Mixing it up this Sabbat, I decided to share my own personal Summer Solstice tarot reading. After attending a webinar with the wonderful Andrea Aste, I wanted to use his method of creating a “Super Card”, effectively a five card spread but reading all the cards together as one, rather than designating specific meanings to the placements. Inspiration for this method came from researching the way the Mayans used glyphs – a truly fascinating subject.

When pulling my tarot cards I had no specific question in mind, more a general sense of wanting to look back at the first half of the year. I thought about what had changed, what I have learned, how I have grown and a little about what I hope for the rest of the year.

I chose the Harmony Tarot because it felt like it would suit a tarot reading about seasonal change. I’m still getting to grips with the deck (it doesn’t seem to follow any traditional system, there are some similarities with the RWS but not enough for me to feel totally confident reading) but the botanical illustrations felt perfect for this moment.

As if wanting to prove that it was the right tarot deck for the job, all the cards I pulled were either Winter or Spring (pentacles and wands I think? but as i say, I’m not sure).

If reading these cards as a “Super Card” or glyph, I look to the repeating messages, building around the central card. The Six of Spring (bluebells) speaks to courage, growth and progress despite or perhaps because of potential risk.
These themes continue throughout the reading. The Seven of Spring suggests adventure and restlessness – the urge to explore. The Ace of Winter (snowdrops) holds opportunity and fresh challenges, renewed focus and a place to direct some real hard graft. The Six of Winter also brings new opportunities for learning and development, change and maybe a time to shift around priorities.
The only other factor drawn into the reading comes from the Five of Winter – a card usually associated with grief and loss, but also worry and uncertainty. This card brings a much needed depth to the reading, a reminder to feel all of the feeling associated with this new chapter and season of change, that grief is a natural process and has to happen in order to make way for something new.

I really enjoyed this style of reading, taking each card to make up facets of a larger answer felt very intuitive and straight forward, especially for something as reflective as the solstice.
The overall shape the tarot reading gave me was that this year so far has taught me a lot about how I react to change, that I’m often quick to force myself to me excited and looking for the opportunities but am reluctant to let myself feel the harder emotions like grief and loss. It has been a season of growth for me, I’m in the midst of something big and a lot of changes are on the horizon but I shall endeavour to be more honest with myself and those around me as I progress through this journey.

I hope you enjoyed this little window into my personal tarot practice and how I relate it to my own life and challenges. I wish you the merriest of solstices wherever you are in the world and I’ll catch you all soon!