Two of the greatest challenges practitioners of the tarot often face are accuracy and validation. For this reason, it is a good idea to watch for confirmation during and after your readings. Being vigilant and receptive will not only add credibility to your tarot practice, it will increase your knowledge base for future readings.
The most reliable source for validation is the querent. Feel free to ask them questions about the cards and reading as it unfolds. Explain to the person that the more communication there is between you, the more information will be revealed. If you come across a card that neither you nor the querent can validate, make a note to come back to it later. Rest assured that its message will come through as the reading progresses.
Another way to validate answers you receive from a reading is to reshuffle the cards and ask the same question again using an alternate layout.
When asking about a certain person or object, it is a good idea to use a Significator card. Select a card that represents the person or item the querent is asking about. Significator cards play an important role in directing the cards to address a specific person, place, or object. Not only will they help you focus on the subject at hand, they are a great tool for verifying answers you receive.
While performing a reading, you can pull additional cards for any aspect of a situation that remains unclear. For example, if you are doing a health reading and recognize trouble (indicated by a card such as the Tower, Ten of Swords, or other image that suggests a problem is brewing), you can pull more cards from the top of the deck to identify the area or specific issue the querent needs to address. Let’s say that during a reading you pull the Star card, indicating a wish will soon come true. Pulling a few more cards can offer additional information about the event. Any time you want more details, feel free to pull additional cards for clarity or validation.
Keeping a tarot diary can help you validate your predictions as well, for then you can refer back to them to determine their accuracy. As you become more proficient at prediction and divination, this diary will reflect your progress and help you continue to build on your interpretations of the cards.
After a reading, invite the querent to follow up with you at a later date to verify which predictions came to pass or to compare how well the reading matched with their experience. Because things do not always happen in a literal sense, you may have to show them how what occurred was actually portrayed in the cards. You do not want to exaggerate the circumstances to force validation, but oftentimes you will be able to see things that the less-than-objective querent will not.
For example, during a general reading with a friend, I noticed that she was going to receive an unexpected amount money the following day (indicated by the Four of Cups and Six of Pentacles). Excited at the prospect and assuming that her father would be the source of the money, she waited anxiously by the mailbox that day. When nothing arrived in the mail, she was quick to let me know that the cards had been wrong. I apologized but still felt she was going to receive money that day.
A week later, she casually mentioned that a regular monthly check she receives had unexpectedly been placed in her account a few days early due to an upcoming holiday. I realized that the deposit was made on the very day the cards had predicted. Because she decided beforehand how and from whom the money would come, she had not considered that it might appear in an alternate manner or from a different source.
Occasionally, you may draw a series of cards that appear to make no sense. For instance, if you are inquiring about a financial matter and pull a multitude of cup cards, the reading may be addressing a concern that your querent has not yet asked about. This would be the time to ask your querent if there are any emotional or relationship issues the cards might be addressing. If so, it is fine to shift your focus to the subject at hand. Once finished, you can reshuffle and ask the original question again.
As you learn to trust the cards to lead you in the right direction, your readings will become more powerful and directed. You will find that, as you practice, your predictions will move beyond speculation and much closer to validation.
For an article on how to get started reading Tarot, check out Tarot 101.
The above is an excerpt from Susyn’s new book, Tarot Prediction and Divination: Unveiling Three Layers of Meaning, which is available at llewellyn.com. Susyn Blair-Hunt (Albuquerque, NM) is internationally known for her psychic Tarot and astrology readings. A professional metaphysical consultant for over twenty years, Susan is a featured columnist for Kajama.com where she provides daily, weekly and birthday horoscopes. She also contributes to Kajama’s weekly advice column, Double Vision. Susyn was recently named one of the top female psychics on the Internet. For more information on her readings, select the Reading Options menu at the top of this page.