Thank you for sharing. Last night our little granddaughter, not quite two, was playing with a Rose tarot card. She would not let it go! Her great grandmother 's name (on her daddy's side)was Rose. She just kissed and kissed it!
Then, when we were leaving, our daughter found a very old penny outside their front door. That would be my mother's doing! We believe they were there in Spirit...
So I did the French Cross — 1 [center], 2 [left], 3 [right], 4 [above center], and 5 [below center]. I flip the cards and …
At the controlling center and the root source of anxiety, pain, loneliness stands Le Diable, The Devil. Who would have guessed!
Ready to jump from [or into?] the shadow is The Pope, The Heirophant!
The first step into healing is L’Imperatrice, The Empress. The Ally is XI, La Force [Strength/Justice switch places in Tarot de Marseille], and the path forward is The Lover. All Majors? Well — It’s a TdM thing. And the author did it!
The Devil is the one card touching all others. The Devil would influence everyone; dealing with that falls to everyone. No matter one’s place in life, none are untouched by pain.
Direction matters in this layout. The Pope looks to The Devil, and his triple-bar staff parallels The Devil’s torch. And he seems to use it as a poker to keep a devotee in place [so as not to block his view of The Devil?].
The Pope would engage The Devil. Is he drawn to the wings? Wishing he could fly? The Pope seems ambiguous. Shadowy. Does he want in The Devil’s space? Become his imp? Or maybe be The Devil himself?
Animated by anxiety, pain and loneliness [he feeds on them], The Devil lusts insatiably. He fascinates The Pope. Mystified, hypnotized, enthralled, he must gaze at The Devil’s pure Magnificence.
Sharpening our awareness of moral issues, The Pope may actually lengthen shadow. He ponders it, or weighs its power, or wonders if it could be pressed into his service.
But The Empress looks away from The Devil. Her shield blocks his influences. Held by the same hand, her mace leans away and her eyes turn from him as if saying, ‘we’re done!’
As The Pope ponders The Devil, The Empress turns away. The first step toward resolution is to change one’s relationship with the source of injury. And The Devil?
The Devil looks directly at us. He asks, what will YOU do? None can escape his gaze.
“You have the devil underrated
I cannot yet persuaded be
A fellow who is all behated
Must something be!” — Goethe
Ally and lion tamer, La Force’ [Strength] hat recalls The Magician, another ‘I’ in the next decimal series. However her magic works not in the outer world as The Magician, but as inner growth. As the lion’s head presses into her groin, she uses her hands and mind to ‘Force’ open what is closed and unseen.
Knowing and accepting untamed, primitive nature is unsettling. But this ‘lion’ must be seized if shadow work is to lead to liberation and transformative healing. So the ally points to the path forward.
The TdM ‘The Lover’ is a complex, social card. Between two women, a young man. Who is who, and who does what to whom isn’t quite clear. Do they quarrel or haggle? Choice or union, protection or domination, we don’t know. Like XVIII, VI is dark mystery.
Learning to navigate those dark spaces is the way forward. The youth is emotionally involved with both women, but in different ways. Drawn to both, he seems conflicted in his desires. The elder is a motherly figure. The younger places her hand over his heart. Another hand is over her belly. Whose hand? We can’t tell. Perhaps she carries his child.
This image tells countless stories. But in the quest for inner healing, the way ahead faces all that was and will be, owning and uniting each part in one heart and one narrative. We own our experience so that it won’t own us. And as The Lover shows, this works best when we can own that story around others.
Thank you for the post, Nancy! Take care and be well!
I've done the French Cross before - a lovely way to read. David, your TdM skills at storytelling are so interesting - it's a system that has simply eluded me. Perhaps I've been reading RWS way too long. I find the Devil most interesting in your spread as well as the Empress. Quite a tale is unfolding here.
That was such a kind thing to say! Framing narrative is an area where I’ve really wanted to grow. You have my thanks!
I started with the TdM and stuck with it. I have two RWS decks, which I use for comparison. But I’d be at a loss to use them! You’re not alone! 😂
But for your most excellent layout, I’d have read the The Lovers as the ‘seduced,’ The Pope as a corrupted claimant to XV’s malevolent glory, Strength as trying to deny The Devil’s influence on her even as her struggle proves otherwise, and The Empress — who throws The Devil the ‘Hawaiian salute!’
The Devil turned up in another read I did recently [it was the 24th]. It went like this:
[XV] we’re going to hell [VII] in a hurry, and [XII] it isn’t going to be a pleasant ride.
I’ll leave it to others to make any applications. But I will say, sometimes, you just have to laugh!
I'm so glad you didn't give up writing this after restarting, as you stated. Where you landed with it is medicinal, as I, too, am struggling lately. I'll do the spread, but first I wanted to thank you for teaching me the idea of calling on specific ancestors. A couple of years ago, I learned about spiritual ancestors from you, but I just can't seem to connect with them... or maybe I'm not paying attention? Maybe I'm not asking the right questions or looking for the signs? Whatever the reason, I just haven't had much luck. That I can call on the Muses who inspire my favorite writers and even, gasp, the beloved Maya Angelou?! I never knew! Thank you, Nancy. I appreciate your wisdom and timing.
Hi Mandy, I'm glad I went back to it too. I think for many people, calling on 'blood' family isn't something they want to do because of circumstance. I find calling on those in Spirit who can help is valuable. Blessings on whichever Muse you find as a connection. xo
Thank you for sharing your passion and knowledge. I am reading your Ancestral Tarot book. I have a question. What is the difference between the Ancestors of Blood, Place and Time vs the Spirit Guide? Is the Spirit Guide selected after choosing the Ancestor of Blood, Place or Time?
Hi Jeff, look for your Spirit Guide before working on the other ancestors. Spirit Guides CAN be one of those ancestors and for that I’d ask you to use your intuition to see if the Guide is one of Blood, Place and Time. I may not have written this, but my purpose was in asking for a Guide to be with you throughout the book.
Hi Nancy, I laid out my cards in a row in this order: 4, 2, 1, 3, 5. I drew 10 of Pentacles in reverse for my ancestor, and I chose not to swap it for a court or major because this card is called the 10 of Roots in the deck I used (Rhythm and Soul Tarot by Stacey Williams-Ng). The image is of an older man standing beside his dog in a beautiful green field. In a distant hill or mountain sits an ethereal castle. I don’t know who this ancestor is yet for sure, but I have an idea. This reading was deeply personal for me and really helped me recenter my values.
Thank you for sharing. Last night our little granddaughter, not quite two, was playing with a Rose tarot card. She would not let it go! Her great grandmother 's name (on her daddy's side)was Rose. She just kissed and kissed it!
Then, when we were leaving, our daughter found a very old penny outside their front door. That would be my mother's doing! We believe they were there in Spirit...
I love it with Spirit shows up in so many different ways. Love that you granddaughter experienced that energy of her great-gran.
How beautiful an experience for you, your granddaughter, and her great-grandmother! The signs are everywhere if only we start paying attention.
So I did the French Cross — 1 [center], 2 [left], 3 [right], 4 [above center], and 5 [below center]. I flip the cards and …
At the controlling center and the root source of anxiety, pain, loneliness stands Le Diable, The Devil. Who would have guessed!
Ready to jump from [or into?] the shadow is The Pope, The Heirophant!
The first step into healing is L’Imperatrice, The Empress. The Ally is XI, La Force [Strength/Justice switch places in Tarot de Marseille], and the path forward is The Lover. All Majors? Well — It’s a TdM thing. And the author did it!
The Devil is the one card touching all others. The Devil would influence everyone; dealing with that falls to everyone. No matter one’s place in life, none are untouched by pain.
Direction matters in this layout. The Pope looks to The Devil, and his triple-bar staff parallels The Devil’s torch. And he seems to use it as a poker to keep a devotee in place [so as not to block his view of The Devil?].
The Pope would engage The Devil. Is he drawn to the wings? Wishing he could fly? The Pope seems ambiguous. Shadowy. Does he want in The Devil’s space? Become his imp? Or maybe be The Devil himself?
Animated by anxiety, pain and loneliness [he feeds on them], The Devil lusts insatiably. He fascinates The Pope. Mystified, hypnotized, enthralled, he must gaze at The Devil’s pure Magnificence.
Sharpening our awareness of moral issues, The Pope may actually lengthen shadow. He ponders it, or weighs its power, or wonders if it could be pressed into his service.
But The Empress looks away from The Devil. Her shield blocks his influences. Held by the same hand, her mace leans away and her eyes turn from him as if saying, ‘we’re done!’
As The Pope ponders The Devil, The Empress turns away. The first step toward resolution is to change one’s relationship with the source of injury. And The Devil?
The Devil looks directly at us. He asks, what will YOU do? None can escape his gaze.
“You have the devil underrated
I cannot yet persuaded be
A fellow who is all behated
Must something be!” — Goethe
Ally and lion tamer, La Force’ [Strength] hat recalls The Magician, another ‘I’ in the next decimal series. However her magic works not in the outer world as The Magician, but as inner growth. As the lion’s head presses into her groin, she uses her hands and mind to ‘Force’ open what is closed and unseen.
Knowing and accepting untamed, primitive nature is unsettling. But this ‘lion’ must be seized if shadow work is to lead to liberation and transformative healing. So the ally points to the path forward.
The TdM ‘The Lover’ is a complex, social card. Between two women, a young man. Who is who, and who does what to whom isn’t quite clear. Do they quarrel or haggle? Choice or union, protection or domination, we don’t know. Like XVIII, VI is dark mystery.
Learning to navigate those dark spaces is the way forward. The youth is emotionally involved with both women, but in different ways. Drawn to both, he seems conflicted in his desires. The elder is a motherly figure. The younger places her hand over his heart. Another hand is over her belly. Whose hand? We can’t tell. Perhaps she carries his child.
This image tells countless stories. But in the quest for inner healing, the way ahead faces all that was and will be, owning and uniting each part in one heart and one narrative. We own our experience so that it won’t own us. And as The Lover shows, this works best when we can own that story around others.
Thank you for the post, Nancy! Take care and be well!
Edit: Added clarification.
I've done the French Cross before - a lovely way to read. David, your TdM skills at storytelling are so interesting - it's a system that has simply eluded me. Perhaps I've been reading RWS way too long. I find the Devil most interesting in your spread as well as the Empress. Quite a tale is unfolding here.
Nancy:
That was such a kind thing to say! Framing narrative is an area where I’ve really wanted to grow. You have my thanks!
I started with the TdM and stuck with it. I have two RWS decks, which I use for comparison. But I’d be at a loss to use them! You’re not alone! 😂
But for your most excellent layout, I’d have read the The Lovers as the ‘seduced,’ The Pope as a corrupted claimant to XV’s malevolent glory, Strength as trying to deny The Devil’s influence on her even as her struggle proves otherwise, and The Empress — who throws The Devil the ‘Hawaiian salute!’
The Devil turned up in another read I did recently [it was the 24th]. It went like this:
[XV] we’re going to hell [VII] in a hurry, and [XII] it isn’t going to be a pleasant ride.
I’ll leave it to others to make any applications. But I will say, sometimes, you just have to laugh!
Take care and be well, Nancy!
I'm so glad you didn't give up writing this after restarting, as you stated. Where you landed with it is medicinal, as I, too, am struggling lately. I'll do the spread, but first I wanted to thank you for teaching me the idea of calling on specific ancestors. A couple of years ago, I learned about spiritual ancestors from you, but I just can't seem to connect with them... or maybe I'm not paying attention? Maybe I'm not asking the right questions or looking for the signs? Whatever the reason, I just haven't had much luck. That I can call on the Muses who inspire my favorite writers and even, gasp, the beloved Maya Angelou?! I never knew! Thank you, Nancy. I appreciate your wisdom and timing.
Hi Mandy, I'm glad I went back to it too. I think for many people, calling on 'blood' family isn't something they want to do because of circumstance. I find calling on those in Spirit who can help is valuable. Blessings on whichever Muse you find as a connection. xo
Thank you for sharing your passion and knowledge. I am reading your Ancestral Tarot book. I have a question. What is the difference between the Ancestors of Blood, Place and Time vs the Spirit Guide? Is the Spirit Guide selected after choosing the Ancestor of Blood, Place or Time?
Thanks.
Hi Jeff, look for your Spirit Guide before working on the other ancestors. Spirit Guides CAN be one of those ancestors and for that I’d ask you to use your intuition to see if the Guide is one of Blood, Place and Time. I may not have written this, but my purpose was in asking for a Guide to be with you throughout the book.
Very interesting!
Hi Nancy, I laid out my cards in a row in this order: 4, 2, 1, 3, 5. I drew 10 of Pentacles in reverse for my ancestor, and I chose not to swap it for a court or major because this card is called the 10 of Roots in the deck I used (Rhythm and Soul Tarot by Stacey Williams-Ng). The image is of an older man standing beside his dog in a beautiful green field. In a distant hill or mountain sits an ethereal castle. I don’t know who this ancestor is yet for sure, but I have an idea. This reading was deeply personal for me and really helped me recenter my values.
I love that deck (Rhythm and Soul), and know the image you're referencing. I'm so happy that the reading helped you in this way. So grateful.
Beautiful ❤️