“Any Oracle that endures must be of service to at least three consecutive generations.” 

– Margaret Mead 

For the past 7 years, I’ve been creating divinatory tools that help open channels to ancestral communication. Some of you may recall the Charming Dead Oracle or Magpie Oracle Seer Charm kits that were part of a series of online courses I co-taught with my gifted friend Andrew Kyle McGregor.

Yet, in the beginning, there was the first edition of the Relative Tarot. At the time of its first release, I’d initially intended that this deck be limited to court and Major Arcana cards to represent the ancestors, sitters, friends, family, key players, personality traits and significant communications; but, The Relative Tarot really wanted to become a 78-card experience. It evolved into a tool that heightened the connection to spirit, the little details, memories, insights, the everyday things encountered in the Land of Form that support the experience of evidential mediumship. While I fell down a personal rabbit hole with this particular project (it’s very dear to my heart and my own calling), little did I realize how big the demographic for divination and ancestral communication would be.

Both versions of the deck sold out almost immediately, (thank you!) and this was a clear sign that there was a great need for magical approaches to both personal healing – and in doing so, healing the family tree. Happily, the Relative Tarot was picked up by the publisher Red Wheel-Weiser and a beautiful new edition will be released in November 2021. Stay tuned.

In addition to ancestral-focused cards and casting kits, I’ve been working behind the scenes with Lisa Bonnice, host of the Shift Network’s popular Ancestral Healing Summits. Together, Lisa and I have co-created a new tool for divining messages from our ancestors with which I’m head over heels in love. It’s my experience that the most meaningful tools arrive at your doorstep very quickly. They knock loudly, ensure you’re aware of all of their needs, and are ready to give them form – like, now!

Artists often describe their creation process as being timeless. I get that now. The Generations Oracle was a relentless, energizing creation and like the notorious duende, it wouldn’t let go of my attention until we were finished, half a year later – which felt like a heartbeat. Please stay tuned for the release date. For now, you can hear more about The Generations Oracle in my Shift Network interview on Lisa’s Ancestral Healing Summit which is free to listeners between February 22-26.

It was also during the creation of The Generations Oracle that I created the following casting map for Diane Wilke’s Southeastern Tarot Conclave. Like many of my tools, the goal of this map is to help us open a dialogue, specifically with our beloved ancestors. It also combines and layers tarot cards with casting charms, a very happy marriage, though any divination tool will do.

Visit here for printable downloads of this spread or simply mirror the positions using a set of cards. Here’s how it works:

Please note this divination is a lighter version of mediumship and for communicating with those on the Other Side. More specifically our ancestors. And by lighter, I mean it doesn’t require you to go into a deep state in order to start a conversation. That can definitely happen, but for this divination, I encourage you to learn the steps before going into deeper dialogues with your ancestors.

• Step 1: Set up your space and create boundaries. Invite to your divination a helpful, as opposed to drama-charged ancestor and preferably one who has your best interest in heart. If using a tarot deck, remove and set aside the 16 court cards. If casting, I recommend randomly selecting your items and assigning them to the positions on this map rather than casting them.

• Step 2: Start with the 4 Pages positioned inside the circle. Pages are often referred to messengers and go-betweens and for this divination, each Page represents your ancestor’s message regarding 4 life lessons they experienced during their time on Earth in body/Page of Pentacles, mind/Page of Swords, heart/Page of Cups and spirit/Page of Wands. Think of these 4 positions as your ancestor’s opportunity to communicate something important they learned and also hope you will not forget. Here your charms or cards will represent your ancestor’s voice and message.

• Step 3: Now that you’ve opened a dialogue and have an idea of your ancestor’s Earth experience, let’s move to the 4 Aces which can symbolize a new start or influence. For this spread they represent a seed of support your ancestor is offering you during your time on Earth. Assign a random card or charm to each Ace to reveal the possible potential and growth you can experience with your ancestor’s support in body/Ace of Pentacles, mind/Ace of Swords, heart/Ace of Cups and spirit/Ace of Wands.

• Step 4: The 12 remaining court cards help identify the character and physical traits of the ancestor you have been in communication with. And this is where I ask you to put your cards to the side and rely more on charms or other casting items. Randomly select just one item and cast it over this spread. If it lands directly on any of the 12 court cards, or pretty close to one (I’ll leave it to you should you wish to include the Pages in this casting), chances are this is the ancestor who is revealing something to you about their character and physical traits. As a side and in my personal experience, if a charm lands outside of the spread, this indicates an ancient ancestor who exists beyond the family memory.

Determining traits via the court cards is an old cartomancy technique for selecting a significator. With this method, the diviner would select a court card to represent their sitter, or someone the sitter is asking about. There are a number of methods for determining a significator and most were originally gleaned from the querent’s gender, race, age, sun sign, or social and marital status. Some of these methods feel outdated as we find the topic of personal identity ever evolving. For this reason, I’ve added a chart that highlights a just few of the traits diviners often experience, but please build your own. This is, after all, your divination.

Once your divination is complete, take a few minutes to observe your findings. Rather than shelf your reading, now is the time to ask more questions, search old family photos, or dig into your ancestral history, all of which can help affirm your divination. Look for themes that might be rooted in your linage and extend the experience by divining ways to heal, or further dialogue with your family line. Don’t worry if nothing reveals itself just yet. It happens. Instead, view this as an opportunity to trust your intuition and learn patience while practicing this art.

Merry divining.