I learned the Celtic Cross after I had been using Tarot for a few years. I found it interesting, but I guess the layout I learned first is still my go to layout. It’s a simpler layout and, for me, is more useful in answering a question. Maybe you’ll find it useful.
Here it is….
First, you select a question. Its best to write it down, so that you get a concrete question formulated, and then can go back to it to interpret the cards.
Second, select the significator. Most people select a significator by either choosing a court card that resembles the querent, or a quality of the querent, or the question. In any event you select the card you will use. In this method, you shuffle the deck and draw a card. If that card seems to serve well as a significator, then you are done shuffling. If not keep shuffling, and repeat until you get a suitable significator. This has the quality of forcing you to explore the question from unthought of points of view. It’s a ‘get your ego out of the way’ step.
Place the significator on the table.
Above the significator, starting in the left lay the cards out in 5 columns of three cards, in a fan shape. The first card you lay down in each column is the bottom of the column.
The left column is the distant past, the next is the recent past, the center is the present, the second from the right is the near future and the far-right column is the distant future. In each column, time moves from bottom to top. So, the lowest card in the left column is the origin of the ‘issue’ in the past. The last (top) card on the right column is the end of the “issue” in the future.
When reading the layout, you apply the question to the position of the card in time, to build a story. It important to remember that the ‘distant past’ is the time when the issue originated, and the distant future is where the issue will resolve, good or bad. That might be a span of one day, or 100 years, it depends on the question. The present column (center) is a little tricky, the middle card of that column is RIGHT NOW. The lowest in that column JUST PASSED, and the top card is IMMEDIATELY NEXT.
Now you compose the story, using the question and the significator, moving thru time to understand what brought the issue to hand and how you are currently interacting with it, and how you will resolve it.
I like this layout because as humans we tend to tell stories, and stories have a beginning, a middle and an end. I like it because it has a get the ego out of the way component, and it does not require memorizing the layout.
Thank you for providing this detailed explanation of your preferred spread. I understand it as written, and look forward to trying it out!
I've found that my own spread preferences have changed as the years have gone by. For many years I preferred a simple five card spread, but don't use it often anymore. Currently I like the Celtic Cross for general readings, and for that kind of reading have found the Pyramid Spread written about by Mary K. Greer to be wonderful as well. I should post about that one of these days. For relationships I use a nine card spread, and I use three card spreads quite frequently as well, but always as open spreads (without specific positional meanings.)
Perhaps oddly, when I first began practicing Tarot, the very first spread I learned (from the LWB) was the Celtic Cross. I hated it. Really hated it. I hated it badly enough that one of the very first books I purchased was a collection of spreads. But now it is my go-to. I'm kind of a weird guy I guess!
I know that a lot of folks will use single card readings, and very basic (past-present-future) three card spreads, but such have always seemed quite limiting and simplistic to me.
I find that I don't ever use significator's, finding no benefit to limiting the vocabulary of the deck, but the way you describe selection of the significator is interesting to me, and I think could, as you say, offer a differing perspective on the issue. I'll practice with that method a bit, so thank you!
I’ve seen the Celtic cross but I’ve never studied it or used it. Thank you for the introduction.
I had one hesitation though. It feels more natural to me that cards 5 and 6 would be flipped. My logic is putting the left in the past and the right in the future. I’d like to understand your perspective though.
I can see your perspective on flipping 5 and 6. That would be more in keeping with what we are used to with say three card Past - Present - Future spreads.
I read these two cards in the way that I do because I see the spread as flowing from (metaphorical) West to (metaphorical) East with the second half of the spread, the four vertical cards as that East.
But, the thing is, to my mind, it doesn't actually matter. Flipping them as you suggest is A-OK if that makes the spread flow better for you. All that matters is that you know what the spread positions will represent to you, in your reading, before you lay out the cards.
Indeed, it is best that the spread make sense to you. And if you read a lot about the spread, you'll find that different Tarot readers do it differently. These positions are just what make sense to me but there is no harm at all in flipping them.
I learned the Celtic Cross after I had been using Tarot for a few years. I found it interesting, but I guess the layout I learned first is still my go to layout. It’s a simpler layout and, for me, is more useful in answering a question. Maybe you’ll find it useful.
Here it is….
First, you select a question. Its best to write it down, so that you get a concrete question formulated, and then can go back to it to interpret the cards.
Second, select the significator. Most people select a significator by either choosing a court card that resembles the querent, or a quality of the querent, or the question. In any event you select the card you will use. In this method, you shuffle the deck and draw a card. If that card seems to serve well as a significator, then you are done shuffling. If not keep shuffling, and repeat until you get a suitable significator. This has the quality of forcing you to explore the question from unthought of points of view. It’s a ‘get your ego out of the way’ step.
Place the significator on the table.
Above the significator, starting in the left lay the cards out in 5 columns of three cards, in a fan shape. The first card you lay down in each column is the bottom of the column.
The left column is the distant past, the next is the recent past, the center is the present, the second from the right is the near future and the far-right column is the distant future. In each column, time moves from bottom to top. So, the lowest card in the left column is the origin of the ‘issue’ in the past. The last (top) card on the right column is the end of the “issue” in the future.
When reading the layout, you apply the question to the position of the card in time, to build a story. It important to remember that the ‘distant past’ is the time when the issue originated, and the distant future is where the issue will resolve, good or bad. That might be a span of one day, or 100 years, it depends on the question. The present column (center) is a little tricky, the middle card of that column is RIGHT NOW. The lowest in that column JUST PASSED, and the top card is IMMEDIATELY NEXT.
Now you compose the story, using the question and the significator, moving thru time to understand what brought the issue to hand and how you are currently interacting with it, and how you will resolve it.
I like this layout because as humans we tend to tell stories, and stories have a beginning, a middle and an end. I like it because it has a get the ego out of the way component, and it does not require memorizing the layout.
Thank you for providing this detailed explanation of your preferred spread. I understand it as written, and look forward to trying it out!
I've found that my own spread preferences have changed as the years have gone by. For many years I preferred a simple five card spread, but don't use it often anymore. Currently I like the Celtic Cross for general readings, and for that kind of reading have found the Pyramid Spread written about by Mary K. Greer to be wonderful as well. I should post about that one of these days. For relationships I use a nine card spread, and I use three card spreads quite frequently as well, but always as open spreads (without specific positional meanings.)
Perhaps oddly, when I first began practicing Tarot, the very first spread I learned (from the LWB) was the Celtic Cross. I hated it. Really hated it. I hated it badly enough that one of the very first books I purchased was a collection of spreads. But now it is my go-to. I'm kind of a weird guy I guess!
I know that a lot of folks will use single card readings, and very basic (past-present-future) three card spreads, but such have always seemed quite limiting and simplistic to me.
I find that I don't ever use significator's, finding no benefit to limiting the vocabulary of the deck, but the way you describe selection of the significator is interesting to me, and I think could, as you say, offer a differing perspective on the issue. I'll practice with that method a bit, so thank you!
I’ve seen the Celtic cross but I’ve never studied it or used it. Thank you for the introduction.
I had one hesitation though. It feels more natural to me that cards 5 and 6 would be flipped. My logic is putting the left in the past and the right in the future. I’d like to understand your perspective though.
I can see your perspective on flipping 5 and 6. That would be more in keeping with what we are used to with say three card Past - Present - Future spreads.
I read these two cards in the way that I do because I see the spread as flowing from (metaphorical) West to (metaphorical) East with the second half of the spread, the four vertical cards as that East.
But, the thing is, to my mind, it doesn't actually matter. Flipping them as you suggest is A-OK if that makes the spread flow better for you. All that matters is that you know what the spread positions will represent to you, in your reading, before you lay out the cards.
Indeed, it is best that the spread make sense to you. And if you read a lot about the spread, you'll find that different Tarot readers do it differently. These positions are just what make sense to me but there is no harm at all in flipping them.