3 Tarot Reading Questions Answered

For the last two months, I have started doing tarot and charm readings on Etsy. I've even done a few readings for friends and family as practice and so far so good.

But a few people have been curious about how my tarot readings work. I've been asked questions such as:

1. "How do you read the cards?"
2. "How do you know what they mean?"
3. "How can you read for me if I'm not there?"

These are all really great questions, but when I was first faced with having to answer these I wasn't entirely sure what to say. I would give an uninformative answer such as "the cards all have a meaning and I just go off that." 

First of all, that doesn't answer anybody's question. Secondly, I don't sound very knowledgable when I give answers like that, so I thought I'd answer those three questions here.

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How do you read the cards? And how do you know what they mean?

I've been playing around with tarot cards for years now, so I've learned the general meaning of each card just from practice and also from relying on the guidebook for far too long. Only recently did I start adding charms into my readings and it's honestly been the best decision I've ever made.

So how does it all work?

Well, each card and charm have their own meanings - for instance, if a heart charm comes up that could be talking about love, simple right? But if it's paired with the hammer charm and the eight of pentacles then it could be about putting a lot of effort into work that you're passionate about.

The meaning changes depending on the surrounding charms/cards.

It's also important to remember that they all have multiple meanings - and how you interpret them is up to you and your intuition.

Now, let's say the same card and charms come out for a love reading - the meaning changes but only slightly. The message might be about putting in more effort to bring the passion back into a relationship. 

It's all about symbolism, tarot is full of symbolism and charms are literal symbols that add a lot to each reading. However, if you don't trust yourself or you lack the confidence to read accurately for your client then you might mess up. I've had a few moments like that - confidence and trust are key. 

I can see how people can be skeptical that the readings are real. I know some people assume it's a scam, that it's just a cold reading or the way the reader words things can fit into any situation. Even I went through a phase where I didn't quite understand how it all worked and wasn't sure if it was real. I believe it's healthy to be skeptical but it's also good to have an open mind. 

So, as you can see it's all very straight forward - it's especially simple to read when it's just a few charms and cards. But when we get into larger readings with multiple cards and charms then it might get a little more complicated because it's jam-packed with so much information. 

This is usually when people say "how are you reading any of this?"

The simple answer is intuition.

First I look at the cards -and personally for me without the charms the cards tell a very bland story - but once the charms are added I get more information on what messages are being conveyed. If certain charms have landed next to each other they are telling their own mini-story. If a charm lands on a certain card then it is adding more information to the meaning of that card.

Intuition is something we all have, which is why I believe anyone can read tarot cards. Even if your intuition might work differently to mine.

My intuition works in a way where words pop up in my mind and I start typing out what's being told to me. I know the general meanings for each card and charm, so when they're all mixed together that is when the little voice in my head begins telling its own story. At times I get in my own way and become too focused on whether or not the message will make sense, so I ruin the flow - that is why trust is important.

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How can you read for me if I'm not there?

This question I struggle to answer. The woo-woo answer is that the spiritual realm is all connected, so if I want to tap into your energy all I need to do is think about you. It's quite similar to when you randomly think of an old friend and all of a sudden they message you out of nowhere. It's a strange world man, I don't know.

The not so crazy answer would be - I have no friggen idea, I just can.

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I feel like I might have blabbed on a bit but I really hope this clears it up for some people who were curious about how it all works.

Thank you for reading, have a great day ❤