Interpretation: Putting it Together

Putting it Together. The meanings of a casting’s positions do not necessarily come clear as they are being laid out, one after another. Each position informs and influences the others. Often one position comes clear first and the others begin to morph around it. Sometimes there’s nothing, then it’s all at once; other times we have to dig. Divining the meaning of a casting as a whole is much like divining the meaning of a single position: we soften our gaze, we return to the question or thoughts we started with …

… and we let the querent speak. As readers, we are first and foremost translators. A casting is the querent’s story—we can certainly suggest a line of inquiry here and there, but mostly we’re just helping with the language. The querent’s input should be heartily encouraged. Our job as readers is not to impress others with our wizardry; we want to help the querent find something that belongs to them. If we’re reading for ourselves, this rule of thumb can help us remember that the oracle doesn’t have the last word—we do.

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