What Are Oracle Cards For Beginners (Plus The Best Spreads To Try)!
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What Are Oracle Cards?
Oracle cards are a divination method, similar to the Tarot, but more fluid and less structured in nature. While the Tarot follows a similar pattern of a standardised 78 card deck, with 22 Major Arcana cards and 56 Minor Arcana cards (although the imagery can vary greatly as well as the interpretations of the meanings of the cards to a certain extent), oracle cards are completely up to the artist to decided how many to create, what they mean, and what they look like.
As with other divination methods, they are a powerful tool for tapping into your intuition and innate wisdom, as well as your Higher Self, Spirit Guides, Guardian Angels, Ancestors etc if this speaks to you. They work by selecting a number of cards of your choice to help you shed some light on a question, or give an overview to the general energies for non-specific inquiries. With regular use, they can help strengthen your ability to make decisions and analyse different points of view, as well as help instil a sense of calm and faith in the future.
Often, oracle cards are used as a support at the end of a Tarot reading, but they are just as beautiful to use on their own and many people prefer them because they are easier and more intuitive to learn than the sometimes rigid framework of Tarot card meanings (which also have many layers of deeper correspondences which can sometimes take years to become experienced with)! Oracle cards will come with their own information booklet created by the artist and generally feature simpler meanings that are easier to digest.
An oracle card deck that I absolutely love is Rebecca Campbell’s Starseed Oracle and Work Your Light ones, but other famous oracle decks that are also really popular include The Wild Unknown Spirit Animal Deck and Moonology Deck for aligning with the phases of the moon. Of course, as with any divination practice, whichever tool you end up choosing is going to help guide you, but ultimately the choice is yours to make and using your own discernment is always necessary.
Read on to find out how to do an oracle card readings and some spreads to get you started:
How To Do An Oracle Reading
An oracle reading can be done by either intuitively pulling any card that calls to you, or laying them down in a specific spread. A spread is a way of laying the cards down to get a breakdown and insight to an answer with more detail and layers to it, including general advice and guidance for non-specific questions.
How to do an oracle reading
1. To begin an oracle reading, you would start in much the same way as a Tarot reading. First, set the scene by either lighting some candles, incense, essential oils, cleansing your space with smoke or bells, or simply just going to a calm place you won’t know you won’t be disturbed in. If you are using a new deck, you can clear it by leaving it out in the moon and/or sunlight for 24 hours, burying it in a bowl of salt, or any other cleansing method you prefer. It also helps to form a relationship with your deck by using it regularly so you can get a feel for how it works with you.
2. Next, make sure to ground and centre yourself before pulling any cards so that your energy is clear of interference. You can do this by taking some deep breaths, meditating for a few moments, visualising a cord rooting you to the centre of the earth, calling in your Spirit Guides or anything else that resonates with you.
3. When you are ready, begin shuffling your deck. Again, this can be done in a similar way to a Tarot deck, either with a simple overhand shuffle, riffling them together magician style, or splaying them all out on the floor and collecting them up again. I usually go for an overhand shuffle to make sure the cards don’t get damaged, but if you would like to read reversals (which is not as customary as it is with Tarot readings), spreading them out on the floor or table may be the easiest way to do this. Keep your mind focussed on the matter at hand while shuffling.
4. Once you are done shuffling, blow on the deck to get rid of any lingering energy, knock it 3 times with your fist to disperse your own energy through it, and then cut the deck into 3 piles before putting it back together again. As with anything intuitive, you can also go with your gut for what feels best to do.
To learn more about the world of Tarot, enrol in my Intuitive Tarot Course!
5. After you have reassembled your deck, you can decide to either pull cards straight from the top of the deck or fan them out and pull the ones that call to you. Usually a Tarot reader will pull cards from the top to save time and space, but fanning them out adds in a nice extra element of intuition, if this is available to you. Before selecting a card, make sure to think of the question in the spread that card will be answering (if any). You can also say it out loud.
6. When you have finished laying out your cards in the spread, take the reading in as a whole and note any first impressions you receive. How do the cards make you feel? What stands out to you? How do they interact with each other? After you have intuitively created a story with the cards, if you need, you can look up their specific meanings to answer anything you might have missed. Once you are done interpreting them individually, in relation to the question they are answering, and between each other as a whole, you can also journal your findings to track your progress and note down anything else that might come up as you write.
7. After you’re done, thank the cards for their help and put them back in their box in a safe place until the next time you need them. It’s recommended to leave at least a month between asking the cards the same question again to allow the answer to develop in its own time, but you can ask different questions as often as you like. If you recorded your answers, it’s interesting to come back to them after a while and see how the reading played out.
For some more ideas, check out our post on Rituals For The New Moon and Full Moon!
Beginner Oracle Spreads
Due to their intuitive nature, oracle card spreads are often much freer and simpler in their interpretations than reading Tarot spreads, and they are often used in just a one card pull to give a quick and easy boost of inspiration, advice, insight, connection, or trust in your current situation and life. This can also be like a daily 1-card pull to get a feel for the energy of the day ahead. If you would like a more involved spread, here are some ideas to explore:
Easy 2-Card Spread
This is a quick spread that is great for accessing support when you need get a bit of confidence in yourself or getting a little bit more detail on some action you can take along with the general advice. Card 1 is general advice for what you need to hear for your best and highest good right now, like a 1-card pull, and Card 2 is how you can embrace your Highest Self. This is like how you can show up and shine brightest in the world.
Basic 3-Card Spread
This is one of the most popular and versatile spreads (that is also often used in a Tarot card reading too) and can be applied to a variety of situations, such as:
MIND - BODY - SPIRIT = Advice for your mind’s wellbeing - What your body needs from you - What your soul needs to hear right now
SITUATION - ACTION - OUTCOME = The current energies and influences around you - Your suggested action or advice - The potential final outcome of your situation should you choose to follow this advice
You can also easily adapt this spread to suit your needs.
5-Card Spread For Deeper Intuition
Card 1 - What does my highest self want me to know right now?
Card 2 - What does my subconscious/soul want me to know?
Card 3 - What do my Spirit Guides/Ancestors/Guardian Angels/Universe etc want me to hear?
Card 4 - What is a path/direction I should pursue?
Card 5 - What do I need to embrace more of?
7-Card Deep Dive Spread
Card 1 - What is my soul purpose?
Card 2 - What are my greatest strengths?
Card 3 - What do I need to let go of?
Card 4 - How can I step into my truest expression?
Card 5 - What is difficult for me to accept?
Card 6 - What should I embrace along my journey?
Card 7 - Where am I currently heading?
Looking to oracle cards are a beautiful way to gain some insight to our inner workings, subconscious and unconscious, broaden our perspective and see things in a different light. They can help give us guidance and assurance in our decisions, selves, and path.
If you’d like to learn more about the intricate world of Tarot and how to read Tarot for yourself as well as others, explore our complete Beginner’s Guidebook To Tarot For Heightened Intuition!
Or, if you would like to experience an oracle reading for yourself, book in for a Tarot, Rune + Combination reading with me :)
So that’s what oracle cards are and some beginners spreads to try. These are a really amazing tool for accessing your subconscious and hidden wisdom, let me know how you get on with them in the comments section below! Or, if you have anything else to add.
Check out our post on The Complete List Of Tarot Cards if you’re interesting in learning more about this potent esoteric practice! Or, if you’d like another awesome divination practice, read How To Use A Pendulum, and for a little bit of magic: Bindrunes and Sigils.
Or, if you’d like direct access to some Divine insight, book yourself in for a personalised Tarot Reading with me!
