How to ask your Ancestors for help

a spread, a challenge, and a giveaway

These posts in Ancestral Threads are for paid subscribers, but this one is my gift to you. (Yes, it’s my birthday month). If you’re interested in deeper work with the ancestors, thanks for considering becoming a paid subscriber. Upcoming paid posts include a special one with five spreads and another that will guide you in digging into your witchy ancestral legacy.

I love three card spreads

and I love working with the Ancestors. So today I’m challenging you to pick an Ancestor card from a tarot or oracle deck, do the spread described below, and then leave a comment.

The core of this spread is to choose a card that represents your Ancestors because you’re asking them for help. Your Ancestor card can change over time, but it doesn’t have to. For instance, the 6 of Cups is always my card for the Ancestors. If you don’t immediately know which card feels right, go through the deck until you find your ancestral card.

It really doesn’t matter which deck you use, as long as you can pick a card that represents your Ancestors. Once you identify your Ancestor card, shuffle it back into the deck. Now, pause a sec and ask a question.

Next . . .

shuffle the entire deck (including the Ancestor card), then draw down from the top until you come to your chosen Ancestor card. Put that card down on your table. Now, place the card that came BEFORE the Ancestor card to the left and the card that came AFTER the Ancestor card to the right. Like this:

The card to the left (7 Wands) is the action to take relative to your question. In essence, it’s what the Ancestors think you need to do in order to answer your question. The card to the right (Star) is the outcome if their advice is followed.

Now it’s your turn. And just to show you how well this spread works with non-tarot decks, I’ve created three more random draws to give you an idea of how oracle decks can be used in ancestral work.

First, Southern Gothic Oracle.

I choose Cornbread as my Ancestor card because it brings back memories of childhood and my grandmother making cornbread in a cast iron skillet.

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Next, the Apothecary Spirits Oracle

Rosemary is my favorite herb, probably because as Shakespeare wrote ‘rosemary, that’s for remembrance’. In the world of botanicals, there couldn’t be a better card for me to represent the Ancestors than Rosemary.

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Last is my new Ancestral Magick Oracle from La Panthere Studio.

I chose the Innocent card to represent the Ancestors because the photo is actually one of my own mother. Can’t get more personal than that.

Do you get the idea of how just about any deck can be used in this three-card ancestral message draw?

Good.

Thanks for doing the spread and

leaving a comment. What were your cards, what deck did you use, and how did the spread work for you. (It’s okay to keep your question secret!)

Forgot to mention, if you’re a paid subscriber and leave a comment, you’re automatically entered into a drawing to win a unique deck. Winner can choose from:

• Victorian Grimoire

• Ancestral Magick Oracle

• Erika's Lenormand of Hope

• Mystical Dream Tarot

• Earth and Bone Oracle

One last thing before you comment . . .

you can work with the Ancestors using any deck or just about any thing, i.e. a stone, a feather, a playing card, an herb, a bone, a flower, or even your favorite Spirit Animal. The tool you use isn’t anywhere as important as your intent. In fact, when working on this spread, I used three Zuni fetishes drawn with my eyes closed: a horse (left), a bear (center), and a buffalo (right).

In fact, in my next Ancestral Threads post, I include five spreads: some for tarot, another for oracles, and even spreads for charms and stones. I think you’ll like it.

Thanks for commenting!

xo

Nancy

P.S. I’m going to be doing a presentation for an Ancestral Summit the end of October, and one for TABI (Tarot Association of the British Isles) in mid-October. I’ll post the links when I have them.