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Tarot
Gateway To Tarot
by Bonnie Cehovet
Tarot Master
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Last month we looked at how to create a personal profile using the Tarot. This month we are going to look at another way of determining one of the key cards in this profile: the Personality card. The Personality card shows the "theme" for each lifetime in that it identifies the gifts and talents that we come into each lifetime with.
Last month we looked at one way to determine the Personality card - by adding the day, month and year of birth together until we obtain a number that adds up to 22 or less. This gave us a single card that represented how we express ourselves. This month we are going to look at a method that gives us two Personality cards that act as a "gateway" into each lifetime. *
In determining your Personality cards by this method, add your birth date in the following manner: birth month + birth day + first two digits of the year + second two digits of the year of birth. In last months example, we used the birth date of December 29th, 1948 to determine the Personality number 9, which corresponds to the Hermit. With this method, we add 12 + 29 + 19 + 48 = 108. We then add 10 + 8 = 18. The number 18 corresponds to the Moon, which is the first birth card for this date. We add 1 + 8 = 9, which corresponds to the Hermit. The Hermit would then be the second birth card for this birth date.
When the addition of the birth information leads to a single digit number, there will still be two birth cards.** For example, the birth date 06 / 03/ 19 / 94 = 6 + 3 + 19 + 94 = 149. This reduces to 14 + 9 = 23, which reduces to 2 + 3 = 5. The corresponding card would be the major arcana card that reduces to 5. The number 14 reduces to five: 1 + 4 = 5. Temperance, number 14, would then be the second birth card for this birth date.
There is one interesting anomaly where we end up with three Personality cards, and that would be if the sum of the birth date was the number 19. The number 19 (corresponding to the Sun) would be the first Personality card. The first reduction, 1 + 9 = 10 (corresponding to the Wheel of Fortune) , would be the second Personality card. The second reduction, 1 + 0 = 1 (corresponding to the Magician), would be the third Personality card.
The following chart shows the Personality card pairs according to this system:
21 (The World) / 3 (The Empress)
20 (Judgment) / 2 (The High Priestess)
19 (The Sun) / 10 (The Wheel Of Fortune) / 1 (The Magician)
18 (The Moon) / 9 (The Hermit)
17 (The Star) / 8 (Strength)
16 (The Tower) / 7 (The Chariot)
15 (The Devil) / 6 (The Lovers)
14 (Temperance) / 5 (The Hierophant)
13 (Death) / 4 (The Emperor)
12 (The Hanged Man) / 3 (The Empress)
11 (Justice) / 2 (The high Priestess)
10 (The Wheel of Fortune) / 1 (The Magician)
The advantage of this system over the single Personality card is that here we have a pair of energies through which the Seeker passed to enter this lifetime. The theme for each lifetime, as well as the parameters within which the Seeker operates in each lifetime, are defined by these two cards (or, in the case of the birth number 19, three cards).
Looking at the chart above, a thought comes to mind: What we have here is a finite number of pairs. I can have the same Personality cards as another person (indeed, as many other people!), and yet I am very different from them - I am me! So ... how are Personality cards important? Remember that the Personality cards act as our gateway into this lifetime. They provide the basic structure for our lives, while we ourselves, through our decisions and actions, provide the actual form.
One of the first things that we want to do when working with Personality cards is to ask the Seeker how they feel about them. Do they feel that the energy of the card is compatible with their personal energy? If they don't feel that their Personality cards are a part of how they are actually functioning, then perhaps the energy that they came into this lifetime with is (a) being blocked, (b) not being recognized, or (c) simply not being used.
What we want to remember here is that as archetypes, there are many layers to each Tarot card. The Seeker will relate to one or more levels of both of their cards - and the combination of how each individual relates to their Personality cards and how they put that energy to use in their life is what makes us all individuals. In talking to the Seeker about how they see their Personality cards as influencing their lives, they will be able to see, through the eyes of their own experiences, how this energy has worked for them.
Another very interesting aspect of the Personality cards is that some Seekers may feel an immediate closeness to one of their cards and totally deny the energy of the other one. The card that is being denied may be blocked in that person's life, or it may be latent energy - energy that has not been put to use yet. Certainly, their denial of that card is a red flag that there is an imbalance in this person's life that needs to be addressed.
Personality (birth) cards carry both the gift of each lifetime and the challenge of each lifetime, as well as "unfinished business" from previous lifetimes. They are both the inward and the outward manifestation of all that we can be. The more we know about the Tarot, the more layers we will discover in the cards. There will be energies that connect the two Personality cards, and energies that each carries alone. The dynamic interaction between the cards is what makes a lifetime.
There is no "best way" to begin to understand and use Personality cards. Each reader will find what works for them - the following are suggestions that can act as catalysts for understanding. For this work, I would recommend using the Rider-Waite deck, or a Rider-Waite clone. The reason for this is that the reader (and Seeker) will then be working with the traditional presentation of the Tarot, with all of the layers that may or may not be there in other decks.
Work up the numbers for both Personality cards, and set them out in front of you, side by side. Take a moment to look at the cards, to let traditional meanings/keywords float through your mind. If you are reading for another person, and they are present, get their feedback. Ask them how they feel about each of the cards - what they are drawn to, as well as what they may not feel comfortable with.
Look at the predominate colors in the cards - is there a lot of blue (indicating communications and the emotional realm in general), or does red (indicating a sense of action) predominate? The color white generally indicates spirituality, while the use of black may indicate the unknown. Purple is also a spiritual color, while earthy brown's and green's indicate matters more akin to the physical world and fertility.
Look at the position of the characters in the two cards. Are they seated (passive) or standing (active). Are they facing each other (both within any given card and between the two cards), are they facing apart, or are one or both of them looking out at the reader?
What moods/emotions do each of the two cards carry - and how do they interact with each other? Is there a sense of joy and celebration? A sense of lightness or seriousness? Does a sense of pain or sadness predominate in one or both cards?
All of the above will give the reader and the Seeker a sense of what is operating in the Seeker's life. Let's take a look at the Personality cards drawn for our birth date example of 12/29/1948. The Personality numbers were 18 and 9, the Personality cards The Moon and The Hermit. I am going to be discussing these cards as drawn from the Morgan-Greer Tarot, a Rider-Waite clone.
With the Moon, we are looking at things that are hidden. One of my favorite keywords for the Moon is illusion - the layers of quality that we place over something in our minds so that we do not see what is truly there. Look for hidden agenda's (of others and of the Seeker) and hidden emotions (of the Seeker and of others in his/her life). The crab represents our outer shell - the "face" that we show others, as well as our own physical being. The dog and the wolf represent the two natures inherent in each of us - the civilized/domesticated self and the instinctual self.
The predominate color of the Moon is blue, indicating communications, with a dash of yellow giving us a sense of lightness and movement. The figures in the card, the dog and the wolf, face each other but are both focused on the moon, which is literally seen between the two castle-like structures in the card. The Seeker functions in this lifetime well aware of the differences between his/her civilized and instinctual selves. There is a sense of looking inward here, combines with a sense of seriousness. The movement within the card is active, but the activity is more on the mental than the physical plane.
With the Hermit, we are looking at the inward path in life. When I think of the Hermit, the word "Seeker" comes to mind - one who is seeking knowledge of themselves. The predominate colors are muted blue, gray and brown - all very physical, earthy colors, with a dash of yellow adding a bit of pizzazz and energy. The figure stands on top of a rock, indicating height and "closeness" to divine wisdom. He holds the staff of life in his left hand, and a "guiding light" in his right hand. He faces the left hand side of the card, indicating a looking to the past for answers. The mood/emotion of this card is serious and somber.
The energy that connects these two cards for me starts with the yellow light - the light of the moon in the Moon, the light of the lantern for the Hermit. Both of these cards ask the Seeker to look within for answers, and carry a sense of seriousness about them. By placing the higher numbered card first, we get an interesting interplay between these cards: the Hermit appears to be looking into the past for answers, and the past that he is looking at is centered on the emotional and illusional nature of the Moon.
The gift that the Moon brings into a given lifetime is that of "seeing/sensing" the hidden agendas around you. Understanding the motivation behind something allows you to turn situations to your advantage. In another way, recognize that the illusion operating in your life may be coming from your own unconscious/subconscious self. In order to see reality for what it is, you may need to address your own shadows.
The gift that the Hermit brings into a given lifetime is that of illumination, and through illumination, understanding. There is a strong inner vision of who you are in life, and where that will take you - what your purpose or destiny for that lifetime is. The number nine represents the ending of a cycle, and the gathered wisdom of that complete cycle. The challenge inherent in the Hermit is that of being willing to look at your shadows and do the work to integrate them into your life.
Both the Moon and the Hermit are rather passive, inner oriented cards. Both ask the Seeker to look at their shadow sides before making a decision or taking an action. When fully functional, these two cards support each other. If one or the other is blocked or latent, one of the primary issues in the Seeker's life would be an inability see reality for what it is, or the inability to look within for the answers. In either case, the Seeker would be acting from a place of illusion and "not knowing".
These are just suggestions for interpreting these two cards. Each reader will have to find their own way of understanding the cards, and presenting them to the Seeker in a manner in which the Seeker will be able to work with them to the best of their ability.
One way to work with the Personality cards would be to include them in a specific personality "profile" , which can be specific for each client. Another way to work with the Personality cards is to draw them from a separate deck of cards and place them above, below, or to the side of any reading that is being done. They then act as "visual clues" for helping to interpret the cards within the reading. This in itself can lead to a real "Aha!" experience!
Personality cards can also be included in, or used as a basis for, relationship readings - whether the relationship is romantic, business or family based. It gives the Seeker the advantage of seeing what makes the other person/people "tick", and it allows them to see how they are interacting with the other person/people, and how others might view them.
Please feel free to contact me with thoughts about what you would like to see discussed in this column, and any Tarot related questions that you may have. I would like to see this column as being a mirror for the interests of my readers, and am open to feedback of all types.
Wishing you all a well lit Tarot journey!
(c) August 2003
References
* Amberstone, Ruth Ann & Wald. Telecourse: Tarot Psychology - Birth Cards. February, 2002.
** Amberstone, Ruth Ann & Wald. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TarotTips/message/130
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Bonnie Cehovet,
Tarot Master, and Reiki Master/Teacher.
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Bonnie Cehovet is a Tarot Master, professional Tarot reader and Reiki Master/Teacher.
Bonnie has been reading the Tarot professionally for over ten years. She has served in various capacities with the American Tarot Association, including Secretary and Web Assistant For Links. She is currently Certification Director and Secretary for the American Board For Tarot Certification. Bonnie is also a founding member of the World Tarot Network.
Bonnie has had her work published in the ATA newsletter, in Geraldine Amaral's "Celebrating The Tarot" print newsletter, on the World Tarot Network and other internet sites. She is editor for her own monthly newsletter "Gateway To Tarot" (Yahoo Groups).
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