One thing I often try to impress upon both clients and students of the tarot is the idea that sometimes less is more.  More cards doesn’t always mean a better reading.  There is more to look at in a reading than the individual cards in their specific positions.

As the person getting a reading, and especially if you don’t have any tarot experience of your own, I can understand why you might think three cards isn’t much.  I used to think that too before I really started studying tarot in depth.  In fact it was a three and four card tarot reading from a reader in Connecticut that got me to finally stop working with big spreads religiously and start exploring the simplicity and elegance of simpler spreads.

When you’re learning tarot you often start out with learning two spreads: the three card Past/Present/Future spread and the ten card Celtic Cross spread. It always amazes me that people don’t commonly learn a five or six card in between, but these are usually the two starter spreads.

A great thing about learning those two at the start is that you instantly get comfortable with bigger spreads but hopefully you also learn how to glean a lot of info from a smaller one.  Unfortunately a lot of people get roped into the idea of more is more and leave the three card behind or just use them for quick readings without as much depth.

I want to bring back the love of the three card spread.  There’s a lot you can learn from just three cards.

 

Timing
Regardless of the actual spread you use, you can look for timing clues in your three cards.

Look at your three cards you have laid out with your reading and see if there are multiple cards of the same suit.  For example two Cups cards.  This would indicate a general autumn time frame.  You can also look at your outcome card for a timing indication.  For instance a 4 of Swords would indicated 4 weeks where a 2 of Wands would mean 2 days.

When you have no suits and all major arcana cards this can indicate a few different things depending on how you read {i.e. going with your gut}.  Typically major arcana cards indicate things that are already in motion, karmic in nature or even destined.  You could say that mostly major arcana cards indicate something that is going to happen in its own time.

Another perspective is to look at the astrological association.  All major arcana cards have an astrological sign that it corresponds with.  You can see if multiple ones of the same element are in the spread and then use that to determine the seasonal timing.

An example of this would be seeing both The Lovers, associated with Gemini, and The Star, associated with Aquarius in the same three card spread.  Both are Air signs, the element associated with the suit of Swords.  That means a spring time frame is likely.

 

A note about reading for others:  If you’re reading for someone else that lives in another hemisphere and you’re doing timing estimations for them, determine them in your own hemisphere and then have them flip-flop it to fit where they live.  So if you see a spring time frame it would be autumn for them.

 

Other things to look for…

• When you have a lot of one suit there is a heavy indication that the element and energy associated with that general suit needs to be addressed {like two Cups cards means there’s a lot of healing and emotions involved}.
• Look for color themes.  If each card has red as the dominate color it’s possibles issues of anger, frustration and power are at the heart of the matter.
• Be mindful of the little details.  If each card has a butterfly in it despite being mixed suits and major arcana cards, this may indicated that there is a lot of transition and a rebirth coming.

 

Three Card Spreads

I’ve put together a list of 25 of my much loved and most used three card spreads.  How in-depth you let a three card reading be is up to you.  You can spend hours digging into the messages of each card or you could just glance them over, look for the quick answer and be on your way.  It’s up to you.  As always, go with your gut!

 

1. Mind – Body – Spirit
2. Past – Present – Future
3. Situation’s energy – People involved – How it affects me
4. The Problem – The Cause – The Solution
5. The Root {grounding} – The Stem {growth} – The Flower {reward}
6. Start – Stop – Continue
7. Stop – Caution – Go
8. Do Now – Do Later -Do in the Distant Future
9. Strength – Weakness – Advice
10. Opportunities – Challenges – Outcome
11. Option 1 – Option 2 – Deciding Factor
12. What you can change – What you can’t change – What you need to accept
13. What worked – What didn’t work – What you can change next time
14. Where you are – Where they are – Where the relationship is going
15. The Problem – What you need to know – What you can do to change it
16. Head – Heart – Soul
17. Idea – Obstacle – Solution
18. Problem – Don’t Do This – Do This Instead
19. Yes if this happens – No if this happens – The Maybe Factor
20. Yesterday – Today – Tomorrow
21. The Lies – The Hidden Wisdom – The Truth
22. What is needed – What is wanted – What is destined
23. Three choices or Three Possibilities {1 – 2 – 3}
24. What I’m creating – How to nurture it – How to prevent its destruction
25. What I’m attracting – What I’m magnifying – What I need to release

 

Have a tarot question?  Want to share some of your favorite three card reading spreads and practices?  Tell me all about it down in the comments!

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