The tarot is a deck of 78 picture cards that have been used for centuries as a way to divine hidden truths. The traditional reading involves two people -- the reader and a seeker, often called the querent. The seeker is looking for insights into his life, and the reader provides these insights by interpreting cards chosen by the seeker.

You start by writing a question about your situation. Next, you shuffle and cut the tarot deck while thinking about your question. After the cut, you lay out a certain number of cards in a predetermined pattern called a spread.

Then you interpret these cards to see what they have to say about your problem. The premise is that the cards you have chosen are the ones that best reflect the realities of your relationship. In uncanny ways, the reading answers your question and gives you the guidance you've been seeking. A card's energy comes from many sources -- its history, image and the thoughts of those who have worked with it. This energy is rather like the meaning of a card, but more dynamic. It's not a fixed set of ideas, but a quality that resonates.

When you do a tarot reading, you are opening yourself to perceive the many influences in and around you at that moment. You ready yourself to sense the energies on both the outer level of events and the inner level of beliefs, desires and fears. Knowing these, you can then "predict" an outcome, but it is only a probable one, not a given. It is the result most likely to occur if all the forces of the moment continue unchanged.

This is exactly why a tarot reading is so helpful. Simply by doing a reading, you inject change into your situation. By taking the time to think about your life and your choices, you give yourself the opportunity to set in motion a new path for yourself. By understanding your situation better, you come closer to creating the future you want. Fears about the future are reduced and you can move forward with greater awareness and confidence.