Talkin' Tarot with Siobhan Rene

Talkin’ Tarot With is a monthly feature designed to introduce my readers to different tarot readers from our wonderfully diverse community! Each month, I’ll be asking various tarot readers 3 questions about their tarot philosophy and style, plus pointing you to their websites and blogs so that you can learn more about them! I like to hand pick tarot readers that I feel are talented and interesting.

All you need to do is read one of Siobhan Rene’s posts and you know you’ve found some special. That’s what I thought when I began noticing her writing over a year ago. Her work is unique and thought provoking – she stands out in a sea of other readers.

What I love most about her work is her honesty. Her writing is personal, at times raw, and always from the heart. You get the feeling that you’re on a journey with her, and she’s your trusty guide, leading you through the dark spots into the light. She calls herself a “breakthrough facilitator” and I’d have to agree that is a spot-on description of what she’s all about.

Siobhan has her own excellent blog called Siobhan’s Mirror where she writes excellent posts on tarot, life, and more. She also has a cool collaborative Tarotscopes, which features multiple contributors writing for each of the twelve signs.

My favorite work is her Face Up Tarot series over at Little Red Tarot. Once again, she’s serving up total originality, wisdom, and depth. Her stuff is some of the best over at Little Red Tarot – and that’s saying a lot because all of the writing over there is top notch!

I had the good fortune of meeting Siobhan in person at the last two Reader’s Studios. Her presence is magical. A breath of fresh air. Sparkly even. Special? Yes. Keep your eyes glued to her because she may be a significant contributor to the tarot of the future.

Bio:

Siobhan is a NYC-born writer, spiritual ally, and Radical Tarot reader living in central Texas. She moonlights as a published poet and alternative relationship coach. Her facilitative tarot reading style is the blended result of over a decade of study of tarot as well as communication styles, shamanic ritual, sacred sexuality, and conscious relationship. Collaboration is one of her passions. She has contributed to Beth Maiden’s Queer Tarot Project, led a tarot Twitter Chat Series interviewing leaders in the professional tarot field, and writes a column at littleredtarot.com about working with difficult cards and Face Up tarot. She regularly participates in joint blog projects and is the creator of the first ever monthly ‘Scopes – freakishly relevant collaborative tarotscopes featuring a kaleidoscope of 12 different readers. Variety ftw! Sample her style via this Manifestation Worksheet or Check out her blog.

Watch her geek tarot live – Periscope

Join the tarot conversation – Twitter or Facebook

Check out her answers to my questions below:

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Q: What is your philosophy about tarot reading?

Siobhan: I believe the symbolic and poetic language of the tarot opens important doorways to the parts of us that are beyond words or reason. This is important because these parts are responsible both for our actions and our perception of the world; they make up our reality. I believe that anyone can open these intuitive doors and receive profound life-changing wisdom. The kind that makes the impossible likely and the unknowable second nature.

I believe that tarot readings can be what we need them to be: an occasion to feel heard, to feel affirmed, to commune, to collaborate, to clarify, to explore, and to be advised. I believe the best tarot readings cultivate curiosity, doubt of what doesn’t serve, self-trust, and awareness. In an age where it seems hard enough to know who or what to trust, it is important that the masses have tools to jump-start and reclaim their own inner guidance system. In my writing and readings I explore tarot and awareness as tools-of-reclaiming.

This work is important to me because not everyone will have loving balanced affirming guidance and people able to hold space. I believe everyone should. Even, or especially, in marginalized or under-served communities where there may be less access to resources.

Q: How do you feel a client might get the most out of a reading with you?

Siobhan: A client can anticipate being an active participant. Regardless of the method of delivery, my readings include invitations to explore and to inquire more deeply. Their purpose is to foster awareness. Awareness is the key to any major shift whether it be toward, action, stillness, inspiration or peace. Awareness takes time. It takes a healthy dose of curiosity and the willingness to experience the world through a new lens. My readings aren’t meant for one sitting or passive interaction. They invite the client to be a part of the process and are best with time to stew.

Q: What is your best piece of advice for an aspiring tarot reader?

Siobhan: The best thing an aspiring tarot reader can do is notice the “silent assumptions” they bring, not just to tarot readings, but to every encounter. All of us view the world through the lens of our own beliefs and assumptions. When I first started studying tarot I’d spend hours at the bookstore and library copying by hand the books that I couldn’t afford to buy. I was a traditionalist at the time – blame my Cap moon – I loved the esoteric details and especially loved anything Golden Dawn. I recommend this kind of scholarly love affair. I’m a huge tarot geek and sometimes it pays to be this way. But there came a point where my spiritual practice and worldview were at odds with the traditional books that had served me at the beginning of my tarot practice. I ended up starting from scratch.

I wish someone had told me at the beginning: cultivate awareness of your perspective/worldview/lens and you will also find awareness of the lenses through which people write tarot books, create tarot courses, decks, and workshops. Not everything that educates affirms or aligns with us. Cultivating awareness of this lens allows you to consciously choose the learning materials that align with your deepest and most heartfelt intentions, on the surface and at the unconscious level. It allows you to deliver the tarot readings that channel only what needs to be said, void of the extraneous. It affords you the space to deliver profound experiences for people along the entire range of your tarot journey – from novice to master – and regardless of your differences.

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Big love to the always brilliant Siobhan for making time for this interview. Get to know her and grab a reading at her site.

Blessings,

Theresa

image from Siobhan Rene