Incandescent Tarot Podcast

We’re back down to earth this month, with a natural focus on work, dedication, and follow-through shown in our theme card, the Eight of Pentacles. The first of three consecutive eights, this card positions us as the makers and doers in our own life story. It’s a welcome change from all the Major Arcana energy that’s been animating our past readings, yet three eights is no small matter and perhaps even a shoutout to our card of the year, number eight in the Major Arcana, Strength. We have some lingering swords-issues in the world around us as the Eight of Swords shows us messily contending with our wishes, desires, opinions, and even self-confidence. Yet our opportunity card, the Nine of Cups, invites us to consider how we might have everything we need and to use our emotional resources to ground ourselves instead of, as our challenge card the Eight of Cups suggests, running to the hills in pursuit of newness or elusive feelings and goals. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

I couldn’t keep us from our reading this week, dear readers! Press play above for the full rundown - I can’t express enough how excited I am to see The Magician! I’ll be back with regular programming next week. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

In June’s reading we have another court card leading the way. The Queen of Swords encourages us to embrace our power to organize and communicate our thoughts, advocate for ourselves and others, and strive towards a more meaningful and, you guessed it, just world. Yes, Justice is in the air the month as our environment card. We’ll be grappling with how to bring this lofty ideal into our flawed and complicated world, both in our everyday life and our larger communities. While we can accomplish a lot in this space, it’s calling on us to show up mindfully and with directed intention. Yet part of us wants to sneak off and get distracted in daydreaming, fantasy, and frivolous side quests. I’m talking about the Knight of Cups here, our challenge card. The Two of Cups, however, offers us an opportunity to engage with lofty principles in our everyday life and gain some balance by having fun in small ways while inviting in bigger changes. Listen in for the full reading and be sure to leave your comments below. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

This month’s reading has a fresh energy, led by the formidable and fiery King of Wands. In May we'll be stepping into our power and ambition, showing up, and making things happen. Temperance invites us to balance this output with steady, dedicated care for both ourselves and our communities while Judgment gives us a somewhat comical alarm for when we’re getting off-course. Why pass judgment when we can be chill, focusing on tending to our cups? These cards remind us that life is not a zero-sum game and that change does not lead to a static outcome. Not only this, but the Two of Cups shows us how our new relationships, passions, and artistic or spiritual pursuits are a source of both pleasure and promising growth. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

We’re back at long last with another installment of “Ask a Tarot Reader"! Listen in as I dive into two excellent listener-submitted questions. The first touches on the tens of the minor arcana:“Why do you think the 10’s are so different from each other (or not)? The 10’s of pentacles and cups are so abundant, joyful,  and triumphant, while the 10’s of wands and swords are overwhelming, burdensome, and a real bummer. I know there’s a range of what they can represent, but I’m curious about how you’d explain the apparent contrast.”and the second brings us to the world of the Major Arcana:“How does the Star card relate to the star in the Hermit’s lamp?”Submit your own question .::. https://www.incandescenttarot.com/askatarotreader This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

What a fascinating group of cards for April! This month is animated by the call to move towards peace and fulfillment via the Six of Swords, and it seems as if our environment card, the Ten of Cups, isn’t just giving us a green light, it’s giving us a full-on, resplendent rainbow. This is a long and poignant journey, however, and we’ve been preparing for it for some time. The World from last month gave us a peek at the landscape we’ll be traversing and now our job is to wade into it and stay the course, trusting in our emotions, intuition, and deeper wisdom. Our challenge will be to resist the urge to turn this moment into one of practicality and caution like the Knight of Pentacles. This is not a month to reason away our joy, wishes, or values. Luckily, the Knight of Swords is rising to the challenge and shows us using or words, wit, and conviction for good; choosing what matters to us, trusting in the meaning we make of our lives, and defending our dedication to connection, sweetness, and community. Listen in for the full forecast, including an enthusiastic deep-dive into these two knights, rapturous explorations of the swords suit done right, and lots of impassioned musings on spring as a season for new beginnings. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

This month we shift from the analytic, sharp swords and into the feeling world of the cups. The Two of Cups sees us reaching out and being received by others. What insights can we gift to those close to us? What can be revealed to us in turn? The Hierophant suggests that there’s profound wisdom to explore in this space and the energy to make headway in areas of our life that give us a sense of meaning and purpose. Our challenge card, the Two of Wands, shows a desire to turn away from all this and keep things light, but in doing so we’d just be hiding in our actualization, healing, and self-expression as shown in our opportunity card: The World. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

February’s reading features a bevy of swords cards. We’re poised to step into the shoes (and throne) of the discerning and stoic King of Swords while struggling against “Knight of Swords impulses” in ourselves and others to rush to conclusions, have the first and last word, and figure it all out. Yet underneath it all, we’re undergoing a slow and steady journey away from ideas and expectations we’ve outgrown. The Six of Swords shows a deliberate choice to take responsibility for ourselves and remain open to input from the world around us. Think sailing across the river vs. sweating to build a whole bridge. All this complexity, if we choose to engage with it, steers us towards the fertile shore of The Star where wisdom and peace await. Sounds alluring! And well worth the pointedness of the rest of our reading. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

Listen in as we explore the cards for the first month of 2024! But first, a look at our transition from a Chariot Year (2023) to a year animated by Strength (2024). It’s been a wild ride, and this jump seems both exciting and grounding. The year starts out with a serious and zesty batch of cards. January’s theme is The Hermit, where we travel inward to uncover animating truths that give our lives meaning. The environment is supportive of this quest along with many others touching on themes of romance, connection, and spiritual meaning. The Knight of Cups shows our enthusiasm and more than a little potential to be “extra.” We’ll be challenged to resist the assumption that we have to go it alone like the Eight of Cups, yet the gravitational pull of The Lovers reminds us that life is sweet and exciting when we find people who support, understand, and expand what really matters to us. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe

Listen in to the latest edition of “Ask a Tarot Reader,” a segment where we explore two listener-submitted questions: one about how to read tarot and the other a personal question or issue to invesitagate with a two-card tarot reading. This month, we’re starting with a reading about how to survive/endure/thrive in the challenging holiday season, and we finish with a perennial concern: reversed card. To read with them or not? To submit a question // Click hereMore on Reversals // Click hereA few quick podcast annoucements:* I will no longer be sending out emails for each new episode. This is a spam-free space! To stay up to date, be sure to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts (and while you’re at it, do leave a rating and review ;) * In case you missed it, transcripts are available for all episodes. Simply click the transcript bar below the audio player to read the episode in its full glory. (Caveat: the transcript is AI-generated and sometimes I miss ridiculous mistranslations. I hope they’re entertaining!)Our Cards from the Mini-Reading: This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit incandescenttarot.substack.com/subscribe