Purpose, Potential and Performance: A “Meaning of Life” Spread
AUTHOR’S NOTE: At the risk of impersonating a “self-help guru,” I’ve created a spread for those who feel that life is bereft of meaning, and who want to stop drifting and “jump-start” their private reality. Craving a path to a better place through divination, they want to tap into subliminal glimpses of what the immediate future holds for them, and perhaps what the Universe-at-large has in store for the longer run. The ideal outcome is for these seekers to find a “higher calling” for their stalled self-motivation and thereby reinvent their self-image.
Thinking of this in exalted metaphysical terms, I was going to use the phrase “for the greater good” that I picked up in my I Ching studies, but it brought back amusing memories of Timothy Dalton’s slimy character in the Simon Pegg/Nick Frost film Hot Fuzz so I resisted the temptation. At any rate, reaching outside oneself for loftier inspiration can be both morally ennobling and spiritually uplifting, qualities that irresolute drifters often despair of attaining in their aimless state; this spread is designed to help identify and engage those attributes.
Begin by deciding whether you want the “whole package” (a comprehensive overview of unrealized potential across four general “departments of life”) or prefer to explore only one or two focus areas. Select a card to signify your goal (“What I Seek”) for each one chosen and place it in the layout. There are a number of ways to slice-and-dice this; if you’re interested in simply getting a job, Material Growth would be a good place to start, but if you’re eying a career-enhancing promotion and an increase in authority or responsibility, Egoic Growth would be a better choice. (I strongly recommend using a different deck for this initial step so all cards are available for the subsequent “random” pull.)
Shuffle a second deck and deal cards into the two “Pulled” positions for each focus area being examined. (Reversals may be used.) In addition to interpreting their “positional” meanings (“What I Have to Work With” and “What I Get” for the effort), analyze these cards for their degree of assistance or resistance to the stated “Life-Goal.” Along with their comparative natures, various forms of “dignity” (mutual agreement by suit, element, number, rank, orientation, etc.) may aid in this determination.
For each focus area, perform a “quintessence” calculation using the face values of the three contributing cards. Regard the trump-card “quints” as a synthesis of the selected “Life-Goal” and random “Pulled” cards and read them as showing the broader implications of striving to achieve an exemplary aim in life. If a discouraging quint is produced, consider whether or not that particular path is one you should be pursuing at the present time.
As a final step, determine if following this fourfold agenda is likely to provide the sought-after degree of reward for the energy expended, and act accordingly (or not) based on your conclusions. At its best the quintessence symbolizes an idealized state of perfection, and I wouldn’t be surprised if “measuring up” is beyond your needs, capabilities or resources; if that’s the case, pay more attention to the “What I Get” scenario and work from there..
As always, tarot’s counsel should be “taken under advisement” in conjunction with more customary self-realization strategies and tactics. It may point the way but it seldom takes us straight to the goal solely on the strength of its insights; patient and and persistent follow-through by the recipient is usually required to stay on-target. Similar to the old aphorism about astrology, “the cards impel, they don’t compel.” We might get a rousing kick in the pants from them, but we’re not going to have a gun at our back unless we personally take on the role of enforcer (which is basically what “empowerment” is all about).
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com on July 1, 2024.
