The Whole Is Greater Than The Sum Of Its Parts

Guest Blog by Bonnie Cehovet

The cards of the Tarot tell a story, a story made up of many different parts. The whole of that story, the whole of how the pieces of the puzzle are put together, is by nature greater than the sum of its parts. In many ways, two cards read together do not simply add wisdom to each other, they spark whole new lines of thought.

One book that addresses this subject well is “Tarot Combinations”, by Dorothy Kelly. I loved her comment that an objective reading can be developed through the use of intuitive feelings. She makes the very common sense observation that the nature of the problem being addressed can be determined through the suit as well as through the specific cards. For example, the following three-card reading could be read as:

jealousy    /   material security  /    distribution of wealth

Jealousy is causing an older (or married) female to be very concerned about material security, and the future distribution of wealth. Great plot for a story!

Something that we need to take into consideration when reading is the position of the cards – i.e. whether they are upright or reversed. In an upright position, the energy of the card is acknowledged and expressed in the Seeker’s life. If reversed, the energy is perhaps not being recognized, not being acknowledged, acting as a block or a challenge, or in some way being expressed in a negative manner. Round decks offer even more wiggle room for interpretation, but that is for another article!

With Court cards, we need to remember that while they may indicate specific people in the Seeker’s life, they may also indicate aspects of their inner personality. Or they can represent archetypes – such as mother, father, son or daughter.

Another thing that Kelly notes is that the reader needs to tell the story as they see it. A reader interprets the aspects of the cards as they come up, whether they are positive or negative. The cards go in sequence – two or more positive cards, followed by one or more negative cards describes a scenario where things were going well, and then they took a turn for the worse. Always remember that the interpretation of the cards needs to remain pertinent to the question being asked, and that meanings should not be read into the cards that are not there.

We ask the question: “Is now a good time for me to change career fields?” We drew the following cards:



1. distant past – Six of Pentacles
2. recent past – Seven of Cups
3. present – Ace of Pentacles
4. near future – The Sun
5. distant future – Ace of Rods

The story would read something like this: In the distant past, the Seeker was pleased working for their current company. They felt that they were paid on a level commensurate with their title and responsibilities. In the recent past, they began to imagine their career going in a different direction. They set new career goals for themselves, and began to envision the different things that they could be doing.  In the present, they are being offered an opportunity to make considerably more money, in conjunction with the possibility of a higher level of success. Should they choose to act on that opportunity, they will be supported and rewarded for their efforts, and will be quite happy. In the distant future they will be offered yet another career opportunity, one that will bring about change and growth for them. My advice to this Seeker would be that this is a good time to change career fields, and that in doing so they will open themselves not only to material wealth, but to recognition and happiness.

Each reader needs to put together their own keywords for the upright and reversed positions for each card, and then spend some time looking at the cards, and seeing how they support each other's energy, or whether they alter it in some manner. Try not to think in terms of positive or negative – change and/or transition are simply change and/or transition.

Let’s take a look at a small group of cards, and see how being upright or reversed, or changing their order, changes the reading. For this reading, I am not going to use a question … we’re just going to allow the story to evolve.



The Seeker is in a period of great creativity, which will lead them to follow opportunities that are going to come to them. They will be bringing great change into their life, which will have the potential to bring them great disappointment.

The Seeker is being blocked, unable to access the skills and abilities that will allow them to take charge of their life. They are going into a great time of change, which is going to lead them to disappointment.



The Seeker is being blocked from recognizing/using their creative skills and abilities. Whatever they want to do will be delayed, or they may simply not be motivated. However, the distant future shows that they will find their motivation, and will be optimistic about whatever comes their way.




Opportunity and change are coming to the Seeker. However, they will lack motivation to make best use of it. In the distant future their motivation will return, and they will be able to use their skills and abilities to achieve their goals and enhance their lives.

Take the time to play a little – see how the card meanings change as they are placed next to other cards. Allow the story of the reading to flow – hear what your cards are telling you, not what you are telling them.

Images in this article are from the “Morgan Greer Tarot”, U.S. Games Systems, Inc., 1979, 2010.

Bibliography

Kelly, Dorothy. “Tarot Combinations”. Weiser Books. 1995, 2003.

© April 2011 Bonnie Cehovet

Comments

[Arwen]

Excellent post, Bonnie. I always get so much from reading your entries. I liked how you took the same three cards and ran us through them in different combinations. I learned from you today. I'm grateful for that.

[Kayla Garnet Rose]

This interesting to me, because sometimes I have the seeker flip the cards face up one by one, sometimes all at once. In the first case it never seems clear until the third is revealed. Thanks for a great post.

[angel reading]

"The Whole Is Greater Than The Sum Of Its Parts"
I like it! Extremely meaningful. I've learned on it. Great post.