Tarot Tip Tuesdays - Busting Some Tarot Myths

Myth #1:
You need to be a psychic clairvoyant to be a good Tarot reader.

Reality:
Wrong.  There are so many great Tarot readers who are not clairvoyants.  You just need to have a heart of compassion and be attuned to your intuition.  Anyone can learn to read the cards.  The knowledge is opened to those who are curious, who love to explore and learn new things all the time, who are not afraid to  take on life’s adventures along with the Fool on his journey and who embrace the compassionate quest of using the cards to help and guide others.

Myth #2 :
Tarot cards are evil things that come in between you and God’s will.  By reading Tarot for others, you would be influencing the querant’s actions and hinder what has been pre-destined.

Reality:
Wrong.   You are the master of your own destiny.  The cards can only be a guide to help you make the right choices for the highest good.  Where free will comes in, is when the querant has that free will to make that choice he or she deems will influence the right outcome  That is why I am adamant about doing a Tarot reading in a positive way, that is advice-centric and clear on purpose.    A tarot reader should not tell a querant what to do, what choices to make, or which direction to take.  Life is full of options and a Tarot reader’s role is to use the cards to provide options, like a friend, offering a friendly advice to help the querant along his or her journey.

Myth #3:
Tarot readers need to be wearing long flowing skirts, dressed like gypsies and have a zen-like composure

Reality:
Wrong.  A tarot-reader should be true to him or herself.  It does not matter what you wear and how you look.  You don’t have to keep a zen-like composure all the time.  Just be yourself and you might earn better trust from your clients by being REAL. I am loud,  very direct  and will not mince my words. I am also a boxer who just happens to be a Tarot reader.  It does not make me a bad Tarot reader.  It just makes me different.  I don’t have a crystal ball, a headscarf and all the trappings of a “fortune-teller” at the fair ground.  But I am comfortable in my boxing gear of shorts and T-shirt and still read Tarot with plenty of compassion.  So far, I haven’t had any complaints.

Myth #4:
Reading Tarot is un-Christian and defies God’s will.

Reality:
Wrong.  Doing and saying things which serves only  yourself at the expense of the highest good, is un-Christian and defies God’s will.  A clear purpose of using your intuitive gifts and talent to help others, is not.

Myth # 5:
Because Tarot readers violate God’s will by influencing the actions of their querants, most Tarot readers die young, lead unbalanced lives and meet with tragic circumstances.

Reality:
Wrong.  Along with many of my Tarot reading friends in the international community, I am blessed with so much abundance and a zest for life.  If I die young, and I am not young, by the way, that’s okay, because I have lived my life to the fullest, loving every day, and being loved every day.  So this is DEFINITELY a myth and laughable at that.

About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and an intuitive reader by accident who deploys the combined modalities of a Tarot, Numerology and Astrology overlaid with her Clairvoyant and Clairsentient skills to deliver her readings with authenticity. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she also mentors Tarot protégés.

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com
Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

Photo credit: Vivien Tan, www.grumpymonkee.com
Tarot deck:  Kat Black's Golden Tarot
Bespoke embroidered Tarot bag: Lovingly made by Ania M.

Tarot Tip Tuesdays - Designing A Self Care Package

Whether you are new to Tarot and in the throes of building a connection with your Tarot cards or an advanced Tarot reader diligently honing your Tarot reading skills, I am putting out a Tarot tip a week to help you to consistently make Tarot a part of your everyday life. This Tuesday's tip is focused on using your cards for advice about designing that "Self-Care Package" that Tarot readers might find useful.

In the last few weeks, I decided to give myself a break from writing my weekly Tarot Tip Tuesday posts.   I made a little readjustment to some of my commitments to give myself permission to take a break in between.  This is the self care I kept writing about because I truly subscribed to the notion that psychic empaths like myself, who often take on the emotions and other energies of others within our environment, need to frequently recharge and surround ourselves with healing energy. I was terribly exhausted, trying to do so much with so little time, and the amount of readings that I was doing in the last few months suddenly spiked to an extent that I could sometimes take in 4-5 face to face readings in 1 night, then get home to continue with Skype or email readings. I definitely needed to take stock of how I was managing my time, and I needed to step back to take a breather for awhile.

Just before I took that break, I felt so guilty about leaving my Tarot cards for awhile.  it had always been a part of my life, almost an extension of my limb and I never left home without it.  If I truly relied on my cards to provide my clients clear advice and direction, then I should rely on my cards to do the same for me.   The following is a spread I had created to design my "Self-Care Package" that I sorely needed.  

If at anytime you feel that you need to recharge yourself but not sure when, how and what would be the best way to do it, I hope this Tarot Spread helps.  This spread is meant to provide advice on how best you can take care of yourself when it gets all too much.

Caring For My Physical Self - Queen Of Wands

The Queen bodes so much positivity around health. It is a card charged with vitality. Looking at the Queen of Wands from my Radiant Rider Waite deck, I saw passion, radiance, beauty, confidence, and energy.  It beckoned me to do what I can to revitalize myself, bring back the energy into my life with a rigorous fitness regime and a sound diet. So that was what I did.  I made a conscious choice to not just "go to the gym ever so often to do my thing" but instead,  to focus my time on Muay Thai (Thai boxing) training.   I made arrangements with 4 coaches specializing in their respective areas of expertise who could help increase the intensity of my Muay Thai training with the goal of competing in the ring perhaps next year when I am ready.    I spent 6 days a week in the gym going through rigorous training sessiojs of boxing drills, strength conditioning, pad work and heavy bag exercises.  The Queen of Wands approaches life with passion, so like the Queen, I developed my passion for Muay Thai and gave it 100% commitment.  I got fitter and stronger as a result.  Most importantly, because I was fitter and stronger, I had more energy everyday!

Just last week, I paid a visit to my cardiologist for my regular checkup that I did every 6 months.  He was amazed at the weight I had lost and how toned and fit I looked.  The results of my medical tests also improved so much that he reduced the dosage of my hypertension medication even more.

The Queen nudged me wth her wand to remind me that if I wanted to extract the full benefits of an activity I had chosen to support in my health and fitness goals, I had better  be passionate about doing it right.

Caring For My Mental Self - The Empress

The Empress was an interesting pick.  It threw me back a little because I often associated the Empress  as a card associated with fertility matters when it came to a health reading. However, this was not a health reading! I reminded myself that this was about the advice the Empress was trying to provide to help calm my mind.  I realized then that she was telling me to take some time off to spend time with myself, enjoy the great outdoors and get in touch with nature again.  So I did that with long walks along the riverside, not purely for physical fitness but to enjoy the lush greenery around me, the sights of dragon-boaters rowing their boats along the river, lying on the grass to decipher shapes from the clouds and sinking my feet into the earth to feel the healing earth energy coursing through my body.  

The Empress also represented creativity.  So I focused my time on writing.  This time, instead of writing about Tarot related topics, in tandem with my recent love for martial arts,  I chose to write about sports!  I started re-using my skills learnt from my University days when I took up English Applied Discourse as a minor subject, focusing on journalistic writing.  Due to my love for Muay Thai and martial arts in general, I had decided to focus my writing on mixed martial arts.  I enjoyed it so much that I started writing for various sports media and was also invited to cover mixed martial arts events as a sports writer.  I even got my own byline with Asia Sports Network! I was so chuffed  because I was doing something I love - writing, about another topic that I truly enjoyed over and on top of Tarot.

Now that certainly was the best care I could give myself to enhance my mental well-being.  I deployed creativity through my writing skills to stimulate my mind around a topic I never was an expert in but learnt so much about.  It brought me so much happiness when I could chat on end about a sport that I loved.

Caring For My Spiritual Self - Knight of Swords

 This was a classic manifestation of the issue I had been dealing with right from the start.  I had so much going on in my life, juggling between a full time career in a fast-paced industry of finance, heading up a marketing and PR team.  At the same time, I was managing a Tarot business that was growing beyond my capacity.  I was engaged in private readings, corporate events, workshops and talks.  I was not managing my schedule  and not pacing my activities well enough that I started to lose touch with my spiritual self.  As a psychic empath, not having time to meditate and offload the. Negative energies that I absorbed during my readings led to my being extremely exhausted  and swaying precariously through mood swings.  I was badly in need of some semblance of stillness and solitude so that I could reconnect with my spiritual self.  

The Knight prodded me with his sword to do something about it quickly.  So I made the conscious choice to limit my face to face readings to only a couple of days a week.  Email readings were allocated  only one night a week.  I taught Tarot and Numerology lessons only a weekend of a month and I accepted reading engagements at corporate events only once a month.  I also decided to write my blogposts when I am creatively guided to share a topic and not because I was pressured into delivering on a schedule I had set myself on. These activities alone were already plenty for me to work with but the way I paced them  gave me time to meditate and reconnect with my spiritual self.

As I started to unshackle myself off my own expectations of who I was as a marketing and PR professional and an owner of a Tarot business, I threw myself into a Devotion To Self  course conducted by Jen Saunders from Wild Sister Magazine and a 30 -day Chakra Bliss Challenge conductive by Danielle Dove.  As the weeks went on, there were times I could not follow the pace of the course of the challenge, but I forgave myself  because I wanted to take my time and let my spirit lead me to whatever I needed to do to get me to be more connected with my spiritual self.

Eventually, i felt so grounded and my intuition was switched on whenever I needed it to do so, even to the extent of tuning into my clairvoyance during a hectic business trip, and providing the right advice when a friend hollered for help.

 How Can I Unite My Body, Mind And Spirit? - Temperance 

So now that I knew what I needed to do to recharge my body, my mind and my spirit, how could I ensure that I supported these 3 pillars of my life to get me back to a happy place?  I picked the Temperance, and I was not surprised by the message from the card. The Universe was very clear about the fact that whatever I pursued to help myself physically, mentally and spiritually, I had tocreate balance and moderation in order to achieve a sense of purpose and fulfillment with everything I put an effort towards.

I revisited my interpretation of the Queen of Wands, the Empress and the Knight of Swords and saw what pulled the three together - my spiritual path as an intuitive. 

 My effort and commitment into Muay Thai would be critical in helping me "offload" all that negative energy I absorbed as a psychic empath.  At the same time, by building my fitness and my strength, I was able to have more energy to take on more challenges as I continued to serve my purpose.  

 My foray into sports journalism was an alternative outlet for creative self expression which revitalized my love for writing again. I had spent months before suffering frequent writers' block with both my Sun a Goddess Tarot blog and my personal blog.  Now that I had regained my energy and passion for writing, I started an unconscious ideation of topics in my head that I wanted to write about within my Sun Goddess Tarot blog.  

I also gave myself permission to slow down, turned down some reading requests, took a short 'vacation' from writing my Tarot Tip Tuesday posts and generally just 'took a chill pill'.  

Temperance reminded me that the ultimate way to caring for myself, was to balance all these elements as I juggled my priorities.  This Self-Care Tarot spread is very small, and quite simple, but it empowered me to make positive changes to my life.  When I can learn to love myself and take good care of myself, then I can take good care of my clients.

May your Tarot cards provide you with a full deck of possibilities throughout your day.

If you like this blogpost, do follow my blog at http://sungoddesstarot.blogspot.com and LIKE my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot

About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and an intuitive reader by accident who deploys the combined modalities of a Tarot, Numerology and Astrology overlaid with her Clairvoyant and Clairsentient skills to deliver her readings with authenticity. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she is also a reader for the Free Tarot Network and mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com
Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot

Muay Thai training with my Thai coach in Phuket, Thailand.
Photo courtesy of David Ash, www.singaporemaven.com

Meditating at the beach.  The ocean speaks to me.

Add Greater Depth To Tarot Readings With Numerology And Astrology

I built my niche over the years through my reading style of combining Numerology, Tarot and Astrology in a reading.  I thoroughly enjoyed doing so because I often use the querant's numerological make-up and the astrological influences that surrounded him or her to obtain even deeper insights from the Tarot cards I picked for him or her. Because of the depth in the readings, it has helped me provide advice-centric readings that empowered the querant to make the right decisions to move forward with his or her issues.  Here is an example of how you could do the same in your reading. 

The Client: Yvonne

Birthdate: 12 February 1980

Astrological Sign : Aquarius

Question: I feel that my colleagues do not value my inputs at work and I cannot seem to get along with them.  What can I do to garner some respect and recognition at work?

The Numerological Assessment:

The day of birth is very useful when it comes to assessing a querant's behavior or attitude.  To determine Yvonne 's, you will need to add up her day of birth, that is, 1+ 2 = 3.

Her character number that governs her behavior and attitude is a 3. This indicates that she is a vibrant person full of vitality and energy.  She needs to work in an environment that allows her to have space for creative expression. Being highly expressive, the work environment within which she works should tap on her expressive nature instead of suppressing it.  In this situation, I can see Yvonne attempting to build a collegiate relationship with the team at work and she should continuously harness her sunshine personality to do so. If she is not doing this well, then this indicates that her work environment could be one that is not proactively fostering an open communication amongst the team.   Also, the company could be a conventional one and that could also stifle Yvonne's need for creative expression. The good thing about her is that she is able to bounce back quickly from any setbacks that she may face.  So she is advised to harness the strengths of her 3 character to put any negative past behind her so that she can  focus on  positively building better relationship and communication with the team.   

Life path numbers provide a semblance of the opportunities and lessons that life will offer her.  To determine Yvonne's, you will need to add up her day of birth, to the month of birth to the year of birth (1+2+2+1+9+8+0 = 2+3 (add up the compound number 23) = 5). So Yvonne's Lifepath number is 5.  Her Lifepath 5 number, tells me that life offers her opportunities to be a catalyst of change. She is adventurous and open to walking the unbeaten track.  Given this lifepath number, it is obvious that Yvonne will not flinch when faced with these issues at work. Her question needed no rephrasing because it was quite clear that she was looking to proactively work within the limitations and constraints of the company and was happy to adapt to the situation. Freedom of thought and freedom of expression are all very important to her.  This lines up wth her Aquarius sign which I will talk about later. This also lines up with her Character number 3 and emphasizes her strong desire to create a space within the office where she could add value creatively.   As you can see, Yvonne's numbers should influence her to  approach this challenge as a new learning experience for growth.  I could see a hint of that as evidenced in the way she framed her question.  Another thing special about Yvonne is that as one with a life path 5, she will have plenty of opportunities to multi-task at work with differing projects.  While she would be good at it, she needs to also ensure that she does not scatter her energies too much as fuelled by her Character number 3.  If anything falls through the cracks with these projects because of her inability to stay focused, it might affect her colleagues' trust in her reliability.   

The Astrological Assessment:

Yvonne is born under the Zodiacal sign of Aquarius,  which is governed by the planet Uranus.  Known also as the God of the Sky, Uranus is often associated with change, non-conformity, revolutionary tendencies and idealistic expectations.  The planetary influence propels Yvonne's need for self-realization and freedom from expectations. Aquarius is governed by Air element and represented by The Star and The King of Swords in Tarot.  This explains Yvonne's idealistic expectations about her colleagues all getting along as one big happy family when she joined the company.  When she realized it was not to be so, the situation compelled her to go into a tailspin of deep analysis about what she had done wrong, and why she was not accepted by the team.  So I advised her to balance all the thinking with a practical plan to help her win her colleagues over. She was also advised not to have too high expectations of her colleagues as some may not be as open and communicative as she had hoped them to be.  Funnily, Aquarius people have problems expressing emotions. They find it embarrassing to show too much of emotions.  So Yvonne should balance that limitation from her Zodiacal influences and harness the expressive nature of her character number 3 instead.

Now that I have assessed her numerological and astrological influences in order to provide her some forward-looking advice, I then created a Tarot spread to understand her situation in better depth.

The Tarot Spread:

Current Situation  - 8 of Cups + The Tower Reversed

These cards clearly affirm Yvonne's stand that she felt under-appreciated. Even though she had done all she could within her work environment, she felt that her colleagues were not recognizing he value she brought to the table.  While she recognized that the easy way out was to walk away from it all,  she also knew that would only mean that she was giving up and not ready to effect positive change for herself.  The change needed was in learning to be open to the opinions of others and approach everything at work as a new learning curve.  She needed to adapt herself to the situation and not have idealistic expectations limit her.  While changing this perspective was difficult and adapting to the new job environment was going to be tough, she understood it was necessary. As an Aquarian, she could possibly been turning over and over in her head,  that question of "Should I leave or should I stay in the company?" or assessing the "what-if" of each option opened to her. What would be more important was for her was her resolve to change her perspective and look at a plan to better engage her colleagues.

Obstacle - Ace of Wands 

The Ace of Wands as an obstacle suggested that the state of being constantly  embroiled in disagreements at work may be stripping her off her energy levels and leaving her feeling incredibly unmotivated and uninspired. She might have felt that her creative ideas got put down or was not appreciated or perhaps she felt that she was not given opportunities to express her creativity and take action on her ideas.  These had made her increasingly frustrated and disillusioned.  Remember, she has a Character number 3 which means that if her colleagues were indeed not valuing her creative inputs and not giving her ample opportunities to express herself freely, of course she would be very frustrated!

Advice - 8 of Swords + 3 of Swords Reversed  

As a Character number 3, her sensitive nature did influence the way she responded to the situation.  These cards affirmed the impact the experience had in her but they also advise Yvonne to approach her issues with a more open-minded perspective of the situation.  This affirms that she needed to learn to be open to differing opinions of others and not view it as their non-acceptance of her creative ideas.  She had to let go of the residual negativity and disappointment she felt about her colleagues or anything that her colleagues had said to affect her in the past.  This will allow her to move forward with positivity, hone new skills of resilience and adaptability and allow her to build a better relationship with her colleagues. 

Outcome - Knight of Swords

 The Knight revealed that Yvonne would be moving forward from this episode by going all out with the job, pushing herself to reach her goals without letting anyone or anything stand in her way. I hope she would be arguing her point of view tactfully when she needs to do so.  While managing her projects and targets with clear ambition and enthusiasm, I truly hope she would be open to others' opinions at the same time as per my advice from the previous cards.  She could pose to be challenging for the quieter and less out-spoken colleagues so she needs to be quite careful or else she might view these challenges as her colleagues' non -acceptance of her creative ideas again.

Summary

As you can see, the majority of the suits within the spread are Swords cards. Swords cards are governed by Air element and are associated with intellect, perceptions, mental conflicts and communication. I can see that a lot of Yvonne's issues are dictated by her perceptions of the situation and she needs to learn to adapt and open her mind to alternative views.  The communication breakdown and disharmony can also be seen by the heavy presence of the swords cards and this makes it even more evident that while she needs to harness her gifts of creative expression, she would be required to put her point across in a more tactful manner and accept the opinions of others as well.  Her lifepath 5 makes her adaptable to such challenging work environment  and her creative traits driven by her character number 3 should help her navigate the interpersonal relationships at work.  As an Aquarian, instead of imposing such high expectations on how her colleagues should respond to her ideas, she should instead think about a logical plan to bring her colleagues into the effort of co-creating the ideas with her.

If you like this blogpost, do follow my blog at http://sungoddesstarot.blogspot.com and LIKE my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot

About The Writer:

The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade and an intuitive reader by accident. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and is also a certified numerologist.  She is currently running a consultancy based in Singapore called Sun Goddess Tarot,  which provides confidential intuitive readings combining the metaphysical disciplines of Tarot, Numerology and Astrology overlaid with her Clairvoyant and Clairsentient skills via face to face and emails as well as readings at corporate and private events and workshops.  A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she is also a reader for the Free Tarot Network and mentors Tarot protégés on behalf of the American Tarot Association.

Website: www.sungoddesstarot.com

Email:  Joanna@sungoddesstarot.com

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot

Twitter: www.twitter.com/SunGoddessTarot 

 How Can You Add Greater Depth To Your Tarot Readings? 

Kat Black's Golden Tarot Deck Is Featured Here.
Photographed by Vivien Tan, www.grumpymonkee.com. 

 

30 Day Tarot Challenge: The First 10 Days

30 Day Tarot Challenge

I absolutely love blogging about anything and everything.  However I love to blog about my journey with Tarot most.  While I try to be a regular blogger on http://sungoddesstarot.blogspot.com  the truth is, with multiple demands on my time, I find myself blogging perhaps at best fortnightly. 

So I discovered this 30 Day Tarot Challenge here http://78keys.tumblr.com/post/36652622634/30-day-tarot-challenge
which excited me quite a lot. Kudos to Ree for thinking up of this fun challenge!  However, my challenges were that 1) I had to blog each day for 30 days about the given topic and 2) my fellow Tarot blogging friends are already at Day 10 of the challenge.

Incidentally, my Card du Jour picked on this day that I started on the 30 Day Tarot Challenge, was the Queen of Wands.  The Queen of Wands is known to take on any challenge with determination, passion and confidence.  She will never shy away from a challenge.  So, the Queen has spoken, I started with Day 1 of this blogpost on the night of 11 December 2012 and aim to complete it by 31 December 2012.   You might be wondering why I am taking only 20 days to complete a 30 day challenge.  Well, I have decided to complete the first 10 questions in 1 day to catch up with my fellow Tarot bloggers who are participating in this challenge too.  I really don’t fancy being ‘Slow Poke Jo’.      
     
Day 1 - What introduced you to/got you involved in Tarot?

When I was very young, I found a book on Cartomancy amongst Dad’s huge collection of books.  Typical to a person with a Life Path 7, that book intrigued me and I used a deck of regular playing cards for the purpose of trying out what I had learnt in the book.  I think I found my gift of intuition then because even with just the use of regular playing cards, I got insights about situations in my childhood even from them.  Of course, it helped that Granny too, is deeply intuitive and I may have picked that from her.

Over the years as I grew older, I visited a professional Tarot reader, now my teacher, quite regularly.  As I was not satisfied with just getting a reading, but wanted to understand the significance of the symbols within the Tarot cards, I started reading up about the cards too.  In that way, I could get the most out of my Tarot reader, and lend depth to any questions that I wanted to ask of her. 

In the beginning of this year, I decided to make that bold move to attend my Tarot teacher’s basic Tarot workshop, then went on to attend her advanced level Tarot workshop.  Graduating from her class wasn’t enough for me, as the spark had been lit and I wanted to take it further.  I started pursuing my studies further with the American Tarot Association, then got certified as professional Tarot reader by the Tarot Certification Board of America.  Following which I obtained a Tarosophy Diploma. 

My esoteric studies haven’t ended.  I then got myself certified as an advanced numerologist as I enjoy overlaying numbers with the Tarot card interpretations that I do for my clients.  Now that I have embarked on Reiki as well, these will all further lend depth to  my work with clients who come to me for a Tarot reading.

Day 2 - What was your first deck and why/how did you get it?

My first Tarot deck was the Mythic Tarot by Juliet Sharman-Burke, Liz Greene and Tricia Newell, upon the recommendation of my Tarot teacher.  It was based on the Rider Waite system and was fairly easy to read as the images were rather archetypal.  I had a love for classical studies and the fact that the deck was based on Greek mythology helped spur my interest to get to know the individual cards better.

Even when my Tarot teacher trained me on interpreting the Tarot cards, she used Greek mythology to explain the concepts.  I could hardly peel my hands from the cards, listening in awe as she conducted the lesson in a way a mother tells a story to a kid before bedtime.  With the Mythic Tarot deck, I fell in love with Demeter, and wanted to be like her, the protective Empress full of love for her daughter Persephone.  I was intrigued by Jason and the Argonauts in the suit of Wands which taught me to govern difficult situations with determination, passion and creativity.

After having been trained with the Mythic Tarot deck, I practiced with it on my friends and family.  As I practiced with fellow Tarot readers, I started getting exposed to other decks as well.

Day 3 - Do you have more than one deck that you use, and, if so, do you have a favorite? If not, why do you like the deck you have chosen?

I have 10 Tarot decks altogether and am still collecting more:  The Mythic Tarot deck ( my training deck);   the Radiant Rider Waite deck ( I use this for face-to-face readings with clients);  the Giant Rider Waite deck ( good for teaching/mentoring my protégés);   the Goddess Tarot deck ( I use this when I am reading for  high-powered executive women.  Somehow it resonates with them);  the Tarot of the Holy Light deck ( I bought it for the vivid colors and interesting symbolisms but still have yet to find affinity with the deck);   the Wizards Tarot ( I like this deck because it is so cute.  It makes me feel like Harry Potter going to school );  the Gilded Tarot deck ( I gave this to my son, Joel because of the beautiful images which I had hoped would encourage him to pick up the skill.  However I regretted it now that I saw the voluptuous figure on that Lovers card); the Tarot of Nostradamus (This was a gift from the hubby and is one of the more difficult decks for me to understand), the Rosetta Tarot deck (This was another gift from hubby. I love the vivid colors of this deck and more importantly, it started me on my discovery of Golden Dawn concepts.)

My favorite deck however, is the Morgan Greer Tarot deck.  The colors of this deck are just so beautiful and somehow, I found this deck talking to me most.  It is definitely easy to interpret because it’s based on the Rider Waite system which most of us are familiar with.  This is the deck that I use for email readings.  Granny bought me a beautiful silk pouch from Japan just for this deck.

Day 4- How long have you been reading the Tarot?

I had dabbled in Tarot cards for a few years and read for myself in that duration.  However, I picked up the skill of reading for others only since the beginning of the year when I gained proficiency in it through the courses I took.  Being a reader for the Free Tarot Network and Biddy Tarot had given me immense amount of practice.  On an average day, I do about 7-8 email readings each evening, and on an average week, I do about 8-10 face to face readings each week. Increasingly, I noticed that as I gained even more experience with my readings over the months, I learnt something new each time.  More importantly, the practice had sharpened my intuitive skills a lot more.

Day 5- When and where did you give your first reading?

My first reading face to face was done with a fellow novice Tarot reader from my advanced Tarot class. It was more a practice session.  Then I went on to meet fellow Tarot readers at the Tarot meet-ups and did my first reading for a stranger there.  As a reader for Biddy Tarot and the Free Tarot Network, I had my first experience with email readings then.    My first paying clients both face to face and via email came from people I didn’t know, who had searched for me via Google as they had chanced upon my blog.  My first reading at an event was done for the company that I am working for, who organized a charity event in support of the Children’s Cancer Foundation.  From there, I was introduced to the world of Tarot readings at events when by word of mouth, I was hired to do Tarot readings for birthdays, bachelorette parties and corporate functions.

Day 6 - What was the first spread you learned?

The first spread I had learnt was the horseshoe spread.  It’s a very simple straight forward spread which required me to pull a card for each specific position of Self, Situation, Obstacle, Development, Outcome and Advice.  It is the perfect spread for beginner Tarot readers as it didn’t require one to be proficient at reading reversed cards.  More importantly, it was so easy to remember the positions without agonizing if I got the flow correct.  Now that I think about it, I realized that my early journey with Tarot was that rigid. Thankfully now,  I  have learnt to design my own spread after gaining some experience and preferred to listen to my intuition when it came to choice of spreads.

Outcome

Self

               

Situation

Develop-ment

Advice

Obstacle

 










Day 7 - What is your favorite card (both in terms of the deck’s artwork and divinatory meaning)?
My favorite card is the Tower from the Radiant Rider Waite deck. It’s possibly a card that every client would hate to pick because the card signifies sudden and unexpected change and adversity.  The image on the card depicts a tall Tower perched atop a mountain, a symbol of men’s lofty ambitions.  It is struck by a bolt of lightning, which is a symbol of sudden inspiration, or a realization of the truth.  Flames burst out of its windows, threatening to burn the Tower to the ground.  This is a symbol of the destruction of existing structures, preconceived notions, and any irrelevant concepts or situation that no longer serve a purpose.  People are seen falling from the Tower, head first, in an act of desperation in a bid to escape disaster.  It’s a symbol of the upsetting of old beliefs and pre-conceived ideas.  This Tower is set in the background of grey clouds and rain, representing misfortune.

This is my favorite card because the imagery lends a lot of clarity to the interpretation.  One can’t run away from the fact that he or she needs to accept these changes and brave the challenges in order to embrace a new life.  This card for me, is really a lesson in life.  In our lifetime, there will be a few “Tower” moments.  If I hadn’t been a Tarot reader, I wouldn’t have had the understanding that the universe is using these moments of change, to help me build a better life.

Day 8 - Which card do you dread pulling the most?
I do dread pulling cards like the 3 of swords, 5 of Cups, and 10 of Swords for my clients.  I have always treated my clients as friends and whenever they feel a lot of pain, I feel that pain along with them.  In that moment as I read for a client, I do assume his or her energy.  That’s why meditation is very important for me and allows me to ground, centre and set up the boundaries necessary for me to conduct a Tarot reading in a manner that can constructively help my client.

The card I dread pulling most for my clients is the 5 of Cups, and more so when I pull out the card in the reversed position  As one that likes to view the world in a positive light, I see the card as a client’s self-inflicted sense of negativity which could be a situation he or she could come out of, by choice.  The image on a 5 of Cups card, shows a cloaked man looking away at 3 spilt cups representing his disappointment and feelings of loss.  2 upstanding cups are behind him but he doesn’t even consider them.  Quite often, when a client picks this card, I try to comfort him or her with the assurance that one should count the blessings and other opportunities presented by the universe.  Worse, when my client picks the card in a reversed position, I know he or she is having problems moving past this disappointment and will harbor a lot of hurt for a long time.

In the heat of the moment, whatever assurance I may provide, some clients just wouldn’t want to look at the brighter side of things.  My gripe is that, whatever challenges and disappointments one may face, the universe will never let anyone face it alone and without an option.  One do have a choice to look up from one’s footsteps from time to time, to view the sunrise.

Day 9 - What card do you pull the most often? Why do you think that is the case?

I do pull the 5 of Cups reversed quite regularly for my clients. This is quite expected when often, they visit me for a Tarot reading when they are not able to get past an issue that has caused them a lot of pain. 

For myself, I pull a card du jour every day as a matter of practice since the day I formally learnt to read the Tarot cards.  

Lately the card that showed up more than twice last month was the 7 of Cups.  Usually, I might get a little worried with the presence of the card as it may signify confusion in my many choices.  I wasn’t though.  Deep within me, I realize that amidst the various challenges ranging from the skepticism that I face daily as a Tarot reader and the challenges that I have in juggling commitments between time with my family, time with my Tarot clients, and time with my day job, this card was explicitly telling me to follow my bliss.  

 I have got a deep sense of fulfillment whenever I read the Tarot cards for my clients and an even deeper sense of fulfillment when I have chosen to support the Children’s Cancer Foundation with part proceeds from my Tarot consultation fees.  In my day job, I realized that my skills as a Tarot reader and numerologist have helped me to manage interpersonal relationships within the office.  With skeptical friends and family members, honestly, I found my bliss when my hubby became my biggest fan and advocate.

Day 10- What card best represents you/your personality (or, is most often pulled to represent you in a spread)?

Definitely, I identify most with the Queen of Wands.  She’s an embodiment of Fire energy, very much aligned to the astrological sign of Leo which governs me.  She will never shy away from a challenge, and embraces life with a lot of passion and energy.  She rides the rough with determination and confidence, and is never afraid to get out of her comfort zone.

I am generally full of passion for anything that interests me.  With Tarot, the fire in me just burns like an olympic torch.  I can talk about it incessantly and would enthusiastically pursue further knowledge to hone my Tarot reading skills.  I am not afraid of the skeptics around me, who constantly ask me where I've parked my broom.  I love my clients, and am very proud that my Tarot reading skills have helped so many along their respective journeys.  I am even more proud that the proteges whom I mentor, have also been reading quite proficiently.

 Incidentally today, I picked the Queen of Wands as my card du jour.  I guess the Queen was urging me to take up this 30 day Tarot challenge as a way to revisit my journey with Tarot.  This had significance for me, particularly as in the coming few days, we will be celebrating Yule which symbolizes the return of Light into our lives.  Tarot brought me light, and through me, I hope Tarot has also brought light to my clients.

The Next 20 Questions

Hmm…by this Day 10’s topic, I am starting to feel like I am getting interviewed!.  I am so proud of myself for completing 10 questions in 1 sitting though.  It helped that tonight, the hubby has got band practice, the son is on the phone with his girlfriend, I have completed a few email Tarot readings and the only thing I have to entertain me now are re-runs of Law & Order on TV.

So for the next 20 questions,  Slow Poke Jo can slowly and steadily take my time with these questions while enjoying the blog posts of fellow Tarot bloggers on this challenge.

About The Writer:
The writer of this blog post is a marketeer by trade, and a tarot card reader by accident. She was awarded a Certified Professional Tarot Reader qualification from the Tarot Certification Board of America (TCBA) and was recently certified as a numerologist in Singapore. A member of the American Tarot Association (ATA) and the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), she is also endorsed as a reader for the Free Tarot Network and is a mentor for the ATA.   She can be contacted at www.facebook.com/SunGoddessTarot or www.sungoddesstarot.com