What do you think of my general spread?

[kimtsan]

What do you think of my general spread? (Advice/suggestions?)

The most widely recognized general spread has to be the Celtic Cross, but I have never felt quite connected to it. For some reason anything that has a "cross" in it just doesn't click with me--so I decided to design my own general spread. I did a few test readings and it's worked out pretty well so far, but I'm hoping I can receive some comments and feedback in case there is anything I missed or if there is anything else I should consider or add to the spread.

This is what it looks like:

------3---1/2---4-----
------5----6----7-----
--8----------------9--
-------10----11-------
----------12-----------

1-The Querent
2-Challenges/Obstacles (placed horizontally over card #1 so it forms a mini cross)
3-Fears
4-Hopes
5-Past
6-Present
7-Future
8-Negative influences/energies surrounding this issue
9-Positive influences/energies surrounding this issue
10-Advice Card (for internal workings, emotional issues, attitudes, etc)
11-Advice Card (for external workings, more action-oriented, inducing changes, etc)
12-Subconscious/Unknown factors (placed horizontally and face-down and not revealed until the end of reading)

Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[dancing_moon]

It's a nice-looking spread, kimtsan. I really like the two Advice cards and how you separated Fears from Hopes.

Now, to the criticism part. Actually, it's my understanding that a 'general spread' should show the general picture of the querent's life rather than focus on a specific issue? If that's what you meant by 'general spread', then I don't really understand the positions 8 and 9 (influences on 'this issue'). If, however, you meant 'a spread generally applicable to any given issue/question and not specific to love/money/job etc.', then I still don't see how e.g. position 9 is different from position 2? Is that some kind of a 'malevolent external influence' as opposed to tangible obstacles?..

And then I don't really understand the position 1. In the CC, position 1 is the issue in question, and so it's crossed by obstacles, but in this spread, the querent is crossed by the obstacles?.. Wouldn't it be more logical to have 'the issue/question/situation' or 'favorable factors' in position 1 as opposed to position 2?

Hope my comments are helpful and not too harsh.

PS: I've found a cross in your spread.

2-Challenges/Obstacles (placed horizontally over card #1 so it forms a mini cross)

 

[kimtsan]

It's a nice-looking spread, kimtsan. I really like the two Advice cards and how you separated Fears from Hopes.

Now, to the criticism part. Actually, it's my understanding that a 'general spread' should show the general picture of the querent's life rather than focus on a specific issue? If that's what you meant by 'general spread', then I don't really understand the positions 8 and 9 (influences on 'this issue'). If, however, you meant 'a spread generally applicable to any given issue/question and not specific to love/money/job etc.', then I still don't see how e.g. position 9 is different from position 2? Is that some kind of a 'malevolent external influence' as opposed to tangible obstacles?..

And then I don't really understand the position 1. In the CC, position 1 is the issue in question, and so it's crossed by obstacles, but in this spread, the querent is crossed by the obstacles?.. Wouldn't it be more logical to have 'the issue/question/situation' or 'favorable factors' in position 1 as opposed to position 2?

Hope my comments are helpful and not too harsh.

PS: I've found a cross in your spread.

Haha I guess there IS a cross in my spread! I meant if it's an extended cross with one card in the middle and four cards in the four directions--that's the cross I have trouble with because I can never seem to connect them.

I should have clarified this--I see a general spread as a spread that can be used for any kind of question, be it love, career, friendship, family, etc. Maybe I should call it an "all-purpose-spread" instead. XD

Do you mean position #8 (negative energies/influences) and #2 obstacle? I guess by obstacle/challenge I am referring to the overall problem or conflict that a person is experiencing. For example, say I'm doing a love reading and the card that comes up for obstacle/challenge is The Moon, and I might conclude that the querent might be too caught up with his/her own fantasies or emotional-projections and cannot see the reality as it is. For position #8, negative energies/influences could refer to many things such as the querent's weaknesses, what is causing the conflict to perpetuate, or what is preventing the querent from moving forward or becoming aware of this issue, etc. Using the example, say the card Four of Cups Reversed shows up for #8, then I might say the querent could be in some kind of denial (as an extension of the Moon card), maybe he or she is too caught up with the notions of romantic love that they ignore signs that the other person isn't actually into them. The reading also depends on the other cards that show up, of course.

But now that you mentioned it, they do seem kind of similar...I guess #2 could be the "overall/big picture" while #8 is more of a close/microscopic look at the issue. Initially I wanted to have both negative/positive so they address both sides of the situation. Do you have any suggestions?

I place Querent as the first card because I am a person-centred reader, so most of my readings are about personal motivations, attitudes, emotional responsibility etc. That's why I tend to start with the person.

And don't worry about criticism. I put this spread out there to be criticized, so I can improve on it. Thanks for your suggestions and feedback! Anything else you noticed??

 

[dancing_moon]

Thanks for your comments! I often find, when making my own spreads or using other people's spreads, that a vaguely articulated position usually makes problems during the actual reading. Maybe, it would be a good idea to have several 'test runs' with this spread and then define exactly what you mean by 'negative/positive energies/influences' and 'obstacles/challenges'?.. If you have done an actual reading using the spread, you could consider posting it in this very thread, in order to show exactly how it works.

Again, I don't really understand the 'querent' position here. What question does it answer? 'Who are you?' Or 'who are you regarding this question?' Or 'how do you respond to/deal with this issue?' 'What's your motivation in this issue?' Or something else, perhaps? I can understand and appreciate the person-centered part, emotional responsibility etc., but somehow it doesn't make position 1 any clearer to me.

 

[kimtsan]

Thanks for your comments! I often find, when making my own spreads or using other people's spreads, that a vaguely articulated position usually makes problems during the actual reading. Maybe, it would be a good idea to have several 'test runs' with this spread and then define exactly what you mean by 'negative/positive energies/influences' and 'obstacles/challenges'?.. If you have done an actual reading using the spread, you could consider posting it in this very thread, in order to show exactly how it works.

Again, I don't really understand the 'querent' position here. What question does it answer? 'Who are you?' Or 'who are you regarding this question?' Or 'how do you respond to/deal with this issue?' 'What's your motivation in this issue?' Or something else, perhaps? I can understand and appreciate the person-centered part, emotional responsibility etc., but somehow it doesn't make position 1 any clearer to me.

That's actually true...I did a few test runs but so far I haven't had any problems when it comes to extracting meaning, but the negative/positive energy positions were always very vague and could mean anything.

For "querent", it's basically a card that represents the querent in general...it could be the current attitude that the querent has, or it could represent what the present situation is. Usually the nature of the card can be contextualized along with the obstacle/challenge card, and I often use it as a reference point to set the tone for the other cards. For that card I think it's okay to be open...right now I'm just thinking what should I use instead of negative/positive energy, or how to better define them/make them specific--since I already have similar cards.

What else do you think a multi-purpose spread needs? I got past-present-future so I kind of already have a "timeline"...I have hopes and fears, advice cards, and subconscious...hmmmmm. I don't want to make them "other information" because that doesn't seem to solve the problem lol. What do you think??

 

[kimtsan]

Oh, I have an idea. How about "negative influences in your environment" and "positive influences in your environment"? So far the positions I have are centred on the "self" and it's probably a good idea to contextualize the self in the environment to get a better picture of the situation.

 

[dancing_moon]

Oh, I have an idea. How about "negative influences in your environment" and "positive influences in your environment"? So far the positions I have are centred on the "self" and it's probably a good idea to contextualize the self in the environment to get a better picture of the situation.

This sounds better to me - at least, it's more precise.

 

[kimtsan]

Thanks so much again for responding, btw. This has helped me a lot.