As the previous year started winding down and coming to a close, I had been asked to talk about working with Oracles at a couple of venues in my local Charleston area – and my topic was on reading Oracle cards without consulting the guidebook.

Because of the “freeform” nature of Oracle cards, consulting the guidebook can be helpful, to get some idea on what the creator(s) intended with the deck.

But putting the guidebook aside sets the intention to tap into your own body of knowledge – your own well of wisdom, if you will – and that will make the deck more personal and relevant to you.

This year, I’ve been inspired to expand my use of Oracle cards – beyond my current “Daily Divination” posts on social media – and incorporate them into my public work with clients, especially for those who might find Tarot a bit off-putting (that was the gist of the guidance I received).

And the deck I was specifically led to start with is the Wisdom of the Oracle Divination Cards (by Colette Baron-Reid and Jena DellaGrotaaglia; published by Hay House).

Why?

Guidance said it’s because of the “divination” aspect of the set; I was being led to “start where I’m at.”

Along with that, I was encouraged to work through the deck sequentially, one card a day.

And to have it speak my language, I’m putting the guidebook aside, relying on my intuition – and my own body of knowledge, gained from personal life experiences – to convey messages that might be unique to me.

And remember my premise: If I can do this, you can do it too; you have your own knowledge (intuitive and otherwise) that you can apply to your Oracle cards.

I’ll share a recent experience with the Wisdom of the Oracle, to illustrate my point….

For day one of my study, I laid out the first card in the deck, Yang, and sat with it, looking at every aspect of the card.

Here’s what I wrote in my journal about the card:

yang = male/masculine energy

1 = a masculine number; beginning, start, new; individual, self

O   N  E

15 14  5 = 34

34

CD = seed (which can also be associated with 1)

hands = action, activity; the hands are open = receiving – open to receiving; having a “hand” in the matter

fire = energy; element; a “ball of fire”; “fired up”

stars = ideals; goals; air = another element; mind; mental/spiritual; atmosphere; clear sky = clear mind; consciousness, conscious mind

Y  A   N   G

25 1  14   7 = 47/11; 47 = time, 11 = vision

hands, stars = reaching for the stars, taking action(s) to reach your goals

Putting it all together:

With Yang, this may be a day of taking action and making things happen. Yang suggests moving into a time (the word “yang” vibrating at 47, which means “time”) of becoming more aware of my thought processes (sky = the mind and conscious awareness), and how those thoughts lead to manifestation. If I’m aware of what I want to manifest (desire, symbolized by the fire), Yang asks the question, “How can you begin (1 = beginnings for the individual, the self) to give it form in a concrete, tangible way? Yang says it’s the perfect time to envision, to act on that vision, to build momentum, and make some headway. Adopting this approach—with an air of confidence—will be productive and bear fruit. Yang says that the power to reach my goals (the stars) is in my hands—how will I use it?

And that was my initial work with the Yang card. I left it out (which I do with my daily draws), and went about my day.

Shortly after, I had a thought that Yang could represent the Divine Masculine, something talked about in spiritual/metaphysical/new-age circles these days.

With that not being in my particular wheelhouse, though, it led to this thought: Yang could also represent a male seeker (querent), much like Gentleman in Lenormand, Main Male in Kipper, and Lover in Gypsy cards (other cartomantic systems I work with). So I could make this a significator card, and it could represent me. I like this!

Later in the day, I had another thought: The words “a productive airspace” came to mind, which could also mean “an air/atmosphere that’s productive.”

And, as the day came to a close, I reviewed my experiences to see if I could see any personal connections to Yang. I recalled a couple of times where I found myself forgetting things (for instance, being in the car about to see a client for a Tarot consultation, and realizing that I left my travel bag of decks still inside the house). When looking at Yang again, I then noticed there was no head of a man on the card – just the pair of hands. Because of the sky (air = the mind), this might be(come) a possible meaning for the card. I would have to “track” that possible interpretation with future draws.

Just as I reviewed my day with Yang, let’s review my intention and premise for this article, which is bringing your particular wisdom (knowledge) to your set of Oracle cards.

In my case, I looked at the imagery, and took certain aspects and interpreted them as if in a dream. I took into account the number of the card, and incorporated my knowledge of numerology into the overall meaning of the card. Going further with the numerology, I also used Gematria for deciphering the words “one” and “yang,” incorporating those vibrational frequencies (numbers) into the card’s meanings.

Simply, I just brought in things that I knew and applied those things to the card—making it more personal to me.

And if I can do it, so can you.

The next time you pull an Oracle card for yourself, consider the following:

Image: When you look at the image (if the card has one), what do you see? What immediately jumps out at you, what gets your attention? Does the image make you feel a certain way? Does a thought come to mind? A memory? A song? What’s the story in the image?

Title: Does the card have a title/name? If so, what associations do you have for that title/name? What comes to mind?

Keywords: Does the card have keywords or text? If so, do any words get your attention? What associations do you have for those words?

Number: Does the card have a number? If so, does the number have any meaning for you? Are there any catchphrases or pop-culture references associated with that number you’re familiar with?

Border/color: Does the card have a border? Does the color of that border have a particular meaning or personal association for you?

All of the things I’ve suggested in the questions and prompts would be your own well of wisdom. And when you bring your own well of wisdom to your set of Oracle cards, you’ll be surprised at how much you already know about your deck.

 

 

 

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