In general, the flow of the reading goes from left to right. For instance, let’s take the following situation: A♥ + K♦ + 6♠ + 7♣R. Here we might assume that there is, or there has been, a job interview (A♥ + K♥) followed by trepidation and waiting (6♠), but the waiting leads to nothing (7♣R).

However, if we reverse the spread as 7♣R + 6♠ + K♦ + A♥, then we have the opposite scenario: a situation where the querent for a long time is worried about their lack of realization is ended by a job interview (in this case we don’t know whether the interview will go well or not, but at least it’s something).

Notice how the placement of certain cards is relatively irrelevant: whether it’s K♦ + A♥ or A♥ + K♦, it is still likely to signify a job interview. This is because the two cards build a meaningful unit together. They strengthen each other. However, it is not irrelevant whether the negative cards come up before or after. In general, the placement of the cards is relevant in two situations: when the cards have different polarity; and when the cards describe situations that come logically one from the other. For instance, if the cards point to a birth and then to a pregnancy, it’s very different than if they describe a pregnancy followed by a birth. In the first case you end up with two babies, in the second with just one.

Another important point is whether the cards predict or they describe. This is a subtle thing to detect, and is not easy to see at first. Often, the cards describe a situation or state of affairs when you have cards showing the relationship between two face cards or between a face card and a certain field of life (e.g. love 4♥, marriage A♣, job K♦, etc). Also, they tend to describe more when there are strongly psychological cards. In this case, the flow of the reading is as if halted: the cards don’t come one after the other temporally, but at most logically.

The cards tend to predict specific happenings when there are strong cards showing action or, when you use longer spreads, when there has been a clear description of a situation in the first part, and then they move on to show how that situation will evolve. In part you also need to develop your intuition and your language with the cards. In these cases, the flow of the reading is relevant.

Sometimes (quite often) the description is nestled within the prediction. That is, the cards predict something and describe it. In this case, whether a card comes after the others may or may not be relevant. Example: granny kicks the bucket and leaves you some money.

Suppose it shows up like this: 2♠R + 5♠ + 3♠R + 5♥ + 7♥ + 6♥ + 6♣. In this case, it is relevant that the cards showing granny’s passing (2♠R, 5♠, 3♠R) come out before the others, because it is quite logical that death precedes the opening of the will. The 5♥ is the card of family and inheritance, the 7♥, in this case, is the lawyer and 6♥ + 6♣ shows the gaining of money. Again, it is relevant that the combination showing the inheritance comes up after the one showing death. But within these combinations, the position of the cards is relatively irrelevant. You could take the cards that go from 5♥ to 6♣, shuffle them around and it wouldn’t change much. Similarly, in the first combination, you could place granny (2♠R) somewhere else, maybe between the 5♠ and the 3♠R, and things wouldn’t change.

This is because the prediction includes descriptions.