Divining the Season

I’ve discovered a way to bring all my favorite symbols of the season together with a tarot reading that will do several things at once.

I enjoyed this reading process so much that I wanted to share it with you. The Moon is in Pisces today, making it a great day for a mini-retreat or to take a reading. Sometimes, they’re the same thing.

double (triple, quadruple) duty for your favorite symbols

Your favorite symbols of autumn can serve many purposes. First, you can decorate with the things you’ve chosen as symbols of the season. Second, they are the basis for the tarot spread. Third, they can soothe and inspire you. Fourth, they can serve as reminders of the reading for as long as you leave them up without drawing the least bit of attention to their magickal purpose.

The process

Before beginning, clear an area for your card reading. I used tarot cards for my reading, but you might like to use crystals or runes instead. Light a scented candle that reminds you of the season or dress a candle with an essential oil. The scent will help set the mood for this seasonal reading. I chose a pine and berries pet odor removing candle that I had on hand and I wanted something fast. Use what you’ve got, right?

Think of three or four things that are your favorite symbols of the season. Don’t focus on a question for the reading. Just enjoy the feelings that come from choosing your favorite symbols. I chose:

Falling leaves
Chrysanthemums
Pumpkin spices
Cool breezes

Free printable sheet below

Next, form a question from each of your symbols that will serve as the meaning of the card placements in your reading. The questions I came up with for my layout were:

What can the falling leaves tell me about letting go?
What needs to bloom?
How can I add more spice to my life?
What’s a good way to “cool it” or “chill out?”

Then I laid out four cards, one for each of the seasonal symbols.

Bring the Reading to Life

Your symbols are likely to be different from mine. Find a way to make them a part of your daily life through the next few weeks or the entire autumn season.

I won’t take you into my personal reading but I’ll share some things that I thought of that would help bring the symbols and the reading to life for me.

The falling leaves ~ I’ll gather some leaves and put them into a bowl. I’m outside feeding the birds every day, so I’ll gather a leaf or two each day. You know how there’s always a leaf that really stands out because it’s so pretty. Those are the ones to choose. Then I’ll write a word on each that describes a feeling, a memory, or mindset that I need to release and add them to the bowl. At some point during the season, I’ll burn the leaves in my fireplace or cauldron. My cauldron is a cast iron dutch oven that I’ve had for years and it works like a charm.

The chrysanthemums ~ I’m lucky to have some yellow garden chrysanthemums growing in my yard. The buds are setting and they’ll bloom in about a month. I’m going to choose one bud and watch it carefully through the season. How will I know which bud is mine? I’m going to loosely tie a string around it. Some of the things I thought about when thinking about this symbol were nourishment and the color yellow which represents joy. Nourishment comes in the way of fertilizing the mums and making sure they get enough water. We sill have some warm days here in the south to dry them out. I’ll also be spending plenty of time thinking about what needs to bloom inside of me and how to nourish it. I’m not just growing chrysanthemums, I’m growing joy.

The pumpkin spices ~ This one’s really fun. I can make a simmering brew using spices I have on hand or make an autumn room spray with essential oils. Or both. Oh, boy! Or I can pick up a pumpkin pie scented candle. It’s all easy.

Cool breezes ~ I have to say that this is one of my absolute favorite things about autumn. I can barely tolerate the southern heat anymore and the minute I feel one of those cool breezes come along, I am in heaven. It’s like having a massage, a long soak, and margarita all at once. Relaxing and refreshing. The breezes remind me to chill out for while. I can’t wait for that first one to sneak up on me.

So there it is ~ a way to divine the season. I got so much from my reading, too. Instead of focusing on an outcome, I was able to come up with some really good motivational steps to make the most of the next few weeks. It’s nice to think about the future in such positive ways. It also connects me to nature and one of my favorite gardening seasons.

I’d love to hear what your favorite symbols are. I might need to add them to my list.

Here’s a layout sheet if you’d like to use these symbols for a seasonal reading.