Contradictory means in yes/no readings AND the meaning of the cards

Hayyot

Greetings.
I wanted to talk about this...using the yes/no generated readings I found online,
and while I wait to tests to be done and receive the results, I used the online version to see how it goes.
Since I am worried about being sick and test results, while I wait the doctor`s respònse, I asked: Am I sick? Do I have this disease?
Guess what card came out?. The sun. With a big "YES" title upon the card.
Not good. lol.
As you know, the Sun is a very positive card, and a bearer of good news...
but if I ask "Am I sick?" and the card comes out, should I rely on the answer "yes", or in the positive and happy tone of the card (which would mean "no" to sickness)??
Any thoughts?
 

nisaba

What a lot of people (including the designers of some of these bits of software) don't understand, is that Tarot is not best suited to giving yes-no answers. It chats, it talks around things, it exposes information, not yes/no answers. I carry a pendulum for that.

Also, questions with yeses for answers are not necessarily positive (as you have just realised from your own question), and questions with nos for answers are not necessarily negative. A few examples of the latter might be:

Will the plane my friend is flying in crash?
Does my aunt have cancer?
Will my sister's marriage to a man I dislike result in domestic violence?

No-answers to all of those questions would be very welcome, just as yes-answers to the kind of question you asked are unwelcome.

Also: if the condition you are worried about can be caused or exacerbated by over-exposure to sunlight or heat, or if it involved inflammation and raised body-temperature, the Sun may well be a yes for conditions of that sort.

In short, use a well-tuned, reliable pendulum for yes-no answers. Use Tarot for discussions.

In your case, I might pull three cards for "what will a visit to the doctor do for my life?"

Three for "what if I don't visit the doctor?"

Three for "what if I follow the doctor's advice"

Three for "what if I seek alternative treatments?"

Don't analyse the cards too deeply - decide which clusters-of-three cards offer you the most hope and follow that up in your life.
 

Barleywine

Here's a yes-or-no spread I created that uses elemental dignities to come up with a "percentage of probability" rather than a flat yes or no answer. Since most of the combinations are two cards, I don't look closely at the specific card meanings unless something unique jumps out at me. The sample reading shows how I use it.

http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=271096
 

rwcarter

No card always means yes or no.

If you think the Sun is a positive (yes) card, the if you ask "Will I fail my test?" and get that card, then you'd think the answer was yes. But it could mean, "No, you'll be happy because you passed it."

On the flip side if you asked, "Will I be able to keep my affair hidden?" and get the Sun, which you think means yes, you could be in for a very bad shock when you find it that the Sun meant, "No, the affair will come to light."

As with all cards, their interpretations come down to the question, any positional meaning, surrounding cards and the intuition/experience of the Reader. If you're going to continue to ask yes/no questions, I'd explore spreads that use more cards to give you a more fleshed out answer (yes or no BECAUSE....).

Rodney
 

headincloud

It's only possible to come up with a yes or no answer by reading the card first and deducting from that. This is a card of glowing health.
 

Barleywine

No card always means yes or no.

If you think the Sun is a positive (yes) card, the if you ask "Will I fail my test?" and get that card, then you'd think the answer was yes. But it could mean, "No, you'll be happy because you passed it."

On the flip side if you asked, "Will I be able to keep my affair hidden?" and get the Sun, which you think means yes, you could be in for a very bad shock when you find it that the Sun meant, "No, the affair will come to light."

As with all cards, their interpretations come down to the question, any positional meaning, surrounding cards and the intuition/experience of the Reader. If you're going to continue to ask yes/no questions, I'd explore spreads that use more cards to give you a more fleshed out answer (yes or no BECAUSE....).

Rodney

This is the main difficulty with "good" cards giving inappropriate or imprecise answers. It's one I've been trying to tackle in various new spreads because I'm convinced there is a way around it. Obviously, the best way is to just ask the question differently, but if it gets too vague or convoluted you run into different interpretive problems. Combinations and probabilities seem to hold some promise when all we want is a "yes" or "no" and not a "how" or "why." That said, I almost always read things as "Yes, if you . . ." or "No, not unless you . . ." or some similar qualifier.
 

magicjack

Since you got the Sun card to this question I would tell you no matter what the results of this test,. you are going to be fine in the end. I can't or won't tell you for sure. If I got the 10 of swords would you want to know your doomed? I can't tell you that either. I'm not a doctor so there may very well be a cure. (and more than likely there is). At this point it doesn't matter what the results are, you will know soon enough. I understand your curiosity, but if you really want to pull a card for this kind of question then be satisfied with the Sun card. In fact I would like to hear a response from you to see what that Sun card really does mean. It might even be a way of spirit telling you to not worry so much until you actually know. I wish you well and I do hope things will be OK for you. The Sun card is about good health. You will get it one way or the other.
 

JMI_Tarot

I personally am not so fond of single card readings because there is no context for the message any card may give. It's too easy to project.

Also I find in life few things are black and white, even medical test results. Yes/No questions are usually answered, "Yes, but..." or "No, and..." or some such thing.

Multiple card readings allow for a bit more of a narrative to form.

But that's just how I roll.

I wish you all the good luck there is Hayyot and hope everything works out for you. :love: :livelong:
 

Barleywine

I personally am not so fond of single card readings because there is no context for the message any card may give. It's too easy to project.

Also I find in life few things are black and white, even medical test results. Yes/No questions are usually answered, "Yes, but..." or "No, and..." or some such thing.

Multiple card readings allow for a bit more of a narrative to form.

But that's just how I roll.

I wish you all the good luck there is and hope everything works out for you. :love: :livelong:

I feel the same way about single-card pulls. There is no movement beyond what's implied in the one card, and that doesn't tell you where it's headed. Three cards as a minimum give you some of the "why" and "how" about the way the answer will most likely play out in "yes" or "no" space.
 

Hayyot

Tomorrow I will know, and I`ll let you know.