Alright folks, lemme tell ya about something that used to really trip me up, but now I feel like I’ve got a handle on it: the Celtic Cross tarot spread. For the longest time, I’d stare at those ten cards and just kinda guess what was going on. It looked cool, sure, but understanding every single spot? That was a whole different ballgame.
I got into this whole tarot thing years ago, mostly just pulling a daily card or doing a quick three-card spread for a simple “past, present, future” vibe. It was chill, gave me little nudges here and there. But then life threw a curveball, you know? Just a massive, confusing mess that a simple three-card pull wasn’t gonna cut. I felt like I was in a fog, trying to make some big decisions, and every time I tried to get clarity, I just ended up with more questions than answers. It was frustrating as heck.
I remember one particularly rough patch. Everything felt stuck. My job was, well, it was a job, not a passion, and I was wondering if I should try something totally new. My relationships felt a bit off-kilter, and I just couldn’t figure out what the root cause was. I’d pull cards, and they’d tell me things like “take a leap” or “reflect,” but reflect on what exactly? And leap into what? It was all too vague. That’s when I thought, “Nope, this ain’t gonna fly. People swear by the Celtic Cross for deep dives. I gotta crack this code.”
So, I grabbed my deck. I had a few books lying around, some printouts from online sources, all giving slightly different takes on the positions. It was like trying to piece together a puzzle with missing pieces and extra pieces all at once. My first step was just to lay out the cards in the Celtic Cross pattern, every single day. I didn’t even try to read them deeply at first. I just wanted to get comfortable with the shape of it. Then, I started focusing on one position at a time.
I’d pull a card for Position 1: The Present Moment, or sometimes folks call it “the significator.” This one’s usually right in the middle, and man, it really tells you where you’re at right then and there. I’d sit with that card, write down everything that came to mind about my current situation that matched the card’s energy. Is it a strong card? Am I feeling powerful? Is it a difficult card? Am I struggling? That helped me anchor the reading to reality.
Then came Position 2: The Crossing Card. This one usually goes over the first card, either horizontally or vertically, kinda like a cross. This one always felt like the big reveal. Is it helping you, or is it blocking you? Is it something you gotta overcome? I remember one time, I had the Eight of Swords here – pure self-doubt and feeling trapped. It was right over my present situation card, which was the King of Wands. It clicked: I had the drive and potential (King of Wands), but I was totally stopping myself with my own mental crap (Eight of Swords). It was like, “Aha! That’s the problem!”
Next up was Position 3: The Foundation, or what’s underneath you. This is the stuff that grounds you, that unspoken base you’re standing on, sometimes even unconscious stuff. I learned to look at this as the deep-seated root of whatever I was dealing with. Is it family? Old beliefs? Your upbringing? It’s not always obvious, but when a card lands here, it makes you dig deep.
Then, Position 4: The Past. This one always made sense, things that are behind you and led you here. It shows what you’re moving on from, or what patterns got you to this point. I’d look for connections between this card and my current situation – was there a lingering effect? A lesson unlearned?
After that, Position 5: The Crown, what’s above you. This isn’t necessarily the future, but rather what’s possible, what you aspire to, or even something hanging over your head. It’s the potential or the biggest influence you could reach for. Sometimes it’s a goal, sometimes it’s a warning.
And then Position 6: The Future. This one is pretty straightforward, showing what’s coming up next, immediate developments. It’s not the final outcome, but the next step on the path. I found it helpful to see this as what actions or situations were starting to form.
The next four cards, the “staff” or “line” of the spread, are all about your environment and journey:
- Position 7: Your Power. This is about you, the querent, your attitude, how you’re approaching things. Are you confident? Hesitant? This card reflects your inner state in the situation. It made me check myself, honestly.
- Position 8: External Influences. What’s outside of you? Other people, your environment, things you can’t control but definitely affect you. This position often showed me who was pulling strings or what events were impacting me from the outside.
- Position 9: Hopes and Fears. Man, this one’s a mirror. It shows what you truly want to happen, or what you’re absolutely dreading. It’s often both sides of the same coin. I’d pull a card here and think, “Yep, that’s exactly what I’m hoping for/worrying about.” It really lays bare your emotional core in the situation.
- Position 10: The Outcome. This is it, the final card, what all those other nine cards are leading towards. It’s the destination, the culmination of all the energies at play. It’s not set in stone, mind you, but it’s the most likely result given everything else.
I kept at it, day after day, just pulling these spreads and journaling my thoughts for each position, cross-referencing with different sources when I needed to, but mostly just trusting my gut and seeing how the cards spoke to me in my situation. It wasn’t about memorizing every single definition; it was about understanding the role each position played in the bigger story. I kept asking myself, “If this card is here, what does that mean for me and this specific spot in the story?”
And you know what? Eventually, it clicked. All that confusion started to clear. I started seeing the narrative flow from one card to the next, understanding how the past led to the present, what was influencing me, and what outcome was building up. It went from a bunch of random cards to a coherent story about my life. This wasn’t some quick trick; it was a grind, a commitment to really understand how this intricate spread worked for me. And now, when life throws those big, messy questions my way, I know exactly what spread to pull to get the really deep answers I need.
