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Card Reading, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Playing Cards, Reading Example

Twenty one Card Spread with Playing Cards

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As with the Sibilla, so with playing cards. This is a typical spread that can be used to get a broad bird-eye view on the querent’s life. Many versions of this spread exist. Here I discuss the one I know. Simply shuffle the cards and have the querent cut, then distribute the cards into seven small stacks of three cards each.

Pack 1 is the querent, Pack 2 is the home, Pack 3 is outside influences or outside the home, Pack 4 is money and career, Pack 5 relationships, Pack 6 possible difficulties, Pack 7 the unexpected.

The spread does not see very far into the future, and it rather reflects the present and at most the next two months, sometimes even just one.

This is a spread I often use for myself rather than for others. The following example is a reading a did for myself about three months ago.

Pack 1 (querent): 4♥ – A♥ – 2♥

The pack shows a generally stable and pleasant state of mind and tranquility in and around the house.

Pack 2 (house): 7♥ – 10♣ – 5♠

I didn’t truly understand this at the time, even though it was obvious, as it shows a sudden journey. The 5♠ simply turned out to be showing that the journey would be a sacrifice. We had to suddenly visit my mother-in-law who had broken a foot.

Pack 3 (outside): A♦ – 6♦ – K♠

Here some news of an administrative or bureaucratic nature is shown, generally unfavorable as the Spade falls last. Our accountant sent us an endless questionnaire to fill out as the government had raised some issues on out paperwork.

Pack 4 (work): K♣ – 5♦ – A♣

My significator falls here. I believe I have talked about the combination of the 5♦ with an Ace showing a new phase. In this case there is a new something coming up to me. Around a month later I managed to be accepted by a new translation agency.

Pack 5 (love): 5♣ – 9♣ – 3♠

I interpreted this as having lots of things to do that would keep me distant from hubby (the actions create distance, interfering with my love life). Indeed, for two or three weeks afterward it was as if we didn’t live together as we were occupied with our own projects.

Pack 6 (problems): 5♥ – 8♥ – 9♥

Quite frankly, no great problem was on the horizon. If the other cards had been worse I could have judged that the realization of my wish would be compromised, but the spread was relatively tame, so in this case the cards were just saying there was no big issue coming up.

Pack 7 (surprise): 2♦ – 6♥ – Q♥

This was clearly a message bringing a reconciliation with a woman. It turned out that a couple of days later I was contacted by an old college friend I hadn’t spoken to in almost ten years.

Card Reading, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Playing Cards, Reading Example

General Cross Spread / Cartomancy with Playing Cards

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In the Sibilla section of this site I posted some spreads that may also be used with playing cards. One type of spreads is generally used for broad readings without a specific focus. I must confess I don’t often use these spreads myself when reading for others (especially the 21 card spread which I will cover in another post), although I have found them invaluable for a quick glance into my own future.

A typical general spread is the cross spread. The disposition of the cards, after shuffling and having the deck cut by the querent, is as follows:

4 – 9 – 14
2 – 7 – 121 – 6 – 113 – 8 – 13
5 – 10 – 15
Cross spread for cartomancy with playing cards

The center of the spread (cards 1, 6, 11) indicates the querent’s present situation, or something that is happening that is very important to them. To the querent’s left (2, 7, 12) is his or her recent past. To the querent’s right (3, 8, 13) is his or her future in the next month or so. Above the querent (4, 9, 14) are his or her thoughts or something they are aware of, while underneath (5, 10, 15) shows something the querent doesn’t like or doesn’t know.

This spread is general, but I am sure it can be adapted to answer broad questions (“Tell me about my career”). It can also be used to investigate a person the querent is interest in knowing about (“My friend’s been behaving strangely lately…”)

One variation of this spread consist in shuffling the remaining cards again and dealing out an additional three cards for the further future or for the “answer”.

Here’s an example. I asked a friend of mine if we could do a spread for her as a demonstration and she graciously accepted. Here’s what came out.

3♣ – 3♥ – 9♣
J♥ – A♦ – 4♠8♥ – 6♠ – 8♠K♠ – 6♦ – A♥
7♠ – J♠ – 7♦
Example of a general cross spread with playing cards

It is never a good idea to start talking immediately, especially when the spread is general. It is always better to simply let your eyes absorb the cards as a whole.

Still, it is quite evident that the central heap is rather problematic, as it shows illness. This is not the querent’s own illness, but that of a relative (Eight of Hearts). This is confirmed by the future cards, where there is worry in the house, with the King of Spades in this case as the doctor. The querent’s grandma needs some minor surgery, it turns out, but given her age, her family is understandably concerned. Fortunately there is no indication of great difficulties, let alone bereavement.

The querent’s thoughts, however, are occupied by the desire for a lasting love union (upper fan), which however she doesn’t have, considering the past fan (blocked news concerning romance).

The bottom fan is difficult to interpret, as it doesn’t appear to link up with the others. It is very possible that, in her life in general, the querent doesn’t feel seen or appreciated (the Seven of Diamonds is money, but also rewards, broadly construed) and she feels unlucky.

This spread, as can be seen, is short and quick, and should ideally only be used as an “opener” to break the ice, before moving on to specific spreads.

MQS

Card Reading, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Playing Cards

Describing Court Cards, Part 3 / Cartomancy with Playing Cards

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We’ve been talking a little bit about identifying court cards in cartomancy. Another possible key for identifying them, of course, is combinations. There is no need to memorize endless lists of combinations, as they are generally self-explanatory.

The difficulty comes when a reading contains many Court Cards, or even just court cards. Usually, this indicates a situation that involves many people, often a reunion of some kind. Note that when a bunch of Court Cards are together, Jacks usually count as people, that is, they strengthen the meaning of “many people together” even if they don’t indicate any specific person. However, if many Jacks show up, this can indicate that there will be children.

I know that some readers panic when a string of cards consists only or mostly of Court Cards, but I have learned to see this possibility as one of the easiest to deal with. This is because readers coming from a tarot background (especially in America) want to drown questioners in saccarine or self-helpy words, and Court Cards are hard to use in this respect.

But if we learn to see cartomancy (with the tarot or with playing cards, or any other means) as a way of decoding simple sentences, then Court Cards become very easy to interpret, even if a lot of them shows up. Usually there isn’t much to say, only that there has been or will be shortly a reunion of some kind. Here’s a recent example. I was visiting a friend and she asked me to do a reading about her job prospects. Here are the cards that came up:

8♥ – Q♣ – K♥ – J♥ – Q♥ – K♠ – Q♦

I asked her if there was a family reunion of some kind coming up, and she said that she was invited as a photographer to the christening of a friend’s child. She would get paid and, of course, she would also be there as a guest. Since this is something she already knew, we tried asking again, this time with five cards. Here’s what came up:

Q♣ – J♥ – K♠ – K♥ – Q♦

Clearly, the cards still wanted to talk about the christening, so we decided to let it go for now and I told my friend we would do another reading after the event. A couple of weeks later she told me that at the party she had been introduced to one of her friend’s relatives (probably the Queen of Diamonds here) who put her in contact with a photographer she knows personally, and who has a studio and hired her for some gigs.

I found it fascinating that the cards managed to talk about something partly unrelated to the question, but yet so pertinent to my friend’s job situation.

MQS

Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Playing Cards, Reading Example

Describing Court Cards, Part 2 / Cartomancy with Playing Cards

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Locating the court cards within the querent’s life is probably one of the hardest tasks of a card reader. The Suit of the court card in question can help, of course. A Heart shows someone with a close connection, a Club is an official partner, a Diamond has a more distant connection or is unknown, a Spade tends to either be unknown, a stranger or an enemy.

However, far more revealing than the suit of the card are the suits surrounding it. Let us start simple. Suppose you have a Heart figure (Queen or King) surrounded by Spades. Hearts are usually positive, but IF the question is about a family member, the fact that it shows up as a Heart does not matter much: Hearts simply show consanguinity. However, if the question is about a friend, then their showing up as a Heart is in itself positive, as it shows core positive feelings. The fact that the figure is surrounded by Spades can indicate obstacles or a fight with the person.

As a very vague and general rule of thumb, the suit of the person shows their core, while the cards surrounding them show either their role or their current (or immediate future) way of relating to us. If the friend had shown up as a Diamond, it would have been worse, as then there would be no good feelings left and any fight might cause the end of the friendship.

In general, being surrounded by Hearts indicates good feelings, Clubs show either a solid relationship or a static one (it depends on the cards and the context), Diamonds show a transactional attitude for better or worse or, more rarely, one based on intellectual pursuits, while Spades show enmity. It is easy to predict, for instance, that a Heart figure surrounded by Diamonds shows the positive side of transactions (they may help us financially, for instance), while a Spade card surrounded by Diamonds may show the person will damage us financially.

Here is an example. A person asked if they could trust someone as a business partner:

5♥ – K♠ – 4♥

Regardless of the specific meanings of the cards, we have a Spade court card surrounded by Hearts. The Hearts show that the person is not trying to scam the querent. However, the fact that the person shows up as a Spade indicates that he is at his core a difficult person to get along with and this may cause difficulties along the way. Let us suppose that there had been Diamonds instead of Hearts. In this case the warning would have been more substantial: he may not be a scammer, but he is rather cutthroat and will only look after his profit. If there had been Clubs, the partnership would have probably ended up stranded due to differences of opinion, while Spades would have shown a dangerous individual.

MQS

Card Combinations, Card Meanings, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Playing Cards

Describing Court Cards, Part 1 / Cartomancy with Playing Cards

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In many card reading systems, the appearance of a court cart is enough to make the reader panic. This is partly because there is no fudging with real people: they are there in flesh and blood, so if you botch the interpretation, it’s gonna show.

It’s hard to place people cards in the querent’s life. But there are some tricks that can help us. These are rules of thumb, and need to be applied flexibley. Be sensible and reasonable. If something doesn’t make sense for whatever reason, don’t say it: if it doesn’t make sense in divination it doesn’t make sense in real life, and vice versa. Leave space for some intuition as well.

In general, we know that the Club court cards represent the two querents. In general, the Club court card of the opposite sex represents the significant other for straight querents (for gay querents it’s the Heart court card of the same sex, while the other Club card becomes an important figure who is close to the querent or will have an important role)

Often, Heart cards represent people the querent already knows as they have a close bond with them, shown by the Heart suit. However, if the cards surrounding them show newsness or being unknown, then the Heart suit represents that they are good to the querent.

Diamond and Spade figures may or may not be known. If they are surrounded by Hearts, they are more likely to have a close relationship with the querent, although Spades surrounded by Hearts still show a problematic relationship. Surrounding Clubs suggest a more distant relationship, while Diamonds and Spades suggest the relationship is purely transactional or even hostile (in the case of Spades.)

When two court cards show up next to each other, they are related in some way. Related doesn’t necessarily mean that they are relatives, but that they know each other and have already interacted in the past. When the two cards come up with some other cards between them, we need to pay attention to the cards that separate them. If these separating cards describe a type of relationship, they simply describe their interaction. if they describe happenings, then it may be that the two people don’t know each other yet.

A court card next to the Ace of Hearts is usually a member of the household. A court card next to the Two of Hearts is usually a relative, but usually not a sibling or parent. Obviously, a court card next to the Eight of Clubs is a colleague, and so on.

Here’s an example. The acquaintance of a friend asked me once if she would find a new boyfriend. I knew nothing about her.

K♣ – 6♣ – Q♣ – 5♠ – 10♠ – 2♦ – J♥

It is patently clear that this person is already in a committed relationship: the King of Clubs shows up at the beginning. He and the Queen do not interact directly, because their court cards don’t touch. However, the card that separates them, the Six of Clubs, represents the type of relationship they have: a tired one. This makes the Queen feel confined and unwell (Five of Spades) which leads her to sending secret flirty messages (Ten of Spades, Two of Diamonds, Jack of Hearts) probably over the internet. This spread does not show new relationships, it just shows that the querent is already in a relationship.

Card Combinations, Card Reading, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Playing Cards, Reading Example

People have the Power | Cartomancy with Playing Cards

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Court cards are scary, because they don’t seem to have a logical meaning, or at least not a prominent one. Instead, they represent people, and this can be inconvenient, because people exist in the real world and need to be described more or less accurately for the reading to be useful. This can be very difficult.

Queens and Kings are more likely to represent people and less likely to represent concepts, although on occasion they might. The K♣ and Q♣ are the two querent cards, and only in the rarest occasion do they stand for anything other than that.

A general rule of cartomancy (not just with playing cards) is that action happens in the spread. Who is not in the spread does not act. This can take on a variety of meanings, but most commonly what it means is that, for instance, if the querent doesn’t show up, they are relatively passive, and it is going to be harder for them to change the situation.

A natural corollary to this is the fact that if a person does show up in the spread, they influence the situation directly. Example: a female querent once asked me if she would find a job. The cards were:

10♠ – Q♥ – 7♥

The querent is not represented in the spread. This doesn’t mean that she wasn’t actively looking for a job (she was). It just means that her looking for one won’t solve the problem. Instead, out of nowhere (10♠) a woman will provide the solution in an unexpected way. What happened was that an aunt who lived far from home and didn’t even know the niece was looking for a job phoned and she happened to mention that there was an opening in the company she worked at that she needed to fill. Once she discovered the niece was looking for a job she helped her get the job.

Another example. A friend of mine once asked if the relationship that had just ended would resume (he had been left)

K♣ – 5♣ – A♦

An accumulation of Clubs is not good when asking about reconciliations. Here, the querent’s significator is shown acting (Five of Clubs) to start something new (Ace of Diamonds.) A week later he met a new girl and he (successfully) went after her. Here, despite the question, it is clear that the previous girl is completely out of the picture and cannot influence the events, so much so that later on she tried to reconnect with him (obviously, when she noticed that he was taken) but the spread showed that he was the one wielding power within the situation and was committed to the new.

MQS

Card Reading, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Playing Cards, Reading Example

Reading the Colors and Suits – Cartomancy with Playing Cards

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In playing card divination, a lot of emphasis is given to the two colors and the four suits. The two aspects must not be separated from one another as they give us valuable information. However, since the two colors are a binary distinction without much refinement, they tend to describe general trends that can be easily overruled by other considerations. It’s best to leave them out unless they strike you.

In general, red cards indicate life and movement, but an excess of red can show instability. On the other hand, black cards show inertia and slowness, but when there’s too many of them they create obstruction. A good mix of red and black shows a balanced situation. This is especially true if we are describing a situation rather than predicting an outcome. For instance, I remember once doing a reading for a friend on the beach. She had just met a new guy. The spread was:

2♥ – 7♥ – 8♥ – J♥ – 3♥

Obviously, this spread consists only of Hearts and it is only red. This is consistent with the newness of the relationship, but it also shows us that there is nothing except some infatuation going on. The cards don’t predict a breakup, but they show that the relationship won’t last after the initial excitement has gone. We would need some black cards to anchor the red ones. We don’t even need to interpret the single cards, although we could. This is a fun summertime romance. Let’s leave it at that. Result: they broke up in winter.

Here is another example. A woman was asking if there would be reconciliation with her husband.

3♣ – 2♠ – 4♣ – 6♣ – 5♣

The Three of Clubs is the marriage and the Two of Spades is the argument. My question to the querent was how long ago the breakup had happened. She said it had been less than a week. The cards are obviously predominantly Clubs and all black. Therefore, they show that inertia will prevail. They don’t show reconciliation proper. They simply show that the breakup wasn’t really a break so much as an argument. The situation is unsatisfactory, and there is no love, but the cards show that it will go on.

Now, suppose that the same question had been asked by the same person and that she had gotten the same cards, but this time the breakup had happened three months ago. There is no reconciliation in the cards, and a new status quo has set in, which will tend to preserve itself (black color)

Red and black

Let us now analyze the suits. Suits tend to reinforce their particular meaning: Spades bring sorrow and blockage, Hearts feelings and joy, Clubs work and toil, Diamonds money and energy. In the first example, we only have Hearts, which shows feelings. It would be helpful to get Clubs, because Clubs show effort, and we all know that true love is a full time job. In fact, in a larger spread, it would even be nice to see some Spades in the past position, together with positive cards showing that the couple has gone through a lot and now has reached a point of stability.

In the second example, however, we have mostly Clubs. Here there is no fun left, and the situation goes on simply because it has been going on for a while, but it remains just drudgery.

Another important thing to take notice of is when a card that symbolizes either a person or a significator for a specific question shows up surrounded by cards of the same suit, or at least by cards that give us a coherent picture.

Here’s an example. A man asked about his relationship.

4♠ – Q♣ – 5♠ – 3♣ – K♦

The woman shows up as the Queen of Clubs, surrounded by two Spades. We don’t care about which Spades. The point is that she cannot move. She is impeded in some way. The reason is given by the Three of Clubs and the King of Diamonds: she is married.

Here is another example: a man asked if his new business venture would flourish.

K♣ – J♥ – 5♣ – 8♦ – 6♣

We don’t need to spend much time fiddle-farting with card meanings. The Eight of Diamonds, the card of business, is hemmed in by Clubs. No, the business will not flourish. It won’t go belly up, but at least for a very long time it will be just toil with little rewards. Yes, we could add that that Jack of Hearts shows he’s naive, but let’s not complicate things, for now. Sometimes the prediction is just obvious.

Card Combinations, Card Reading, Cartomancy, Divination, Divination Master Post, Fortune-telling, Playing Cards

Basics of Card Interpretation – Cartomancy with Playing Cards

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As I did for the Sibilla, I shall now write a series of articles on the concrete interpretation of playing cards in divination. Some of what I said for the Sibilla applies here, so make sure to check that article.

Keep in mind that you cannot learn card reading in theory. I am among those who believe that, without some grounding in theory, practice tends to be shallow. I’ve met plenty of “intuitive readers” who basically spend their querents’ time saying “how powerful this reading is” without actually saying anything of consequence except some pseudo-empowering truisms (“It’s time for you to get out of your own way”). There is nothing wrong with empowering the querent, but the advice needs to be taylored to their specific situation, and reading the querent’s specific situation requires some study of the theory.

That being said, there is also such thing as too much theory. If you want to be a card reader, read cards. Do it for friends, acquaintances, relatives. Sooner than you think you are going to amass a wealth of practical insight into the nature of the cards which is going to be more valuable than anything anyone may write.

Playing Cards are usually read one after the other in a linear fashion. If you feel called by positional spreads (“This is his heart, this is his past, this is his wish, etc.”) by all means go ahead. However, playing cards are great at creating broad pictures by combining with one another.

The first thing to remember is that Hearts tend to be positive and Spades negative, with Diamonds and Clubs fluctuating somewhere in between. Unlike in the Sibilla, where red cards tend to be weak and black cards strong and assertive, in playing cards Hearts are just as strong as Spades. This means that much of the interpretation depends on which card falls first and which last.

For instance, let’s say you have the 2♥ followed by the 2♠. In this case, an argument or some kind of vexation is coming up next. The Two of Hearts is a rather broad card in terms of meaning, often just showing that something is about to knock at the door. However, if it were 2♠ followed by 2♥, then whatever negative thing the Two of Spades signifies is likey to be overcome by harmony (the Two of Hearts indicate a distance being bridged).

Diamonds and Clubs are broadly neutral, although Diamonds tend slightly toward the positive and Clubs slightly toward the negative. This means that they are strongly influenced by the Hearts and Spades in the spread. For instance, one of the main associations of Diamonds is with money, but in itself we do not really know if it’s money gained or money lost. This depends on how the card falls in the spread, and whether with Hearts or with Spades. Clubs, on the other hand, indicate effort, so a Heart can make the effort pleasurable or positive, while Spades can make it in vain. In general, accumulations of Clubs indicate difficulties.

Note that although Clubs are neutral and Hearts are positive, which prevails still depends on which card falls first. For instance, 6♥ + 7♣ shows that there are difficulties in overcoming a separation or in healing from sickness. In itself, this combination is slightly positive because the Seven of Clubs is not a Spade, so it leaves the door open, but it is not satisfactory. If we had 7♣ + 6♥, then a problem would be overcome rather easily.

In general, a Spade falling last indicates failure. However, you need to be careful. If you are only pulling three cards, this may very well be so. However, the more cards make up the row of cards you are interpreting, the less a Spade falling last can overcome very positive card, especially if it’s not a hugely negative Spade. Suppose you have five or seven cards in a row that show that the querent will get his wish, but then a Spade falls last. In this case we would interpret the spread as “you will get what you want, but then a problem will arise.” What kind of problem will be shown by the cards themselves. In case, do another spread.

These are just some preliminaries. Playing cards tend to be rather straightforward, so you will soon find yourself understanding the cards in context better than I could ever describe them in an article.