Secret of the High Priestess Spread
Difficulty: Average
This spread makes a nice alternative to the Celtic Cross, which covers basically the same ground. It is useful when a question doesn't quite call for the Ankh spread. This tarot spread is helpful for looking into a current trend. The High Priestess may or may not present a mysterious secret to be analysed after the rest of the spread.
1. & 2. Main impulses representing the topic at hand. They may compliment or oppose one another.
3. This is the current influence at this time.
5. The Waning Moon is the influence that is moving into the past.
4. The Waxing Moon indicates what is on the horizon, or the approaching influence. This is the immediate future.
7. The Light is what is clearly recognized, consciously.
6. The Dark indicates what is there but not fully perceived, though noticed on a deeper level of consciousness.
8. The Next Step is the near future, where this journey leads.
9. The final tarot card, only if it happens to be of the Major Arcana, reveals the Secret of the High Priestess. This is a special message that should be given added weight.
Your Secret of the High Priestess Reading
The Waxing Moon ![]() 9 of Swords |
The Full Moon ![]() 3 of Cups |
The Waning Moon ![]() 4 of Swords |
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Significator #1 ![]() 3 of Pentacles The Secret of the High Priestess |
Significator #2 ![]() The Sorcerer |
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The Dark ![]() Queen of Cups |
![]() 7 of Pentacles |
The Light ![]() The Swamp |
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The Next Step ![]() 2 of Swords |
Significator #1

3 of Pentacles
Nature grows in the most desolate, diseased places. Study how nature does it to survive your own climate.
Significator #2

The Sorcerer
AKA The Magician in traditional Tarot.
The sort of guy who knows, wills, dares and keeps his mouth shut.
The Waning Moon is the influence that you are putting behind you, as it moves into the past.

4 of Swords
Heghlu'meH QaQ jajvam!
(Today is a good day to die!)
The Full Moon is the current influence at this time.

3 of Cups
Based on Canova's Three Graces. And don't say there's nothing to do in the Doldrums. Time spent doing nothing isn't wasted if it was enjoyed, only if it was miserable boredom.
The Waxing Moon indicates what is on the horizon; the approaching influence.

9 of Swords
Drawn on July 4th to the sound of fireworks. Weapons and explosives are now components of ritual as often as components of battle. I suppose they always were.
The Light is what is clearly recognized.

The Swamp
8:00 – Card 1
AKA Temperance in the traditional Tarot. Male, Earth, Scorpio.
Stagnation, nothing moves, nothing changes. Barriers block every effort to improve or change, not that rock has anywhere to go. The elements and life move around it, grow from it, decay upon it, but it goes nowhere.
The Dark shows what is there but not fully perceived, though it has been noticed on a deeper level of consciousness.

Queen of Cups
Queen Bees begin developing in specially constructed cells within the hive. They are often oriented differently from other cells in the honeycomb, and are filled with Royal Jelly, a substance which determines the physiology of the queen to be.
The Next Step is the near future, where this journey will take you.

2 of Swords
There is nothing that can't be destroyed by a powerful enough weapon, but be sure you have the right weapon for the job.
The Secret of the High Priestess - if, and only if, this card a Major Arcana, it reveals the Secret of the High Priestess. This is a special spiritual message that you should pay extra special attention to. If it is not a trump, the Priestess has revealed no secret.

7 of Pentacles
'And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof'. –Rev 5:5