~ “Poetry is the synthesis of hyacinths and biscuits” ~
— Carl Sandburg
This step is to synthesize everything we’ve learned in Steps 5 & 6 – number, suit, element, and mode – into simple statements. In other words, we get to have a lil fun and mix and match the keywords in order to create mini-meanings or aphorisms to help us out in not only understanding our chosen card better, but also apply them when the card appears in our readings, as we seem fit.
The best part about this technique is that not only can it help us whenever we’re having intuitive dry-spells, but it can even help us with cards that have unillustrated minors that make it hard to read with ‘intuitively’, as well as, whenever we need to do a ‘quickie’ reading where we need ‘instant answers’ without being too ‘therapeutic’. For those of you who do the whole ‘psychic fair circuit’, as well as, those of you who read at parties, events, metaphysical stores, salons, etc, where you have to stick to a fixed amount of time per seeker, and wish not to be too drained at the end of the day; this reading technique can prove surprisingly useful.
What’s even more cool about it is that you can create an infinite amount of aphorisms and statements, as you can mix the keywords in any possible combination, as it suits the reading. So you can even create a set of ‘ready-made’ interpretations for your own personal convenience. However, I feel that it’s important that I mention that the cards are incredibly dynamic, and while this is a good step to follow, never ignore your own personal intuitive impulses at the time of a reading!
And with that, let’s see how we can synthesize the various structural aspects of the chosen card – 6 of Swords.
In this exercise, I’m making it like a mathematical formula (6 + Swords =…). 6 being a variable that contains all the keywords associated with 6, including the fact that it’s ruled by Venus; Swords being another variable that contains all the keywords associated with that suit, including the fact that it’s associated with the element of Air. And since it’s belongs to the Minor Arcana, one of the Modes of a Tarot Deck, all the resulting aphorisms are connected to the “what?” in a situation, and the “what action to take?” For more details on these, please check the previous step.
6 of Swords
6 (Hamony) + Swords (Thoughts) = Harmony of Thoughts
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6 (Balance) + Swords (Mental) = Mental Balance
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6 (Perfection) + Swords (Planning) = Perfectly laid Plans
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6 (Union) + Sword (Mindset) = Unity of mindsets
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6 (Beauty) + Swords (Mind) = A Beautiful Mind
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6 (Fairness) + Swords (Decision) = A fair decision
(Make your decisions fairly; A decision shall be made that’s fair to everyone)
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6 (Emotions) + Swords (Detachment) = Emotional Detachment
(In order to move on we need to detach ourselves emotionally from the past)
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6 (Pleasantries) + Swords (Cutting) = Cutting through the Pleasantries
(Cut the crap and get down to business)
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6 (Yin) + Swords (Yang) = Yin & Yang
(A balance of our feminine emotional self and masculine logical self)
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6 (Idealism) + Swords (Ideas) = Idealistic Ideas
(Through our idealistic ideas, we can create a revolution, and move forward in our personal evolution)
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6 (Discrimination) + Swords (Criticism) = Critical Discrimination
(After all, Uncle Al did call this card ‘Science’)
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6 (Reunion) + Swords (Letters/Communication) = Invitation to a Reunion
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6 (Resolution) + Swords (Battle) = Resolving Battles
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6 (Moist) + Swords (Air) = Humidity 😀
(Yes, I was once asked on Radio to give a weather forecast. I ‘winged’ it in this manner, and it worked)
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6 (Vanity) + Swords (Cruel) = Vanity and Cruelty go hand in hand.
(If we think about it, a lot of people who are exceedingly vain have quite a cruel streak (Mirror Mirror on the wall…). And yes, this step can also be used to elaborate the ‘shadow’ aspect of a card)
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Wow! Just by synthesizing the various structural aspects of the card, we’ve managed to come up with 15 unique aphorisms which we can use with the card! See, just by understanding the various structural aspects of a card, we can learn so much about it, as well as, be able to create our own interpretations, and apply them to a reading where it seems fit. Some of them, I just created on the spot, because they just ‘hit’ me at the moment. That just goes to show how ‘intuitive flashes of inspiration’ can strike us even when doing something as ‘mundane’ as mixing and matching keywords to create aphorisms.
We shall next see how we can use our intuitive abilities and create metaphors for our chosen card in Step 8: Metaphor.
Till then, have a lovely week ahead.
Love and Blessings
Zorian
PS: Hey, be a sport, try this out and see how you can synthesize the various aspects of the 6 of Swords (or whichever card you’re doing your own personal Journey through Mary K. Greer’s 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card), and please share them with us here. I’d so totally love to read them. You could just end up teaching us all something new!
I wish you could see me sitting here, all giddy and squealing like a little girl because this is so damn exciting!! There’s so much to learn – happy, happy 5! Are there even enough days left? 😀 This technique is especially helpful for the minors, I think, because sometimes where they show up just doesn’t make any sense to the question being asked or their position. but if you have this exploration under your belt, you can draw on any number of interpretations and figure out what’s going on.
The “weather forecast” story also shows that this technique is really helpful for quick-fire readings. I can see how it would be an excellent practice exercise.
Lol…. I can so totally imagine you like that (being a 5 myself, I do quite the same :D). More than minors, it works perfectly with Courts (and I guess by my previous post, you know exactly how I feel when too many appear within a reading 😉 ). Plus, it’s always handy to have a few good aphorisms of each and every card under your belt just in case the situation calls for it. It so totally helps.
Oy, the Radio example kinda freaked me out a lil when it happened. It was like right out of the blue, a caller asked me about how would the weather be in a certain city he was gonna visit for his friend’s wedding. Apparently, the card I pulled was 5 of Swords, and the first thing that came to mind was ‘stormy and windy’, and so just went with that. I got an email from the caller telling me that it was so stormy and windy that the wedding was called off, and postponed.
Yes, I so totally get freaked out when readings go ‘scarily accurate’. But I guess that’s what makes reading Tarot all the more exciting!
I am loving your journey and am particularly falling in love with the card your are working with. I’ve never either liked or disliked the 6 of Swords, but it’s turning into something quite beautiful for me.
Your first five combos are exquisite (to me) and I think the “perfectly laid plans” is really good…one that I think will come in handy.
Thank you for sharing this experience.
PS your court cards post was pretty funny. I still hate ’em. :-p
Thank you Barbara, I’m really happy that you’re enjoying my journey, and am so thrilled that courtesy it, you’re falling in love with the 6 of Swords. Like you, I was really ‘neutral’ regarding this card, but through this journey, I’m really opening up to it, and discovering it’s beauty more and more through each and every step.
Really? you found my first 5 combos exquisite! Wow, that’s so amazing, thank you (*squealing like an excited pre-teen girl at a Twilight screening*). ‘Perfectly laid Plans’ was something I just came up with while typing up this post, I never really associated it with the card earlier, but I guess the journey is really bringing stuff out!
Thank you for your love and support
xoxo
Z