A Past-and-Present “Differential Life” Spread: Exploring The Gap Between “Then” and “Now”
AUTHOR’S NOTE: In mathematics, science and engineering, a “delta” (symbolized by the Greek letter Δ) is used to identify a divergence, such as differential temperature or pressure (ΔT or ΔP) between environmental states or process streams, that allows monitoring of variable conditions. Here I’m using it in a slightly more esoteric way with similar intent. Call it “ΔL” (differential lives).
I don’t know about you, but I’m mainly interested in my past-life circumstances because I’m curious whether I’m physically, intellectually and emotionally better-off now than I was the last time around or whether and to what extent I’ve evolved morally and spiritually. (We — or at least the Western religious apostates — all like to think we’ve advanced on the path so we can eventually get off the “wheel of reincarnation.”) I’ve previously created spreads that look into these areas, but in this one I decided to examine only the “differential gap;” that is, the degree to which my situation has either improved or degraded, in whole or in part, without trying to guess what the past-life “baseline” was for this determination. (If you don’t believe in reincarnation, it will work almost as well for present or future status.) I don’t really care how quantitatively “good” or “bad” I was, just whether I’m more virtuous or immoral, richer or poorer, stronger or weaker in various ways now than I was then. Knowing this even in theory could either put my mind at ease about my progress or jump-start a self-improvement plan.
I chose five areas to explore: Vitality; Mentality; Morality; Spirituality; and Prosperity, and I may add more categories as I think about it. Using the attached table of generally fortunate {“Yes-leaning”), unfortunate (“No-leaning”) and neutral (“Maybe”) cards to convey any disparity in comparative life-conditions, I will pull the indicated number of cards and read them in an allegorical way: “How I Found Myself in Five Easy Life-Lessons.” A “Yes” card will suggest nominal advancement, a “No” card creeping recidivism, and a “Maybe” card a steady state of development. Reversals can be used to accentuate “backsliding.” (Ignore the instructions for multi-card pulls and use the table as a single-pointed reference; you will most likely note that it is heavily weighted toward the status quo or better.) Whether I will do anything with the information or just treat it as a fascinating curiosity like most past-life readings is still up-in-the-air.
Here is an example reading to illustrate the process:
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.org on June 9, 2025.
