The Five Card Cross

It sits between the Three Card Spread and the Celtic Cross. Three cards give you a line through time. This spread keeps that line and adds a second one running up and down: what lies underneath the matter, and what could grow out of it. It suits a question with some weight, when three cards feel thin and ten feel like too many.

Where it comes from

Its origin is not recorded, and I have not found anyone who claims to have invented it. The shape itself is old and shared. Thomas of Hermit's Mirror notes that the five card cross "can be found in other cartomancy systems, such as Lenormand and Kipper," and calls it "the heart of that famous old chestnut, the Celtic Cross." Look at the Celtic Cross page and take away the crossing card: what is left of the cross is this spread.

The layout

Lay the centre card first, then left, right, below and above.

1. The Present (centre). What the matter is about right now. Every other card is read in relation to this one.

2. The Past (left). What has led to this. Influences from before that are still having an effect.

3. The Future (right). Where things are heading next if nothing changes. Close, and already in motion.

4. The Cause (below). The reason underneath the question. Whatever is driving the situation from below the surface, often something you have not looked at directly.

5. The Potential (above). What could come of this. The best the situation holds, and what you are reaching for.

Sources do not agree on the numbering. Some lay the card above second and the card below last, and some call the top card your conscious mind. The places hardly change, so if you are comparing two sources, match the cards by where they sit.

How to read it

Start in the centre, and say in one sentence what the card says about the matter as it stands.

Then read the two lines of the cross. The line across is time, the same sentence you would read in a three card spread. The line up and down is depth: what is underneath, the present, and what could come of it.

Next, pair the cards. Put card 2 beside card 4. The Past tells you what happened, and the Cause below often tells you why it mattered so much. Angel Paths says the card for the reason behind the question "will probably shed light on" the past card, and I find it usually does.

Then put card 3 beside card 5. The Future is where things are going as they stand, and the Potential is where they could go. When the two agree, the road ahead is clear. When they differ, the gap between them is the work, and the cards on the vertical line usually show where to start.

Position steers reversed cards here. A reversed card at the bottom is very often turned inward, something working on you from the inside. A reversed card at the top is often blocked: the potential is there and not yet getting through. On the right, a reversal is most often delayed. Heavy cards stay mirrors wherever they fall.

Last, count the Majors. A Major in the centre means the whole cross is about a bigger change than the question suggested.

A sample reading

The question: "I have been asked to take on a bigger role in a group I have belonged to for years. What do I need to see?"

In the centre is the Wheel of Fortune. A great wheel turns in the sky with a sphinx sitting on top, a snake sliding down one side and a jackal headed figure rising up the other, and four winged creatures sit reading books in the corners. Things are turning, and a Major at the heart of the cross says this is about more than one committee.

To the left, the Past, is the Three of Cups. Three women dance with their cups raised high, with fruit gathered at their feet. Friendship, celebration, belonging. This is what led here: years of good company and the ease of being one of the crowd.

To the right, the Future, is the Knight of Cups. A knight rides a white horse at a walking pace, holding a cup out in front of him like an offer. An invitation is coming, and it is being carried gently.

Below, the Cause, is the Hierophant, reversed. Upright, a robed religious figure sits between two pillars, with two followers kneeling before him and crossed keys at his feet: tradition, rules, the way things are done. Reversed, I read him as turned inward. The rulebook now lives inside you. Something you learned long ago about who gets to lead and who waits their turn is quietly running the whole decision.

Above, the Potential, is the Nine of Pentacles. A woman in a rich robe stands alone in a vineyard heavy with grapes, a bird resting on her gloved hand. Self reliance, earned comfort, being at ease with your own worth.

Now read them against each other. Across: the belonging of the Three of Cups has come round on the Wheel, and an offer is riding in. Up and down: an inherited rule sits underneath, and above it stands a woman who stopped asking for permission some time ago.

Pair 2 and 4, and the group felt so good partly because everyone knew their place. The reversed Hierophant is the part of you that still believes in that place. Pair 3 and 5, and the Knight brings the offer while the Nine shows the person who can accept it without apology.

Cups on the left and right, Pentacles above. This begins in feeling and could end in something solid. The spread leaves the offer standing, and points to the bottom of the cross as the place to do the work.

Variations

Add a crossing card. Lay one more card sideways over the centre and you have the first six cards of the Celtic Cross.

Change the questions, keep the shape. I like to keep the line across for time and change only the two cards on the vertical line to suit the question. For a decision, the card below can be what you are afraid of and the card above what you are hoping for. Write the new meanings down before you shuffle.

Try it yourself

Take a question you have already read with three cards and lay a five card cross for it.

Lay only the line across first, the centre, left and right, and write the sentence it makes. Then add the card below and the card above, and write down what changed.

Most of the time the line across tells you what is happening, and the line up and down tells you why it matters to you.

If you would like the cards read against your own chart, my readings are here.