Loving the Playing Card Oracles, and a Relationship Reading

The Playing Card Oracles by Ana Cortez,
published by U.S. Games, Inc.

The last two readings I’ve done with the Playing Card Oracles have been great: very accurate and in depth. The combination of geomancy and card meanings seems to hit a sweet spot for me, too.  I find I'm better at synthesizing the meaning of the cards and figures with the PCO than I am with tarot.  I’m also in love with the pocket sized edition, and will be purchasing a backup soon. Then I will have four copies of this deck, which seems a little crazy, but crazy is fine with me (I currently have a regular US Games, one Vintage, and one pocket.)

I thought I’d post the reading I did last night to show how I’ve been using and interpreting the deck. I’ll post how I interpreted the cards and the geomancy outcome, and then will relate it more directly to the querent’s situation at the end. Since I find it useful to see how other people come to their interpretations, I’ve also included my detailed notes on the cards and figures.

I used the Present 4-card spread, and asked, “Where is Mr. X’s head at with regard to his relationship with Ms. Y?”

Head: 4 of Spades – North Wind
Throat: 2 of Clubs – The Friends
Heart: 4 of Hearts – West Wind
Foot: Ace of Clubs – Ethra

Right/1st Witness (by number): Tristitia
Left/2nd Witness (by color): Puer
Judge: Fortuna Minor

Reading Summary:

X’s primary focus is on sexual energy and sexual motivations (4/spades in the Head position.) The two clubs cards point to a lot of mental energy and thoughts about the situation. Communication is probably easy for him with her, but he has a distanced curiosity about the whole affair and might be trying to keep her at an arm’s length emotionally (The Friends). Despite this fact, he feels a genuine, gentle warmth for Ms. Y (West Wind). The West Wind makes him want to ignore any worries or conflicts and just focus on the positive vibe between the two of them. The foot position is not well grounded with only an Ace (i.e. the very beginning, only a little) of air, so practical considerations are probably not on his radar so much. His dreams and fantasies about her are taking precedence. Ethra gives a need to reach out to connect, and in the foot position, this may be done in a very matter of fact way.

Geomancy Overview:
X has moved from a sorrowful but “stuck” situation in which something carefully built has eroded (Tristitia), towards a passionate, but immature and unstable situation (Puer). X may behave impulsively here, and will take initiative (Puer). A secret will be kept (Tristitia). In the end, what is gained here will be easily lost, but it will move quickly and will happen easily while it does, and while circumstances allow (Fortuna Minor). X may abuse power in this situation, and will see success for his hard work done. He may be fickle and unstable, but in general, X will be protected from misfortune & harm in the situation (Fortuna Minor).

What’s Really Going On: 

The cards and geomancy really hit the nail on the head! X is indeed in a serious relationship that has gone downhill and caused longterm disappointment, but he’s very stuck by his circumstances and cannot leave (Tristitia). This has lead him to explore this unstable passionate connection with Ms. Y, and theirs is a secret relationship (Puer). As The Friends and West Wind imply, he’s pretty clear on keeping things light, friendly, and fun instead of intense or emotional.  He's being very forward and assertive in pursuing her and in stating what he wants from her (Puer), but he's also being kind and being sure she knows that he wouldn't hold it against her if she wanted to end things at any time (West Wind).  He doesn’t seem interested in hashing out the practical issues either (weak Air/Ace in Foot), and just wants to focus (laser focus!) on the pleasure (sex!) (North Wind, West Wind.) 

Fortuna Minor’s influence is unfortunately pretty accurate, too. They moved into their relationship very quickly, but their togetherness is very dependent on their current circumstances. Should those change, they most likely would not continue seeing each other. In other words, it will be “nice” while it lasts, but Ms. Y shouldn’t hope for something long-term or deep from this connection.

(Feel free to skip the detailed notes below!)

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Detailed Notes on the Geomantic Figures (primarily from The Art and Practice of Geomancy)

RW: Tristitia - disappointment, melancholy, blame. Sorrow, downward movement. lowered spirits, vitality, expectations. Has stability, though, by sinking roots. Unfavorable in most. Favorable where stuckness or permanence is wanted, or where secret needs to be kept. Loss of something that was carefully built. He’s stuck in a situation, is disappointed in it.

LW: Puer - future/quesited: Passionate energy, force, seeking, sudden change. Good where energy, enthusiasm, courage & change desirable, but problematic due to unthinking nature. Unfavorable where stability, prudence, & maturity desirable. Seeks to be received. Impulsive behavior, energy that needs to be harnessed. Good for love. Taking initiative & leadership.

Judge: Fortune Minor - Lesser fortune. Swiftness. Unstable success; easily gained, easily lost. Outer circumstances or help usually plays into things. What you gain may not stay long. Very favorable when want to proceed quickly, change rapidly. Unfavorable where fickleness and instability a problem. Protection from misfortune and harm. Abuse of power. May have to work hard, but success is yours. Quick outcome; change & instability. Swiftness. Assistance from others.

Rather unfortunate geomancy outcome. Sorrow moves to passionate energy (favorable in sexuality), and results in Fortuna Minor, only temporary, unstable success. But FM is favorable for moving things along quickly, which could be a positive in some cases. Not a good sign for permanence, though.

Notes on the cards (from PCO book):

• no diamonds
• 2 clubs - lots of air, communication, thoughts
• only red card is 4hearts in Heart position – it stands out!
• Two 4 cards = foundations, winds, scattered energies in different directions; potential for disorganization or carelessness (need to learn organization and completion
• All even except for the ace = more outward energy, solace from inner challenge
• All lower numbers = weaker energy & personal risk
• Heart card surrounded by Clubs: these are the two sensitives suits; great subtleties of perception, emotionally, mentally, * intuitively. Makes for fertile imagination & creative ability. Challenging, overly susceptible combination. Good for counseling arts.
• Clubs near Spades: ability to think things through logically and apply in practical way; nothing unpredictable; tends towards pessimism

Head: dominates reading - North Wind: strong dynamic force, raw & unsettling power; often involves sexual energy or motivations; get ready for a ride you won’t soon forget. Hardship, challenge; need to seek protection. The challenge could be the sexual goals sought.

Throat: Relationships of The Friends contain aloofness & separateness, perhaps curiosity, like-mindedness, & friendship. Trying to find peace & acceptance in solitude. Recognition of need for personal space. Deuces usually are intense, but lightened here by air. Air/clubs at home in Throat position.

Heart: West Wind: atmosphere of compassion & warmth, mood of harmony, agreement, understanding, peace, acceptance; love & tenderness; gentle persuasion to put worries & conflict aside; finding common ground; lovers find comfort in each other’s arms – Water/hearts at home in Heart position.

Foot: Ethra: practical footing of issue: potential for communication; dreams or wishes, power of the mind & of believing; imagination. Realm of thoughts & ideas before they’re made real. Cries out for us to connect, speak, and believe. Seems sort of airy and ungrounded for the foot position, although the clubs/spades combination allows for logical thinking put to practical applications. Since this is an Ace, though, that ability might be lacking.