If you don't have access to tarot cards, or are asked for an impromptu reading, then it is perfectly possible to use a normal pack of playing cards to tell fortunes. These techniques are also a good way to get to know the minor arcana for the purposes of divination.

This is very much an exploration of the basics, and is not intended for experienced card readers - though I hope that everyone will find it interesting. I'd welcome comments from people, perhaps if you've tried these techniques out and found them useful - or not - or if you have a different way of doing things that you would like to share.

Getting started

Firstly, study the four suits. Usually, these are regarded as corresponding with the Minor Arcana as follows:

Spades = Swords (from the Spanish 'espada')

Hearts = Cups

Diamonds = Pentacles/Coins

Clubs = Wands

Think about what each suit means to you. For example, diamonds have the obvious association with money, and perhaps with possessions, things of value. You might link hearts with emotions and love. These meanings should be personal to you, don't worry if you come up with something different to the accepted meaning. You can also think about which element goes best with each suit. You might find that hearts remind you of water, as water is often linked to the emotions. You might feel that swords are connected to air, to the sharpness of the intellect, the power of thought.

Once you have decided which element corresponds to each suit, that can be used to expand your range of meanings. For example, if diamonds are linked to Earth, then you could add stability, groundedness, foundations, a link with nature to your list of meanings. You might also want to link each suit to a particular direction or to one of the four seasons. So if I link Spades to air and to the East, I instantly have a whole range of correspondences and meanings to draw upon. Again, let this be a personal thing, don't feel that you have to go along with what someone else says, and if you feel that compass directions and times of year are an irrelevance, then you don't have to use such correspondences at all!

For each suit you should now have a small list of meanings. You can add to this as your experience grows.

You can now do a simple reading just based on the meanings of the four suits. For example, ask your Querent (ie, the questioner, the person you are reading for) to draw three cards from the pack. The first card represents the past, the second the present, and the third, the future (this is just an example, you can devise your own spreads as you choose.)

Say my Querent has chosen

1. Spades

2. Clubs

3. Diamonds

I might tell the Querent, based upon my own personal meanings for the cards, that their past has seen some troubles, and looking back, it seems like it was a dark time. The present has seen a greater emphasis on career issues, and seeds are being planted now which will reap a good financial and personal harvest in the future.

So even just using your knowledge of the four suits, it's possible to make a useful interpretation.

Once you have got a grip on the meanings of the suits, and have practised doing a few readings, then you can move on to work with the numbers.

List numbers one to ten, and decide what each number means to you. For example, my list might look something like this:

1. Beginnings, births. New projects. Unity.

2. Marriage, balance, harmony, opposites

3. A sacred number. Child, progression, divinity.

Etc.

Once you have decided on meanings for each number, then you can combine those with the meanings for each suit that you came up with earlier. For example, by my personal definitions, the ace of clubs might mean a new job or business venture.

Court cards

Here is where the playing card pack differs from the Tarot - the tarot has an extra court card.

Court cards usually represent people to me, people who embody some of the attributes of the suit they belong to. So the King of Hearts might be a kind, loving man, while the Queen of Clubs could be a fiery, dynamic woman. You can also decide on physical attributes which these people might display, based on your meanings for the suits. For example, the Clubs might have auburn hair (as I link Clubs with the element of fire.) To me, Kings and Queens represent men and women, while Jacks are young people of either sex.

When a court card comes up in a spread, I usually take it to mean that a person will have something to do with the situation. But you might feel that in some cases, the court card doesn't represent a person, but the attributes of the card. So a King might represent an event of importance.

Preparing to do a reading

Firstly, shuffle the pack well - you don't want the same cards coming up over and over again because they've got clumped together. As you shuffle, focus your mind on the divination to be performed. You might want to ask for the aid of your Gods or guides. Some people say a small prayer or poem at this point. You might like to get a special cloth which you can lay the cards on for readings, otherwise, a table top is fine. ( I find the floor a bit uneven for readings, but that's probably to do with my slanty house!)

Pass the cards to your Querent, ask them to shuffle them while completely concentrating on the question they have for you. You should concentrate on them as they do so. Try to focus and yet empty your mind at the same time. If your Querent can't shuffle very well, try spreading the cards out face down and asking them to pick the necessary number out. If they are shuffling and a card drops out of the pack, I see this as significant, and often include that card in the spread.

Once the Querent has shuffled the pack, ask them to cut the cards with their left hand (the left hand is used as it is linked with the more intuitive side of the brain) into three piles, and to place the piles back together (still with the left hand) in any order. (If you were using Tarot cards, they could reverse a pile around if they wished - some Tarot readers assign different meanings to cards in upright or reversed positions.) Then, take the cards and deal from the top of the pack.

If your Querent has been picking cards out rather than shuffling, ask them to place the cards in a pile in the order in which they want them to be read.

Once they have finished picking the cards or shuffling, ask them what their question is. Don't feel that you have to wow the Querent with your magic powers - it's fine to ask them for clarification.

Some people only ever read for themselves, this is fine. I learned to read the cards by practicing on myself, and then my family, before I dared to try on the general public! Just be aware that it's harder to be objective when reading for yourself. You might like to keep a diary of your personal readings, I found it invaluable for looking back on. It helped me to refine my skills, discover new things about the cards, and gave me a fresh insight to intepretation.

Simple spreads

Some spreads are very well known - ie, the Celtic Cross spread, the Name Spread and so on. However, for a beginner, it's sometimes hard to take in all the information that these spreads give you, and to come to a correct interpretation.

It's easy to design your own simple spreads, which will be more useful to you when starting out.

The simplest spread of all is to draw a single card. I used to do this in the mornings, to give me an idea of how my day might be. You could elaborate on this, perhaps drawing seven cards for a week, four for a month, or twelve for a year. However, I find that the cards work best when looking at things happening in the near future, and it's sometimes hard to see things a year in advance - something to bear in mind when doing spreads involving timings.

For questions involving an 'either/or' situation, you could simply draw two cards to represent each option. For more in depth information, you can draw additional cards.

The example I gave earlier is also very useful, drawing three cards which represent past, present and future.

I keep a notebook in which I write down ideas for spreads, some that I've invented, some from books, or from other readers.

Reading the cards.

If you've followed the ideas at the beginning of this article, you should already have a good idea of the meaning of each card. When you are reading spreads, this should give you a good basis for interpretation. However, you also need to start looking at the overall picture. For example, say I have done a four card spread, and each card is a heart. Or perhaps I draw two aces and two sevens. A sequence of numbers might be drawn - 1, 2, 3, 4. All these things may have great significance in relation to the question.

It is important that you use personal meanings for each of the cards, as I described above. However, sometimes you will just know that a card does not have its usual meaning in a spread. That is fine, go with your feeling. I find that the meanings of the cards are very changeable, and as time goes on, I find I rely much more on my instincts about a spread, rather than the literal interpretation of each card.

Telling fortunes

Once you've looked at the cards and decided upon the meaning of the spread (take your time with this!), then you need to relay this information to your querent. I often find that card reading is more like counselling, and that often, the Querent will tell you very private things, or really unburden their problems as you talk together. This puts you in a position of trust and responsibility. Treat everything you are told as completely confidential. What is said between you must not be repeated. If the Querent is having serious emotional problems, then you could gently suggest that they visit a professional counseller.

Try to state everything positively. Even if you see a doom and gloom laden future for your Querent, aim to give them the silver lining. I'm not suggesting that you lie to your Querent, but bad news must be broken gently. Will it really benefit your Querent to know that disaster lurks around the next corner? Sometimes that is a difficult decision to make. Fearing the worst often leads to the worst. It is also worthwhile remembering that you are not infallible. Sometimes your readings will not be accurate, and if this is the case, you will have saved your Querent lot of worry if you play down a negative spread.

I usually tell people that the cards foretell the general direction of events at that moment - but that the future is not a straight road. There will always be random or unseen events which can influence the future in unpreditable ways.

Some Querents will come to you more than once, asking the same question. Politely tell them that the cards must not be consulted on the same question twice. These people are often looking for you to give them the answer they want, for you to predict a different outcome to events. Beware also of people who become dependent on your readings for decision making in their lives. I steer clear of telling people what I think they should do - I prefer to offer them choices based on what I see.

If you are doing many readings in a day, you will begin to feel rather drained of energy! You might find it useful to devise yourself a ritual for re-energising yourself. I like to do simple things like making sure I'm drinking enough water, and perhaps taking on a little salt if I'm becoming a bit 'spaced out'.

Most of the time, card reading is a rewarding and enjoyable experience for Querent and reader. Nevertheless, it is important to remember that it is not a game, and that you must read the cards with an awareness of your responsibilities as a reader.

Happy reading :-)