Phantasmagoric Theater Tarot: Proactive Tarot Card Selection

This morning I decided to deliberately choose cards that reflect how I want to feel and what I want to experience today.  I first thought about how I wanted my day to go, then I went through the deck to find images that would represent those ideas. I searched for images that would match the feelings I wanted to capture, instead of looking for cards whose "meanings" matched. But afterward, I allowed the meaning of each card to provide added information. I had two different elements that I wanted to see play out in my day. The first was a feeling of freedom. I wanted to feel generally free from worry and limitations today.  The second thing I wanted was to make some extra money. 

So here's the first set of cards that I selected to illustrate the feeling of freedom:



Note: My initial reaction when thinking of "freedom" is the World card. But the illustration on the World card in this particular deck didn't give me that feeling, so it wasn't one of my choices.

Looking through the deck, the Death card just sang out to me as a good time. Funny, that.  The skeleton seems to be dancing a jig, the sun is shining, and the surroundings are all bright, happy colors. This is the happy-go-lucky feeling I wanted for myself today. Death suggests that I let go. Let go of the worry and limitations I usually hang onto by default.  This is easier said than done, but it's not impossible.

The second card I chose was The Chariot, which is another feel-good card in this deck, and it offered me the feeling of unlimited freedom. A spaceship can travel anywhere and at any speed, with no restrictions.  I love the winged pig in the background also, which obviously brings to mind the impossibility suggested by the phrase "when pigs fly".  Well, the pig is flying. The impossible freedom is now a reality!  What's funny is that this morning, before drawing the cards, I was thinking of things that make me feel free. And driving was one of those things, so it was a neat bit of synchronicity that I chose the Chariot card here.

I was also drawn to the colors and Dr. Seuss-like feel of the Strength card.  The little guy in this card has his arms outstretched and appears to be embracing life all around him.  Looking deeper into the meaning of the card, it illustrates that it takes inner strength to make changes to the status quo, leaving the comfort zone one is accustomed to.

I didn't even realize, until after typing this up, that all three are Major Arcana cards. This shows how important this concept of freedom is to me, as I unconsciously selected three Majors.


The second set of cards I selected to represent "making money":



The girl in the Six of Coins sells her wares to a guy who is happily paying her. The Ace of Coins shows a ginormous coin floating effortlessly in the air on a patch of earth, representing huge abundance.  And the Queen of Coins is comfortable counting her money. She knows there is always enough. This Queen always strikes me as a tarot reader. The way she is analyzing the coins looks more to me like she is reading a tarot layout. I've been thinking of offering a new type of reading, so maybe this is where I can bring in some extra money.

(I didn't deliberately select all three cards from the Coins suit. It just worked out that way, just like I unconsciously chose three Majors in the first set of cards.)

So... what I will do today is reflect on these cards several times during the day, and let them inspire me to adopt the feelings of the cards and take appropriate action wherever necessary. Instead of seeing what the cards have to say about today, I'm looking for what I want in the cards, and expecting them to morph into reality.

Deck: Phantasmagoric Theater Tarot (by Graham Cameron, published by U.S. Games Systems, Inc.)

~ Kiki
Tarot Dame

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