Hacking the Celtic Cross spread (Because life is short...)

Those that already know me would know that I have no patience for long and convoluted, over complicated spreads. In fact I like it short and sweet and 3 cards is my spread of choice, naming positions of course.
Clarifiers can always be drawn if needed but, generally, I never end up with a massive amount of cards.

So, you want a quick answer but don't usually do short spreads...but life is hectic, the children need to be fed (and so does the poor dog) and...you still need an answer.
So why not hack away and take what you need from the spread? This is the first of my ideas for #tarothacks.
I have other spreads that I want to work with this way and many other ideas too, but I am starting with the Celtic Cross because it is the one I dislike the most, I hardly ever use it and it seems to be that, if you do not use it or know it, you are not a worthy Tarot reader.
Let's look at the general CC positions:

1. Covers you;
2. Crosses you;
3. Root of the matter;
4. Past;
5. Possible outcome (near future);
6. Future;
7. Your influence in the situation;
8. Environment and family;
9. Hopes and fears;
10. Outcome.

Of course there are plenty of versions but, generally, I would say this is a standard one.
Let's hack it. You can do this with 3 cards, I have chosen 5, 6, and 10 like so:

Say for example the question here was you wanting to know how a job interview went, 5/6/10 could happily give you the whole answer with the outcome.
And, of course, you could shuffle the 3 cards for more insight, asking which one is the most important?
Use the positions in the original spread that are the most apt for the questions you are asking. The Cross is very general but other spreads are much more specific in their positioning.
Now I am off and leave you with this...happy hacking :)

Solar Return Tarot Spread

Since it is my birthday next week I have decided to create a  Tarot spread for myself. I have tried others but, since a good friend of mine recently showed me and interpreted for me my Solar Returns since 2011, I decided I wanted to create one as an insight on what is to come and what needs to be left behind.

Of course, as usual, nothing is set in stone so you can always draw more cards to clarify or use 2 different decks, or even a Tarot deck and an Oracle deck. 

Enjoy, and feedback is always appreciated if you do try it :).

 

Valentine Blues

So, Valentine day is approaching once more. May be you want a date, or a relationship. Or may be neither. You are kind of stuck in that middle ground where you are damned if you want and damned if you want not.
At times either we are giving off the wrong energy about us and end up attracting the wrong people, or simply we are in the wrong place for wanting a relationship. It can be a bit like an addiction, if you 'need' it then, most likely, it is not going to be healthy for you.
Empower and love yourself first, therefore enabling others to see you for who you are and also love you for who you are. Tarot of course can help you with the usual straightforward and wise advice. So here is a short spread for you to get going,  a happy Valentine to yourself first!.

 

The dilemma of The Hanged Man

Ah this poor soul, hanging upside down with a permanent headache. But I have always felt that while this is seen by many a stagnant and perhaps unmoving card, it is quite the contrary. I feel that this is a slow moving card yes, but one that calls for reflection rather than action.
Take The Fool for example. He is not afraid of stepping off that cliff, no matter in which way he lands.
Now think that this could be The Fool that has landed on his head. Ouch. May be next time he needs to think before he jumps. And so he swings to and fro there as the Hanged Man.
Mostly his face (at least in Rider Waite style decks) is depicted as serene, he is ok with it and with stilling himself a bit. But he also knows that eventually he is going to have to make the decision to move forward.
I tend to disagree with some of the views that see him a bit as a victim, perhaps he consciously chooses to still himself because he knows that this is no time for rushing,  he knows that this situation calls for reflection.
He is looking at everything upside down, he is willing to see a different perspective or to try and take a different approach.

The Hanged Man is about letting go of the need to act impulsively. Because in fact what is after this card is Death, the changes are starting to occur, and he is ready to set them in motion.
In readings (and of course depending on the surrounding cards), this could ask you to take a different approach, take a step back and reassess a situation. You may be are going to need to examine all angles before making a decision.
But know that, eventually, you are going to have to come off that tree.

A simple New Year insight Tarot spread

The below spread is one of many that I have made up for insight and advice as the New Year enters. This is really a quick and simple one if you have not got the time to do a more in depth one. Of course you can always draw more cards if you need clarification at any point. 
I am going to try and put together all the ones I have created over the years and post them here. No mean feat, as some of them go back many years.  And, since organization does not become me, I have to find them from various journals scattered all over. 
But one has to start from somewhere so here it is:




You can add an outcome card too if you wish, or an advice card. The known and unknown can also be "Light" and "Shadow", so do feel free to adapt it as you wish.
Also of course you could always change the captions depending on your needs, for example:

"What I need to leave behind"
"What I need to let in"
"Advice"
"What is beneficial for me"
"What is a negative influence"
"Possible Outcome"

The possibilities are endless...

The Fool and the Treadmill

The Fool stopped running. "Oh my God!" he thought, the bridge has collapsed! But wait. What is it that I can see under that tree? A treadmill? What would a treadmill be doing under a tree?
The Fool walked over to the treadmill and realized that it was not just an ordinary one. Nope. It was quivering. Wait. It was moving, sideways. And then it lifted off! The Fool did not think twice, a magic treadmill! And it could fly, like a magic carpet!
The Fool jumped on it quickly and the magic treadmill flew him to the other side of the ravine, landing him safely.

The Fool in Tarot can be incredibly careless and risk taking, but the point in the above is that, if we do not take risks sometimes, we may never reach "the other side". We may never see what is ahead and we may never enjoy something new or different. As improbable as it is to find a flying treadmill under a tree, life is also always reminding us that opportunities are always around the corner. And they won't come back twice.

Like in this wonderful rendition from Ciro Marchetti The Fool can  balance on more than one thing at once. And if he falls, well, there is always next time. The Magician is just around the corner and has plenty of tricks up his sleeve.

When you draw The Fool in a reading perhaps the advice is to let go of your own fears and inhibitions. Take a risk, do something that you would not normally do, carpe diem.

'A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.'

William Shakespeare