The “IF/THEN/ELSE” Decision-Making Spread

In my last essay I discussed the virtues of the three-card tarot spread as the minimum effective layout for divining any substantive issue (personally, I prefer five cards). I mentioned the typical “past/present/future” line spread and the Hegelian “thesis/antithesis/synthesis” array, but the one that piqued my interest is an approach that uses the data-routing logic of of the computer programmer: the “if/then/else” routine for coding a data string that assumes “if” a specific binary condition exists, “then” a particular event will logically follow it, “else” some other event (or no event) will replace it. This seemed like a perfect model for designing a simple decision-making spread with a branching structure. So here it is. I made a conscious effort to deal with the possibility of a “bad” card appearing in the “IF” scenario, such that it may be best for the contemplated action to fail in its promise, opening the way for a “Plan B” initiative. Obviously, knowing this potential in advance, a querent could be advised to consider cutting right to the chase.

Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com on December 5, 2021.