Tarot of the Psyche

A few months ago, Jess­-a therapist by trade-created a wonderful and meaningful Tarot spread and interpersonal experience in our Not Your Mother’s Tarot Meetup group. It was so powerful and immediately profound to everyone in the group that I wanted to share her ‘Tarot of the Psyche’ experience with you.

During the workshop Jess explained that there is, “an undercurrent driving the reason for a reading…the current underneath will pull the direction of all the waves of experience.” Jess went on to explain that we will often keep repeating a pattern until something so sharp awakens us that we decide to complete the pattern. For example, we date unavailable men and this is a pattern we keep following over and over again until finally one day we have that pivotal moment when we really “get” what we’re doing and decide to work on ourselves to complete the pattern, thereby releasing ourselves from its imprisonment. As Jess so eloquently put it, “Everything we repress or deny becomes our shadow self.”

We can use Tarot to empower our journey for self-release and realization, to empower our choice so that we stop the victim thinking and begin to cultivate patterns that will be more functional, helpful, and positive.


Questions that can provide clarity when we are working through our interpersonal dynamics can be:

• What is the current beneath the wave?
• Where should I focus my thoughts right now?
• What am I not seeing about myself in this situation?
• What is in me that is causing this to repeat?
• What is my biggest fear (wish) that is driving this pattern?
• What is the need I’m trying to get met here?
• What am I becoming?
• What is falling away?
• What is the highest purpose or lesson that this is trying to teach me?
  

By using these kinds of questions, we can turn personal crisis to opportunity instead of suffering again. These types of questions also help us to heal old wounds as well as become clear about older family patterns. It also helps to see the cards as energy rather than literal meaning. Turning, "Will he ever come back?" kinds of questions to, "What is within me that is challenged by letting go?" or "Where is closure needed?" can be very powerful questions for tarot to answer.

Jess was kind enough to create the experience below, and I was overjoyed when she gave me permission to share it with you:

Tarot Of The Psyche

After grounding and centering, being clear that we are not holding any attachment to outcomes we pull one card from the Major Arcana only for the following questions:

• What card embodies the dominant theme in my life right now?
• What is being released right now?
• What is coming into being?
• What fear within me is contributing to the current situation?
• What wish or hope is underneath my current behavior?
• What is my greatest strength, or ally, in my journey to transformation?
  

Once you have written down your answers (you can decide on your own if you wish to shuffle each card back into the deck after each question or not). You can then create a narrative that pulls these themes together:


Right now, I am__________. I am releasing __________ in order to make room for _______. I am working with the fear of ___________. I am driven by the hope for _________. My greatest ally in my change process is ____________.

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Tarot Of The Psyche Example Spread:

To help you get the feel of this rich spread, I have included my own reading from this evening:

What card embodies the dominant theme in my life right now?

DEATH (there is a lot of change going on in my life both personally and professionally- there is the feeling that things remain and out of my own control)

What is being released right now?

THE STAR (the star can be ego, so releasing the need to control, to be ‘important’ to be right)

What is coming into being?

DEATH (again, emphasizing the importance of this theme- continued changes)

What fear within me is contributing to the current situation?

JUDGEMENT (fear of change or literally, fear of being judged by others)

What wish or hope is underneath my current behavior?

THE LOVERS (I want to be loved and fear that changes might mean less of that)

What is my greatest strength, or ally, in my journey to transformation?

THE MAGICIAN (I can handle any change or transformation that comes my way)

Thrown together into a new narrative I receieved this following message:

Right now, I am transmuting potentiality. I am releasing ego in order to make room for major changes. I am working with the fear of being out of control. I am driven by my hope of love, to love and be loved and to do the thing I love. My greatest ally in my change process is the Magician- I continue to be the conduit for the larger spiritual message of transformation, I have the ability to hold and without ego, release fear to embrace dynamic energy right now.


Cool, right? 

Please try it for yourself and if you feel comfortable, share your insights with myself and with the author of this spread, Jess. If you are a journaling type, here is the handout from that session, may you use it in wisdom and peace!