Published 08/09/2024 by Joanne Jones

How to Read Oracle Cards?

Unlocking the Mysteries: What Exactly Are Oracle Cards?

Oracle cards are an impressive and effective tool for seeking guidance and knowledge from the higher planes, spirit guides, angels, and our natural intuition. They can help us understand and navigate our own reality and others around us.

Oracle card readings are a special form of divination often used for self-reflection and inner knowledge. Unlike cards such as tarot, which are used to read the past and predict the future, oracle cards offer a more open-ended format as there are no hard and fast rules to their use.

The ideas behind oracle cards are simple: each symbol, message or image on each card is intended to open our minds and bring us closer to our higher selves as we seek out a greater understanding of whatever questions or problems we are exploring.

An oracle deck of cards is like a mirror of our deeper psyches, helping us reach out to our subconscious and access the universe's energies to gain a fresh perspective on life.

This extensive step-by-step guide to oracle card readings will give you the full knowledge on how to read oracle cards, how to choose your perfect deck and all the essential bits of information you need before you start your spiritual oracle card reading journey.

Remember, each reading is a personal journey through life, unique to you and your circumstances.

What Are Oracle Cards Used for?

Oracle cards are a beautiful tool for clarity, providing answers to anything from a simple daily question to a broad, expansive exploration of your spiritual life. They can help you access your intuitive abilities and offer messages from your higher self, spiritual guides, or angels.

Oracle cards are frequently used in spiritual practices or rituals, empowering you to achieve your highest good.

When you need advice about your self-care journey or additional guidance about where to go next with healthy lifestyle habits? Do you want to ground yourself in the present moment, strengthen your spiritual life, or seek collective guidance from the divine unconsciousness? Answers to these questions, big and small, can be found in oracle cards.

An oracle card reading has a powerful potential. The development of our intuition has a profound impact on our lives to make positive changes not to mention our confidence to live it.

Read our guide on Oracle Psychic Readings.

6 Steps to Perfect Oracle Readings

Step 1: Selecting Your Oracle Deck

The first and most important part of our step-by-step guide on Oracle card reading is to choose your deck carefully. Spend some time selecting the right deck, be it angel cards, nature-themed or those that more broadly aim towards self-development – both beginners and experts alike will most likely prefer a deck with images that are clear and colourful.

Beginners usually start out using decks with clear, focused images and straightforward messages that aren't too subtle, but experienced readers will sometimes enjoy something more abstract or complex.

Your intuition will guide you towards the deck that feels right for you.

Step 2: Preparing a Peaceful Environment for Oracle Insights

The next step is to create a sacred space that is calm and free from interruptions. It's essential to be calm and quiet for five or ten minutes to focus on your cards and tap into your intuition.

Trusted Psychics recommend lighting candles, burning incense, or playing soft music to create a sacred space free from distractions.

Close your eyes and take a couple of deep breaths, and you might like to meditate for a couple of minutes to clear your mind. After all, this is about tapping into your intuition and the messages you receive.

The energy you create in your sacred space will affect the clarity of the messages you receive.

Step 3: Shuffling Techniques: How to Prepare Your Oracle Deck for a Reading

Find the shuffling technique that works for you. Believe it or not, There are many ways to shuffle the cards. Most people use the simple overhand shuffle to the more elegant riffle shuffle.

As you shuffle the deck of oracle cards, concentrate on the question, or issue you want guidance on, and let your intention seep into the deck. Some readers like to knock on the deck before shuffling to remove leftover energies.

Step 4: How to Ask the Right Questions to Your Oracle Cards

The words you use to ask your question are more important than you may think. The way you frame the questions can influence the detail and accuracy of the answers you receive.

Use the Oracle cards to their maximum potential by asking open-ended questions rather than straightforward questions that can only lead to a yes or no answer.

Example:

'Will I find a new job?' is a poorly worded question and could lead to a basic yes or no.

"When will I find my dream job, and how will it come into my life?" This will lead to a fuller and more in-depth answer.

Step 5: How to Draw Oracle Cards for Insight

Let your intuition guide you. Your natural intuitive abilities will let you know when to stop pulling cards. Some readers like to fan out the cards and pick any that catches their attention, while others might feel drawn to specific cards after shuffling.

For beginners, you would start your oracle journey by pulling a single card for quick insight or a yes or no answer. When your confidence grows, you can create more advanced reading by pulling multiple cards and using specific spreads designated for specific types of oracle card readings.

Popular spreads include the 3-card spread, showing the past-present-future or a three-card spread focusing on body, mind, and spirit. Allow the cards to reveal themselves naturally, trusting that the ones you pull hold the messages you need to hear.

Step 6: How to Interpret Your Oracle Cards

Interpreting the oracle cards accurately requires practice. As you become more familiar with the cards, your knowledge and intuitive skills will grow. Interpretation is where intuition meets symbolism.

Begin by observing the imagery, colours, and words on the card—what emotions or thoughts do they evoke? Reflect on the card's message and determine how it relates to your question or life situation.

Many oracle decks come with a standard guidebook, but the most crucial part is to trust your interpretations. Sometimes, the meaning you derive from a card will go beyond the card guidebook's description, offering deeper, more personal insights.

How to Read Oracle Card Spreads?

Reading an Oracle card spread, you look at life's bigger picture. Each spread is designed to cover different themes or answer specific questions.

Each spread is like a map, showing you how to navigate a challenge, an emotion, or an outcome. When you read a spread, start by being crystal clear when asking the question or focusing on the intention. Then, look to see how the placement of each card in a spread reflects its message. This i whether it is past, present, future, obstacle, or advice.

When you interpret the cards in relation to each other, you can unlock a comprehensive understanding of the energy surrounding your question.

How to Use a Single Card Spread?

No words can describe how potentially life-changing this simple one-card spread can be. This is a great way to get a targeted and quick answer to a question or inspire your day by creating a singular focus.

Shuffle the deck with your intention, take a card, and focus. Look at the image on the card and see what thoughts or emotions immediately come to mind. Read any keywords on the card. Think about what you see and feel and what it means to you at this moment in time.

Reading a Two-Card Oracle Spread

A two-card oracle spread gives you a sense of balance, enabling you to see things from two sides or compare two energies at work. This spread is excellent for decisions, relationships (or anything that has two sides to it) and other situations where you're interested in exploring something in contrast.

The first card can usually refer to the current situation or the challenge at hand; the second card is about the answer, the guidance that goes along with the first card, or what outcome you can expect if you take a specific path.

Unlocking the 3-Card Oracle Spread

The 3-card oracle spread is the most flexible and interesting. It can be used to explore the influences that have happened in the past, are happening now, and are (or will) occur in the future. It can also focus on the body, mind and spirit or represent a scenario in which you have options, obstacles, and outcomes.

With your drawn cards, begin by interpreting each according to the position it occupies within the layout and how it is linked to your question. Together, they can provide a broader narrative of the path you are currently on.

This spread is terrific for working through complicated issues and breaking them down into smaller chunks to make informed and empowered choices.

The Best Questions to Ask Your Oracle Cards

Here are 20 probing, open-ended questions to ask in an Oracle card reading that can help inspire deeper insight and guidance:

1. What should I focus on to align with my true life purpose?
2. What is the energy surrounding my current situation?
3. How can I overcome the difficult challenges I'm faced with now?
4. What lessons is the universe trying to teach me at this very moment?
5. What can I do to invite a strong flow of abundance into my life?
6. How can I strengthen my relationships and bond with others around me?
7. What's in my way of achieving my life goals? How can I work through it?
8. What steps should I take to enhance my personal growth and self-development?
9. How can I find ultimate balance and peace in my life?
10. What do I need to let go of or remove from my life to move forward?
11. How can I cultivate more love and compassion in my life?
12. What message does my higher self have for me today?
13. What energy, focus or mindset should I adopt to manifest my deepest desires?
14. What is the next big step I should take on my spiritual journey?
15. What should I be more mindful of in my current relationships?
16. What hidden strengths can I use to overcome this challenge?
17. What does the universe want to reveal to me through this specific experience?
18. How can I embrace change and flow with the energy of transformation?
19. What is the crucial key to unlocking my fullest potential in my life?
20. What guidance or necessary messages do my spirit guides or ancestors have for me right now?

These questions encourage deep reflection and persuade the Oracle cards to provide meaningful, actionable insights.

How to Cleanse Your Oracle Cards for Accurate Readings?

Your oracle cards need to be cleansed regularly to keep them at their peak vibrational level and to ensure they don't pick up on stagnant or residual energies.

Your cards can absorb energy from other people, environments, and leftover energy from a previous reading; all these things involve energy transference, so as you continue to use your cards, your readings will become less informative and accurate if the energy is not regularly cleaned.

The most recommended and effective ways to cleanse your oracle decks are here:

• Sage or Palo Santo (also known as a 'sacred incense' used in ancient rituals to purify the air, remove negative energy, and deliver positive energy) can be used to smudge your deck, allowing the smoke to diffuse any unwanted energies.
• Placing your cards in the natural light of the majestic full moon re-energises them with fresh, revived energy.
• Knocking three times on the deck is another way to cleanse it, or you could visualise a bright, pure light holding the cards as you look at their images, and this will also help clear out the cards with your intention.
• Crystals like clear quartz, selenite, and amethyst are used in cleansing rituals due to their natural ability to cleanse and amplify high-frequency energy. To cleanse your oracle pack, place a crystal on top of the deck and leave it on the cards overnight to allow the stones to absorb any stagnant or negative energy. Selenite, known for its self-cleansing properties, is an excellent choice for continuous purification, while clear quartz enhances the clarity of the readings.

If you keep on top of cleansing your oracle deck, it will remain in an aligned and attuned space to your intuition.

The Power of Oracle Readings: How to Gain Clarity and Guidance

An oracle reading can offer you the clarity and direction you need to answer life's deepest questions.

Oracle cards are more flexible and intuitive than other divination tools and offer more immediate insights into your life as you work with the cards, with your specific energy and spiritual needs involved at the time.

When you do an oracle reading, messages flow from the universal wisdom to you as you allow your subconscious and higher self to communicate with you.

Your energy and connection to the universe will be fluid and changeable depending on your thoughts, mood, and emotions, so always approach an oracle reading with an open mind, free from doubts. Hold a clear intention or precise question you want to explore and allow the cards to show you the guidance you need.

An oracle reading can help you find hidden truths buried deep down, unblock emotions, and enable you to see your life path clearly. They are a powerful tool for self-understanding and can be a vital part of an enlightened and self-aware journey of self.

Oracle Cards vs. Tarot: What's the Difference?

Both oracle and tarot cards are helpful tools for divination, but Oracle cards and traditional tarot cards are two very different things. See our article on the differences between Oracle and tarot cards.

The oracle-card decks are not like the traditional system of 78 cards split into the well-known Major and Minor Arcana. They have plenty of symbolism attached to them, but their meanings and arrangement are not tied to the symbolism of universal archetypes.

Tarot readers are usually versed in these universal archetypes and attuned to the structure of their deck. Oracle card decks are much more flexible. There is no set number of cards with complex spreads.

Oracle cards can have any theme from angels to self-care to witchery to personal growth. This flexibility makes them a perfect spiritual tool for beginners, as they are easier to use and more intuitive.

FAQs

How Many Oracle Cards Should I Pull?

The number of cards you pull depends on what sort of guidance you seek and what feels suitable for you.

When you require an instant answer to a situation and your time is limited, pulling just one card can deliver a clear and perfectly focused message.

Sometimes, you may need to know more about a situation before making an important decision, and three cards can help expand your view. A three-card spread can be beneficial at these times, delivering a much broader reading by working usually with past, present, and future influences.

When facing more complex situations that require insight and guidance, you may need more cards to find more details and explore multiple aspects of life or an issue. Trust your intuition – it's surprising how often a single card can carry as much intuitive guidance as a multi-card spread.

Is an Oracle Deck the Same as a Tarot Deck?

Tarot reading and Oracle readings are both ways of sourcing divinatory information. But are the decks the same? Not at all. Tarot decks are more complex, and each card has a traditional meaning attached. Tarot has a setup of 78 tarot cards divided into Major and Minor Arcana. This structure has developed specific symbolism over time, often related to archetypes and universal themes.

When you do readings with tarot, you can access guidance about more complicated subjects and more significant questions, as tarot cards hold more specific card meanings.

Oracle cards don't have a rigid structure — the number of cards can vary, the themes can vary, and each deck is designed to have a specific focus, likely based on the exercise of self-care, romantic love, spiritual growth, and divine guidance from angels.

Since they are more intuitive readings, they tend to have simpler messages, and Oracle cards are generally better suited for beginners, as the messages are more straightforward and, therefore, easier to gain intuitive interpretations.

How Many Times Should You Shuffle Oracle Cards?

The card pull frequency is entirely up to you and your intuition.

The traditional approach is to stop shuffling when you feel 'ready' or when your intuition tells you it feels the right time. Some card readers stick to a rhythm of shuffles – say, three or seven times – to add ritual structure to the process. Others stop the card pull process when a particular card 'jumps' or 'springs' out of the deck or a time when you step into rapport with your question or intention.

Shuffling the deck of cards is as much about preparing your energy as the cards.

Can You Get Yes or No Answers From Oracle Cards?

Oracle cards work well for quick yes or no questions, depending on how you phrase a question and interpret the answer from the cards.

To get a yes or no answer, you could shuffle your cards with a question in mind and pull one card, interpreting a card full of 'good vibes' as being 'yes' and a card heavy on challenging or negative tones as 'no'. But Oracle cards can say more than yes or no, often providing extra advice. This includes intuitive messages, or spiritual guidance on approaching or dealing with something.

Contact Trusted Psychics today and learn more about Oracle card readings. Our team of live psychic readers will gladly advise you on the benefits of oracle readings.

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