Okay, so I’ve been wanting to get into Tarot for a while now, and I finally decided to take the plunge. I figured the Celtic Cross spread was a good place to start since it’s so popular, and, well, I wanted to do it for free. No way was I gonna pay for some app or online reading when I could figure it out myself, right?
First, I needed a deck. I didn’t want to buy one yet, in case I ended up hating the whole thing. So, I did some digging online, and used a website with some free tarot cards displays. I printed them out on some regular paper. They were kinda flimsy, but hey, it was free!
Next, I needed to, you know, actually learn the Celtic Cross spread. I watched a few YouTube videos. Some were super complicated, others way too simplistic. I took notes on the basic layout and what each position generally meant.
My Makeshift Celtic Cross Reading
- Position 1: The Present – This card is supposed to represent the current situation or the querent (that’s me!).
- Position 2: The Challenge – This one crosses the first card and shows the immediate challenge or obstacle.
- Position 3: The Past – This is the foundation, the past influences that led to this point.
- Position 4: The Future – A likely outcome if things continue on the current path.
- Position 5: Above – This is the goal, the best outcome, or the querent’s potential.
- Position 6: Below – The subconscious influences, things I might not be fully aware of.
- Position 7: Advice – Guidance on how to approach the situation.
- Position 8: External Influences – How others see the situation, or outside factors at play.
- Position 9: Hopes and Fears – Pretty self-explanatory, I guess.
- Position 10: Outcome – The final outcome, the culmination of all the other cards.
I shuffled my paper cards (carefully!) and started laying them out. It felt a bit silly at first, I’m not gonna lie. But as I started turning them over, one by one, I actually started thinking about what the images could mean in my own life. I was asking about a specific work project, so I focused on that.
I looked up the meanings of each card online as I went. There are tons of resources for that, so it wasn’t hard. Some of the interpretations resonated, some didn’t. I jotted down some notes next to each card, trying to connect the card’s general meaning to my specific project.
It took a while to go through all ten cards, look up their meanings, and then try to make sense of it all as a whole. I wouldn’t say I had some huge epiphany, but it did give me some new perspectives on the project. Thinking about the “hopes and fears” card, for example, made me realize I was more anxious about it than I thought.
I don’t know if I’ll become a Tarot expert or anything, but this little free experiment definitely got me thinking. I might actually buy a real deck now. It’s more about the process of reflection, I think, than any actual magic. But who knows, maybe there’s a little magic in there too. We’ll see!
