YouTube readings, pick-a-cards, in-person, over-the-phone, pre-recorded, collective readings; it can be a lot, especially if you’re new to the world of tarot reading. So let’s look at the different kinds of readings that are available to you as a querent/seeker, and the benefits and disadvantages of each.
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Types of Tarot readings
The two main categories of tarot readings you can get as a querent/seeker are collective readings and personal readings. Let’s get into them.
1. Collective readings
If you’ve ever come across a tarot reader online, on social media or YouTube, that posts tarot reading videos for particular zodiac signs, or pick-a-card readings, or any other kinds of general reading that is most definitely not directed at you specifically, then you are familiar with collective readings.
Collective tarot readings are intended to provide insight for the general public. This comes with challenges. It can be a fascinating exercise to do a reading for humanity as a whole, but there are so many people in this world going through completely different experiences, that doing one tarot reading for everyone results in very diluted insights that may not have much value for any one individual, in their particular life, at all.
Tarot readers who do collective readings generally use well-known ways of grouping people according to a common trait, like the zodiac signs. This narrows down the scope of a collective reading, and allows the insights to be more relevant and useful for the individuals within these smaller groups.
The guidance in collective readings is thus very broad and generalised. It can be a really cool way of seeing what shared experiences and themes are happening in the larger communities that we belong to. It does, however, also mean that not everything in a collective reading will relate to you as an individual querent/seeker. It’s best to practise a moderate level of discernment when watching these readings, because not doing so makes it easy to get swept up into ideas and narratives that have nothing to do with you.
Tarot readers will often say, “Take what resonates and leave the rest.” There is usually value to be gained from collective readings, but it is always a good idea to trust your own intuition above anything else when watching them.
Choose if: you want to see what’s going on in the collective groups you are a part of; you don’t need your tarot reading to address anything specific to you in your life; you aren’t able to consult with a tarot reader privately for a personal reading; you just like collective readings.
2. Pick-a-card readings
Pick-a-cards are really interesting because they are a type of collective reading that allows you, the viewer/querent/seeker to be involved in the tarot reading personally, albeit to a limited degree. This means that the guidance and insights from these types readings can theoretically be a little more specific and relevant to you as an individual than from other general collective readings.
These types of readings can be very fun, and appealing because of this involvement factor, but for some people they can be a hit-or-miss. This one comes down to personal preference and experience.
Choose if: anything from the collective readings ‘choose if’ applies to you, but you also want to have at least some personal involvement in the reading.
3. Personal tarot readings (aka Private readings)
Personal readings can and do offer a lot more niche value to a querent/seeker. These tarot readings are done for individuals, and sometimes couples and smaller groups of people. The biggest difference between personal readings and collective readings is that personal readings address the individual querent/seekers’ specific concerns, and the insights from the readings are intended solely for them. Any messages or guidance discussed in these tarot readings do not apply to outside the scope of the querent/seeker’s queries.
Personal tarot readings are question-led or open-ended, and they can be delivered in real-time in-person, over phone or video call, or they can be recorded.
Choose if: you want to get insights and guidance that are specific to you and your life.
4. Question led tarot readings
Many people who get tarot readings have specific questions or areas of their life that they want insights or guidance on. Personal tarot readings are able to address any of the queries that you as a querent/seeker might have, with as much or as little context as you are comfortable sharing with your reader.
Choose if: you have particular questions or queries that you want addressed during your tarot reading.
>What Questions Can You Ask In A Tarot Reading?
5. Open-ended tarot readings (General readings)
It’s quite common to not ask any questions in a tarot reading. Open-ended, also known as general readings are not limited to the scope of specific questions and topics, and so they are able to provide insights and messages that can be unexpected and profound. This kind of tarot reading is a great way to let the cards and Universe tell you whatever it wants to, without being restricted to certain topics or areas of your life.
Many querent/seekers go into open-ended tarot readings with a mindset of ‘Let’s see what the cards/Universe/Spirit guides have to say’, or their question is a broader, ‘Tell me whatever it is I need to know’, and find that they leave their readings with exactly the clarity they needed, without realising that they needed it.
Choose if: you don’t have any particular queries, but you still want insights and guidance that are specific to you and your life.
>Shop Open Ended Tarot Readings
6. Pre-determined tarot spreads
Sometimes tarot readers will have a range of different tarot spreads with pre-determined questions on offer. These are a wonderful middle-ground between question-led and open-ended readings.
There are many well-known tarot spreads, like the Celtic Cross, that readers learn about and work with through their journeys with tarot. While readers don’t need to follow a spread to conduct a reading, most experienced tarot readers develop their own unique spreads with various layouts and questions that can offer deeper and more unexpected insights than the most common spreads.
As a querent/seeker, choosing to get a tarot reading with a pre-set tarot spread can take away the pressure of having to decide what questions would be good to ask.
Choose if: you want insights on a particular aspect of your life, but you don’t know what specific questions to ask; you find a tarot spread you like on offer that covers topics and questions you’re interested in.
>Shop Pre-set Tarot Spread Readings
7. In-person, over-the-phone, and video call tarot readings
I’ve grouped in-person, phone and video readings together because, aside from the ‘in-the-flesh’ factor of in-person, the general experience of these tarot reading types is essentially the same, they just use different channels of communicating.
These three types of readings allow you and your tarot reader to speak directly with each other and experience the reading in real-time. Having this kind of reading is great because you and your tarot reader get to connect with each other in a direct way. You’re also able to discuss additional context and clarify things as they come up.
Choose if: you want to interact and speak with your tarot reader while the reading is being conducted.
8. Recorded/pre-recorded readings
Some tarot readers, like myself, offer readings that are recorded in audio, video, or written format, and then sent to you so that you can listen, watch, or read it after the fact. Recorded readings have numerous benefits.
This are a good option if you don’t have the time, desire or energy to schedule a real-time reading, or if you are not up to interacting with your reader. As soon as your recording is ready, your reader will send a copy of it to you that you can go through in your own time, at your own pace, and you have the added bonus of being able to re-listen, re-watch, or re-read your tarot reading again, as many times as you like.
Choose if: you aren’t able to, or don’t want to, schedule a real-time reading; you want to keep a recording of your reading that you can re-visit at your convenience.
Spoilt for choice
The variety of tarot readings that exist means that you are able to tailor your tarot experience to exactly what you need and desire. These are just some of the options available. No matter what your circumstances are, you’ll be able to find something that matches your individual requirements!
Featured image & cover photo credit: expandingsapience.com