Whispers

I shuffle my Tarot deck and lay my cards out in my favorite spread: The Sword of Truth. I love this five card spread. It resonates with both the analytical and intuitive sides of my brain. Thinking of the spread’s name, I imagine the cards cutting through confusion and revealing a new or possibly old truth. Each position of the spread asks a question: 

What is the Basis for my question? 

What is the Desire I hold? 

What can Help me?

What can Harm me?

What will the Outcome be? 

As I stare at the cards on the table before me, I imagine the artist imagining how to artistically interpret each card. There are many, many different imaginings of the Tarot. Every artist brings their own perspective to their artwork, their own focus, their own style. Shuffling through these cards is like shuffling through someone else’s imagination. 

I still feel “new” at this practice, though the cards, showing signs of wear, feel familiar in my hands. From my first Tarot experience, I found myself drawn to Tarot’s rich history, beautiful art, symbolism and hidden meanings. It took time to let go of judgmental thinking and allow myself to simply wander among the cards, slowly acquainting myself with their names and meanings as if mingling at a party.

Many people imagine, or perhaps hope, that Tarot is about foretelling the future. They envision fortune tellers in carnival tents predicting the meeting of a tall and dark, handsome stranger, as if our lives are predestined. To me, Tarot invites us into a world of what can be, not a world of what must be. It awakens in us the sometimes repressed ability to imagine beyond limitations. It speaks to truths we carry deep within us and whispers, what if?

~Lisa Kiel