Want a super-simple spread that will tell you one unexpected and interesting thing! about your 2026? Well, here you go!  Forget about the Celtic Cross, forget about the “Wheel of the Year”—with just two cards, tarot can offer you a relevant and specific scene from the year ahead, tailored just for you.

If you’ve enjoyed this spread and would like to learn how to design your own simple spreads, check out my book, The Living Tarot, available wherever books are sold.  Or, consider The Living Tarot online class (discount for class available if you purchase the book – just message me.)

If you try the New Year’s Spread, let me know how it works out! Write to me on the Tarot Podcast Discord server (if you’re a Patreon member - to sign up and support the podcast, visit patreon.com/thetarotpodcast). Or you can reach me through the contact form at thetarotpodcast.com.

Here’s the 2026 Decan Reference Chart for you to consult when you do this spread!

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Indie tarot artist Jamie Sawyer has created many decks, of which my favorite is today’s showcase: the Out of Hand Tarot.  Drawn (mostly) from a first-person perspective and packed with sly references to the Rider Waite Smith tarot, Out of Hand invites you to step into the cards and experience those familiar archetypal presences in a 21st-century setting. Jamie’s decks have limited print runs and sell out quickly, but she has made this one available again through the modern magic of print-on-demand!

And be sure to check out this week’s video bonus content for patrons, where you can watch a time-lapse video of one of Jamie’s cards evolving from start to finish: patreon.com/thetarotpodcast.

Jamie Sawyer is an artist who enjoys exploring the many ways that creativity weaves through the tapestry of life. From a career in tattooing that has spanned over 2 decades to learning the Tarot and its lessons via illustrating the art and archetypes, Jamie has developed a unique artistic style. A self-proclaimed “creatrix with a busy mind and a lack of vices,” Jamie has self-published over 10 divination decks (including tarot, oracle and Lenormand). She also is known for her miniature handmade heirloom resin and wood “Tarot Tiles,” a tactile way to experience some of her creations. Her preferred method of connecting with the Tarot is through layered readings using the many creative divination tools she makes.

Where to find Jamie:

Explore Jamie’s website! https://www.jamiesawyer336.com

✯ MORE TAROT GIFT IDEAS for the holidays! ✯

✯ TSC’s Etsy shop ✯ 

✯ Gift certificates for readings and classes ✯

✯ The Tarot Podcast memberships & gift memberships ✯

✯ The Living Tarot Online Class ✯

✯ Readings with TSC ✯

✯ TSC books ✯

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In today’s episode, we plunge into the world of the image with artomancer Laetitia Barbier! 

When we enter into a tarot reading, we look at the pictures on the cards in a particular way. And when we enter a gallery or museum, we look at the paintings hanging on the walls in another way. How are these two ways of looking different? Do they need to be? Can looking at art teach you to read tarot? Or to put it the other way: Can reading tarot teach you to look at art?  Could museums really be portals to a spirit dimension, in disguise?!  So. Many. Questions!

Laetitia has long haunted the unfathomable intersection of art and magic, so who better to ask? Our conversation opened many doors for me – and I look forward to hearing what you think.

French-born Laetitia Barbier is an independent scholar, as well as a professional tarot reader and teacher. She earned a Bachelor's Degree in Art History from La Sorbonne University Paris in 2009. Laetitia has worked with Morbid Anatomy from 2012 to 2024 as a programming director, head librarian, and occasional curator. Her book Tarot and Divination Cards: A Visual Archive was published in 2021 with a foreword by Rachel Pollack. Along with her friend Lou Benesch, she’s the co-creator the Camena Tarot. As a writer and scholar, she has the privilege of collaborating with the iconic French maître-cartier Grimaud, notably on the exquisite re-release of their 1930s Tarot de Marseille and Belline Oracle.

Laetitia has lectured, taught and read cards for various cultural institutions, such as Greenwood Cemetery, Artyard,  Fotografiska NY, the College of Psychic Studies in London or the New York Public Library. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

✯ TAROT GIFT IDEAS for the holidays! ✯

✯ TSC’s Etsy shop ✯ 

✯ Gift certificates for readings and classes ✯

✯ The Tarot Podcast memberships and gift memberships ✯

✯ The Living Tarot Online Class ✯

✯ Readings with TSC ✯

✯ TSC books ✯

😊 And...don't forget to like, rate, subscribe, and share!! 😊

In this episode, we examine how the 6 of Wands shows up in the lives of ordinary humans like you and me.

With our first 6, the suit of Wands finds its purpose in life and starts to shine with the glow of empowerment! which is why it’s called the Lord of Victory.  When you draw it, look out for the following themes:

To share your stories about the 7 of Wands for the next Tarot in Real Life segment - please join as a Patreon supporter of the Tarot Podcast!

✯✯✯ TAROT GIFT IDEAS for the holidays! ✯✯✯

✯ TSC’s Etsy shop ✯ 

✯ Gift certificates for readings and classes ✯

✯ The Tarot Podcast memberships and gift memberships ✯

✯ The Living Tarot online class ✯

✯ readings with TSC ✯

✯ TSC books ✯

It’s in everybody’s stereotype of the fortune-teller – the dimly lit boudoir, the crystal ball, the embroidered cushions, and on the storefront, a great big sign that says, “PSYCHIC.” But do you really need to be psychic to read the cards? And what does it mean to be psychic, anyway?

In this week’s episode, we look for answers with one of today’s leading voices in all things psychic: Mat Auryn, author of Psychic Witch, The Psychic Art of Tarot and other titles. For many years, Mat read tarot on what you’d have to call the frontline of psychic engagement: Salem, Massachusetts in the month of October.

In our conversation, you’ll learn a bit about what it’s like to be a psychic practitioner—and how you can access your own special abilities to become a better tarot reader.

Mat Auryn is an influential author and teacher in occultism and witchcraft. His books Psychic Witch, Mastering Magick, and The Psychic Art of Tarot offer practical insights into psychic and magickal practices. He also co-authored Pisces Witch with Ivo Dominguez, Jr. Mat’s work draws from various spiritual and magickal traditions he’s studied and trained in, aiming to synthesize them in accessible and practical ways. Beyond writing, Mat worked for many years as a professional psychic and tarot reader in Salem, Massachusetts, as well as his own private practice. He is on the faculty at the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, NY, and co-hosts THE CIRCLE IS podCAST with actress Rachel True. Residing in California’s Bay Area, he co-owns Datura Trading Co. and Modern Witch University. You can find out more information about Mat on his website at www.Auryn.com

✯✯✯ TAROT GIFT IDEAS for the holidays! ✯✯✯ 

✯ TSC’s Etsy shop ✯ 

✯ Gift certificates for readings and classes ✯

✯ The Tarot Podcast memberships and gift memberships ✯

✯ The Living Tarot online class ✯

✯ readings with TSC ✯

✯ TSC books ✯

“Oh no!  Some of my cards ended up upside down! What does that mean?!”

In this week’s Try This at Home! segment, we’re having a look at one of the most common matters of debate among tarot readers: how to interpret reversed cards. There are many schools of thought on how to handle reversals, so I’ve put together a brief guide so you can choose what makes sense to you.

If you’ve enjoyed this summary and would love more answers to all your tarot “starter questions,” check out my book, The Living Tarot, available wherever books are sold.  Or, consider The Living Tarot online class (discount for class available if you purchase the book – just email me.)

And if you already use reversals, I’d love to hear your take on how you interpret them! Write to me on the Tarot Podcast Discord server (if you’re a Patreon member - to sign up and support the podcast, visit patreon.com/thetarotpodcast). Or you can reach me through the contact form at thetarotpodcast.com.

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Interpreting dreams and interpreting tarot have a lot in common, so in this episode the hosts of This Jungian Life and I join forces to interpret a dream—one that contains actual tarot imagery! 

The dream took place in 2020, but it’s not a pandemic dream. It’s personal dream, but also timeless and universal, and a great example of how tarot and dream symbol systems can interact with one another.

If you’d like to learn some practical ways of using tarot in dreamwork, be sure to check out our Patreon bonus content this week, where I talk about how you can bring your cards into the dream world and vice versa.

Deborah Stewart is a Jungian analyst, Gestalt therapist, and Licensed Clinical Social Worker who migrates between Cape Cod and Sarasota, Florida. She is a member of the Philadelphia Association of Jungian Analysts and the Inter-Regional Society of Jungian Analysts. She also is a graduate of the Westchester Institute for Training in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis. She is a member of the podcast This Jungian Life, co-author of Dream Wise, and co-creator of Dream School, a self-paced online course in dream interpretation.

Joseph R. Lee is a Jungian Analyst who co-hosts This Jungian Life and co-created Dream School. He lectures widely on the Western Mystery Tradition and Hermetic Qabalah. His teaching and clinical work are informed by almost five decades of research and practice with Tarot and other symbolic systems.

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There is no shortage of spooky, surreal, spine-tingly decks on the shelves of the world’s metaphysical shops: the joyous Santa Muerte Tarot, the Zombie Tarot, the Welcome to Night Vale Tarot and countless others. But in this week’s 5 Questions episode, we spend some time with what is in my opinion one of the great “stick season” decks of all time: the Deviant Moon Tarot.

The look of the deck is singular, springing from creator Patrick Valenza’s lifelong relationship with tarot. Deviant Moon marries the grotesque with the sumptuous, the steampunk with the byzantine—you can almost hear a Danny Elfman soundtrack playing in the background when you shuffle the cards. The Deviant Moon’s citizen spirits captured my imagination the first time I saw them, and I bet you’ll feel the same.

Patrick Valenza is an American artist and publisher best known for The Deviant Moon Tarot, published by U. S. Games Systems Inc. Through his studio, Deviant Moon Inc., he creates original tarot and oracle decks recognized for their surreal imagery and handcrafted detail. His work blends folklore, symbolism, and dreamlike narratives, earning him a devoted international audience in the world of contemporary tarot art.

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In this episode, we examine how the 5 of Wands shows up in the lives of ordinary humans like you and me.

As we progress through the suit of wands, the 5 of Wands heats things up with a restless, roiling, fractious energy that just gets under your skin. When you draw it, look out for the following themes:

To learn a 5 of Wands magic spell you can do at home -  and share your stories about the 6 of Wands for the next Tarot in Real Life segment - please join as a Patreon supporter of the Tarot Podcast!

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In today’s “Ask an Expert” episode, we bring back the legendary (and hilarious!) Lon Milo DuQuette to explore the Thoth deck—probably the second most influential tarot deck in the English-speaking world. This rather dark, very beautiful deck created by Aleister Crowley and Lady Frieda Harris has had a lasting global influence - especially for those who are magically inclined.

While the Thoth deck’s influence on modern tarot iconography may not be as pronounced as the Rider Waite Smith’s, you can absolutely find decks that are based explicitly and exclusively on Thoth. If you’d like to see some examples, you can check out this week’s bonus content on Patreon by becoming a supporting member of the Tarot Podcast community.

Author of 20 critically acclaimed books (translated in twelve languages) on Magick and the occult, Lon Milo DuQuette is one of the most respected and entertaining writers and lecturers in the field of the Western Mystery Traditions. He is also gifted singer songwriter and former Epic Records recording artist whose music continues to inspire and provoke. Since 1975 he has served as a national and international governing officer of Ordo Templi Orientis, one of the most influential magical societies of the 20th and 21st centuries.

DuQuette hosts a daily show on his Facebook and YouTube channels, and occasionally appears on television, radio, and internet programs as a guest expert on subjects involving the occult. He lives in Sacramento, California with Constance, his high-school sweet-heart and wife of fifty-seven years.

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