ED's for Beginners Part-1

Part-1 .. Part-2 .. Part-3 .. Part-4 .. Part-5

ED is short for Elemental Dignity.

 

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The following is by John Gilbert:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TarotNews/message/33

 

The terms dignity and/or dignities refer to how cards placed next to a given card affect the meaning of that card.

 

Dignity is the relationship between two or more cards.

 

Dignities may be neutral, positive (strong), or negative.

 

This quality of neutral, positive or negative is determined by the system or type of dignities the reader uses.

Elemental Dignity is determined by the Element of the card(s).

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The 1st Thing

 

The first thing I recommend when first trying to learn ED's is to define what neutral, positive (strong), and negative are going to mean to you.  Below is the way I read and equate the neutral, positive, and negative aspects of cards in their 'upright' manner.

1. To me 'neutral' is the way you normally would read a card.
2. Positive or strong means the card would take on a 'positive connotation'.
3. Negative means the card takes on a 'negative connotation'.

This may sound easy but sometimes it's can be quite a chore trying to figure out the actual meaning of the card.

 

Let's take 'The Empress'.  My simple meaning for this card is 'dependency, or dependencies'.  But all by itself this doesn't really tell you very much.  What kind of dependencies?  Are they good or bad?  And believe me - there are good dependencies.  If you depend on your good morals, your faith, your sense of right and wrong, then these are all good dependencies.  Even depending on another person can be good if the dependency is balanced and returned.

 

But all by itself .. and all alone The Empress can only tell you so much.  Granted I could show you how one card can give you a ton of information but for the purposes of ED's we are kind of at a standstill with just one card - and thus one element.

 

With one (1) card/element it is impossible to use ED's.

 

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To use dignities you need to define each card three ways: neutral, positive, negative. Or, you need to devise a set of rules for knowing how positive and how negative those dignities will affect each card. You can do this before or after you've decided what system of dignities you're going to use.

 

Submitted and partially written by Don S.