Many people will have come across a psychic at some point in their lives. There are, however, a lot of misconceptions about what they do. People that don’t circulate in the world of the weird may have had a reading and totally misconstrued the messages coming through. At this point in time, I’ve had many readings, with extremely different tones. Each psychic is unique and, therefore, it will always be a new and interesting experience. One of the problems with the image of the psychic is that they can tell the future. In some cases, this is correct, some do have precognitive abilities, however, in the vast majority of scenarios, the reader is simply picking up on patterns.
The Tarot is one of the tools used to detect where a person is on their voyage through life. The deck that is commonly used is known as the Rider-Waite-Smith, although many other decks have been reproduced in different formats off the back of this. The cards are archetypical, that is to say that they deal with universal themes that everyone will encounter at some stage during their existence. There’s nothing to be afraid of when using the cards, they’re not demonic in any way. They operate using synchronicity, a concept first coined by psychologist Carl Jung, “to describe circumstances that appear meaningfully related yet lack a causal connection”. Other examples of this phenomenon are seeing repeating number sequences or thinking about a word and then spotting it in our reality. This is the same for symbols too or it could be objects, plants and animals.
When it occurs, there is an uncanny feeling that goes along with it. Most will dismiss this as a coincidence but it is the Universe sending a direct message for us to pay attention. The quality can be positive, negative or neutral depending on our state of consciousness. I’ve had both elating and terrifying synchronistic experiences and everything in between. It’s almost as if everything that we do is being watched by a superior higher force beyond our comprehension.
When a reading is being performed, each card has a standard meaning and they can be read reversed, upside down in other words, if that is the inclination of the reader, to provide a twist. Some people just read right-side up though, and it will very much depend on the circumstances and preferences of the psychic in question. I won’t be going into the meanings of every card here, for that would require a whole book to decipher every one. I will, however, provide a few examples.
The Death card, one that is shown incorrectly in films to be particularly feared, doesn’t reflect an ominous portent. It’s actually the symbol for rebirth or new beginnings. The death of the old making way for the new. It can be seen, thusly, as a positive card of transformation. For buried in the tarot are the esoteric teachings behind reincarnation. Death isn’t the end, which runs contrary to mainstream beliefs in the West. Life can be seen stretching off into infinity, as it is a continuous process of dying and being born. It is simply an indicator that major changes have occurred or are about to occur.
The Tarot is also connected to astrology. Every star sign has a card that is most reflective of it: Aries is The Emperor, Taurus is The Hierophant, Gemini is The Lovers, Cancer is The Chariot, Leo is Strength, Virgo is The Hermit, Libra is Justice, Scorpio is Death, Sagittarius is Temperance, Capricorn is The Devil, Aquarius is The Star, and Pisces is The Moon. The cards listed here are all in the Major Arcana, which comprises of twenty-two trumps numbered zero to twenty-one. They each represent major archetypical stages on the Hero’s Journey. Every star sign has an element associated with it: Earth, Fire, Water and Air and so too do each of the Major Arcana.
The Minor Arcana, by contrast, shows themes that may pop up during the course of the voyage and have a subtler meaning. They are separated into four suits: Pentacles representing Earth and the Feminine, Wands representing Fire and the Masculine, Cups representing Water and the Feminine and Swords representing Air and the Masculine. They’re very much like a standard pack of cards, fifty-six in number with fourteen in each suit, and they range from the Ace to the King.
Let’s take the Five of Swords, for example. The picture is of a man standing on a battlefield gathering up swords from the ground, with a smirk of satisfaction on his face, as he looks over at two defeated combatants walking away in grief. This represents a pyrrhic victory, one where there is no gain and is tantamount to defeat. It shows cowardliness, a willingness to win at all costs or taking something that isn’t rightfully ours. It can denote a moment when we’ve been ungracious in victory or call on us to analyse what went wrong during a defeat. It could also apply to someone else in our reality too; they could be the one that has defeated us at great cost. The context depends on the other cards in the reading. And, in some cases, the psychic will ignore the standard meaning of the card altogether and go off their own intuition.
The Masculine cards are active and represent the phallus, the Wands and Swords. The Feminine cards are receptive and represent the womb, the Cups and Pentacles. The Pentacle may not seem to follow the pattern but when you closely inspect the symbol, you’ll be able to imagine a woman with her arms spread open wide and her legs akimbo. There’s more than a little ribald humour in the cards and that was always the intention, to make the whole process seriously fun. Additionally, Earth denotes the material realm, possessions, wealth, nature, the body and stability, Fire is action, passion, drive, willpower and spirituality, Water is the emotions, feelings, nurturing, intuition and relationships and Air is the mind, logic, intellect, and ideas.
Whichever way you look at it, the Tarot is a fascinating microcosm of the macrocosm and is even more enjoyable when we understand the meaning behind the cards before getting a reading. I often get two readings for the price of one when I visit a psychic. I’ll get their interpretation and my own on top of it.
Oracle cards are extremely different in that the decks are unique and the meanings are often created by the illustrator; they don’t usually resemble the Rider-Waite-Smith. They’re often used in conjunction with the Tarot, however, to clarify the messages coming through as an addendum. Often, the words will be positive affirmations that will support the reading and provide additional insight. Many psychics select packs that have artwork that reflects their particular taste. I have a feminine Starseed Oracle deck to offset the masculine Starman Tarot and neutral Rider-Waite-Smith. It’s beautiful and the dreamy pastel shades and uplifting meanings always provide a little slice of joy whenever I read them.
A really experienced psychic will know their deck well, however, some simply read the meanings from the book provided with the Oracle cards. It doesn’t matter much which option is selected. Some may advocate for seeing beyond the meanings anyway and tap into their intuition, allowing the images to deliver messages rather than to know the cards by rote. So far, each psychic that I’ve been guided to has provided exceptional readings and just what was required at the time.
Be warned, not everything the psychic says will be the ultimate truth. We must always use our own intuition too when having a reading. Some events, particularly surrounding the future, will not transpire, however, incorrect information may still be valuable to us. There’s a scene in The Matrix when Neo goes to visit the Oracle and she tells him that he’s not the one. This isn’t the truth but it sets him on his path of discovery so that he can realise that he is the one. The point is that sometimes a psychic tells you what you need to hear at the time.
The role of the psychic really is to uncover our challenges, blind-spots, blockages, strengths, weaknesses, gifts and abilities, and reflect them back to us using the Tarot and Oracle cards as a tool. It can be an immensely rewarding experience and provide us with the boost that we need to get us through. Please be aware that overuse of the cards can lead to mixed messages leading to confusion. It’s wise not to become addicted to the Tarot, as the Universe will start to reflect that back which can lead to frustration and despondency. Once in a while is good, every hour is overkill. Everything in moderation (including moderation) and this is particular true when asking for guidance from the cards.
From the book From Darkness Into The Light by J.J. Flanagan