How to Read an 11-Card Celtic Cross Tarot
Tarot utilizes a series of painted cards for divination and to provoke thought about one's current situation. The Celtic Cross is perhaps the best-known tarot spread; when properly laid out, it looks like a cross turned on its side, and is often used in movies and books. According to Annie Lionnet, author of "The Tarot Directory," the Celtic Cross is a particularly useful spread, because it can provide "an overview of the questioner's particular situation," or even answer specific questions.
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Things You'll Need
- Tarot deck
- Book or documents to help you interpret the spread (optional)
Instructions
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1
Position yourself in a quiet, calm area.
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2
Shuffle the tarot deck while considering a specific question or just thinking about your life in general.
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3
Lay the cards out in the Celtic Cross spread. Lay a card face-down on a flat surface in front of you. Place a second card horizontally across it. Lay a third card below the first two, then a fourth card directly to the left of the middle cards. Place the fifth card at the top and the sixth to the direct right of your first two cards. This is the "cross" part of the Celtic Cross.
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4
Lay four cards to the direct right of the cross spread, one just above the other, starting from the bottom. This is the "staff" segment of the spread.
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5
Turn over the first card you laid out. This is your present position in life.
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6
Flip over the second card. This card "crosses" you, and represents something that is influencing or troubling you.
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7
Turn over the third card at the bottom of the left spread. This represents past events that are influencing you today.
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8
Flip card four, which Lionnet calls "the root of the reading." These are influences that come and go in your life that you have no control over.
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9
Turn over card five. This represents what will occur in the near future, be that months or a few years.
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10
Turn over card six, located on the far right of the left-side spread; this indicates items that you need to keep in mind within the coming weeks.
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11
Move to the right-hand side of the spread. Turn over the bottom card of the staff, which is card seven. This represents your fears and feelings.
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12
Turn over the eighth card in the spread. This represents outside influences.
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Turn over the ninth card, which indicates your hopes and fears.
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14
Turn over the tenth card. This indicates the potential outcome of your particular situation.
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