Potential clients are often surprised when they hear that I don't consider what I do "fortune-telling." It's not as if I'm some cosmic fisherperson, dangling my bait, waiting for your future to bite so that I can pull it up and deliver it to you for your supper.
I don't believe in shrink-wrapped destiny. This isn't my tarot philosophy. I believe in the power of choice and free will. I believe the tarot shows us our options, and by doing so, allows us to make informed decisions about what's happening right now. It's a simple formula -- the only way to change the future is to change the present. Consequence follows cause. And tarot does an excellent job of showing the forces in play at the time of a reading so that you can decide whether you want to go with the flow . . . or swim upstream.
Knowledge changes the flow of events. Understanding puts the rudder firmly in your hand.
Of course, some forces are larger than the individual. Hurricanes. Recessions. The breaking dawn. Tarot shows this aspect too. It's actually two decks within a deck: the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. The former refers to big universal energies, archetypal powers, huge forces (like Strength, at right, which references the times when soft but firm control is required). The latter are the personal energies, the day-to-day ways that we make our choices manifest in the world. It is the interactive tension between these two that makes our lives so interesting. Sometimes we can turn the tide, and sometimes we can only ride it out. Tarot shows us these forces at work in our lives, so that we can act in wisdom and truth and love.
Or not. My job is to help each client interpret what the cards mean to them, not tell them what to do about their situations. I work with each person in a very give-and-take manner, so that each person can access their own inner guidance. That way the control rests not with me, but with my client, so that each individual can keep what works and change what doesn't.
The cards don't reveal your future -- they reveal your present moment. And that is the more valuable gift.
3 comments:
Some of the most eye-opening moments in my life have come during Tarot readings June has done for/with me. Both the short version and the involved one always make me think about choices I have made and choices I need to make. Your post reminds me that we haven't done that in too long....
Eloquently said, Tina. I wish I could have you do a Tarot reading for me. By having your clients interpret the cards it helps them see inside themselves the changes and choices they may have been resisting.
I love your tarot readings, especially when I'm trying to work through a problem. You have such a cool understanding of the cards and their positions in relations to the other cards.
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