An intuitive Tarot journaling reflection exercise you can do with Tarot or any kind of deck.
Recently, I’ve been reflecting on how different this summer feels, and pulled some cards that embody those feelings. It’s a great moment to check in while we’re nearing halfway between the Solstice in June and Equinox in September. The energy currently is almost like a concentrated slice of all the opportunity this season holds.
I thought you might enjoy doing something similar (you can use any deck!), so here is the how-to! You can do this reflection at any time, really. And it doesn’t matter if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere or Southern Hemisphere.
The how-to
If you have a deck (any Tarot or other oracle deck will work for this!), I suggest grabbing that, a journal and pen, and a beverage and tucking into this nourishing reflection with me. By the way – for my Southern Hemisphere readers, you can do this exercise too! It’s not just about the summer.
1. Take an intentional pause: Pause for a moment and set an intention to receive wisdom and encouragement with this nourishing time for yourself. Then, think about the past month and a bit (starting from around June 21). How has this time felt for you? How are you feeling now? It’s okay if it’s not all rosy!
2. Select cards: I recommend looking through your deck and selecting up to 3 cards that capture how you’ve been feeling. You’ll be actively selecting these cards (in other words, look at them face-up. We’re not choosing them at random – unless you want to! Anything goes). Select these cards based on how you feel. You can pick the card(s) based purely on the art, or how they feel, or meanings you associate with them – anything. Trust yourself on this.
3. Notice what you notice: Once you have chosen your cards, lay them out together and look at them as a whole. How do they feel together? Do you notice anything about them? Any patterns? Similarities? Contrasts? I suggest jotting down these thoughts/observations/anything that pops into your mind as you do this. It’s okay if it feels like random thoughts!
4. Encouragement from the cards: Now think about what you’ve jotted down and look back at the cards. If these very same cards were offering you an encouragement, what would they be saying to you? Jot this down! And just allow the words to flow. I promise you that no matter what your cards look like, there is absolutely an encouragement for you in them.
The cards I pulled
If you’re curious, here are the cards I selected. I selected cards from Chakra Healing Tarot based on their broad meanings: 4 of Chalices, Hanged One and 4 of Swords. I won’t go into too much detail, otherwise this post will be 3 hours long. But in terms of quick insights, do you see how each of the cards corresponds to the heart chakra?
What it means
Whoa! I didn’t consciously intend that, but is quite the underscore! Something else I notice is that each of these people in the cards is at rest. There are two 4s, and fours are all about being established and firm and steady. The 12 of the Hanged One becomes a 3 in numerology, which is about harmony.
So the encouragement to me in these cards is to continue to rest and recover and be at EASE with not being able to do a whole lot right now. To know that in taking this time for recovery, I’m setting myself up to have a deeply strong foundation looking forward, and that truly allowing my heart (physical and emotional) to heal is a key part of that.
So that’s it! I hope this reflective exercise helps you! If you do it, let me know what you think of it!
Blessings and empowerment to you.