Tarot Triumphs

The interplay of the two can also be considered. For instance, if a person has asked about his current employment and the top card (18) is the Wheel of Fortune and the bottom card (19) is the Chariot, it may be appropriate to say (taking other cards and positions into account): “You are at heart very ambitious, but in your current work you're subject to too many changes outside your control to achieve your aims.”

Then, as we have just seen, these two cards act as the essence of the moment in time in which the question is asked; they carry the actions of the past and the potency of the future within them. Although they are placed on the central column of the reading, they reign over the other two triads, the left- and right-hand sides of the second double diamond, pointing backward and forward in time. They are the ultimate factors in the now of the reading.

The Top and Bottom Cards (18 and 19)
Replace the cards, shuffle again, and this time pick out just two cards to represent the top and bottom of the reading (18 and 19 on the diagram). Study these as a pair: What could they be saying about the essence of the reading? What are the ultimate factors affecting past, present, and future? Remember that we do not have the previous cards from the middle row here to guide us. You are picking two cards for a separate study.

The upper triangle represents the situation in the outer world: “real” events, other people, and external situations.
The lower triangle represents what is happening in the inner world: personal feelings and forces working below the surface.
The two halves reflect each other to some extent, but they have their own qualities too.
The left-hand column of the reading represents the past, the central one the present, and the right-hand one the future.
The central line is where inner and outer worlds interact, and each pair of cards placed there is a dynamic duo to be considered in combination.
The six cards just above and below the center line (8–13) emphasize what is happening in the external and internal worlds.
The transition points from past to present are marked by nos. 14 and 15, and the movement from present to future are marked by nos. 16 and 17. These cards are the carriers of change.
The uppermost and lowermost cards, 18 and 19, are the summit and the depth of the reading. They represent the culmination of external and internal forces respectively, but they are also indicators of how past, present, and future link together.
The three cards laid facedown represent the reason why the question was asked. This is another way of saying, “What's missing from the situation?”
The positions of the individual cards can be studied in detail, but the layout should also be read as a whole, as it is a “mirror” of the situation or person inquired about.

I pick the Devil.

As a person, this can signify someone who is undergoing a great trial and struggling against forces that constrain him or her. It could indicate a rigid habit pattern that the person cannot break out of.

As a question, it can imply a situation where one must break ties or pay for past actions in order to be free again.

I pick Temperance.

As a person, this can represent someone who is concerned about balance in his or her life and is wondering what to do for the best. It is likely to have implications of giving, sympathy, and right use of energies.

As a question, it can relate to a matter of how to use resources wisely, including money. It could also be about the need for reconciliation or diplomacy.

Exercise One: Cards of Being
Identify three key character traits of each card in this first set. Keep to this number even if you think there could be more. For instance, I might see those of the Chariot as “drive,” “determination,” and “control.” You might come up with “will,” “energy,” and “skill.” Just choose those you find useful, and then see them form a dynamic that determines the nature of the figure on the card. How does the character act and behave in accordance with that dynamic?

The first series of seven comprises the Magician, the High Priestess, the Empress, the Emperor, the Pope, the Lover, and the Chariot. They can be seen as cards of being. We can become any one of those characters and take on their roles. They have the simplicity of intention and a personal power that equates with basic human drives.

The second series contains Justice, the Hermit, the Wheel of Fortune, Strength, the Hanged Man, Death, and Temperance. These can be interpreted as cards of interaction; the emphasis is on how we respond to the world and external forces, how we balance their energies and adjust to their demands. All these cards represent a choice, a way in which we can act in handling situations.

The third series consists of the Devil, the Tower, the Star, the Moon, the Sun, Judgment, and the World. Here, the emphasis seems to shift to external forces that affect us. These may be cards of higher energy that come from a different realm; note that the sky is a prominent feature in these cards, with the exception of the Devil, whose world anyway has no sky as we know it.

In this interpretation, then, the first series is the most personal, the second encompasses our dealings with the world and our fellow human beings, and the third denotes events and forces emanating from another level. This analysis is not the sole possible interpretation, but it may serve as a useful guide to seeing some kind of progression through the pack, with three marked stages and a consistency of imagery within each set of seven.

As a Tarot card, the Moon can also represent psychic phenomena, such as premonitions and intuitions. Perhaps the towers in the image indicate the threshold between the earthly world and the otherworld, which can indeed be seen as the boundary between normal and supernatural perception but also, on occasion, as the line between reality and illusion.54 In a reading, this card might therefore suggest the need to check out the truth of a situation and watch out for deception. It could also indicate a positive upsurge of creativity as an inventive or artistic idea takes shape in the imagination.

The Moon as a Tarot Triumph embodies the world of emotion, dreams, and imagination. Who can gaze at this card and not feel the stirring of something being drawn up from the depths? The power of the moon over the waters may not be altogether comfortable, though; it can disturb balance and compromise our sense of safety. It is a shifting presence that can change moods and fancies and create difficult physical sensations too, such as restlessness, nervous excitement, and broken sleep patterns. It draws the tides of the body whether we wish it to or not. A prominent Moon in a reading, in an appropriate position, could indicate that the body is in a delicate condition and that rest and sleep are needed to settle the metabolism.

Bringing this back to everyday life, I suggest that the Star may symbolize the heart of the matter, the point at which there is no further secrecy or pretense. Here, resistance and defensiveness are dissolved. There is giving and receiving through the outpouring of living