How does it all work?

[Sztar]

Curious to get people's opinions on why they think tarot (or any type of intuition for that matter) "works."

Are there spirits or unseen forces that guide your hands?

Do you get messages from angels or spirits?

Does your subconscious or unconscious interpret the symbolism in the cards and give messages to your conscious mind about internal truths you already knew?

Some background: I consider myself a skeptic, but at the same time I know that we can see things in the cards because I do it all the time. I tend to view myself as someone in the latter category--someone who sees tarot as a means of tapping into the unconscious mind via use of symbolic imagery.

That said, I've experienced very clear moments of "direct knowing" in my life--beyond tarot--where I knew things that on the surface I couldn't have known other than by clairvoyance. One of those moments was profound in the sense that I'm alive because of it. The others are situations where I *knew* something but the situations were of lesser consequence.

So what do you believe is happening when you read tarot? Do you have other clairvoyant experiences? How do you approach the cards?

 

[nisaba]

I find that in the years I've questioned it, it hasn't worked as well as usual. If I don't question it, it works serenely well.

There are all sorts of theories, and a favourite of mine is the idea that, via quantum physics, the whole universe is constructed of a single subatomic particle (or charge), which races around so incredibly fast that it manages to be everywhere at once, building up every atom in every galaxy right through the universe.

So if every atom in your cards is made of the same particle as every atom in your client, why WOULDN'T it work?

If you just accept that it *does* work, then it works. If you question it, it gets awkward and doesn't work so well. Scientists will tell you that the act of observing (or questioning) something also changes it.

 

[Sztar]

I find that in the years I've questioned it, it hasn't worked as well as usual. If I don't question it, it works serenely well.

There are all sorts of theories, and a favourite of mine is the idea that, via quantum physics, the whole universe is constructed of a single subatomic particle (or charge), which races around so incredibly fast that it manages to be everywhere at once, building up every atom in every galaxy right through the universe.

So if every atom in your cards is made of the same particle as every atom in your client, why WOULDN'T it work?

If you just accept that it *does* work, then it works. If you question it, it gets awkward and doesn't work so well. Scientists will tell you that the act of observing (or questioning) something also changes it.

Yes, I agree. While on the one hand, I have theories about why it works, in the moment when I'm doing a reading, I don't question it. I find it works better if I believe in the moment that I'm receiving messages from the great beyond or wherever.

Here's one theory I have: In terms of geologic or universal time, all human experience is happening in one quick little blip. All of human history doesn't even register on the universal time-scale. Therefore, everything that happens in our short lives is essentially all happening at the same time, and therefore, it's possible to have flashes of insight that aren't really explanable.

Anyway, you're right that it works best when I don't try so hard to figure it out, but at the same time, I can't help myself.

 

[Barleywine]

Does your subconscious or unconscious interpret the symbolism in the cards and give messages to your conscious mind about internal truths you already knew?

This one has been my working hypothesis for over 40 years. It's in line with this translation of one of the first verses of the Buddhist "Dhammapada:"

"Phenomena are preceded by the heart, ruled by the heart, made of the heart."

(aka "We make our own reality," which itself goes along with the Hermetic aphorism "The ALL is Mind; the Universe is Mental.")

 

[Emma313]

Curious to get people's opinions on why they think tarot (or any type of intuition for that matter) "works."

Are there spirits or unseen forces that guide your hands?

Do you get messages from angels or spirits?

Does your subconscious or unconscious interpret the symbolism in the cards and give messages to your conscious mind about internal truths you already knew?

Some background: I consider myself a skeptic, but at the same time I know that we can see things in the cards because I do it all the time. I tend to view myself as someone in the latter category--someone who sees tarot as a means of tapping into the unconscious mind via use of symbolic imagery.
So no spirits no guiding hands just our own
That said, I've experienced very clear moments of "direct knowing" in my life--beyond tarot--where I knew things that on the surface I couldn't have known other than by clairvoyance. One of those moments was profound in the sense that I'm alive because of it. The others are situations where I *knew* something but the situations were of lesser consequence.

So what do you believe is happening when you read tarot? Do you have other clairvoyant experiences? How do you approach the cards?

Nothing special about cards with pics on them, well they are just cardboard and paint themselves, its everything to do with us humans and what we seek...and the tools we use...the cards are a tool, tarot cards are instilled with archetypes, images and all sorts, fir myself they are interestering for their imagery but u can find this anywhere...what im teying to say is they are a tool but no different to any other

You may listen to a piece of music and it solves a problem
You may see a film and it registers and gets you thnking
The tarot cards dont give your own free spirit room to fly as when you consult them you are giving power to them....

 

[geoxena]

Intuition. That's all.

I'm a Skeptic, too, and pretty much an atheist. I don't think there is a spirit world or any supernatural reasons behind tarot. I know that extrasensory perception and psychic ability are possible because there is just much more information that the brain and nervous system are capable of processing than we are consciously aware of. Intuition is centered in the solar plexus (thus, "trust your gut").

I am grateful to the teacher who told me a long time ago to throw the tarot book away and stop focusing on what the cards are "supposed to" mean. Then I had another teacher who said it didn't matter whether it was a tarot card, a piece of jewelry, or a lock of hair - all these tools do is to slow us down enough to tune into the querent (whether they are sitting in front of us or only connected via email). All the traditional recipe books about the symbolism is a waste of time and energy for me, so I had to unlearn them. I look at the cards and let the pictures guide me in reading the person by tapping into the information I already picked up about them, or letting in the flow of information in the moment. They picked the card, so it's about them, not the card. Another person picks the same card, it will mean something different when I look at it.

 

[nisaba]

Does your subconscious or unconscious interpret the symbolism in the cards and give messages to your conscious mind about internal truths you already knew?

This one has been my working hypothesis for over 40 years.

...(aka "We make our own reality...

That works when reading for the self.

But ... how do you square that with producing dead-on relevant readings for total strangers that you met thirty seconds before you started laying out cards, who haven't told you what's going on in their lives, yet the reading gives you a picture of what their life feels like to them and how they should act to get the best out of things?

 

[RiverRunsDeep]

So what do you believe is happening when you read tarot?

Mostly, I believe my readings are a combination of accumulated knowledge of traditional card meanings, inner connections with symbols and archetypes, and information coming from my subconscious mind.

Sometimes, though, my readings seem to come from an outside source. It is as you described, "clear moments of direct knowing", accompanied by a chill and a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. I happen to believe in a supernatural world, which I don't think is "woo woo". I believe it is simply something "other", that we are currently unable to explain or prove in scientific terms.

Do you have other clairvoyant experiences?

Yes, which is why I am open to believing that some of my readings come from a source other than my own self.

How do you approach the cards?

Normally, I approach the cards very matter-of-factly. I like to shuffle cards and examine the artwork while I'm watching TV, spread the cards all over the living room floor to study them, and do readings at the desk in my office.

However, when I want to tap deeply into my intuition or try to receive a message from the "other", I like to approach the cards in a more ritualistic manner. I will meditate or do Reiki, decorate my reading space with crystals, and light a few candles and incense. None of these things are necessary for a reading, but it creates a "special" atmosphere, I enjoy it, and I like it, and so I do it.

 

[Sztar]

That works when reading for the self.

But ... how do you square that with producing dead-on relevant readings for total strangers that you met thirty seconds before you started laying out cards, who haven't told you what's going on in their lives, yet the reading gives you a picture of what their life feels like to them and how they should act to get the best out of things?

I don't read for others often, but once upon a time, there was a person I'd read for on a regular basis and others in her group of friends. My approach was to explain to them that to have the best reading, they should be active participants. I would explain that I wasn't a "psychic," but rather, I would help guide them through the symbolism, so together we could find the answers they were looking for. This seemed to work well because they kept wanting me to read for them, but they still saw me as a fortune-teller no matter what I said.

That said, while this is how I tend to approach the cards, I'm never quite sure if I believe it. In the moment, when I'm reading cards, I *do* feel as if I'm tapping into something that is beyond myself. Also, I have had very specific experiences of direct knowing--claircognizance--that were not associated with the cards at all. It's a different feeling than merely guessing that something is about to happen. I just *know* I'm right. I sometimes get this feeling like I'm in on a private joke. I suddenly know what's happening and it's hilarious. The more improbable it is that I would know something--the more absurd--the more hilarious.

The most striking example I was seated next to a boy on a plane (maybe 10 or 11 years old) who was being kind of a brat. He wanted me to participate in some kind of card trick where he would draw a card and I was supposed to "guess" what card. I can't explain why, but I just *knew* each card. I kept saying "I s it the 7 of spades?" "Is it the king of hearts?" and then laughing because it was so absurd. I wasn't guessing; I just knew somehow, and this struck me as hilarious. Eventually (after 3 or 4 cards) he got a bit overexcited (scared maybe), and he got unruly and started grabbing at my purse, etc, so the flight attendant moved him to another seat. I remember the way he a sked me so bewildered: "What are you? A psychic?"

So while on the one hand, I'm a "skeptic," it's hard for me to square my skepticism against these sort of experiences. I don't always know what I believe.

 

[Barleywine]

That works when reading for the self.

But ... how do you square that with producing dead-on relevant readings for total strangers that you met thirty seconds before you started laying out cards, who haven't told you what's going on in their lives, yet the reading gives you a picture of what their life feels like to them and how they should act to get the best out of things?

A worthy question for sure. The implication is that it works much the same way. The querent handles, shuffles and cuts the deck, by which the cards interact with his or her subconscious in a way that organizes them in just the right order to produce meaningful insights on the subject of the reading. I call it "having the future at your fingertips" (kind of like the old "let your fingers do the walking" Yellow Pages commercials - but don't quote me on that ). It thus reflects the querent's "inner landscape," not mine; I'm just the facilitator and interpreter. For those who don't let querents handle the cards, I would say it would be reduced to psychic impressions rather than emerging directly through the agency of the cards; so it becomes second-hand, strained through the reader's own subconscious awareness with all the risk of distortion that invites. In that case, they might as well see a psychic.