Cross spread (five cards)
The cross spread, or five-card cross, is the most common tarot reading method in the French tradition. Five cards form a cross: on the left the favorable forces, on the right the obstacles, at the top what sheds light on the question, at the bottom the possible outcome, and at the center the synthesis. Often drawn with the Major Arcana of the Marseille Tarot alone, it offers a simple frame for exploring one precise question.
How to lay it out
Shuffle while holding your question in mind, then draw five cards. Place the first on the left (what carries you), the second on the right (what resists), the third at the top (what sheds light on the situation), the fourth at the bottom (where it all tends). The fifth, at the center, ties everything together: it is often the card that sets the tone for the whole reading.
Reading the cross as a whole
Resist the urge to read each card in isolation. Look first at the dominant colors, the gazes that meet, the repetitions. The center card is in dialogue with the four others: ask yourself how it transforms what you have just seen. The cross sketches a landscape of your present moment, a mirror, never a verdict.
Sources
- , The Way of Tarot (2004)