The Cards and How They Work

Anyone who has esoteric inclinations has heard of astrology, the Tarot, numerology and likely other disciplines. How many of those with ‘alternative’ interests have heard about regular playing cards as a useful tool to be used in a similar way to these well-known esoteric approaches?

I myself had been interested for as long as I could remember in anything even slightly ‘different’. When I was growing up in South Africa, there was very little information available and I made a point of getting as much as I could from anything I could lay my hands on. Then I went to live in Hong Kong and discovered comprehensive books on numerology and spent some considerable time digesting both the numbers associated with birth details and also the approach to timing.

By the time I got to Australia in 1982, I was ready for anything I could find in between the demanding days I did for my corporate employer. As it happened, I took time off and studied alternative medicine for four years. It earned me the right to practice and opened so very many doors. We were exposed to anything that anyone would come and talk to us about. Hence, it was not just about herbal medicine or homoeopathy but we also got a touch of exposure to the Rudolf Steiner approach, Alice Bailey and many more interesting and (at that time) little known domains.

Of course things are different now. ‘Alternative’ medicine is barely ‘alternative’ with patients being able to claim from the insurance companies for a number of modalities that previously were not widely recognised.

While esoteric practitioners are consulted more than previously, there is still an air of mystery about them. Some modalities are significantly better known than others and I’m sure that the visibility of each would vary across localities.

The use of Playing Cards is among the lesser known tools for understanding individuals and being able to anticipate the timing of events. How do the cards work?

For every day of the year, there is an associated card known as a Birth Card e.g. if you were born on March 14, your Birth Card would be the Nine of Diamonds. If you were born on December 29, your Birth Card would be the Two of Hearts. In addition to your Birth Card, you have a Planetary Ruling Card – some people have two of these. For March 14, the Planetary Ruling Card is the Two of Spades. For December 29, the Planetary Ruling Card is the Two of Diamonds. If you were born August 1, then your Birth Card and Planetary Ruling Cards are both the Queen of Diamonds. If you were born on November 13, then you have two Planetary Ruling Cards. Your Birth Card is the Seven of Clubs and then your two Planetary Ruling Cards are the Jack of Diamonds and the Jack of Clubs. The card of December 31 is the Joker.

What do the 52 cards mean? This is dealt with in other spots on the website and there are blogs which cover the meaning of the cards. Start with looking at the meaning of the numbers and the suits individually. This will give you new information you did not previously have, even without looking at the card in depth. When you combine the information associated with the number and the information associated with the suit, you will start to get a feel for the card. If you know there is much more to a person than what you are gleaning, do not be concerned as there are other facets to each card that are outside the scope of this short piece of writing.