Musings on Tarot and the like

[norseman]

Just writing this on the fly – haven’t thought out what I am going to say.

I was wondering who has responsibility for finding meaning in a reading ?

In the world in general, there seems to be many people who regard readings as the absolute gospel truth and readers who make extremely specific predictions about a person’s life. You hear about celebs who need readings before they will pick clothes to wear [daft example !] but you get my drift. I was wondering where along our way, we lost the ability to make decisions for ourselves without the need for a “guru”.
Have our lives truly become so complex that we cant see the way to put one foot in front of another ? Or is it that society is in some sort of terminal decline and filled with woe ?
I suppose this could be just part of the general search for philosophies which offer spiritual enlightenment since the established religions have failed to give any kind of lead in this. Buddhism, Pagan in general including Wicca of course, etc etc – all seem to offer a simplification and a focus which is missing from people’s lives.
I was drawn into Transcendental Meditation some decades ago and practice daily so I am not immune to the general trend.
Struggling to make sense of what I am trying to say, I remembered my advice to new classes of students.
“I am not here to teach you anything. I am here to offer you opportunities to learn.”

I think this must be true of divination also. If you do a reading for someone, the responsibility for finding meaning must come from the person who asked. It’s up to them to search their own hearts for the answers. I feel that getting a reading just opens a box marked “The Bleeding Obvious” !

The I-Ching is said to be the most complete encyclopedia of Human Psychology ever assembled and all the guidance you will ever need is there, collected over centuries. But it still needs to be considered in the context of your own life.

Anyway, getting way off track here.
When I do a reading, I try to interpret the cards in the broadest possible sense and rely on the other person to find their own truth in it. Does this seem to be the right way to do it ?

This is what I am finding so good about the Sacred Circle deck. Each card draws you in and really encourages you to be imaginative and creative, and the symbolism is teaching me the mythology of our ancestors – Bonus !
Nothing against the R & W deck but the illustrations are just that – they don’t jump to life like the cards in the SC deck. I know that I am not tapping into some mystic talent in myself, the cards just allow my intuition and imagination to express themselves.