jaq reads for Chiscoteque - TdM April 2019

[jaq]

Hi Chiscoteque - what's your question?

97ED405E-4EC7-4139-8564-C57188730408.jpeg


Hi friends! I thought this month we could go with a body, mind, and spirit themed reading, utilizing a tableau style draw and a mirroring technique.

Each row, as shown in the image, represents the realm of either body, mind, or spirit. The central column (2) is representative of the overall theme or description of the realm. Columns one and three would be read as “mirrors” to one another, blended together to provide more detail.

You may use the entire deck for this draw unless you feel led to use one part (pips, courts, trumps) or a combination thereof. I feel this type of reading could be ideally suited for questions where we are trying to “locate” ourselves or otherwise ascertain the consequences of specific choices on each of the realms. But with that said, I am sure there are many questions this spread is suited to answer.

[chiscotheque]

hi jac. my question relates to a life change that is about to happen. i am a 50-year-old male living on the same property as my parents, the property i grew up on as a boy. for 10 years i have been commuting back and forth between here, victoria, and winnipeg, canada, where my girlfriend lives. she was looking after her nonagenarian grandfather after her mother died. he died last spring and so now she is moving here to live with me in victoria. i have a very small studio style space, but i have built an art studio, a music studio, and a separate room of her own in the garage. i mention this aspect because she lived here with me 10 years ago, at the start of our relationship, but due to the cramped quarters and some other factors no longer at play, the cohabitation didn't work. i give you all this background because my question is somewhat nebulous, that is: how will this life change turn out? vis-a-vis my girlfriend, my parents, and my own well-being. i am a pisces and both enjoy and require a certain amount of time alone (which is why i mentioned the studios - i spend many hours at a time out there).
if you need any more details, just let me know.

[jaq]

if you need any more details, just let me know.

I'm totally fine with this scenario and trust that I'll come up with a way to formulate this. However, if you'd like to talk first about a precise question, we can do that, too.

[jaq]

hi jac. my question relates to a life change that is about to happen. i am a 50-year-old male living on the same property as my parents, the property i grew up on as a boy. for 10 years i have been commuting back and forth between here, victoria, and winnipeg, canada, where my girlfriend lives. she was looking after her nonagenarian grandfather after her mother died. he died last spring and so now she is moving here to live with me in victoria.

I used the Oswald Wirth Tarot, and, like others, changed the sequence of the rows to reflect what I interpreted as your central theme, that of the spirit. I chose that as the center row because you said you’re a piscis, and Spirit seemed to be present both in the art and in the need to spend time alone. The order I chose was mind-spirit-body.

The first row shows the Sun, flanked by the Knight of Coins on the left and the Hermit on the right.

On the mental level, things feel quite auspicious. The Sun is in the middle, showing the sun shining down benevolently on a semi naked man and woman. What struck me is that both the Knight and the Hermit turn towards the central Sun, in what appear approving and supportive attitudes. Of course the Hermit makes me think of you right away. It’s interesting that he is not in a central position but in a sort of cameo role. He appears in the spread but he does not play a central role. I almost want to get all mathematical on you and wonder whether he will appear (or in your case, disappear) 1/9 of the time – that’s about 19 hours a week.

On the spiritual level, we find the 8 of Coins, the Pope, and the Ace of Wands.

The Pope is in the middle of the row, and is the central card in the whole spread. The Pope is an excellent anchor card. He is experienced, wise, he knows what’s what. While the Pope can display rigidity and authoritarianism, he can also be a central spiritual figure, and that is literally the case here. Yes, putting Spirit in the center was a good decision, and maybe you will end up doing that, as well. Make it all revolved around Spirit. To the left, we see the balanced, mature steadiness of the 8 of Coins, and to the right, the fierce passion of the Ace of Wands. As above, I see a wholehearted “yes” in both the flanking cards – a yes to making Spirit the anchor.

On the third row, corresponding to Body, we have 3 of Cups, 2 of Swords, and 9 of Coins.

Of the three rows, this is the one that feels the most out of balance. Not much – we’re only talking about minors, after all – but still. The 3 of Cups is quite nice; I get a feeling of serene conviviality from it. The 2 of Swords in the middle feels a bit adversarial, what with the flimsy crossed swords and the weirdly shaped hilts. Are they weirdly shaped, or is there something the illustrator tried to do with perspective that I don’t get? Anyway, that card feels off. And a 9 always feels a bit ambivalent to me – on the one hand it’s almost a 10 (e.g. getting a 90 on a test is pretty darn good) but on the other hand it’s crowded and uneven. I see as “Body” here your physical environment. It has its nice aspects – maybe the 3 of Coins refers to yourself, your girlfriend and your parents? – but also has some annoying and crowded elements.

In terms of the overall spread, I notice a few things: It is a balanced spread (I can see it fitting nicely on a bell curve, with a good distribution of majors, minors, suits, etc.); there are three Coin cards; and there seems to be some decrease of importance from mind to spirit to body, although the decrease from mind to spirit is balanced out by the central figure of the Pope. I’m thinking that things will turn out well, perhaps particularly on the financial level. The biggest problem/annoyance may be the physical environment; nothing major there but maybe just a bit underpowered.

Looking forward to hearing our thoughts. There is a lot there and much more could be discussed!

[chiscotheque]

first off, thanks Jaq. much of this spread and what you had to say resounds.
i have some of my own idiosyncratic feelings about certain cards, so when i see them in my own spread it gets pretty hard to think of them in a different light. but it's important to, and why this exercise is so valuable.

as for the body, i tend to ignore it and take it for granted, which may be why it's sort of lesser in the reading. the 3/Cups i interpret as some past modes of indulgence and conviviality which it's time to curb. 2/Swords always implies sacrifice to me, hence the curbing, with the hope it will be for the greater good in the end. the 9/Coin certainly has connotations in the R/W/S, and here i have no problems with a 9. indeed, i like them. but they do rather imply the end of the line before a sea change. i have been quietly concerned lately about my health.

the focus on spirit suits me to a t. 8 is my birthday number, so seems fitting. the Hierophant strikes me as comical. arguably my least favourite card, it may suggest i take myself too seriously. nevertheless, on a personal level, he represents the liminal world between god and self. the Ace/Wand simplifies matters - green energy, life, agency. that, or i (as the Hierophant) need a good beating.

i take here the mind to represent thought entirely; hence, both thinking per se and feeling - emotional thought. the knight holds a coin up to the sun, as in imitation or honor. so does the Hermit, but his is not symbolic gold but actual gold - light. the knight, valiant as he may be, is somewhat in the dark [(night) of the soul] and rather cavalier. the Hermit is focused - alone, but stable and concerned with what matters. what matters is the light, the warmth, the Sol which is - per our spread - the Soul. the sun couple help each other. but the domineering quality of the sun must be balanced with the dark/night, as seen in the Hermit's singularity, distance, and light controlled such that it enables one see.

thanks again for this reading Jaq. i will continue to ruminate on it. to see how it further resounds and redounds.