New Relationships – Example Reading
Card 8 
Card 7 
Card 1 
Card 2 
Card 6 
Card 5 
Card 3 
Card 4
Deck: Arthurian Legends
Question: A reading on a possible relationship with a lady who is related to your work.
Spread: This is a spiral spread design with the card meanings are shown below:
8
7 1 2
6 5 3
4 Card 1: How you see her
Card 2: How you see a possible relationship with her
Card 3: How she sees you
Card 4: How she sees a possible relationship with you
Card 5: Areas of compatibility and positives of the relationship
Card 6: Obstacles or problems you may have to overcome
Card 7: The most likely future of this relationship
Card 8: What could be done to get this relationship off to a good start
Reading
Card 1 – Three of Swords, reversed. The Three of Swords is a card of sorrow, and depicts Palomides in the forest, despairing because he loved a woman (Queen Isolt) that he could never have, because she was the consort of his friend Tristram. Although he did his best to hide his feelings, they eventually caused a rift and long-standing rivalry between the two. This card suggests that inside you are still suffering emotionally from either the most recent situation or an older love you have lost. You are doing your best to leave this behind and make a new life, and you see this woman as someone who might be able to help you do this. She may also have a resemblance to someone you once loved. This worries me a little, because although healing is a positive and good thing, you may be seeing her partially through the eyes of emotional need rather than as she really is. Be aware that past situations may be affecting your response to her, and just keep that in mind as a caution – your feelings may seem out of proportion to how well you actually know her.
Card 2 – Seven of Swords, reversed. The Seven of Swords is a card of mental challenges and rites of passage. This card depicts Galahad drawing the sword from the stone, which was embedded there by Merlin. The feat of drawing the sword from the stone marked Galahad as the knight that was destined to find the Holy Grail. The Holy Grail in this deck marks the suit of Cups, and can be though of as a quest for love, and spiritual renewal. The reversal of this card shows that you are finding it difficult to take this first step on the quest – getting a relationship started that feels right to you. At times it seems as impossible as drawing the fabled sword from the stone – yet you know in your soul that when the right person comes along, the sword will slide out easily, releasing an old pain from your heart. The reversal may indicate your overall feeling about the challenge of finding love, or it may suggest that you are not sure that this lady is really the right one.
Card 3 – Ace of Shields. This card depicts Evalach’s Shield, a magical shield with healing powers that only the right knight (again Galahad) could bear. All others were accosted by a white knight who barred their way. Once Galahad came to claim the shield, the ghost of the white knight appeared one last time, telling him the shield’s history, then going to his rest. This woman also has ghosts in her past, that need to be laid to rest. She is in need of healing. She sees you as a solid and safe person, who could potentially provide that healing. The problem is, the Ace is only a card of potentials, and depicts the shield before Galahad arrives, hanging on the wall untouchable by anyone else. Something holds her back from actually doing anything about this vague feeling she has – maybe she is not sure whether you are the right one either, and the ghosts of her past hold her back from doing anything more. But at least her view of you is positive and strong.
Card 4 – The Star, reversed. The Star shows a party of knights outdoors, watching as the Firedrake streaks overhead. This was probably a comet, and was considered a very good omen of hope and peace in the land. She is uncertain of a relationship with you, and is waiting for some kind of sign or omen to tell her that you are the right one. She may not even realize she is doing this, but subconsciously, she needs some kind of reassurance before entering any kind of relationship. She may feel a bit fatalistic about the likelihood of ever finding the right person to spend her life with, just as you do. Although consciously she may have given up, inside a small spark of hope and life remains, waiting to be ignited.
Card 5 – The Priestess. This card depicts Nemue, a priestess of Avalon, surrounded by wood spirits. As the card that represents the positive qualities of this potential relationship, it suggests a deep subconscious bond and spiritual aspect to the relationship. Also a desire for peace, a shared love of nature, and restful companionship. The Priestess is the source of deep inner wisdom, feminine intuition, and inspiration. This card suggests that the basis of the relationship would be a shared philosophy and spiritual bond, rather than a physical attraction or other more worldly interests.
Card 6 – Death, reversed. The biggest obstacle to the relationship will be leaving the past behind. Death is a card of transformation and new life, and typically shows a need to start completely over, carrying little of the past forward. A reversed Death card would mean that one or both of you is carrying harmful things from the past, that may interfere with establishing a new relationship. These could be things like difficulty establishing trust, making changes, or incorporating another person’s lifestyle into yours. Or it could be that your respective pasts color your approach to new relationships in ways that make it more difficult to communicate or see the other person and their motivations clearly. Your own expectations could create a self-fulfilling prophecy if you are not able to open up and trust each other fully.
Card 7 – The Hermit, reversed. This card depicts Lancelot in exile, when he was banished from court by Guenevere after she caught him sleeping with Lady Elaine. This card reversed indicates unwelcome isolation due to matters of love. As the most likely outcome of this relationship at this time, this could mean that you both would like to start a relationship but neither one takes the first step – or that the first step is taken but goes badly in spite of good intentions on either side. Or simply that one person is not yet ready to give up their isolation, in spite of their loneliness.
Card 8 – Five of Spears, reversed. The Five of Spears is named the Pursuit of Igraine, and tells the story of a king who loved a woman so much that he used all his energies and men to besiege the castle of her husband (and his friend and loyal retainer) and even killed his friend so that he could have her. He lost much in this endeavor, even though he won the woman in the end, and the battle was not very chivalrous. Reversed, this card suggests that there is no good action you can take right now to get this relationship started. She might even be the right woman for you, but if you try to start this now, there will be much pain and difficulty involved, and a loss of honor on your part. An attempt at a relationship with a co-worker could create problems at work as the story of this card has within it a conflict of interest between love and affairs of state (business). It would be best for you to wait a while – these cards suggest that you still need some time to recover from the last situation in order to see things objectively, and she has even more difficult things of her own to work out. It may be that there will be a better time in the future to pursue this.
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