Reading Someone's True Feelings with Tarot — clarity for the heart

Supervised by Usatoko WHITE
Professional fortune teller & spiritual advisor

♡Tarot and Love

Nyanta

Can tarot really tell me how someone feels about me?

Nekosuke

Tarot reflects messages sitting in the other person's subconscious. It won't give you a word-for-word transcript, but it's a real help in reading the general direction of their feelings.

"I just want to know how my crush really feels." When you're troubled in love, what you want to know, more than anything, is the other person's feelings.

Even if what you really want is to understand the relationship itself, or where things are headed, it all starts with knowing how they feel.

Whether it's someone you have a crush on, a partner who's seemed distant lately, or someone whose feelings about marriage you're unsure of — there's no end to the worries that come with wanting to understand a person's true feelings, or the things about them you just can't figure out even when you're together.

There's the hope that they feel the same way you do, and the anxiety of wondering what to do if your feelings don't match. Tarot offers a simpler, clearer answer to those tangled feelings.

Knowing accurately how the other person feels can change what you decide to do next — and that can be an important first step toward shaping your own future.

✦Key Points for Reading Someone's Feelings

The key when reading someone's feelings is to picture them clearly in your mind while you shuffle the cards.

There's actually no fixed rule for shuffling. Hold the question you want answered firmly in your mind, and shuffle as many times as feels right to you.

Whatever spread you use, stay focused from the moment you pick up the cards, through the shuffle, to laying them out — keep the other person in your mind's eye the whole time.

Try to clear away preconceptions and picture their expression, their voice, whatever you sense about them intuitively.

If you find it hard to concentrate, or your feelings start to feel unsettled, it may be best to pause the reading and wait until you feel calmer.

Tarot cards are sensitive to the reader's own state of mind and tend to reflect it, for better or worse. If your own feelings are unclear or unstable, the results can end up unreliable.

You also won't get an accurate result if you're holding onto hostile or negative emotions. For example, if you're harboring resentment toward the other person, or wishing misfortune on someone — those distorted feelings will carry through into the cards.

So when reading someone's feelings with tarot, it's important to settle yourself, relax, and approach the question gently, with a calm heart.

If you really can't settle your mind, try burning white sage and meditating beforehand.

White sage is normally used to purify tarot cards, but it also has the power to purify the mind of the person handling them.

Place white sage on a heat-safe dish and light it.

Pass both hands through the smoke, then bring your hands close to your forehead.

Take a deep breath and meditate for a while — this helps clear away distracting thoughts and settle your feelings.

If you don't have white sage, mixing a little salt into aromatherapy oil works as a substitute.

Any scent is fine — choose whatever helps you relax.

In that case, dab the salt-mixed oil on both wrists and your forehead, then meditate.

Not knowing how someone feels is genuinely unsettling, and it's only natural to end up with negative feelings about it.

But to truly understand someone else's feelings, you also need to face your own. Just as you care about them, don't forget to care for your own feelings too.

It's important to let go not only of negative feelings toward the other person, but of negative feelings toward yourself as well.

☾Reading the Feelings of Someone Close to You

For everyday feelings from someone you see regularly, or a quick check before a date, a One Oracle reading is a good fit.

One Oracle means drawing a single card and using it to read the other person's feelings and think through what to do next. For this, it's clearest to draw from the 22 Major Arcana cards.

If you want to know how someone you see often, or someone close to you, is feeling — or you want to improve things with a partner — you might even try drawing one card a day as a kind of daily routine.

Understanding the rhythm of their feelings over time helps you gauge the right distance and the right actions to take.

Since it's just one card, drawing an unfavorable one can hit hard.

But keep in mind that in this context, the meaning of the card is often somewhat softer than its full traditional meaning.

People's feelings naturally ebb and flow, so understand that there will be times the other person is having an off day, or times you need to be more careful about distance — and respond accordingly.

So rather than reacting to every high and low, approach the reading with an attitude of valuing the everyday flow of the relationship.

If you're anxious, of course, it's fine to draw a second card as an advice card to plan ahead. Wrapping that advice card in a handkerchief or cloth and carrying it like a charm can also be effective.

✧Reading the Feelings of a Crush

When there's some emotional distance, or you're unsure how a crush really feels, a Three Card spread is recommended.

If you're considering confessing your feelings to a crush, this spread can also help you gauge whether the timing is right.

The Three Card spread reads the other person's past, present, and future situation and feelings across three cards.

If you're feeling uneasy about the current distance or their attitude toward you, tracing the arc from past to future gives you a more accurate read.

Even if their current attitude or behavior isn't great, understanding the cause and staying aware of the near future can ease that anxiety.

This method tends to represent a period of about three to six months, so it's useful for thinking through your approach over the medium term.

If the past-present-future flow doesn't show a particularly good result, it may be a sign that you need to take a longer view and give it more time.

Rather than rushing to a conclusion or wanting to change something immediately, what matters is sensing the flow of their feelings and watching for the right timing.

⚖Reading the Feelings of Someone You're Dating

When you're already in a relationship and the connection is clearly established, the Greek Cross spread is a good choice for reading their feelings. This spread lays five cards out in the shape of a cross.

It's well-suited to identifying problems and concrete solutions, so it works well when you have a clear goal or picture in mind for the relationship.

Examples include gauging their feelings about marriage, or reading the future of an unstable relationship such as an affair.

To read it, lay out five cards in a cross shape. Place them in this order: left, right, top, bottom, then center.

The left card shows the other person's current feelings, the right shows the problem, the top shows their feelings in the near future, the bottom shows the solution, and the center card shows the final outcome.

The key is to use their current feelings, the near future, and the eventual outcome as your anchor points while reading the problem and the solution around them. This helps you take concrete action to close the gap between your feelings and theirs.

☀How to Read Tarot Cards for Someone's Feelings

Even with the same tarot card, the part of the image you should focus on changes depending on your relationship and situation with the other person. Keeping this in mind lets you do a more nuanced reading.

For example, when reading the feelings of someone you have a crush on, it's best to focus on the central meaning of the image.

On the other hand, when reading the feelings of someone you're already dating, focus on what surrounds the central figure. Since the two of you already share a bond, reading the influence of what surrounds you both helps their feelings move more smoothly in your favor.

Take the Empress card, for example.

The Empress symbolizes the feminine. The card itself carries a powerful, positive energy of love.

It can be described as a symbol of abundant affection and fruitfulness.

The Empress card expresses a woman's maternal nature and fertility through rich, vivid coloring.

The figure of a woman with a contented, gentle smile carries a deep, nurturing energy that puts the viewer at ease just looking at it.

First, let's read the central image. There are many artistic variations, but here we'll look at the most classic Rider-Waite-style imagery.

At the center of the image is the iconic figure of the Empress. Her white dress, patterned with pomegranates, feels warm and celebratory. The dress also has a maternity-like silhouette. There's a sense of excitement and anticipation, as if a new miracle might be born from a rising tide of love.

Her figure — nurturing love and bringing it to fruition, brimming with energy — signals the beginnings of romantic fulfillment and the depth of the other person's affection. It can also be read as a sign that your own feelings are stable and being conveyed honestly to them.

Now, if we instead focus on what surrounds the Empress, here's what we find.

Even on her own the Empress overflows with love, but she also wears a laurel wreath symbolizing victory, and a heart-shaped shield marked with the symbol of Venus.

She has the means to protect herself even in a crisis — an energy that protects without harming others. That can be read as a blessing granted by the love around her.

Looking further at the scenery around the Empress —

at her feet, a rich harvest; behind her, a river flowing without end.

In other words, it depicts love and protection pouring in from all around, and abundant affection circulating freely. Love this full can easily tip into excess, but by staying in harmony with those around you, it remains stable and grows even richer.

Rather than letting love be completed solely between you and the other person, this suggests that trusting and responding to the people around you leads to an even better state — that's the message here.

Reading the imagery closely like this lets you

pick up on the other person's feelings and situation in much finer detail.

Of course, the fundamental meaning of the card stays the same — but shifting your point of view like this lets you give a reading that's better tailored to that specific person.

⧗When the Reading Comes Out Badly

When you read someone's feelings and get an unfavorable result... it's only natural to feel discouraged. But that's exactly when you shouldn't give in to negativity.

Even a bad result can be a starting point for changing how the other person feels.

What matters is facing the reason behind why they feel that way.

At the same time, that also means taking a fresh look at your own feelings.

Once you know how they feel, the question becomes how you feel about it — and what you'll do next.

There's no point in only staring at the other person's feelings.

Leaving everything up to them won't change the situation. Conversely, that means you also hold the power to change your own fate. Simply realizing that opens up a lot you can do, and a lot you can change.

✦Tarot Cards Are a Mirror of the Other Person's Heart

Tarot cards are, in a sense, a mirror that reflects the other person's feelings back to you in a visually clear way.

That's exactly why handling and storing them matters so much.

Once you're done with a reading, don't just leave the cards lying around.

Handle them with care and put them away properly. Wrapping them in a beautiful cloth or keeping them in a paulownia wood box is a nice touch. Storing them alongside a crystal is also a good idea, since it's said to strengthen their purifying power.

Even if you go a long time without using them, try to touch the cards regularly if you can.

Tarot cards aren't just a fortune-telling tool — they're a treasured partner that helps maintain your connection to the other person.

Whatever result you get, handling the cards with gratitude will make them an even stronger ally.

Nyanta

I have such a crush right now, so I'm really curious about this...!

Nekosuke

Take the tarot's answer as one helpful reference, and make sure to stay honest with your own feelings when you decide what to do.

♡Summary: The Real Value of Reading Someone's Feelings with Tarot

Tarot readings can reveal a crush's feelings from many different angles.

If the result is good, you can take that next step with confidence.

And even if the result isn't good, it's too soon to be disappointed.

Knowing how the other person feels means that even if you can't take a step forward right now,

you'll understand when and how to take that step later.

If not knowing someone's feelings is like standing in total darkness,

then knowing them — even a little — is like having a small light at your feet.

That's a meaningful difference, and an important change.

Even a small light has the potential to grow into a sun bright enough to light the road ahead.

Don't forget that.

Whether you're facing a turning point in love or just want a daily gauge for the distance between you and someone else, give tarot a try.

Reviewed by

Usatoko WHITE

Professional fortune teller specialising in tarot, oracle and Lenormand reading. Usatoko supervises every divination guide at Luna Factory to keep them accurate and beginner-friendly.

Written by the Luna Factory Editorial Team