February 18 - 24, 2012 ~ Petit Etteilla

Petit Etteilla
B.P. Grimaud


I bought this little diamond in the rough down at BATS 2011. I seem to have some affinity for French cartomancy decks, but the feeling doesn't seem to be mutual.

It is still in the rough, by the way, but I am chipping and cutting a little bit more all the time.  With the help of Etteilla, ou la seule manière de tirer les cartes, I have been making been making head way.  During the week, I tried a variety of reading methods when I discovered that my usual method of using three cards was not working.  The proscribed meanings are very general and in some cases rather blunt, and as such, the cards read better with other cards around to give clarity.  The system is a deceptively simple, really, and every time I sat down to work with the cards, I got up hours later feeling frustrated and remarkably dense.  That, however, is a personal problem.  I don't know when to just step back and breathe.

During the week, I tried predictive type readings, such as "What lies ahead for today," and "Will I..."  The first question yielded interesting results.  It accurately predicted a very minor disagreement between myself and my husband.  With just three cards, however, there wasn't much clarification.  The cards predicted a serious disagreement, but it was quite minor.  The "Will I..." question can't really be tested for accuracy at this time, but I am taking notes.  Interesting that related questions had the same cards in similar positions.  There was a message, but like with my French, I am still a bit rusty and unable to clearly discern meaning.

I am curiously drawn to this deck and others like it.  They frustrate me, but this seems to be seated in a lack of understanding on my part.  They are speaking a language of which I have knowledge, but not fluency.