The Malleable Clay of Probability
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Here is another 3:00 AM meditation that is trying to turn itself into a full-blown essay.
Divination with the tarot cards is an unlikely craft that presumes to mold a reasonable approximation of upcoming circumstances from the malleable clay of probability with nothing more than the symbolic images on the cards and a big helping of visionary insight, metaphorical flair and inventive narration: in other words, storytelling acumen. A small measure of the veiled truth, such as it is within the context of the matter at hand, is encoded in each card and amplified through their alignment in a meaningful sequence (aka “spread”). The “crafty” art of reading lies in seeing a pattern in this arrangement that suggests future conditions of the kind envisioned by the question that was asked, either orally or through silent concentration.
There is little that is empirical about it, not even the “pseudo-scientific” credibility of astrology with its basis in the observable Cosmos. Despite my carping about their vagueness and subjectivity, intuition and psychic sensitivity do play a part, but I believe knowledge of and experience with how human consciousness deals with uncertainty form the heart of an effective reading. Much of what is brought to the table by anxious querents is pure wishful thinking with both feet planted firmly in “confirmation bias.” Although it is seldom spoken aloud, the reader is plainly being asked to validate something the seeker hopes will happen (or, in some cases, won’t happen).
For this reason, I prefer to keep my initial observations at a more abstract level of expression and just interpret the cards in terms of objective probability rather than subjective certainty. (I don’t want to feed self-centered hopes or fears prematurely.) Usually I won’t know the specific question in advance, and therefore I enter the reading at a high level of generality and bounce this broad scope off the querent to see what “sticks” in a more explicit sense. From there we jointly drill down into the details of the inferred developmental arc and draw parallels between the objective track as I perceive it and the seeker’s personal awareness of reality as it is likely to unfold. As I see it, this subconscious understanding by the querent lies at the root of “how tarot works,” and the reading coaxes it out into the open via what I’ve always considered a “mutual voyage of discovery.”
I characterize this scenario as sitters “doing their own reading” with my prompting from hints in the cards that they ideally had a hand in selecting. In this way it will dawn on them independently where the situation will most likely go, and I can either substantiate their premonition or demur if I see the need for clarification. I won’t presume to take their decision-making power away from them by stepping in and steering the narrative according to my own assumptions, and then handing them a neat summary that requires no engagement on their part. I’m not an infallible oracle to be looked up to, just a translator and interpreter of subliminal impressions — some emphatic and others more subtle — that appear in the cards. Nobody who seeks my advice should expect to be led by the hand toward enlightenment by attempting to hand me the reins to their future; I don’t work that way and, if we’re being honest about it, neither does the tarot.
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com on November 9, 2023.
