Mechanical Nuances of Card Orientation

Orientation, energy flow, and how to read it as a debugging map.

Orientation Interface Flow Feedback Action

Tarot, as it's used here, functions as a readout system for interface conditions. A card describes how a force is transmitting, where it is being regulated, and what kind of engagement restores coherence. The goal is usable diagnostics: "What is the mechanism currently in process?" and "How do those processes affect the projected trajectory?"

Orientation Mechanics

Upright and reversed represent two processing modes of the same force.

Orientation answers a practical question: "Where in the chain of motion is this force located?" In this model, upright reads as active transmission (the force is already moving through the world-facing layer), and reversed reads as active regulation (the force is present, but its motion is being shaped, constrained, redirected, or recalibrated).

Think of it like a relay race: the baton is always part of the system. Orientation tells you where it sits in the exchange. Upright means the baton is in motion through the lane. Reversed means the baton is at the handoff point.

Translated into plain actions: Upright = receive, ride momentum, execute. Reversed = adjust, re-aim, repair the handoff, or re-allocate responsibility.

Core Function Table

Same card, same force. Two different operating stances.

Core Function	Upright (active transmission)	Reversed (active regulation)
Transmission Where the force is "showing up"	The force expresses outward. Events, interactions, and consequences carry it forward.	The force compresses inward. The system routes it through attention, correction, and deliberate engagement.
Momentum How movement is sustained	Energy carries itself. Your job is to steer and execute with timing.	Energy requires steering input. Your job is to restore traction and direct motion intentionally.
Agency Who is holding the lever	Agency is available as an output channel: choose, act, commit.	Agency is applied as a tuning channel: refine, repair, renegotiate, recalibrate.
Constraint Where friction is doing work	Constraint shapes the lane, and motion flows within it.	Constraint becomes the active tool: limiters, boundaries, pacing, and correction points are engaged on purpose.
Feedback How the system self-corrects	Feedback arrives through outcomes and real-world response. Adjustments happen mid-flight.	Feedback arrives through internal sensing and pattern recognition. Adjustments happen before the next push.
Coherence How "aligned" the motion feels	Coherence expresses as forward progress and clean consequences.	Coherence expresses as clean intent, cleaner boundaries, and restored signal-to-noise.

Note: this table describes orientation mechanics in general. A given card defines what kind of force is moving. Orientation defines how that force is being processed.

Reading Workflow

A simple way to keep readings mechanical and actionable.

Step 1: Identify the force. The card tells you the type of mechanism in play (initiation, constraint, synthesis, rupture, calibration, etc.).

Step 2: Identify the mode. Upright = transmission. Reversed = regulation.

Step 3: Locate the bottleneck. Ask: "Where in this situation does motion get handed off, redirected, delayed, or misrouted?"

Step 4: Name the correct move. Choose one verb that restores function: commit, pause, repair, limit, re-aim, simplify, release, renegotiate.

If you can leave a reading with one clean verb and one clean boundary, the spread did its job.

Pattern Recognition

How to read clusters without turning it into a superstition smoothie.

Many uprights: the situation is world-facing. Motion is external. Outcomes are near-term and visible.

Many reversed: the situation is system-facing. Motion is routed through calibration, repair, and deliberate steering.

Mixed field: the spread describes a handoff between internal processing and external execution. These often read like timing problems: "Do the internal work first, then push."

Field Claimed by the impending wind funnel: Now is a bad time for tarot! Take shelter-- The goddamn tornado coming!

The reading spread provides a system topology map. The question to ask when using this map is actually: "Where is force moving freely, and where does it require deliberate handling?"