct. How to treat your current problem. What you want to do regardless of the outcome.
  • Earth: Something or someone keeping you grounded. A dependency you may not realise. Something holding you back.
  • Air: Hidden secrets. Something or someone that may be here now but not for long.
  • Water: An action to take to improve your life. Someone who will benefit you. Someone you can help.

Be sure to check out the card meanings for insight. Why not comment below with your results?

Want to Choose Your Live Halloween Tarot Reader?

 

We’ve selected live tarot readers to give you a FREE 3 Minute Halloween Spread Tarot Reading! Scroll through them below and pick your favorite one.

How was your Free Halloween Tarot Reading? Let us know in the comments below!

Using tarot in your everyday life

Tarot card - The Six of Pentacles

Pents06

Using tarot in your everyday life can be an interesting experience, and there are a few ways you can go about it. Originally a card game and system of divination ,you can use the inherent meanings of the cards to gain a different perspective on what is going on in your life. It’s fun and easy to use tarot cards as a tool to help yourself and others. Lets go through a number of methods about how you can use tarot in your everyday life.

Goal tarot cards

Having a card of the day can help you live a day in a new way and take new paths. Choosing a card at random in the morning will set you up for the day. Choose the card, look up the meaning and be mindful of the definition as the day goes by. It can lead to some interesting situations! For example, you might draw the Ten of Swords. You should be mindful of things that are ending, if not, maybe something important will come to an end today.

Reflecting on tarot cards

Choosing a card in the evening allows you to reflect on the day, as well as honing your reading skills. At the end of the day, when all your major activity is over, draw a card at random and reflect on the meaning. It might even help you, if you were unsure of something today, or there are still problems that you need to work out.  For example, you might have drawn the Seven of Wands. Did you place a bet, or take a chance on something? It’s likely that it’s going to pay off.

Deciding with Tarot cards

This is a bit of a trickier one, but you can use Tarot cards to help you make decisions. As the opening paragraph says, you should not base your decision solely on the meaning of a tarot card, but on the situation itself. The card should help you reflect on possibilities. It may be handy to carry a deck with you during the day (I do!), and use it when you can. When faced with a choice, quickly draw a card and check the meaning. For example, you might draw The Sun when you’re faced with a Yes or No question. In this case, think about where saying ‘Yes’ will take you.

I hope these three little methods have been useful, if you have any more, please comment!

All Tarot Card Meanings!

Tarot card - The World

RWS_Tarot_00_FoolTarot - The World

It has taken nearly a year, but all of the card meanings have been completed. What an incredible journey, we have come full circle. A lot has been learned and there is a lot more to say. These tarot card meanings will be added to and updated in the coming new year but I’d like to say thank you for being on this site and reading what I write, it means a lot.

Swords

Cups

Wands

Pentacles

Major Arcana

 

Regards,

Kali