The What Matters Within 3-card oracle or tarot card spread is one of my favorites. I learned the layout long ago on a forum, but the card spread interpretations are my own. Over the course of using it for many years, it appears the inspiration from this spread was derived from a famous quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson.
The reading for this layout is centering and humbling. It is used to reveal which divine influences have been empowering to our spirit.
It can also be used for acknowledgment or for divine guidance and advice. The card spread can be read using a Tarot deck or any oracle deck with beautiful results.
The card spread, instructions and an affirmation for the reading are below:
Instructions: Reversals are not recommended for this layout.
Because this card spread and the reading are spiritual in nature, the best approach for an accurate reading is to center your thoughts around what you are grateful for in your life. Be open to what the cards reveal. When you are ready, lay out three cards in the pattern shown in the image above, starting with the first card on the far left, and the second card on the far right. The third card between them in the center.
- What Lies Behind You – This card represents the force(s) that influenced your past or the forces that work to push you forward from behind and work to support you.
- What Lies Before You – The second card will reveal any energy with you at present which will continue to guide you, or is there to advise you. This card may also represent an energy that the Divine feels you will need to call upon or summon for further guidance.
- What Lies Within You – The third card reflects your Divine Providence. With a humble heart, make this energy greater than what has served you in the past, and greater than what will serve you in the future and all of these energies will align to open more opportunities for what matters most in your life.
Affirmation/Quote:
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Enjoy this new oracle or tarot card spread, and the wonderful message reading will have for you. Don’t forget to share!
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The original spread (created by Glass Owl) states that the Emerson quote was the basis of it.