Tarot Foundations by Brigit Esselmont, Day 16

The holidays, then a round of nasty sickness going through my house, myself, husband, and five kids, and maybe even the dog and cats, threw me off schedule, but I am still going to bring you some great posts about Tarot Foundations: 31 Days to Read Tarot with Confidence by Brigit Esselmont, culminating with an exciting giveaway next week!  If you need to catch up, see the previous posts here.

Today I am working with Day 16: Understand Basic Numerology.  The lesson has to do with how numbers work in the tarot, but if math isn't your thing, don't worry.  Your skills won't be taxed at all!

In her easy going style, Brigit breaks down how each pip card in tarot relates to a number, and what you can count on those numbers to mean.  You don't have to become an expert in numerology to use it well with tarot, either.  A basic understanding, which Brigit makes sure you have in this one lesson, will go far in enhancing your tarot readings, and even help you when you notice numbers elsewhere, like the clock reading 11:11 and you see it all the time.  Tarot knowledge is useful everywhere!

Activity 16.1- Map the Numerological Journey

Select one suit to work with. Take out all the pip cards in that Suit (i.e. from Ace to 10) and lay the cards out in order in front of you (see example to the right).
Now, apply your knowledge of the Suit (e.g. Cups = emotions, relationships, creativity) and your knowledge of numerology to map the journey from the Ace through the Ten.
Note down 2-3 keywords or phrases for each card using only what you know about the Suit and the numerological association.

Llewellyn Tarot, trimmed, Suit of Swords

I like to let tarot guide me, so I shuffled my Llewellyn Tarot, which I am using this week, with the intention that the first suit I encountered would be the one I used for this exercise.  I drew the Five of Swords, and so it was decided!

In my tarot world view, the suit of Swords relates to the element of Air, which is ruled by the astrological signs of Aquarius, Gemini, and Libra.  Swords concern thoughts, words, communications, ideas, conflicts, actions to take, dreams and mental processes.  The Swords suit is more than that, too, but for a start that is pretty good.

• Ace/Swords- New ideas, new ways of thinking, powerful thoughts to focus
• Two/Swords-  Choice to be made, pause for consideration, weighing options
• Three/Swords- Delay in what was desired, thoughts not matching reality, take time out to heal
• Four/Swords- A moment to let thoughts sink in, pause for breath, prophetic dreams
• Five/Swords- Faulty thinking patterns, need to assess priorities matching values, deciding if the ends are merit the means
• Six/Swords- Peace of mind, mental help from a helpful source, moving on mentally
• Seven/Swords- Need to assess motive, assess faith in ability to provide for self, need to think outside the box
• Eight/Swords- Need to realize ones' own power, understand you are in this situation with a purpose, deciding for yourself when changes happen
• Nine/Swords- Self fulfilling prophecy, thinking oneself into a frenzy, finding a solution
• Ten/Swords- The worst is over now, release, ability to start over

Once complete, revisit your keyword chart and add any new keywords to your chart.  If you have time, repeat for the other suits, including the Major Arcana.

That's it, it was that easy, thanks to Brigit breaking down numerology so succinctly, and even though I have read tarot for quite a while, her methods have helped me add some new keywords to my repertoire.  No such thing as too many options!

Don't forget, along with the purchase of this eBook, you get unlimited access to a special forum on Biddy Tarot dedicated to the use of you and other students on the program, and it is quite affordable.  Click here to visit Biddy Tarot.

(Full disclosure- I do earn a portion of the purchase price if you click on links in this blog, but I affiliate with very few programs because few meet my high standards.  I highly recommend this program and that is why I am writing about it!)



These cards represent the full suit of the Swords pip cards, 1-10, from the Llewellyn Tarot by Anna-Marie Ferguson, published by Llewellyn.  Mine have been lovingly released of their borders, but the borders were quite pretty.  It is all personal taste.