Cult of Tarot Forum

Sunday on Monday

The box says “Soprafino Tarot, 19th century, made in Italy for Cavallini & Co., San Francisco.” The title card says “Tarocco Soprafino di F. Gumpenberg, Milano 1835, Il Meneghello, Milano 1992, No. 314 of 2000.” The cards are 4.25 x 2 inches. Pointy corners. Unforgivable swords. But indeed fino, as you will see!

Wash, shuffle, interview!



Most important characteristic: Ace di Bastoni
This deck is made for action! It is full of energy. A reader just has to let it out! This is a very rough, and large, branch compared to the refined bastoni in the rest of the deck. Which just emphasizes the power of the ace.

Strength: L’Imperatrice
Its strength is that it’s beautiful. As we should expect. I would add that the people are individuals, with discernable facial expressions, etc.

Weakness: Il Papa
Even though it’s much more detailed, it follows the traditional lines a little too closely. It would be very difficult to see this stern pope as a kindly spiritual teacher and friend. And that guy in the lower right is kind of scary. Maybe he’s showing the deck is kind of insincere. It follows tradition, but might not give you a straight or helpful answer.

What it can teach me: VII Coppe
On the other hand, it can point out when readings or interpretations are just too emotional. the precise and organized illustrations help avoid fuzzy, emotionally influenced thinking.

How can I learn it: VI Danari
By paying attention to detail and the physical aspects of the cards. Realize that the deck itself is a luxurious physical item in my possession.

Outcome of our work together: X Coppe
It would be a big hit if I use it to read for others. It will make everybody happy. Hmm . . .

On to today’s Monday reading!

Monday
Winter Solstice, British Wheel of the Year Spread

My phone says here (Maryland suburb of Washington, DC) the sun rose today at 7:23am and will set at 4:49pm. That’s 9 hours and 26 minutes of light and 14 and a half hours of night. No wonder I slept so well!

This is a spread I try to do 8 times a year on the wheel.



My appearance: X Spade
I look like I’m too influenced by society, I’m paying too much attention to what others think. Which is completely untrue. Wait, maybe the opposite. People think I’m too divorced from what’s going on and what society is doing now. That’s probably more like the truth.

Relationships: La Forza
2 Strength cards beside each other, and the only major, so definitely a focus of the reading. I will go from being what people think is kind of an out of touch nonentity to a strong individual who has things to say and do. I won’t be afraid of putting myself forward, hopefully in a good way!

Family and background: IX Danari
“Little Prudence.” Well, that’s definitely my background. We were brought up as very frugal and saving. My parents were children during the Depression and teens during WW II, which also caused shortages and hardship. We always had enough, but always knew we seldom had more than enough. I’m not sure if the card is saying to embrace this or leave it behind. Maybe, with the V Coppe above, it means be thankful I have more than enough, and remember those who don’t.

Goals: Caval di Danari
My goal for the year ahead is to be a hard worker and transform that work into cash. And/or transform my work into physical, finished objects, not just ideas swirling around in my head.

Body and possessions: VI Bastoni
And I will be successful at that! And I’ll be successful at getting my weight back under control. Gotta get ready for the wedding!

Feelings and things I care about: V Coppe
I care about comforting the sorrowful. I don’t know anyone personally who has lost someone because of the virus, thank god, but I think of them. And as I said above, I’m very mindful of people who have lost their jobs because of it. I know I’m one of the lucky ones. Now more than ever it’s important to give to local charities that help my neighbors just put food on the table.

Learning and thinking: VIII Coppe
I’ll be thinking and learning about how to deal with emotions and leave some behind. How to have compassion but not suffer with the sorrowing person. And more broadly meditation and stability.

Doing and energy level: IX Bastoni
Here’s that other Strength card. One aspect is self-defense. I see that tied in with the cups above. I need to put energy into helping but not letting that drag me down.

And then year ahead:

In February, I’ll be examining my feelings.
In March and April, I’ll feel overwhelmed by the news. Again.
In May, I’ll overcome all that.
In June and July, I’ll be careful with my finances, but come out well.
In August, I’ll be feeling like I have to defend myself from something.
In September, I’ll be successful at defending myself and the stronger for it.
In October and November, I’ll be sad.
This time next year, I’ll be working hard and reaping the benefits of my work.

A very happy solstice to you! See you tomorrow!

Tuesday
I read Rob Brezsny’s Astrology Newsletter weekly horoscopes. https://freewillastrology.com/ Today’s has a list of questions related to the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction. Today I’m going to read on this one.

Describe utopia. Or A utopia.



I knew this would happen. Lots of negative cards for a specifically positive question. I’ll try to turn things around!

Physically: X Spade
The “common sense,” “self-evident” ideas of the culture will be focused on everyone’s basic needs being met, food, shelter, healthcare.

Emotionally: V Coppe
It similarly will be focused more on avoiding sadness rather than promoting happiness.

Intellectually: Caval di Bastoni
The society will have a can-do attitude based on science, but more on a willingness to act to solve problems.

Energetically: Ace di Bastoni
Everyone will be optimistic that there’s always something that can be done, even if we haven’t figured out what yet.

Spiritually: Il Diavolo
It will be a positivistic, humanistic society, where religion and even spirituality themselves will be considered the roots of most evils. Just like the devil here is afraid of his own demons grabbing at him.

Hmm. It would be interesting to see such a society and where it ends up!

Happy Tuesday!

Wednesday
Should I go to my mom’s on Dec. 26, even though she’s supposed to be quarantined (in a retirement community)?



Don’t do: VII Danari
My notes say this card means “wants, not needs.” And enjoyment of physical things. So I’m thinking I shouldn’t go if it’s just to deliver gifts. I’ve already sent some, and the rest can wait. Maybe I should put off the visit until we can have a good, long, unrestrained visit. It’s not necessary right now. I did go to visit before Thanksgiving when the rules were less strict. And I can go again as soon as they loosen up again. It’s not worth the risk for just a date on a calendar. Maybe???

Do: Re di Danari
I don’t really want to go because I want to follow the rules. And here’s the king, saying follow the rules for health. They’re only supposed to have 2 visitors at a time, and if I go, it would be 3. We’re not supposed to enter the state of Pennsylvania without taking a test, which I haven’t done. And we would have to wear masks the whole time. I was discussing with my friend, and she said there will be enough people there just doing what they want and not following the rules. Do I want to be one of them? I don’t think so.

Now of course comes the question of whether I’m reading these to coincide with what I really want to do, or is this at least a little impartial?

So I still need to decide . . . In the meantime, have a happy Wednesday!

Thursday
Where is my study of Buddhist (and other) scriptures taking me?
3 cards no positions



V Coppe, VII Coppe, La Forza
It will lead me to an understanding of suffering, that it really does usually come from misunderstanding our own feelings and that we have much more control over that than we think. And I will be stronger for it. In this case (with all these cups), the lion that needs controlling is emotions and the idea that they just happen to us. People need to understand that we can choose to be happy, and we can be in control of our emotions.

I had a tarot society friend who told her story that she randomly fell in love with some man, who was married. She divorced her husband and moved across the country to avoid the married man. To me that sounds like madness! The whole struck by lightning thing. Maybe it was an excuse to make changes she wanted, but to accept your own emotions as something that just happens to you from the outside, and then uproot your whole life because of it seems so extreme!

Maybe that was the right thing for her, but I’d rather be la Forza, trying my strength against a potentially disruptive force from within!

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Friday
What about my ACCT project?



Don’t do: 2 Coins
Don’t think of it as a project that will make a lot of money. Or even I’ll get out of it what I put into it. It’s not a transactional thing. It’s a creation thing.

Do: 3 Cups
Do think of it as a gift to the tarot community and all my friends. It’s a manifestation of my feelings about tarot and life and everything! Go with my heart, not what I think is practical.

Sometimes lower number cards can be hard to read because they’re more abstract, but these make perfect sense to me!

Merry Christmas, friends!

I made up a 12 Days of Christmas spread a while back. I’m going to stick the readings in here and continue through next week’s DoW. I’ll be using my Arcana Stones, tumbled stones that represent tarot majors, which I’ve used for DoW before.

1. Dec. 25. What is being born or coming to light for me?



19-Sun-Citrine
My lighting is terrible. This is a pale yellow translucent stone. Well, a very auspicious stone for today. I certainly hope that happiness, light, and clarity are being born for me! This is encouraging. I sometimes feel so muddled, like I’m seeing everything through mud. Or a glass darkly. So if clarity is coming for me, that would be good. I also associate the Sun with morality, and children and childhood. Although no grandchildren are on the way yet, who knows what may be coming!

Merry Christmas again!

Saturday on Sunday
Last day with Soprafino

I went to my mom’s yesterday. We had a merry little Christmas. I hope nobody passed around any germs . . . So here’s my last DoW reading with the Soprafino.
Week ahead, All-Purpose Spread.



Me: Caval di Danari
I’ll be working, keeping my head down and doing what I’m supposed to do.

Issue: V Spade
But there will be some kind of confusion and feeling of defeat. Maybe I’ll feel like what I’m doing doesn’t matter.

Outcome: Regina di Danari
My friends will come to the rescue and mom me out of my funk! I’m older than both of them, but they very effectively mom me whenever necessary!

Advice: Re di Spade
Take charge of my thoughts. I’m not a plodding worker, I’m an idea person, a knowledge worker. I need to own that and be that.

Well, that all make sense. I hope to be a King of Swords, or a Queen of Coins, not so much a Knight of Coins, this week.

Have a happy week ahead!

Second day of Christmas, Saturday

2. Dec. 26. What gift do I have to give?



5-Hierophant-Orange Calcite
I’m a teacher, by talent, not by trade. (And by training. I took secondary education in college and was terrible at it. And taught for two years when I was young. And was terrible at it!) My co-workers and tarot friends often tell me I’m good a breaking things down and making them easy to understand. And I enjoy it. I also have fondness for and like to share traditional stories, myths and legends, the way things used to be. And learn about religions and spiritual traditions. I also am moralistic. I’m always deciding if actions are good or bad. And I try to apply that to my life, too. AND Hierophant is my birth card according to numerology.

Our office has “adopted” a middle school, and when the quarantine is over, I want to apply to be a tutor. I’m nervous about the interpersonal part of it, but I know I can help with the academic part of it!

See you in next week's DoW thread!