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The Rosson Tarot Game
Sally Bayne Rosson
With most things, the average is mediocrity.
With decision making, its often excellence. You could
say it’s as if we’ve been programmed to
be collectively smart.
James Surowiecki
In a struggle to prevent the primal evil, known as The
First, from taking over the world, Buffy the vampire slayer,
in the television series of the same name, sends her trusted
watcher Giles and ex-demon pal Anya to consult the oracle,
Beljoxa’s eye. In an internal vortex (of time and
space) they come face to face with a wise cracking, spherical
creature made of multiple all-seeing eyes. They don’t
get the answer they want, as is the way with oracles, but
they do find out why evil was, all of a sudden, winning
the battle with good.
Attending The Rosson Tarot Game is a lot like consulting
an oracle with multiple all-seeing eyes. Here is a group
process that offers the individual access to a unique collective
wisdom.
Created by artist, and my late partner, Peter Rosson,
the game was originally designed for our tarot clients
as ongoing personal development and as an alternative to
the one on one consultation. Every Wednesday night, in
2001, six to eight people trekked up the stairs to our
apartment over looking Bondi Beach. There, surrounded by
Rosson’s futuristic disc paintings and mandalas we
created our own internal vortex, a human circle with a
deck of tarot cards at its center.
Those early nights were quite a trip! Everyone took turns
at asking the group questions. Sometimes only one player
would answer while at other times everyone added their
view, creating a rich space of diverse perspectives. It
was a mix of light and pithy observations, with the odd
wise crack thrown in to keep us all laughing. Like Beljoxa’s
Eye, the game didn’t offer any straight up answers,
yet through its perceptive layers the root cause of many
issues surfaced.
The Rosson Tarot Game is a rare portal onto the evil at
work in our lives. It offers a greater understanding of
the battle it wages with the good, along, I might add,
with a few handy pointers on how to prevent a complete
takeover.
Play the Game
Rosson’s game can be played with three or more people.
You may use as many tarot decks as you like, although Peter
only ever used one per game. Each card, once selected and
interpreted, is then placed in a central pile, or a few
mini piles if there are lots of people and thus a large
circle. They are not put back in the deck or reshuffled.
The game officially ends when there are no cards left in
the pack.
The first person, whomever you like, asks the person
on their right or left, whichever way you want to go around,
a question. That person then selects a card from the pack,
not the person asking the question as is of course traditional,
and answers it. A second or third card may be selected,
if more information is required. The first few rounds are
played as quickly as possible so the game master has to
move it along. Sometimes Peter would only give thirty seconds
before he began tapping his finger. (Yes, it was very annoying). In
the next few rounds everyone has a go at answering each
players question, so it takes awhile. A mixture of short
and long rounds works well, keeping the game active with
just the right amounts of depth and lightness.
One last thing: always begin with a privacy statement.
Such as, ‘no personal information, revealed during
the game, is to be repeated to anyone outside the group.’ It’s
a necessary boundary that makes everyone feel safe.
Left Brain Right Brain Workout
Many a questioner becomes lost for words, ‘Oh dear… it’s
my turn, but I cannot think what to ask’. Deep in
the intuitive right brain when answering a question, the
player has a mental blank when they switch to the brains
rational left, to ask one.
Rosson’s mental blank is an educational space where
the player can recognize the difference in the brains two
hemispheres, thereby limiting any propensity to favor one
over the other. In his opinion, drawn from a twenty-five
year artistic practice, once the switch, easy passage between
the two, is mastered, the practical areas of life won’t
suffer for our creative pursuits, and likewise, our creativity
won’t suffer because we are preoccupied with practicalities.
Instead of being, either the creative (left brain) artist
or the practical (right brain) businessperson, we can be
both.
Game playing keeps the connection between the rational
and intuitive minds flexible and ready for whatever personal,
relational, social or creative assignment life offers.
The Prime Directive
Peter began each game with the prime directive:
‘
No answer is wrong or right.’
There is to be no debate on the ‘so called’ true
interpretation of an image. Each participant simply adds
his or her view. All perspectives then become a layer of
meaning. The person receiving the information is solely
responsible for editing any and all information they receive.
It’s an integral process where the questioner sifts
through the different perspectives until a common and pertinent
theme emerges. The advice to all recipients is to go home
and let it sit for a while. Usually that which remains
is right.
Profiling
The tarot game encourages players to keep asking
the same question in different ways. A process Peter referred
to as profiling in that thematic questions, asked and answered
over consecutive rounds, hone in on the essentials of an
issue. A standard game runs for around two hours allowing
an aspect of the players psychological and sociological
background – the patterns of behavior that have and
continue to shape our personal and professional lives – time
to be outlined and in some way addressed.
Since the average player attends the game for six to eight
weeks, a profile is given the time to build. This is not
possible in a single consultation. A woman, who attended
a few years ago, provides a wonderful example. We will
call her Annie.
On her first night Annie wanted to know if she would work
out the relationship with her family. The first person
answering – we will call her Jean – drew the
three of swords. She asked Annie if she had experienced
some kind of betrayal. Annie confirmed and went on to tell
the group how different she was to her mother and sister
and how they, not liking this, had joined forces in an
attempt to make her more like them. In the next round Annie
asked ‘will I ever get on with my family?’ Jean,
who was still answering, selected The Hermit. She suggested
that Annie take some time out. ‘A gracious withdrawal
might just do the trick,’ Jean said. ‘Give
your family time to reflect on their cruelty’.
The next week Annie enquired about work. She wanted some
insight on a disagreement she was having with her co-workers.
Peter, who was answering, selected The Magician. ‘How’s
the communication?’ he asked. Annie said there was
often conflict. ‘They seem to misunderstand what
I say’, she said. Peter then opened the question
to the group. Jean, remembering last weeks session immediately
asked, ‘how are the communications with your family?’ Annie
went silent for a minute then suddenly, as if recalling
something long forgotten said, ‘that is how they
have always locked me out! My mother and sister refuse
to speak openly with me. I ask what is wrong and they say
nothing. We don’t know what you’re talking
about, they say. Clearly they are colluding in that they
wink at each other and exchange knowing looks. Their tones
are hostile, but they never confirm or deny their anger.’
‘How have you coped all these years’, asked
another player. ’My weapon is to disagree with everything
they say and do’, said Annie. ‘I refuse to
conform. That’s how I deal with all group disagreements.
I set myself apart. I stop joining in. I remain completely
independent to protect myself from gang-ups. It gets their
backs up, though. I think they think, that I think I’m
better than them. I don’t. Truth is I’m
just scared.’
In two sessions Annie had herself a profile. Rosson’s
group oracle had identified a destructive relational dynamic
in her family of origin, one that was having an effect
on contemporary relationships. Remember that a profile
is only a psychosocial sketch. It creates awareness of
the issue it does not alter behavior, well not on its own
anyway. As the player who finished the round suggested, ‘A
psychotherapist, counsellor or life coach might be a good
next step, if you want to explore your situation further
and implement long-lasting changes.’
Mirroring
When we ask the same question over and over again, we
cannot get our heads around it. The issue overwhelms. Here
the other participants play the role of witness.
Annie’s pain was witnessed. Someone cared. Someone
was listening. Her existence was validated in a small,
but nonetheless significant way. This is what we call ‘mirroring’ and
there are few experiences, in this world, more healing
than being mirrored. In turn Jean, Peter and the rest of
the contributing players, including myself, experienced
this mirroring. We too had being seen and heard. Someone
was truly interested in what we had to say.
Developing Intuition
People will answer with yes and no. This is fine, in fact
it’s hard to stop, but ask them how it all panned
out the next time you play. There are enough answers
that will be wrong (you said yes, it would happen, but
it didn't?) to give ‘a hands on’ warning of
the perils of fortune telling and the dodgy fate of oracles. Through
trial and error rather than a speech outlining the wrongs
of uninformed opinions, game participants are
encouraged to reach deeper for their intuition, which naturally
gives rise to metaphors, poetic phrases and story style
interpretations. This is an approach that addresses the
heart of the query not just the surface question, creating
a deeply therapeutic experience.
Keep in mind that those on the metaphor’s receiving
end won’t necessarily understand, let alone like
the interpretation they receive. It can take weeks, months,
even years for the penny to drop. Thing is, this questioner
wants the answer and right now, thank you very much! Remaining
firm in the face of such demands, be they open or passive,
tests the profilers emotional strength, their resolve to
be of healing benefit even if that means a brief period
of unpopularity.
Wrong Way Go Back
The odd participant might try and force their view on
another. This is where wrong answers can crop up and without
a subtle yet definite warning from the game master things
can get out of hand.
Others use the game as a forum for covert abuse – you
know, take out there own stuff, albeit mostly unconsciously,
on a vulnerable person and give authorship of the attack
to Spirit. The ‘I am being told that you need to
do this’, answer to a question. On the other hand,
players are under a lot of pressure to come up with a response.
It’s real easy for a player to phrase an answer the
wrong way or be accidentally opinionated. In other words,
the intention is where the abusive element resides. Remain
aware and any problem that crops up can be deftly enough
dealt with.
Sometimes one player will believe that they know what
another player’s problem is. It doesn’t matter
what question is being asked or which card is selected
they just keep giving a new version of the same answer.
One night a woman asked how to deal with a demanding male
client. The guy answering, who was new to the game, abruptly
told her she would have better luck with her clients if
she didn’t run so many agendas. Oops, I thought,
that’s a bit critical. I’ll open the question
to the group. Show the new guy how we do it. By the way
the card was the five of swords. Player two said, ‘try
not to over process client complaints. Don’t get
angry with them, just do what you have to do and then push
them out of your mind.’ The fifth player said, ‘this
guy like’s to have it all his own way. Was your father
like that? She laughed and said,’ yeah. My dad was
really bossy’.
I briefed the group before going on. Asking everyone to
pay special attention to the way they phrased their interpretations. ’Be
empathic’, I said.
In the next round, in answer to her question about relationship,
he, after selecting the two of cups, said, ‘I really
feel that you’re running too many agendas’.
Oops again! Now I was really concerned. I know what I’ll
do, I thought. I’ll let her answer for him. I changed
direction as soon as possible. ‘Why can’t I
find love’, was his question. (Yes, we were all hanging
on her answer). She selected the eight of cups and with
great kindness said, ‘I feel like you’ve been
let down in past relationships and now lack the confidence
to explore new ones’. The guy silently nodded, confirming
her answer. He was visibly moved by the experience. She,
in turn, was moved by his gratitude.
Both players continued to attend this session of the game,
which ran for several more weeks. They got on famously.
He never brought up the women’s ‘so called’ agendas
again.
Variations on the theme
The game is a great way to learn to read cards. Eventually
you will come up with your own interpretive exercises,
in the mean time you might like to try the following:
- The questioner doesn’t ask a question. The answerer
selects a card and gives an unsolicited impression of
the image. A player said, ‘you have everything
you need to achieve your goals’. The Empress was
the selected card. Once opened to the group, player two
said, ‘its harvest time’ while the sixth
observed, ‘someone is being too generous’.
The silent questioner confirmed by mentioning her money
troubles.
- The question can only be answered with a story. This
method demonstrates the power of metaphor, which, as
I mentioned above, is indirect and much less interfering
than the direct yes/no answer. It allows the questioner
to be the author of their own healing solution, in their
own way and at their own pace. A player asked, ‘will
I make new friends’? The woman answering, selected
the five of cups and said, ‘…an unhappy
person is standing all alone focusing on loss. Yet all
they have to do is cross the stream. It’s deep,
but not very wide. And besides’, she said, ‘this
person is a good swimmer. Now I can see them on the other
side, standing outside there new home. Like-minded people
live there…’ The questioner connected with
the story and spoke about her loneliness. How she became
attached to people too quickly. ‘I suffocate them’,
she confessed. ‘Maybe when I cross the stream I
will come to terms with that.’ Another player reminded
her that the person was a good swimmer. ‘It might
not take very long’, he said.
- The question is to be answered in one sentence. It
can be original or a saying, a line from a song or an
adage of some kind. A player asked, ‘will the man
I am seeing turn out to be the one?’ Peter selected
the eight of pentacles and said ‘practice make
perfect’.
- The answer is to be given in one word. A player asked ‘will
I make any money this year’. The card was Judgment. ‘Transformation’,
the one word answer given. This is the less is more approach
to wisdom. Later the lady who asked the question said, ‘I
have always been something of a spend thrift. I know
I need to change the way I deal with money.’
Can you see how the single word answer reached right
into the underlying theme? Another player asked if
she would ever be happy?’ Independence was the
answer. The nine of pentacles was the card. She went
on to tell us that she only ever felt happy when she
was in a relationship. The answerer was thrilled to
be of service. Coincidently, he had gone through a
marriage breakup the year before. ‘I have only
just begun to feel emotionally independent myself’,
he said.
- The question is answered by another question. Do you
want it?’ Was the response to, ‘will I get
the job I am applying for?‘ The High Priestess
was the selected card. The answerer later said he was
interpreting the lack of movement in the image. I guy
asked, ‘How do I loose weight’. The card
selected was the nine of swords. Player one said, ‘do
you have a fear of success? The third wanted to know
if he felt comfortable in his body. ‘Do you like
yourself’, enquired the fourth player.
A Fresh Perspective
To avoid a repetition of inappropriate answers, such as
our man who could only see other people’s agendas,
give the player perceptions a shake up from time to time.
Alter the question and answer partners by:
- Changing direction. From clockwise to anti clockwise
or visa versa.
- Having the players read for every second person.
- Asking those players sitting opposite each other to
ask and answer each other’s questions.
The Group Oracle
The Rosson Tarot Game is collectively wise. To keep it
that way, adhere to the following:
1) Create diversity. Invite players from varied backgrounds
and assure a diversity of knowledge and experience. Rosson
game players are not tarot, symbolism, myth or psychology
specialists, yet as a group they are often much wiser
than the expert in these fields.
2) Encourage independence. Since the prime directive
prevents debate on the right or wrong of an interpretation,
it’s pretty difficult for a player to have much
influence on another. Sometimes a person will bring a
friend who of course knows their situation, but because
they represent only one of many opinions, the occasional
bias is effectively diluted.
3) A game session never runs for more than eight weeks,
unless there is a significant turnaround with some leaving
and new people joining. Once the members start socializing
after hours there is a threat of relational aggression.
Factions gang up on vulnerable players and the quest
for a healing truth is soon replaced by the need to be
right.
4) Decentralize the power. Avoid rigid hierarchies.
There is a game master, but his or her power only runs
to calling the rounds and instructing new players. It’s
their job to guard against open and passive aggression,
not alter an answer or steer the games content in any
way.
5) Let the player do the editing. There are no single
answers only multiple perspectives. The player is, then,
responsible for sorting through the many answers they
receive and deciphering the shared and relevant themes.
The game is an ideal for the independent tarot practitioner,
as a weekly touchstone for their clients. It offers additional
personal development that is as enjoyable as it is effective.
Peter and I priced the game at around half the price of
a standard tarot reading. So it super accessible.
This is not to say that friends can’t play, however,
the lack of player diversity does diminish the effectiveness
of the group as an oracle. Already, tarot groups are playing
to perfect there reading skills. Many play with family,
finding the game to be a fun form of group therapy. Corporations,
clubs and community organizations play to resolve conflict
and build crew morale. What will your version of The Rosson
Tarot Game be?
Bibliography
Surowiecki, James. The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many
are Smarter Than the Few. (Abacus Publishing. London.
UK. 2004)
pdf edition:
> pdf
© “Copyright 2006. Sally Rosson
asserts copyright in this material/book. Except as permitted
under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth),no part of
this publication may be reproduced by any process, electronic
or otherwise, without the specific written permission
of the copyright owner. Nor may information be stored
electronically in any form whatsoever without such permission.”
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