New Year Resolution

Hi!

Now that things have begun to wind down for me….. I normally take this peaceful period to reflect on the past year…. and the new year I have just entered into. I don’t like New Year resolutions because it’s normally one big thing that is usually broken part way thru the year. I will share my spiritual self-exam w/ you.  Use it as a guide to help you focus your energy towards the things you want to improve or change.

I ask myself questions like this:

• What happned in 2010 that: you are proud of?
• that you are not proud of?
• what choices or changes did you do that worked for you?
• what ones didn’t?
• what positive things did you manifest in your life?
• Did any dreams come to pass?
• What obstacles did you overcome?
• What blocks/ challenges held you back?
• What did you learn from the past year?
• What inspired or motivated you?
• Did you inspire anyone else?
• What disappointments did you experience?
• What healed you?
• What made your heart soar?
• What made you cry?
• Who do you miss in your life (someone what has passed or just has lost touch)?
• Did you reach out to anyone in need? Were you there when someone needed you?
• What made you stronger in 2010 that gives you the confidence to overcome a blockage in 2011?
• All in all….. do you feel that you evolved spiritually over the past year?
• What changes do you plan for this year?
• What can you do differently?
• What that went well for you can you continue doing?
•  What is something that you can’t change but need to accept and then let it go?
• What is something new that you want to learn or explore?
• What goals have you set for yourself (personally, professionally, financially, romantically, spiritually)?

May 2001 be a year of profound blessings, joy, good health, love and prosperity!

Love & Blessings!

Amy

How to break a curse

This is an excerpt from an email response from a customer that was told by a psychic that she was cursed. I get many orders from those believing they are cursed because a psychic told them so. If I can help a few people avoid the scam that awaits them or the depression from the hopelessness of believing they are cursed, then my work will not have been in vain. Please share this w/ anyone who goes to psychics.

Hi!

Let me save you some worry. Your “psychic” is lying to you. It is a scam
used to gain control over you with fear. Bad things happen to everyone.
BUT….. when someone tells you that you are cursed, you begin to only focus
on the negative things that happen. A psychic scammer knows that this will
happen and soon u will be back to her for the “curse removal”. That’s when
she starts befriending you and working towards larger dollar amounts as your
trust grows.

Anyone who plays this scam is not a true psychic. They are a professional
scammer. if they told you anything that was true…. they managed to glean
the information through you by working the conversation strategically to
gather information through your comments, reactions and body language. These
scammers are trained to notice EVERYTHING about you. Your appearance alone
tells a book about you before you even sit down. They use this and build
upon it and gain your respect by telling you what is obvious. They read your
reactions and oven tho you don’t know it…. they have pried out more info
than the CIA could drag from you.

I know this b/c I could do exactly what they do. I would never hurt anyone
who was coming to me for hope and good news. I choose to empower people b/c
everyone has the ability to improve their life through faith in themselves.

Sure…. you can still use my tranquility spell candle if you want to because we all
have negativity in our lives which can be changed to positive. HOWEVER…. I
am telling you that you are NOT cursed. You are blessed! I want you to
believe this and focus only on the positive things that happen each day.
Keep a journal. As you do this…. you can create a snowball effect. You
have a choice….. the snowball effect for negativity (you are cursed) or
positivity (you are blessed)? Which do you want?????? Feed energy only to
positive and that is where you will head. Sometimes a flat tire is just a
flat tire b/c you put off the expense of new tires. That isn’t a curse….
that life. The only curse we have in life…. is the one we put on ourselves
when we believe we are curse and then feed energy to that thought.

This is why a strongly spiritual person like myself begs people to
avoid psychics. A seed planted in your head can grow into something very
beautiful… or something very horrible. Since I can’t tell you what a
psychic might say to you…. I choose to tell everyone to avoid them
altogether.

May you see only the blessings in you life and that you are strong enough to
gain control over anything negative!!!!! No spells needed…. Just faith!

Keep it Simple

I am the kind of person that studies people and human nature in general. I like to understand so that I can avoid making the mistakes that others have already made. I’m not saying that I don’t find creative new ways to make mistakes (I’m an expert at that). I don’t like to pass up lessons when they come my way. I think the single most important thing I have learned from dealing with my customers is to keep it simple. People tend to complicate everything and make it more difficult than need be which often leads to giving up. I get many emails on my candle magick (I offer them because they are the easiest form of magick one can do). I get overwhelmed with emails asking how long to burn the candle or where should I position this or that. I give them the same response every time…. “Where do YOU think it should go?”. I tell them to stop over-thinking everything and follow your intuition. They usually give it thought and write me back and ask for my approval. My message to all of you is to follow your heart when you are manifesting a change in your life. Stop worrying about the tiny details. When you fuss and worry… and doubt…. you create a blockage to your efforts. If you want to cleanse your home…. or attract love into your life… follow the instructions but don’t worry about perfection. The perfection is in your intention and in your faith in yourself. The words, gestures or tools for a spell are just there to help you keep your intention focused. In truth…. nothing is needed except for your intention and faith.

Metaphysical Properties of Rose Quartz

Metaphysical Properties of Rose Quartz

Rose quartz ranges from pink to cream in color. Rose quartz is considered the “stone of unconditional love”. It has a very soft and gentle energy. It encourages one to be open and receptive to love, beauty, kindness, harmony.

Rose quartz may allow one to attract love into their life. This might be a general love of mankind, family love or it could be a romantic love energy or a combination of all. Rose quartz may also help in the areas of emotional healing and self-love which are crucial to attracting love of any kind. The beauty of rose quartz is the gentle calming energy that it brings to love in that there is no need to hurry things along. It allows you to take a step back and relax about matters of the heart.

Rose quartz is believed to help bring harmony to relationships especially in negative and/or stressful situations. Rose quartz encourages forgiveness, compassion and tolerance. Rose quartz may help one overcome guilt, grief, depression or the loss of a loved one. It may help in the removal of fears, phobias, resentments and anger. Rose quartz may also help one overcome and release childhood traumas or abuse, neglect, and lack of love. It can help with reconciliation in any strained relationship.

Rose quartz is believed to help in fertility, pregnancy and childbirth issues and in weight loss.

Rose quartz can be used in a gem elixir, a pocket stone or jewelry. http://www.alleghenycandles.com/crystal-healing.html

 http://www.alleghenycandles.com/chakra-bracelet.html

 http://www.alleghenycandles.com/crystaljewelry.html

Rose quartz makes a good divination tool when seeking guidance in love, relationships, emotional issues, fertility or pregnancy issue or weight loss. http://www.alleghenycandles.com/gemstonerunes.html

 http://www.alleghenycandles.com/dowsing.html

How to use an Oujia Board, Talking Board or Spirit Board

Ouija Board Instructions
Do Ouija boards really work?

An ouija board can be a useful spiritual tool to glean information from the spirit realm. With practice, this mystical divination tool can help you open the doors to your own natural psychic ability. Most who use an oujia board do not take it seriously. But… if you are serious about learning how to communicate with spirits through the Ouija board and you are willing to practice, you may find the results to be very interesting.

How does an Ouija Board work?

An ouija board is a divination tool to help you learn how to communicate with spirit and to jump start your natural psychic abilities. The goal should be to get to the point that you can work without the board . Once you learn how to connect with spirit and interpret the messages, the board will slow you down. You may not get to that point because you don’t have time to practice or you may not have a group that is as focused as you are on learning. There is nothing wrong with that.

Are there dangers in using an Ouija Board?

Yes! Information that you get should not be taken too seriously. Don’t ask questions like “when am I going to die” or “should I quit my job” or “is my husband cheating on me?”. Don’t ask legal or medical advice. If you have questions of this nature…. Ask about the outcome of the given situation. But take all messages and advice with a big grain of salt.

Always work with positive energy. You are opening a door for spirits to enter your home. Like energy attracts like energy in the spirit world. You may get more than you bargain for if you want to be scared. Work with a mature group of adults. If things start to go off track, call it a night.

I don’t believe in allowing kids to use an Ouija board. I hope you would not consider one as a gift for someone else’s child. I would be furious if someone gave my child an Ouija board. That is a choice that only a parent should make. This isn’t a toy. If your child wants to use the board, make sure he/ she uses it with you or an adult that you trust their judgment.

Getting Started

1st – Place Ouija board in the center of a small table. Place planchette (pointer) in middle of board. Rest fingers lightly on the planchette to allow it to move freely and easily.

2nd – Only one person ask questions at a time. Ask a clear question and wait a few minutes for the planchette to move. It will probably start off quite slowly and you may have to wait several minutes for that much. As it gains strength, it will point to letters to spell words out.

3rd – For best results, you need to stay focused on your questions and stay within the same topic. Everyone must be mature about this session or you will get confused or garbled messages. Remember – like energy attracts like energy. If you are not serious, then you will not find a spirit that is reliable.
4th – Keep your board in good condition. Store it in a cool, dry place. Keep the surface clean and smooth (I like to use a soft cloth with a tiny amount of Pledge)

5th – Remember to “close the doorway” when your session ends. Thank your spirit helpers for their guidance. Send them on their way with a blessing. Announce aloud in a firm voice “this session is ended and this doorway is now closed”. Feel free to say a prayer or ask for a blessing from god(dess), angels, spirit guides etc…

Ouija Board Hints

· Have someone sit out and take notes. If there isn’t an extra person, tape record the session. It not uncommon for messages not to be clear until it’s written down and you can see the message and decipher it. If you can video the session, you may pick up orbs or other ghostly images.

· Use your Ouija at night when the world begins to quiet down.

· If at any point you feel afraid or uneasy about what is happening, tell the spirit to leave in a strong and loud voice. If you are very scared.. end the session as mentioned above making sure to “close the doorway”.

· Often, especially in new boards, the planchette won’t move. Slowly circle it round and round until a spirit takes over. As you do that, you may ask a prayer for help in drawing a good and helpful spirit. If your board doesn’t work after that, you may want to try it again another time.

 

Ouija Board suggestions:

 

· Wipe your board clean with a soft cloth and furniture polish (we recommend Pledge) before each use

· Before and after each use, smudge your board with a sage bundle or any purifying incense http://www.alleghenycandles.com/sage-smudge-stick.html

· Smudging is the Native American version of a “smoke bath” and is used to cleanse and purify negative and residual energy.

· Participants should take a moment to relax and ground their energy. A guided meditation that allows you to balance your chakras is a good idea.

· When everyone is settled down and ready to work, light a white candle.

· State, in a clear strong voice, that no negative or harmful energies be attracted to your Ouija Board. Tell any negative forces present that they are now banished and dismissed.

· Some people believe that a prayer is a good protection before an Ouija board session. Ask for a helpful and positive spirit to assist you on this night.

· You can use an Ouija board alone. However, it is very difficult to draw the energy needed when working alone.

· Remember, the Ouija board is an open door for spirit communication. When your session is over, thank the spirit(s) who have aided your spiritual work and send them on their way with a blessing. Close the “door” by stating aloud that the session is over and the door is now closed to spirit. I suggest that you smudge the board and do a prayer of protection.

· Store your board in the box when not in use. Do not place anything on top of it as it may mare the surface.

Things you should know before working the Ouija board.

Ouija Boards are not evil nor do they attract the devil. It is merely a tool with which one connects and communicates with spirit. It is what you do with the board that can bring positive or negative results.

With a new board, you will probably need at least 4 people to get it going. It takes a lot of energy to get things moving. Make sure you have 4 to 8 mature adults that have a genuine interest in communicating with spirit. You want people that you trust and that share your ethics and goals for spiritual work.

Try to meet at least monthly – the full moon is believed to be the night where the veil between the physical and spiritual is at it’s thinnest.

Working the Ouija board is a type of automatic writing. Between sessions, you could work on automatic writing to hone your skills.

NEVER allow anyone that is under the influence of alcohol or drugs to participate or even be present. Anyone that is sick, depressed, unduly stressed, worried etc…. should not participate as they can draw in a lower vibration spirit.

You may wish to try other kinds of divination in order to get confirmation or clarification from spirit on ouija messages (tarot, runes, pendulum and crystal balls… etc…).

Ouija boards are NOT a suitable or appropriate gift for child or unsupervised teens especially when they are not your own kids.

Messages can come in other forms than just words. You may feel, smell or taste “messages”. Make sure you make note of that. It is often the signature of a spirit. I had a little boy that died in a fire that came with the aroma of smoke. Don’t let it scare you… it is just another way they try to reach you. Not everyone will experience this extra message which is why you should share it with everyone.

An Ouija board session is very much like a séance. If an object appears… this is called an apport. It appears to come from “nowhere”. This is a very rare a special gift.

Always call spirits for whom you are searching by their given name or nickname. Just keep in mind… most women are known to someone as “mom”.

Suggestion for an Ouija Board that doesn’t work:

Ouija boards don’t work every time. Here are some suggestions when nothing seems to be happening. But remember, if you have tried these suggestions and nothing is happening, you may want to call it quits and have another go on a different night. It’s mostly a matter of practice and discovering what works best for you. We give instructions on use to get you started and from there… just practice.

If not much is happening:
· try bringing new people into your group that you can trust
· try putting different combinations of people on the board to see if things improve
· try various locations (members homes… especially those that have had psychic activity)
· try different locations in a home… attic, basement, barn etc…. It seems that places that have been empty for years become more active. I have heard of people using their board in a cemetery. Only your group can decide if that’s appropriate or not.

I wish you good luck in your new quest for spiritual wisdom.

Metaphysical Properties of Citrine Crystal

Citrine

Citrine is a beautiful variety of quartz crystal which ranges from yellow to a deep amber color. Often you will see rainbow within the crystal.

Citrine is special in that it does not accumulate negative energy. It can be used to disperse or transmute negative energy into positive.

Citrine is known as the “merchant’s stone” because it is believed to attract wealth and prosperity. It doesn’t just help attract money, it also helps one maintain it. A good way to use citrine for this purpose is to place the crystal form in your cash register or area where you handle your finances (probably your computer room if at home). I also recommend burying 4 citrine points pointing towards your home or place of business… one from each direction. As you do this, meditate on each crystal before placing it in the ground envisioning the desire for prosperity going out into the universe and drawing it into your life.

Citrine can be used to open and activate the solar plexus chakra. This chakra deals with personal power “ chi “, decisiveness, creativity, clarification, intellect, mental focus and strength. Citrine enhances intuition and bridges a connection with higher intelligence. Citrine encourages light-heartedness, happiness and optimism. It may help alleviate fear and assist in elevating one’s self-esteem. Citrine can be used for clearing the aura and aligning the auric body with the physical body.

Citrine is an excellent choice for jewelry as it is inexpensive and readily available. It can be used for any kind of spiritual work including chakra clearing and balancing. Citrine works well in a gemstone elixir. You can find directions on this blog. Citrine makes a great choice for a pendulum.

Buy citrine bracelets:

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/chakra-bracelet.html

Buy citrine pendants:

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/crystaljewelry.html

Buy citrine crystals:

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/crystal-healing.html

Buy citrine dowsing pendulum:

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/dowsing.html

Metaphysical Properties of Aventurine

Aventurine is a lovely soft green stone that has tiny mica particles within it. Aventurine is used to balance the yin/ yang energies (male/ female), enhancing creativity. Aventurine offers motivation and encourages a “pioneering spirit”. Aventurine is believed to strengthen decisiveness and intensify leadership qualities. It allows the bearer to see the options and potential in a given situation. It allows one to balance the physical, intellectual, emotional and auric bodies.

Aventurine is used in medicine wheel ceremonies to allow enable the spirit guides to connect with emotionally healing the heart. Use aventurine for the energizing the heart chakra and to attract love into one’s life.

Aventurine is useful for creativity and imagination. It aids in happiness, optimism, courage, inner strength, mental clarity and intellect. It is believed that aventurine enhances prosperity and can help one work towards career success. Aventurine may help bring good luck especially in games of chance.

Buy aventurine gemstones here:

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/crystal-healing.html

Buy aventurine runes here:

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/gemstonerunes.html

Buy aventurine pendulums here:

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/dowsing.html

Buy aventurine bracelets here:

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/chakra-bracelet.html

Candle magic / Color Magic

Purple

• spirituality ·
• crown chakra·
• power & force – add when needed to rituals
• protection of the innocent
• can be used in spells for relief from injustice or for protection.

Blue

• peace, tranquility – use for relaxation, stress relief & meditation
• communication – helps w/ getting message across thru spoken or written word or understanding in relationship problems.
• Light blue - throat chakra
• dark blue – 3^rd eye chakra
• west direction
• element – water

Green

• money, luck
• fertility – creativity, growing things or pregnancy
• healing and health
• growth and expansion
• love
• heart chakra
• north direction
• element – earth

Yellow

• joy, happiness – raises the spiritual vibration
• solar plexus chakra
• money
• east direction
• element – air
• follow up to a curse removal to raise the vibration
• Can help w/ depression.

Orange

• elevatate mood & vibration
• aids in love affair problems
• balance, adaptability
• energy
• naval chakra

Red

• root chakra
• love, passion, sex
• energy, vigor
• courage
• south direction
• element –  fire

Pink

• love drawing
• aids in emotional healing of a broken heart or grief
• smooths over problem between friends
• honor, morality
• weight loss

Brown

• grounding
• connecting to earth energy
• north direction
• element –  earth

Black

• grounding
• protection
• secrecy

White

• purify, cleanse
• can be used to represent deity
• protection
• truth
• it can be used as a suitable replacement for any other color

Silver

• goddess
• female energy
• moon or night time

Gold

• god
• male energy
• sun or day time

Dressing candles refers to rubbing ritual oil into the candle that is related to your desire. It adds power to your energy work.

• Sit quietly and mentally prepare yourself. Quiet your mind and then think of your desire.

• Place a drop of oil on your finger tip and rub from the middle of the candle out to the tip as your concentrate on your intention.
• Repeat to the other end
• Take a few moments to reflect on your desire. Visualize it coming to fruition.
• If you have more than one candle to work with, repeat the process to each one.
• Continue with your spiritual work.

 

Many practitioners prefer smaller candles for a single use. They will allow it to burn completely out and then bury the candle remains as a final step. Do not leave a burning candle unattended.

To some, blowing a candle out is considered disrespectful. They will pinch it out or use a snuffer.

Candles can be carved with name, date, intention etc…

© Amy Summers 2006

How to work with moon phases

One thing that often confuses my customers is working with moon phases. It is very easy to understand once you see the pattern.  Many calendars mark the full and/ or new moon phase. You can also look online for that information.

There are 4 phases that I work with.

1. Waxing moon – the moon is getting larger until is is full.

Use this moon phase to work with anything you want to enlarge such as finances, fertility, love, healing etc…

2. Full Moon – this is when the moon is completely round. You can also work the day before and the day after if need be and still work with the full moon phase.

Any kind of magick, spells and ritual can be done on the full moon. It is considered the strongest day of the month for spiritual work of any kind.

3. Waning Moon – after the full moon phase…. the moon begins to get smaller working towards the new moon phase.

Use the waning moon pahase for situations that you would like to see get smaller. Such as: debt, weight, stress, tumors etc…

4. New moon phase – no moon visable in the sky.

Considered by many a very bad time to do any magic, spells or ritual. Use this as a period of rest.

Now study the mon phases and you will see the pattern.

Waxing – Full – Waning – New and then it repeats

Always keep this pattern in mind and you life will go much smoother. All energy fluxuates like that. Everything has a pattern like this. Love, relationships, finances, hopes and dreams, happiness, sadness.. everything constantly changes. It is not good nor is it bad.. it is just the ebb and flow of life. If you life is terrible right now… it will eventually improve. I have found that meditating on the moon patterns, I can handle negative situations much easier. I know when troubles arise… and they will because I have chosen to be in this material plane of existance…. that they will subside all I have to do is wait.

Care and Feeding of Your Crystals and Gemstones

How to Cleanse or Purify Crystals
Cleansing should be done in a way that you feel most comfortable with. It should be done when you acquire a new stone and before each use.

• Salt: Bury your stone(s) in sea salt for 24 hours.
• Sun or Full moon: Lay your stone(s) out where they will be blessed by the sun or moon’s rays
• Running Water: Put your stone(s) in a creek and allow the water to cleanse them (be sure to mark the spot so you can find them again). Be mindful that kids and animals are attracted to them and may take them. Place them where they won’t be easily spotted by passers by. If you don’t have access to a creek, then use running tap water.
  Thunderstorm or snowstorm: Place your stone(s) outside when you know a storm is coming. It it’s not only a powerful cleanser… but an energizer as well.
• Meditation and Prayer: Meditate or pray over your stone(s) and visualize the negativity being cleared away.
• Smudging: The smoke from sage, herbs, resins and incense can be used to “smudge” negativity. Ignite the sage and blow it out so it smolders. Fan the smoke over your stone(s). You can find a variety of sage products offered on my website: http://www.alleghenycandles.com/sage-smudge-stick.html
• Earth: Bury your stone(s) during the full moon. Dig them up when they “feel” finished or during the next full moon. Remember to mark the spot so you can find them again.

How to Program a crystal
If you have a specific purpose for your stone, then you may want to program it with certain energies as an aid for your work. (healing, meditation, channeling, divination, cleansing, affirmations, manifesting, protection etc…)
Hold the stone in your receptive hand (the one you do not write with). Visualize your energies mingling and you merging with the stone. At this point, you should RESPECTFULLY ask the stone (in your mind) if it is willing to be programmed for your purpose. If you don’t feel resistance, then visualize your programming going into the molecules of the stone. Remember to express your gratitude when you have finished.
How to use crystals:

Wearing: You can put stone in your pocket or purse and meditate on them when the time allows. You can often find pouch necklaces that allow you to wear them around your neck. The good thing about that is you can change them and mix and match as your needs change. You can wear stones in the form of jewelry.
Gemstone Elixer: Add one or more stones that have the properties to suit your needs to a glass of spring water. Allow it to sit over night during a full moon or during the day in the sunlight. Remove the stones (expressing your gratitude for their help) and take a moment to reflect upon the energies you have charged the water with. Drink the water and feel it entering each cell in your body and reaching into your DNA where it can repair and energize problem areas. You will find further instructions on my blog.
Meditation: select stones to help you with the desired outcome of your meditation (relaxation, healing, chakra balancing, channeling etc..). Use you intuition to see where it should be placed (held in your receptive hand, on a chakra, on your 3rd eye). This can become a very complex use so I recommend that you find a book that will you guide you further into meditation and healing with crystals. I offer several which are linked below with the chakra healing information.
Ritual Bath: Select some stones for your bath water. As you soak, feel the energized water soaking into your skin.
In the home: Stones can be placed around the home or office wherever you feel drawn to place them (out of the reach of small children and pets). If you have a collection of small stones that would easily be lost, place them in a bowl, basket or large seashell and sit them on a sunny windowsill.

Chakra Crystal Healing: This is a very detailed subject which I will cover in another post.

http://www.alleghenycandles.com/chakra_balancing.html

Metaphysical Properties of Amethyst Crystal

Amethyst is a unique purple crystal with a mystical energy. Amethyst offers a calming effect to the bearer. Amethyst’s is a crystal of protective energy relating to the astral planes. This aspect makes amethyst a good choice for any type of spiritual work relating to:  dream work… lucid dreaming, astral projection, past life regression, prophetic dreams etc…. Because of it’s calming effect in conjunction with protection, it is believed to help overcome insomnia and/ or nightmares and may encourage the bearer to feel very refreshed and energized upon awakening. Place a large amethyst crystal under your pillow or add to an herbal dream pillows. It works well as a gemstone elixir.

Amethyst is believed to be a powerful stone of spirituality. Amethyst can be used as an aid to raise one’s energy vibration.

Amethyst is connected with the deities Bacchus, Dionysus (gods of wine) and Diana. It is believed to help overcome alcoholism and other addictions. It is also believed to help one recover from the effects of a hangover. See my blog on how to make a gem elixir to help with these issues.

Amethyst is a wonderful stone for meditation, tranquility and healing. It offers powerful spiritual protection on the spiritual planes of existence. So if you are doing any type of spiritual work, it’s a good idea to incorporate amethyst into your work.

Amethyst is a powerfully psychic stone. It’s associated with the crown chakra which helps connect with the spiritual realm making it a very useful for those seeking spiritual guidance, healing, protection or wisdom. Program an amethyst crystal and store it with your tarot cards or other divination tool. Keep an amethyst crystal handy for spiritual protection if you work with an ouija board.

Amethyst is a good choice for dowsing pendulums and rune reading because of it’s so conducive to psychic awareness.

Amethyst can be used to attract love and happiness. It is a stone of pure emotional love and is often exchanged between lovers to strengthen their commitment.

Crystal and Gemstone Metaphysical Properties

I will be slowly adding posts listing some of the more popular crystals and gemstones. These posts will cover the metaphysical properties of the stone and how it may be used in order to benefit from those aspects.

Learn how to memorize tarot cards

Learn how to memorize tarot cards

Tarot reading can be a helpful tool in your spiritual evolution. Tarot readings can act as a guide when you are seeking a solution to a problem, making a decision or looking for the outcome on a situation. It can be a fun and rewarding skill to possess. If you practice enough, tarot reading can be a good way to generate a supplemental income. Almost anyone can learn to read tarot. You do not have to have any psychic ability to read tarot cards. Though we all have psychic ability but most of us can’t give a “psychic reading” as we haven’t been trained to receive messages. That’s a whole different ball of wax. You do not need to use psychic ability to read tarot cards because they are what are called a “divination tool”. In other words, a tarot deck is a tool in which the reader divines messages from spirit. Spirit sends a message to the querent through tarot cards. You are the translator between spirit and the querent. In other words, you look at the card layout and divine the message from symbolism, numerology and card patterns. Even though this is not a psychic reading, you may get messages from spirit. You may have words or symbols pop into your head that probably don’t make sense to you but they may to the querent. Likewise, you may just get a “gut feeling” on the querent’s question before they even shuffle. What is happening is that you are an open channel.

How to study the tarot cards

If you really want to learn to read tarot without using a book, you will have to study each of the 78 cards including the reversed position. There is no shortcut unless you feel confident enough in your abilities to use your intuition.

I highly recommend the Rider – Waite tarot deck for beginners because you may want to buy books on tarot reading or perhaps take classes. This is the #1 selling deck and most books and classes will refer to it. It’s not the most attractive deck, but for a beginner, it will have more resources than the other decks.

You will need the following items:
Tarot deck
Book with interpretations for that deck– you can use the little white book that is included with the deck, however, it’s best to get a more detailed interpretation.
Notebook
Pen

My method for learning the cards is as follows:

Separate the deck into 5 piles based on suit (major arcana, wands, cups, pentacles and swords). Stack each pile in numerical order starting with the lowest on top, 2’s second….. and so on through to the king. The major arcana begins with the Fool card which is #0.

In your notebook, write the interpretation for the fool and each ace based on the book. Do upright first… skip a line or 2 for future notes and then write the reversed meaning. If you get any intuitive feelings, be sure and include them even if they go against the book. The book is only a guide used to give you a rough understanding of the suit, number, symbolic and elemental meanings and to jump-start your intuition. Repeat this for the 2nd card in each pile.

Set up your cards and notes as follows:
notebook

                                                                                 

major arcana        wands         cups      pentacles        swords

Now study the fool’s interpretation in the upright position. When you have it, quiz yourself (or a have a study buddy help you) till you get it right. Move onto the ace of wands and repeat the study / quiz process. When you feel comfortable, repeat for the remaining aces.

Go back to the fool and quiz yourself again and repeat with the aces of each suit. When you have them all, turn the cards upside down (called the “reverse” position) and repeat the process for the reversed interpretation of each card.

Continue to quiz yourself till you get them all correct in both positions.
Move onto the 2nd card in repeat the entire process. When you get them all correct, add them to the previously learned cards and quiz yourself.

I like to write the interpretations for a series of 2 numbers (a total of 10 cards) to give myself a break from the memorizing. I like the rhythm of learning 2 number cards and then getting the break. It’s less monotonous than writing them all out and then studying them. BUT… if you want to do that, or do more than a series of 2 numbers, that’s fine. The idea is to create a system that leaves you wanting more rather than feeling like giving up.

After you get through a series of numbers, shuffle the cards and quiz yourself. Create 2 piles. The first pile is for cards that come easy to you (“hit” card). The 2nd pile is for those that you “miss” on. Repeat the quizzing process to the “miss” cards until each one comes easy enough to you to be added to the “hit” pile. Keep the cards in the same position when you lay them in the correct pile.

Turn the cards around and study them from the other position repeating the “hit” and “miss” pile process.

Move onto another series of cards in the same fashion. Continue with the quizzing / hit and miss process.

Add all the cards you have studied to one pile and shuffle. Repeat the entire process until you get them all correct. By now, you should notice that they are starting to “sink in”. You may even get to the point that you don’t like the interpretation that they book gives and create one of your own. GOOD!

Keep at the process till you get through all 78 cards in both positions. Continue the quizzing till you feel confident to do a reading without consulting the book. Practice…. Practice…. Pratice!!!!

You can practice on yourself by doing a 1, 2 or 3 card reading for the day or week. Practice reading for friends and family that are open to tarot readings. You can also do readings on celebrities and current events and watch in the media to see what transpires.
Some areas require certification for professional readings. You can find information on tarot certification online.

To take your readings a step further, I highly recommend The Complete Tarot Reader by Teresa Michelsen and Simple Fortunetelling with Tarot Cards by Corrine Kenner. I have used these books and found them to be very useful in learning the deeper meaning of each card and how to combine a series cards for a more in depth reading. Readers often get frustrated when the card they choose doesn’t pertain to their query. These books may help you learn to get around that problem.

Once you get comfortable doing readings, you may want to switch to a new deck that is more appealing or perhaps has a spiritual connection. That was my intention because I didn’t like the artwork on the Rider – Waite deck. However, as I learned the deck, I began to really connect with it. I even took the time to learn a lovely deck that was similar. But I found myself wanting to return to my original deck. I noticed that my attention was no longer focused on the artwork…. But rather on the symbolism that I found lacking in many other decks.

Note: There is a shortcut to learning the reversed cards. Some don’t learn the descriptions in the book. They take the upright means and consider the reversed as either energy turned inward or unrecognized.