Q: How accurate do you believe your readings are (or, do they accurately convey messages from spirits/deity at all)?
This question gets into the debate over Tarot as fortune-telling tool and Tarot as psychospiritual development tool. I come down kind of in the middle on this one.
Fortune-Telling Mode and Accuracy
Well, I’ve actually gotten quite a bit of validation on my readings to free reader applicants at the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI). Specific real-world validation that the cards spoke to the external circumstances surrounding the question. Gives me a bit of goosebumps just remembering some of the feedback from querents.
But, self-fulfilling prophecy on the part of querent and reader? The symbols on the cards being so malleable that they can be used to explain anything (given concrete info from the querent)? I’m not sure.
I think I will continue to take these validations at face value, although I never start a reading with the idea that I’ll be telling a person if their mom will die in a week, or if their boyfriend/girlfriend will come back. I think querents should be empowered to make their own decisions, with the Tarot maybe reminding them of the options they have in any given situation. I also won’t read on a third person’s projected feelings or actions directly for ethical reasons, but I don’t read strictly on a psychological enlightenment basis, either.
I do believe that we can get an idea of what the emotional energy of a situation is and even some of the specifics around the situation because of my belief in empathic energy communication through the quantum field. But that’s just my theory.
Psychological Mode and Soul Work
I like these kinds of readings best. We get to have a deep conversation about the inner work of the querent. I like to read the cards together with them and discuss their meanings in general and how the querent sees them. Feels more like an equal partnership seeking enlightenment.
The validation or “accuracy” here is in the response of the querent to the cards and their meanings. Again, self-fulfilling prophecy may very well be at work, but the symbols are designed to awaken what is already within (they are archetypal for a reason).
I also believe that the quantum field and the entire field of energy of the universe feeds into our interpretation. We are all star dust after all. I agree with Carl Jung that there is a collective consciousness that we can tap into either with or without symbolism (but symbols are nice cues), and that consciousness affects us energetically, as we affect it.
I think the accuracy of Tarot is built into its symbolic connection to the collective human unconscious (regardless of religious tradition). If it weren’t “producing” interesting results, decks would simply collect dust on the shelves.
Accuracy can be interpreted in a number of different ways, but I definitely find the Tarot useful in bringing out information and options that might otherwise remain hidden.
If you are a fellow reader, I’d love to know what you think of accuracy, and whether or not you read for specific concrete answers or just personal reflection. I will also be asking this question over at my new MeWe group, The Cartomancer’s Salon if you’d like to join the discussion.
I found the questions for this series at a Tumblr account that no longer exists. A lovely person named Rhee started the thing. These are great prompts for telling stories about one’s journey through the world of Tarot, so I’ve started the series again on a weekly basis so you all can get to know me better, and also share your own answers to the questions in comments or links to your own posts. I’d love to hear from you!
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