The Hedge Witch Cards: Sacred Spreads & Divination Patterns

Ancient Patterns for Reading the Old Roads

Understanding the Art of the Spread

Before the cards are drawn, before the question is asked, there exists a moment of perfect stillness - the pause between worlds where divination becomes possible. In the hedge witch tradition, spreads are not mere card positions but sacred geometries, each pattern creating a different doorway between the questioner and the mystery they seek to understand.

The arrangement of cards matters as much as the cards themselves. Like herbs gathered at specific moon phases or stones placed in ritual circles, each position in a spread carries its own energy, its own perspective on the truth being revealed. The spreads that follow have been passed down through generations of hedge witches, each one refined through countless readings, each position earned through understanding.

Remember: the cards do not predict a fixed future. They reveal the currents flowing through your present moment, showing where they’re likely to lead if unchanged. Every spread is both map and mirror - showing not just the path ahead but the traveler walking it.

Blood and Bone: The Balance of Fate and Will

Throughout your reading, pay attention to the balance of Blood cards (external forces, fate, circumstances beyond control) and Bone cards (internal power, choice, personal agency). A spread dominated by Blood suggests you’re in the hands of greater forces; a spread heavy with Bone indicates your choices matter more than your circumstances. When Blood and Bone appear in equal measure, you stand at the crossroads where fate and free will dance as partners.

The Sacred Spreads

1. THE SINGLE SEED

For Clear Sight on One Matter

Purpose: When you need a single, clear answer. When complexity would cloud rather than clarify. When the heart of the matter must be revealed without elaboration.

The Spread: Draw one card. This is not simplicity but distillation - all the universe’s wisdom concentrated into a single symbol.

    [1]
    
1 - The Seed

Position Meaning:

How to Read: Let the card speak first through image, then through meaning, finally through feeling. What does your body know when you see this card? What does your heart recognize? The Single Seed does not explain or elaborate - it simply reveals what IS.

Best Used For:

Example Reading: Question: “What do I need to know about this opportunity?” Card Drawn: Six of Gales (The Necessary Departure) Reading: The opportunity requires leaving something behind. What seems like forward movement is actually about release. The swords point not at what you’re gaining but at what you must be willing to lose.

2. THE CROSSROADS PATH

For Decisions and Choices

Purpose: When you stand between possibilities, when the path splits before you, when choice itself becomes the challenge. This spread illuminates not just options but the chooser.

The Spread: Three cards in a horizontal line, like a path with a fork ahead.

    [2]   [1]   [3]
    
2 - Left Path
1 - Where You Stand
3 - Right Path

Position Meanings:

  1. Where You Stand (Center): Your current position, the ground beneath your feet
  2. The Left Path (Left): One option, often the familiar way, the path of continuation
  3. The Right Path (Right): The other option, often the unknown way, the path of change

How to Read: Begin with Where You Stand - this roots the reading in present reality. Then look at both paths not as good/bad but as different rivers flowing toward different seas. Notice which path holds more Blood (external forces) versus Bone (personal power). The “right” choice is often the one that makes you grow, not the one that makes you comfortable.

Best Used For:

Deeper Positions (for advanced reading):

3. THE TRIPLE MIRROR

Past Echoes, Present Truth, Future Seeds

Purpose: To understand how yesterday’s roots create today’s tree and tomorrow’s fruit. This ancient pattern reveals not prediction but continuation - how patterns flow through time unless consciously changed.

The Spread: Three cards in a horizontal line, read left to right like the sun’s journey across the sky.

    [1]   [2]   [3]
    
1 - The Root (Past)
2 - The Trunk (Present)  
3 - The Crown (Future)

Position Meanings:

  1. The Root (Past): What has been planted, patterns established, the echo still sounding
  2. The Trunk (Present): What stands now, the current truth, the moment of power
  3. The Crown (Future): What grows from current conditions, the likely harvest, the probable becoming

How to Read: See these not as separate moments but as one flowing river. The past doesn’t disappear - it flows into present. The future isn’t distant - it’s being born now. Look for elements that repeat across cards (suits, numbers, themes) showing persistent patterns. Look for elements that change, showing evolution or intervention.

Best Used For:

Advanced Practice:

4. THE SEASON’S WHEEL

For Understanding Cycles and Timing

Purpose: To see where you stand in the great wheel of becoming, understanding that all things have their season. This spread reveals not just what but when, showing the optimal timing for action or patience.

The Spread: Four cards arranged in a diamond, one for each season’s wisdom.

        [2]
         
    [3]     [1]
    
        [4]
        
1 - Spring (East/Right): New beginnings
2 - Summer (South/Top): Full power
3 - Autumn (West/Left): Harvest time
4 - Winter (North/Bottom): Rest & transformation

Position Meanings:

  1. Spring Position (East/Right): What is beginning, seeds planted, new growth emerging
  2. Summer Position (South/Top): What is flourishing, full power, peak manifestation
  3. Autumn Position (West/Left): What is harvesting, gathering rewards, preparing for ending
  4. Winter Position (North/Bottom): What is sleeping, resting, transforming in darkness

How to Read: Find yourself in the wheel - which position holds the most resonance with your current experience? This shows your “seasonal location.” Then read clockwise to understand the cycle ahead. Remember: winter is not punishment but preparation, spring is not better than autumn but simply different medicine.

Best Used For:

Practical Application:

5. THE HEDGE CROSS

For Complete Situation Analysis

Purpose: The classic five-card spread that maps all dimensions of a situation - what crosses you, what grounds you, what has passed, what approaches, and what crowns the moment with possibility.

The Spread: Five cards in a cross formation, each position a different lens through which to view your situation.

        [4]
         
    [1]+[2] [5]
    
        [3]
        
1 - The Heart (Center)
2 - The Crossing (Overlaid on 1)
3 - The Root Below
4 - The Crown Above
5 - The Bridge (Right)

Position Meanings:

  1. The Heart (Center): The situation itself, the core matter, you in this moment
  2. The Crossing (Overlaid on center): What helps or hinders, the influence across your path
  3. The Root Below (Bottom): Foundation, subconscious influences, hidden support or undermining
  4. The Crown Above (Top): Conscious aims, potential outcome, highest possibility
  5. The Bridge (Right): The key, the way forward, the action or understanding needed

How to Read: Begin with Heart and Crossing together - they create the dynamic tension of your situation. Then read Root and Crown as a vertical axis - what rises from below toward above. Finally, the Bridge shows how to navigate from current complexity toward resolution.

Best Used For:

Sacred Geometry Note: The cross is the meeting of horizontal (earthly) and vertical (spiritual) planes. Where they meet (the Heart) is where transformation becomes possible.

6. THE CAULDRON’S BREW

For Transformation and Alchemy

Purpose: When something must be transformed, when you stand at the threshold of becoming, when the old must die for the new to be born. This spread maps the alchemical process of change.

The Spread: Seven cards arranged like a cauldron - three forming the vessel’s rim, three the brew within, and one beneath as the transforming fire.

    [1]  [2]  [3]  ← The Rim (Container)
    
    [4]  [5]  [6]  ← The Brew (What transforms)
    
         [7]       ← The Fire (Transforming force)
         
1 - Left Rim: Structures to maintain
2 - Center Rim: Persistent self
3 - Right Rim: Helpful boundaries
4 - Left Brew: What you release
5 - Center Brew: The catalyst
6 - Right Brew: What you call in
7 - The Fire: Driving force

Position Meanings: 1-3. The Rim (Three cards across the top): What contains the transformation, the vessel holding change

4-6. The Brew (Three cards in the middle row): What transforms

  1. The Fire (Bottom center): The energy driving transformation, the force that makes change possible

How to Read: See this as an active process, not a static picture. The Rim must be strong enough to hold the Brew. The Brew must be willing to be changed by the Fire. The Fire must be hot enough to transform but not so fierce it cracks the vessel. Look for elemental balance - too much of any element can destabilize the transformation.

Best Used For:

Advanced Practice: If transformation seems blocked, draw an additional card asking: “What ingredient is missing from the brew?”

7. THE LUNAR MANSIONS

For Deep Emotional and Psychic Work

Purpose: To navigate the emotional depths, understand psychic influences, and map the territory of dreams, intuition, and the subconscious waters that move beneath daily life.

The Spread: Nine cards arranged in three rows of three, creating a perfect square that mirrors the moon’s nine visible phases.

    [1]  [2]  [3]  ← Surface Waters (Conscious)
    
    [4]  [5]  [6]  ← Middle Depths (Subconscious)
    
    [7]  [8]  [9]  ← Deep Waters (Unconscious)
    
1 - Emotions shown to world
2 - Emotions acknowledged 
3 - Emotions trying to feel
4 - Feelings from past
5 - Emotional core truth
6 - Forming future feelings
7 - Ancestral patterns
8 - Psychic message
9 - Deep emotional wisdom

Position Meanings: Top Row - The Surface Waters (Conscious emotions):

  1. What emotions you show the world
  2. What emotions you acknowledge in yourself
  3. What emotions you’re trying to feel

Middle Row - The Middle Depths (Subconscious currents):

  1. What feelings flow from the past
  2. The emotional core truth of now
  3. What feelings are forming for the future

Bottom Row - The Deep Waters (Unconscious/psychic realm):

  1. Ancestral/inherited emotional patterns
  2. The psychic message trying to surface
  3. Your deep emotional wisdom

How to Read: Read each row as its own story, then read the columns vertically to see how energies move from unconscious through subconscious to conscious. The center card (position 5) is the heart of the reading - all other cards relate to this emotional core truth.

Best Used For:

Moon Phase Enhancement: This spread gains power when performed in alignment with the moon’s phase. New moon for beginnings, full moon for illumination, dark moon for shadow work.

8. THE ELEMENT DANCE

For Balance and Elemental Healing

Purpose: To see which elements dominate and which are lacking, understanding how to bring the four powers into sacred balance within your situation or self.

The Spread: Eight cards - one for each element’s challenge and gift, creating a wheel of elemental wisdom.

          [5]  [6]
         Fire Gift
       Fire Challenge
         
    [7]            [3]
   Water         Air Gift
 Challenge           
    [8]            [4]
   Water         Air
    Gift      Challenge
    
         [1]  [2]
      Earth Challenge
        Earth Gift

1 - Earth Challenge (North-bottom)
2 - Earth Gift (North-top)
3 - Air Gift (East-right top)
4 - Air Challenge (East-right bottom)
5 - Fire Challenge (South-top)
6 - Fire Gift (South-bottom)
7 - Water Challenge (West-left top)
8 - Water Gift (West-left bottom)

Position Meanings:

  1. Earth Challenge (North-bottom): Where Roots grow poorly
  2. Earth Gift (North-top): Where Roots grow strong
  3. Air Challenge (East-right bottom): Where Gales bring confusion
  4. Air Gift (East-right top): Where Gales bring clarity
  5. Fire Challenge (South-top): Where Embers burn destructively
  6. Fire Gift (South-bottom): Where Embers create warmth
  7. Water Challenge (West-left top): Where Tides overwhelm
  8. Water Gift (West-left bottom): Where Tides nourish

How to Read: Look for which element appears most frequently in the cards drawn - this element dominates your situation. Look for which element appears least or not at all - this element needs cultivation. Notice where gifts outweigh challenges (elements supporting you) versus where challenges outweigh gifts (elements requiring attention).

Best Used For:

Elemental Remedy Practice: Based on the reading, spend a week working with the most challenged element through simple practice (earthing for Earth, breathwork for Air, candle meditation for Fire, ritual baths for Water).

9. THE HEDGE WALKER’S MAP

For Spiritual Journey and Life Path

Purpose: When you need to see the greater journey, understand your spiritual path, or map the territory between where you’ve been and where you’re called to go.

The Spread: Ten cards creating a winding path, like stepping stones across a river or markers on an old forest trail.

    [1]
      \
       [2]
         \
          [3]
         /
       [4]
         \
          [5]
         /
       [6]
         \
          [7]
            \
             [8]
               \
                [9]
                  \
                   [10]
                   
1 - The Origin
2 - First Steps  
3 - First Threshold
4 - Current Footfall
5 - The Companion
6 - Challenge Ahead
7 - Hidden Teacher
8 - Second Threshold
9 - The Calling
10 - The Horizon

Position Meanings:

  1. The Origin: Where this journey truly began
  2. The First Steps: Early lessons that shaped the path
  3. The First Threshold: The gate you’ve already passed through
  4. The Current Footfall: Where you stand right now
  5. The Companion: Who or what walks beside you (seen or unseen)
  6. The Challenge Ahead: The next test or initiation
  7. The Hidden Teacher: Unexpected wisdom on the path
  8. The Second Threshold: The gate you’re approaching
  9. The Calling: What summons you forward
  10. The Horizon: The furthest point currently visible

How to Read: This is a journey map, not a fortune telling. Each card is a waymarker on your path. Read them as a story - your story - seeing how each step led to the next. Pay special attention to the Thresholds (positions 3 and 8) as these mark major transitions. The Companion (position 5) often reveals spiritual allies or aspects of self that support the journey.

Best Used For:

Journey Practice: After the reading, create a physical map or artistic representation of your journey, marking where you’ve been and where you’re headed.

10. THE GRAND CAULDRON

The Master Spread for Complete Understanding

Purpose: For the most important questions, the deepest mysteries, the times when nothing less than complete understanding will suffice. This is the master spread of the hedge witch tradition, revealing all dimensions of a situation.

The Spread: Thirteen cards arranged in a spiral pattern, like smoke rising from a cauldron or the ancient spiral of life itself.

           [11]
        [10]  [8]
      [9]   [6]  [7]
        [4]  [5]
      [3]  [1]  [2]
          [12]
          [13]

Inner Spiral (1-3): The Questioner
Middle Spiral (4-7): The Situation  
Outer Spiral (8-11): The Forces
Resolution (12-13): The Outcome

1 - The Seeker (center)
2 - The Shadow 
3 - The Power
4 - Root Cause
5 - Manifest Form
6 - Hidden Current
7 - Crossing Point
8 - The Ancestor
9 - The Community
10 - The Land
11 - The Spirit
12 - The Key
13 - The Becoming

Position Meanings:

The Inner Spiral (The Questioner):

  1. The Seeker: Who you are in this question
  2. The Shadow: What you’re not seeing about yourself
  3. The Power: Your greatest strength in this situation

The Middle Spiral (The Situation):

  1. The Root Cause: The true origin of the situation
  2. The Manifest Form: How it appears in the world
  3. The Hidden Current: The unseen forces at work
  4. The Crossing Point: Where multiple forces meet

The Outer Spiral (The Forces):

  1. The Ancestor: Past influences, inherited patterns
  2. The Community: Social/collective influences
  3. The Land: Environmental/physical world influences
  4. The Spirit: Divine/cosmic influences

The Resolution Points:

  1. The Key: The crucial understanding or action needed
  2. The Becoming: What emerges from all forces combined

How to Read: Begin at the center with the Seeker and spiral outward, seeing how each ring of influence expands from personal to transpersonal to cosmic. The spiral pattern means each card influences the next - follow the energy as it moves outward. The final card isn’t “outcome” but “becoming” - what is emerging from the combination of all forces present.

Best Used For:

Advanced Practice: This spread can be read multiple ways:

Sacred Note: The Grand Cauldron should not be used lightly or frequently. Like a strong medicine, it requires proper preparation and integration time. Fast before reading. Create sacred space. Allow several hours for the full reading and contemplation.

Advanced Techniques: Deepening Your Reading

Reading Elemental Dignities

The elements speak to each other across the spread, creating harmonies and tensions that add layers of meaning:

Elemental Relationships:

When reading positions next to each other:

The Shadow Card

After laying your spread, look at the bottom card of the remaining deck - this is the Shadow Card, representing:

The Shadow Card doesn’t get a position but colors the entire reading. If it’s Major Arcana, the situation has deep spiritual significance. If it’s a court card, someone’s influence permeates everything.

Quintessence Calculation

For readings with Major Arcana, add their numbers to find the reading’s quintessence (spiritual essence):

  1. Add all Major Arcana numbers in your spread
  2. If total exceeds 22, add those digits together
  3. The resulting Major Arcana card reveals the spiritual lesson

Example: The Tower (16) + The Star Mixer (14) + The Bone Mother (13) = 43 = 4+3 = 7 (The Spiral Dance)

This shows the hidden spiritual curriculum beneath surface events.

How Positions Modify Card Meanings

Cards shift meaning based on their position in the spread:

Past positions: Show how this energy has already manifested Present positions: Show active, currently accessible energy Future positions: Show potential manifestation if current path continues Challenge positions: Show the shadow side or excess of the card Advice positions: Show how to work constructively with the energy Outcome positions: Show the culmination of the card’s energy

Example: Three of Embers (Collaboration) in different positions:

Reversal and Corruption Guidelines

Understanding Corrupted Cards

In the Hedge Witch tradition, reversed cards show their “corrupted” aspect - not opposite but shadow manifestation:

How to Decide Whether to Read Reversals:

How Corrupted Cards Change Spread Dynamics

Single corrupted card: Points to the specific area needing attention Multiple corrupted cards: Indicates resistance, shadow work needed, or approaching the question from the wrong angle All corrupted cards: Stop. The question itself may be corrupted. Reformulate and redraw. Corrupted cards in key positions:

Position Effects on Corruption

Corruption manifests differently based on position:

In Past positions: Unhealed trauma, unlearned lessons, patterns repeating In Present positions: Current shadow expression, active resistance, denial In Future positions: Warning of shadow manifestation if unchanged In Internal positions: Self-sabotage, internal resistance, shadow self In External positions: Projections, toxic situations, others’ shadows affecting you In Advice positions: Need to embrace the shadow aspect consciously

Working with Corrupted Court Cards

Corrupted court cards in spreads indicate:

Spread Modifications and Expansions

Adding Clarification Cards

When a position remains unclear after interpretation:

The Single Clarifier: Draw one card to lay beside the unclear card

The Triple Clarification: For major confusion, draw three cards:

  1. What you’re not seeing
  2. Why this is unclear
  3. What would make it clear

Never clarify more than 2 positions in a spread - if more are unclear, the reading itself may be premature.

Expanding Spreads for Deeper Insight

Adding a Shadow Layer: For any spread, deal a shadow card beneath each position after the initial reading. These show:

The Hedge Witch’s Addition: Add three cards to ANY spread’s end:

  1. The Medicine: What healing this situation offers
  2. The Poison: What danger lurks within
  3. The Hedge: The boundary to walk between them

Elemental Enhancement: For any spread, add four cards (one per element) showing:

Combining Spreads

For complex situations, spreads can be woven together:

The Progressive Reading:

  1. Start with Single Seed for essence
  2. If unclear, expand to Triple Mirror
  3. If more needed, progress to Hedge Cross
    • Each spread builds on the previous understanding

The Layered Cauldron:

  1. First: Season’s Wheel to understand timing
  2. Then: Cauldron’s Brew for transformation within that timing
  3. Finally: Single Seed for the key action

The Complete Mapping: For life-changing situations:

  1. Hedge Walker’s Map for the journey
  2. Element Dance for resources needed
  3. Grand Cauldron for full understanding

When to Stop Adding Cards

Signs you should complete the reading as-is:

Questions for Each Position: Deepening Understanding

Universal Questions for Any Position

Before interpreting, ask the card:

  1. “What are you trying to show me?”
  2. “How does this manifest in my daily life?”
  3. “What would change if I fully embraced this message?”
  4. “What am I resisting about this truth?”
  5. “How does this card connect to my current situation?”

Position-Specific Questions

For Past/Root/Origin Positions:

For Present/Center/Heart Positions:

For Future/Outcome/Horizon Positions:

For Challenge/Shadow/Crossing Positions:

For Advice/Bridge/Key Positions:

For People/Court Card Positions:

Questions for Elemental Positions

Roots/Earth Positions:

Gales/Air Positions:

Embers/Fire Positions:

Tides/Water Positions:

Questions for Blood vs Bone Assessment

When noticing the Blood/Bone balance:

Working with the Spreads: Sacred Practice

Preparing for Divination

Before any spread, create the proper container:

  1. Cleanse the space - Smoke, sound, or intention
  2. Ground yourself - Connect with earth, center in your body
  3. Open sacred space - Call quarters, cast circle, or simply acknowledge the sacred
  4. Form your question - Clear, specific questions receive clearer answers
  5. Shuffle with intention - Let your question flow through your hands into the cards

Drawing the Cards

After the Reading

  1. Record everything - Write or sketch the spread while energy is fresh
  2. Look for patterns - Repeated suits, numbers, elements, or themes
  3. Feel the medicine - What emotions arise? What body sensations?
  4. Create an action - Each reading should inspire at least one concrete action
  5. Close with gratitude - Thank the cards, the forces, yourself for showing up

Timing Your Readings

Creating Your Own Spreads

The spreads given here are traditional, tested by countless hedge witches across generations. But the cards themselves will teach you new patterns if you listen. When creating your own spreads:

  1. Let the question shape the spread - Complex questions need more positions
  2. Consider sacred geometry - Triangles for synthesis, squares for stability, circles for wholeness
  3. Assign clear meanings - Each position should have a specific purpose
  4. Test repeatedly - A spread isn’t proven until it consistently provides clarity
  5. Record what works - Keep a grimoire of spreads that sing true

Remember: spreads are like spells - they create a container for mystery to reveal itself. The pattern matters as much as the cards drawn. In the arrangement itself lies part of the answer.

The Final Wisdom

These spreads are doorways, not destinations. They offer glimpses of truth, not truth itself. The cards can show you the river’s current, but you still must choose whether to swim with it, against it, or step onto the bank entirely.

In every spread, in every card, in every reading, remember: you are both the question and the answer, both the seeker and the sought, both the reader and the read. The cards are mirrors as much as maps, showing not just where you’re going but who you’re becoming along the way.

May your readings be clear, your interpretations wise, and your path illuminated by the ancient wisdom of the Hedge Witch Cards.

“Where the hedge grows thin and the cards speak true,
Between what was and what may be,
There dwells the wisdom, ancient and new,
That sets the seeker’s spirit free.”