February 18, 2019

Here’s a reading I did this weekend for my friend Val, who’s been taking night courses in the hope that she can find a job more in line with her career goals. Her question was whether she would find a job she would be happy in by the end of the summer. Val had asked a similar question six months ago and wanted to know if there was any change in the answer since some time had passed and she was now upgrading some of her skills.

I decided to do a three-card reading for her, using the Mythic Tarot by Juliet Sharman-Burke. The illustrations on these cards are based on stories from Greek mythology, with Major Arcana cards usually depicting Greek gods, Minor Arcana cards, such as Swords, referring to events in the Iliad, and Minor Arcana cards, such as Wands, referring to Jason and the quest for the golden fleece. Other Minor Arcana cards, such as Cups and Coins, refer to other stories, as well, but they did not come up in this reading. (You can Google more info about these cards, as well as the different myths online.)

For this reading the three cards drawn were The Tower/Poseidon (XVI), the Two of Swords and the Ten of Wands. Two other cards came out from the cut after shuffling. They were the Two of Wands and the Three of Wands. Wands usually refer to work and Swords to mental processes, decisions, as well as worries. I usually look at the cards in the cut as surrounding influences.

Here the first card that was drawn is the Tower (XVI) or Poseidon. Val had had the same card appear in her last reading six months ago, as well. In this deck the god Poseidon is looking on as lightning strikes a building, maybe King Minos’ palace, and brings it to destruction. Not a very good sign, but let’s see the other two cards that follow it.

The next card, the Two of Swords, shows King Agamemnon and his wife Clytemnestra with drawn swords. Clytemnestra is enraged that her husband offered their daughter Iphigenia as a human sacrifice so that the winds will allow his ships to sail to Troy. The young man looking on is their son, Orestes, and he seems very distraught by this. It’s a scene of conflict about loss and sacrifice, as well as who has the right to decide what to sacrifice.

The third card shows a very tired Jason after many years and many adventures on his quest for the Golden Fleece. By this point and despite his successes, he had just made the unwise decision of going after a princess of Corinth although he already had Medea, another princess who was also a sorceress. (Don’t mess with sorceresses!) Behind him is the wreck of the Argo, and anytime now a beam is going to break off it and fall on Jason’s head.

So this reading looks pretty depressing, right? But it’s mostly because of these Greek myths. The main point here is that this summer won’t be a good time yet for Val to get a better job. If she does, she may lose more than gain. (Palace of King Minos in the Tower/Poseidon card; wreck of the Argo in the Ten of Wands). In addition, if this happens, there may be conflict in her home because of her decision.

And what about the two cards from the cut? The Two of Wands takes us to the beginning of Jason’s adventures. He has been cared for by the Centaur Chiron and wants to go out into the world, but this is still the beginning and Jason may not be ready. In the Three of Wands, he’s a bit more ahead (King Pelias offers him his crown), but it’s still another small step in Jason’s adventure. Like Agamemnon, Val needs to find the time when the right winds are blowing, but WITHOUT making a costly sacrifice.