Ruby Jewel
I'm wondering if reversals were always read, or if they are something that came onto the scene later.
I recently decided to go with Nancy Shavick on reversals....don't bother with them anymore because for me, the negative is inherent in all of them. I think the surrounding cards and clarifiers offer more clarity than reversals. For instance, with the Aces, I just say,the potential is there, but there is no guarantee the seed will sprout whether it is upright or reversed. If the Ace were reversed, it is still an ace....as for timing, I don't think there is any such thing as "time" in the tarot...I tend to think of them in the Jungian sense of 'sychronicity'. In the world of archetypal energy, there is no such thing as linear time...
If you look at the current post on "Can the 5 of Swords have a loveable quality" you will see what I mean. You can pretty much find whatever you want to see in a card. It doesn't seem to matter if it is reversed or not, in and of itself..it takes surrounding energy or a clarifier to bounce off of.
I should add here that Shavik appears to follow Israel Regardie's protocol regarding the image on the card. For example, what is the orientation of the image on the card...including people, as well as cups, swords, wands...ie, which way they point. If the card comes up reversed, it works the same...what is the orientation of the image...not the card.