The Celtic Cross tarot spread, step by step

Laying it out

Shuffle with one situation in mind. Lay the first card in the centre, and the second across it sideways. Then place four cards around them: above, below, to the left and to the right. That makes the cross. Finally lay four cards in a column to the right of the cross, from the bottom up.

The ten positions

Readers vary the wording a little, but the positions are usually these:

• 1. The heart of it: the situation as it stands
• 2. What crosses it: the challenge or the complication, for good or ill
• 3. Above: what you are aiming for, or what you are aware of
• 4. Below: the foundation: what lies underneath, often unspoken
• 5. Behind: what is passing, the recent past
• 6. Ahead: what is coming into view next
• 7. You: your own attitude and position
• 8. Around you: other people and your surroundings
• 9. Hopes and fears: often the same thing seen from two sides
• 10. Where it leads: where things are heading if nothing changes

Reading it in pairs

Ten cards at once is too much to take in. Read them as five pairs instead. Cards 1 and 2 are the core: the situation and what complicates it. Cards 3 and 4 are the conscious and the unconscious: what you think it is about and what it is really built on. Cards 5 and 6 are the movement: what is leaving and what is arriving. Cards 7 and 8 are you and the world around you. Cards 9 and 10 are what you hope or fear, and where things are going.

Suppose the heart of the matter is the Six of Swords, a boat moving towards calmer water, and it is crossed by the Five of Wands, five people sparring. You are trying to move on, and a squabble keeps pulling you back into the rough water. Each pair works like that: a small sentence.

A crossing: moving on, crossed by a squabble.

The last card is not a verdict

The tenth card is often called the outcome, and it is the one people turn over with the most nerves. It is better read as a direction than a sentence: where things are heading if nobody changes course. The rest of the spread shows you where the course could change. Card 4, the foundation, and card 7, your own attitude, are usually the places to start.

Tips for a first Celtic Cross

Count the major cards: three or more means the situation is bigger than it looks. Look for a suit that dominates. Notice where the court cards fall, because they are often the people involved. And if the spread feels like too much, it is fine to lay only the cross of six and leave the column for another day.

A major card, a court card, a suit card: three kinds of weight.