Welcome to #MagicMondays! Every Monday, I will post an article exploring All Things Witch. I often receive texts about witchy practices and answer emails about symbols and talk ritual over shared meals. I decided to compile all that knowledge into one place and share the hell out of it. We are all capable of magic because magic is within us! Now let’s get to work!

Sometimes in a reading I will figure out someone’s birth card and shadow card. The cards even show up in the spread we lay on the table to indicate their importance for folks. Your birth card is like your sun sign in astrology. People also call it your personality card. It symbolizes who you are as a person. Thinking about astrology here is helpful. The goal of the sun is to build an identity. Attributes associated to your sun sign lead to the many ways in which you create your life. Your birth card shows you more of what you have to learn. You ready to figure out yours?

I learned this from my ghoulfriend Wolfie in Philly a fews years ago and it’s been helping me out ever since. Ok, you will need to add your birthday — month, date and year. Here’s an example:

  12 + 19 + 19 + 84 = 134

From there you want to add that number. You should keep adding these numbers until you get an answer between 22* and 1.

1 + 3 + 4 = 8 — This is your birth card, which corresponds to the Major Arcana card Strength.

Your Shadow card, also called your Soul card by some teachers, is easy to determine from here. This card represents what follows you in life, what your soul’s purpose or path might be in the narrative of tarot. To find out, you just want to add that original 3 digit number (134)  like this:

 13 + 4 = 17 — This is your shadow card, which corresponds to the Major Arcana card The Star.

Here’s another example. Lets work with Kanye West’s birthday:

     6 + 8 + 19 + 77 = 110

Then,

1 + 1 = 2  — Which corresponds to the High Priestess 2, his birth card

And 11 + 0 = 11 — Which corresponds to the Justice card, or Accountability in some decks, his shadow card.

*These are a few cases where the answers differ.

If your first number is 22, that represents The Fool (2 – 2 = 0) as your Birth card and The Emperor (2 + 2=4) as your soul card.

If your first number adds up to a number beyond 22, reduce that number to 1 and this becomes both your Birth and Shadow card, which makes you extremely focused on the life at hand.

Also, if your first number is 19, you have 3 cards: 19 The Sun, The Wheel of Fortune (1 + 9 = 10) and the Magician (1 + 0 = 1). This is basically like the Sunaltimate dynamic. You are a special beast when the numbers line up in this favor.

That was fun! Before you go — know that in honor of Friday’s full moon / eclipse I am offering readings this weekend in Brooklyn (off the L, M or B38 bus)! I am available Saturday and Sunday Oct 19 and 20th at 10AM, 1PM, and 4PM each day. Email or message me to set up an appointment and get more information. I’d love to read for you!