by Sally Philips

We all know Tarot readings don’t provide simple answers to yes-no questions, but we ask them anyway. Should I break up with my boyfriend? Should I quit my job? Been there, asked that. When conflicting cards turn up, we feel confused or frustrated about what to do. Well, fret no more! This article presents a process you can use to analyze your readings when they seem reluctant to give you the clear advice you are seeking.

A Process for Reaching Clarity
This process combines a rating system with your intuitive wisdom to help you come up with an answer. Here’s how to do it:

1. For each card, read its interpretation and meditate on its meaning and image.
   
   
2. Ask your intuition to name two aspects of your current situation that the card seems to reflect. Write down what your intuition tells you. Try not to analyze what comes up at this point.
   
   
3. Look at your each of the aspects you have named and rate them according to how they make you feel and how much they mean to you. Assign scores accordingly.
   
   A scale from 1 to 5 works well for both positives and negatives. On the positive end, a +5 would be an outcome or possibility that is important to you and is very appealing. For the negative, a -5 would represent an outcome that is very unappealing. (See below for more on scoring.)
   
   
4. Repeat the process for all of your cards. Then add the scores. Your answer will be either a plus or a negative number … in other words, a YES or a NO.

Using the Process
Let's use the clarity process on a Tarot reading for the question, "Should I quit my job?" For a concern as important as this, a full 11-card Celtic Cross reading would provide the most in-depth information ... but for the sake of demonstration, we'll process a 5-card Daily Reflection spread.

Like all Tarot readings, this one will give us a snapshot of what is going on in the present and reflect probabilities for the future. We can't expect it to do any literal fortune telling, but we are seeking a direction and hopefully it will give us a clear one.

Here are the cards that turn up and their abbreviated interpretations:

The Situation card is Death -- Let go and make the adjustments required for dealing with a new set of circumstances.

Intuitively, this card’s image may speak to feelings of oppression at your current job. Letting go of that unhealthy situation will feel great (+5). But the card also warns that you will need to make adjustments, which is true. Being unemployed and cutting back on expenses is scary (-3).

About the Author
Sally Philips is a professional writer who has been using Astrology, Tarot, I-Ching and feng shui to enrich the lives of friends, family and clients for over two decades. An Aquarius with Cancer rising living in Portland, Oregon, her life is characterized by both wild escapades and fireside coziness.