Recently, a query came up on the TarotL email list of which I am a co-moderator. A fellow decided to post a cry for assistance for advice on astrology as he believes that one’s horoscope has the power to tell people accurate information about themselves and their fate. He posted his name, birth date, birth time, and birth location to the list. My response and then some was basically as follows – I’m posting it here as it’s relevant. See my earlier Tarot and Hypnosis posts here. Please note that I switch between second person and third person and the like in this post, as I am switching between talking about the correspondent and speaking to him. If this annoys, distracts, or confuses you . . . deal with it.
First, you might want to post on an astrology list instead of a Tarot one if your interests are in astrology. However, you might want to doublecheck your birth time and see if it is an approximation or an exact time. 9:00 is a well-rounded number and so few people are born on well-rounded numbers . . . although my elder brother evidently was. Of course, most hospital delivery rooms don’t have accurate clocks and folks just mark down whatever’s there. If it’s an approximation, an astrology would most likely run bracketing charts for you – depending upon the level of detail of the chart. Most folks don’t use that sophisticated a charting system anyway.
There are folks who do combine the two but you don’t seem to be asking about such a combination. Most combination or Tarot-based year or date sets don’t aren’t as predictive as you seem to think astrology should be.
For an interesting approach to Tarot and cycles that correspond to birth, see the book Tarot for Your Self: A Workbook for Personal Transformation by Mary K. Greer which has a very useful system for correspondences. The UK edition which I own is known as Tarot Transformation. Even for folks not interested in such things, it is an excellent workbook.
You might check with the folks at Jovian Archive and see if there is a reader in your area. Folks who use their system would find your chart very interesting to run (reflector). I know there are a number of folks in India where you are who have begun using that system.
Some of the specific questions being asked by our correspondent are very very specific. For instance, he is trying to change jobs but hasn’t been having much success so he needs to know exactly which Month when he will be able to switch jobs. He also wants the exact month for when he will be married, although he doesn’t tell us if he’s dating or engaged (the impression is neither).
These level of questions are over-simplifying the nature of intuitive systems. It’s not a revealed blueprint of what must happen in your life, it’s an indication of trends and the like. A lot of folks ask questions regarding the exact time they will do this or that . . . assuming they can then rest as fate is now in control . . . nope, you still have to do the work to move your life forward. Any predictive system isn’t so accurate that everything must happen to that level. Some systems seem to be more attuned with things and allow us introspective devices that help us sort through things that are happening now so that we can move forward in a way that is productive while others are less effective for certain things . . . however, no system lays out the future as it must happen. If you want to know the exact future, then you need to live your life and then look at the future when it’s become the past and only then will you know with certainty what lies there. Only the past is a single road, the future is always and ever will be filled with branches and turns filled with mists and fog, some paths may seem to have more lamps on the side to guide us but the possibility of a new turn or sudden rise or drop is ever present.
When I do Tarot exercises with my students they often get excited as they see it as an instrument for predicting exactly what will come . . . I caution them that while the instrument of Tarot can be very powerful as a key to developing intuition and as an incredibly powerful tool for introspective meditation, it is not a roadmap of what must happen. The Tarot is wonderful but the Tarot cards are just hunks or cardboard or pieces of paper. It is silly to lead one’s life based upon a few scraps of paper. Lead your life based upon what you make of it.
Astrology and Tarot and the rest are not intended to tell us what lies in our future but rather to reveal to us what’s going on now in our personalities and how we might make better choices for our future. These are more psychology systems than predictive ones.
Our correspondent does request that folks gather their insightful and revealing solutions to his life’s questions and email him privately rather than post them to the public list.
Well, I would suggest that professional astrologers or readers are not likely to give free readings of this type – even if it was advised and in this case it’s a bad idea to do a faceless no-connection reading anyway.
If anyone gives you specific months for the things you’ve asked about, I would strongly suggest that you take it with a very large grain of salt. That degree of prediction regarding your life without knowing the context is very unlikely and very likely irresponsible. Regardless of what some horoscope or Tarot spread says, you still have to live your life. Find your weaknesses and discover resources that allow you to turn them into strengths for you so that you can move forward in a productive and happy way. Please understand that there is a degree of finesse and skill required to do readings of any type well.
Asking random strangers for guideance of this type when it obviously means something important to you on an internet forum may get you a response from a reasonably knowledgeable and gifted person – there certainly are some very practiced intuitives who read the email lists or even this blog – but it may likewise net you someone who doesn’t have the first clue of what they’re doing who gives the crappiest advice humanly possible. Caveat emptor.
While you’re waiting . . . you might consider doing a couple simple Tarot or I-Ching or other intuitive system reads and as you meditate upon your draw, close your eyes, and just let yourself imagine freely on the image or meaning of the draw so that you can allow yourself to connect deep within in ways that let you see the paths ahead and what you can do right now to move forward upon the path most appropriate for your success or happiness.
For those interested – perhaps two people – you can see a larger version of the image with this post here.
All the best,
Brian
TarotL Moderator
Tarot and Hypnosis
Practical Approaches to Metaphysical Hypnosis – Feb. 6-10, 2006
Romance and Sensuality Hypnosis – Feb. 13-17, 2006
See "training" at http://www.briandavidphillips.com for details!
Brian David Phillips, PhD, CH [phillips@nccu.edu.tw]Certified Hypnotherapist
Executive Director, Society of Experiential Trance
Associate Professor, NCCU, Taipei, Taiwan
http://www.briandavidphillips.com
