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"TAROT TIPS"
Weekly Newsletter of The Tarot School

May 4, 1999

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Greetings Everyone,

Welcome to this week's edition of Tarot Tips. Thanks for all the supportive
email we've been receiving and for recommending Tarot Tips to your friends
and family. And a slightly belated but very Blessed Beltaine to all of you who
celebrated this weekend.

This week, we welcome to our global Tarot community some more subscribers
from Australia and the UK. We are excited to have two new countries represented:
Bosnia-Hergozowina and the Russian Federation. Welcome! Tarot Tips is now
published in 22 countries -- one for each of the Major Arcana. :-)

On April 28th, Wald and I were interviewed by Eliot Stein on his internet radio
show, "Stein Online." We talked about many aspects of Tarot and even did a
couple of short readings on the air. If you'd like to hear the show, go to his
website
at www.SteinOnline.com From the menu on the right click on "Listen to Past
Shows."
Find the 4/28 show, click and listen. You'll need a Real Audio player to hear
it but
you can download it free at the site if you don't already have one. Let us
know if
you get a chance to listen.

Now is the time to register for Jennifer E. Moore's Luminary Class on Sunday,
May 16th. Those of you who were fortunate enough to hear her Open Program
presentation know what a fantastic teacher she is. We can't recommend this
class enough! See the Tarot Teleclass schedule below for details. You can also
read her bio at our website: http://www.TarotSchool.com/Seminars.html

Thanks to all of you who contributed questions for this week's issue. If
there's a
tip you'd like to see, a tip of your own you'd like to share, or a website
that you've
found to be particularly interesting, please email us at Tips@...

Enjoy!
Ruth Ann


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This Week's Tip: Contradictions

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QUESTION:

I'm fairly new to the Tarot "world" and I'm baffled by the different
interpretations given to the cards by different sources. Sometimes the
meanings that I get from a reading using two different decks and
interpretations can even be contradictory. Would you shed some light?
Thanks.
Ana

ANSWER:

This is a question we have heard many times, Ana, and it's a good
argument for getting to know the cards on your own terms and
developing your own set of interpretations for them. The interpretations
you will find in most Tarot books are a combination of traditional meanings
and the author's personal take on the cards.

Because the interpretations are seen through the lenses of
different authors/readers, they may appear to be contradictory from
time to time. However, the main thing to keep in mind is that each card
carries within itself a *full spectrum* of meanings. You can think of it
this way: Author A sees one facet of the card, while Author B sees another
and Author C sees yet a third facet. From your personal contemplations,
you will see a fourth facet of the overall meaning.

So which is right? They all are! The trick is to pick the one that's most
appropriate for this particular question at this particular moment. The
ability to do that comes with practice.

If you choose to use two different decks to answer the same question,
or if you repeat the reading a second time using the same deck, the second
reading will be an elaboration on the first, going more deeply into the
issues at hand.


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ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME READINGS

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QUESTION:

I've just received my first Tarot Tips. Thank you. I would like some
tips/information on the spreads that are read 'once only' in a
Querant's lifetime eg the Alchemist's Spread. When is it advisable to
do them? Are there many others?

Thanks,
Emma

ANSWER:

With the possible exception of a spread called "The Grand Experiment" which
uses all 78 cards, I'm not aware of any other once-in-a-lifetime spreads.
(This
spread appears in the book "Tarot & You" by Richard Roberts. Perhaps some of
you know of another?

I am reprinting the copy of the Alchemist's Spread that Emma sent me for those
of you who are curious but neither Wald nor I have a good feeling about this
spread. It seems to us that it could make a lasting impression on the psyche
which is unnecessary and possibly harmful. It's the kind of thing that would
stick in your mind for a long time and possibly become a self-fulfilling
prophecy. This kind of reading makes us nervous and we wouldn't use it
ourselves. Caveat Emptor.

Here is the spread and its explanation as we received it:

The Alchemist's Spread is cited in Rowenna Stuart's book, 'Tarot'
(Collins Gem). She says, "This is a spread of some antiquity,
reputedly dating back to the Late Middle Ages. As befitting a spread
that is claimed to have been devised by Nostradamus, it has deeply
mystical overtones." The pattern of the spread is as follows: a card
is placed at each point of a hexagram. The order of layout is:
1
4 5
2 3
6
The meaning of each position is as follows:
1= The Past - the sum total of the Q's past life experience.
2= The Present - all the Q will achieve in this life.
3= The Future - The Q's final position on the Wheel of Life.
4= Immediate Future - The influences in the Q's life in the near future.
5= Intermediate future - influences in the next few years.
6= Long-term Future - influences that will come to bear at the end of
the Q's life.


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TAROT TELECLASS SCHEDULE

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What's a teleclass? It's a tarot class on the phone! Learn more about them at
http://www.TarotSchool.com/Teleclasses.html

*** MAY TAROT LUMINARY CLASS ***
Sunday, 5/16 at 9:00 PM EST -- $25
INSTRUCTOR: Rev. Jennifer E. Moore, creator of The Healing Tarot
TOPIC: Love and Money: Addressing Every Querent's Questions

Have you ever noticed that many Tarot readings can be distilled down to two
basic isssues: Love and Money? Aside from divining winning lottery numbers,
and predicting the arrival of true love, how, as Tarot readers of integrity,
can we truly honor and empower the complexity and importance of these
fundamental life issues? The Tarot can be used to reveal, to clarify and to
support the choices and actions which can facilitate a life of greater
prosperity and joy. As a reader, you can help people to take charge and create
the lives they want to live. Join us for an evening teleclass with Jennifer
Moore and discover new ways to approach these burning questions which will
empower you and your querent.

*** MAY TAROT OPEN PROGRAM ***
Sunday, 5/23 at 9:00 PM EST -- FREE!
SPECIAL GUEST: Janet Berres, President of The International Tarot Society
TOPIC: A behind-the-scenes peek at the upcoming World Tarot Congress

*** JUNE TAROT LUMINARY CLASS ***
Sunday, 6/13 at 4:00 PM EST -- $25
INSTRUCTOR: Geraldine Amaral
TOPIC: Tarot as a Tool for Self-Discovery.

Is the Tarot a tool only for prediction? Can we use it for self-understanding
and as a means to peek within our own psyches? This class explores the role of
projection in working with the Tarot and offers a look at the Tarot as a tool
for self-understanding, inner transformation and personal clarity.

Geraldine Amaral, author of Tarot Celebrations: Honoring the Inner Voice,
will provide a brief explanation of the psychological process of projection
and how it can be used in a positive and empowering way when working with the
Tarot She will teach you a simple, but striking technique to use with the
Tarot that will assist you in zoning in on precisely the issues, guidance or
solutions that you need. No experience with Tarot required, but you MUST have
a Tarot deck for this class. It is recommended that you use a deck with which
you are NOT familiar. This is a very hands-on event: Be prepared to learn more
about yourself in this simple, but remarkable process.

*** JUNE TAROT OPEN PROGRAM ***
Sunday, 6/27 at 9:00 PM EST -- FREE!
SPECIAL GUEST: Rachel Pollack, author of numerous books including 78 Degrees
of Wisdom
TOPIC: What We Learn From Tarot Readings

The person who goes to a Tarot reader seeks information. Does my boyfriend
really love me? Will I get the job? For the reader, many things are
involved, and the actual subject may be only a small part of it. We do
readings to engage the cards, to come to them for their wisdom as well as
their information. We also learn about ourselves, for we never read the
cards as objective observers, but as people who bring our own issues to the
encounter. And we learn about human nature, both from the questions people
ask, and from the ways they react to the reading.

||||||||| HOW TO REGISTER |||||||||

--Tarot Open Program:
Email us at Teleclasses@... and we will send you confirmation with
the bridge
number to call. Please put "Open Program" in the subject header and include in
the message your name, phone number and the class for which you are
registering. You may also register by calling us at 800-804-2184.

--Tarot Luminary Class:
Send us email as per the instructions above to reserve your seat. Subject:
"Luminary Class."
To charge your tuition to Visa, Mastercard or American Express call us at
800-804-2184.
Or, mail your check or money order, made payable to The Tarot School, to:
The Tarot School 57 E. 11th St. - 9th Floor New York, NY 10003
Checks must be received two weeks prior to the class.

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Would you like to deepen your knowledge of Tarot and be part of the active and
growing Tarot community? Join The Tarot School! We offer weekly classes in New
York City, telephone teleclasses, and a powerful Tarot Correspondence Course.

***Visit our website at TarotSchool.com***

Is there a Tarot Tip you'd like to see? Send your suggestion to
Tips@...

"Tarot Tips" is provided courtesy of The Tarot School and all rights are
reserved.
Directors: Ruth Ann Brauser, CTGM and Wald Amberstone, CTGM
You can see previous Tarot Tips by visiting
http://www.onelist.com/archives.cgi/TarotTips
To unsubscribe, send a blank email to TarotTips-unsubscribe@onelist.com

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Bright blessings,

Ruth Ann & Wald
The Tarot School