7 Bodies
21 cardsCategory: Mysteries & the Unconscious
A spread about the seven subtle bodies of a person and their condition.
Overview
The system of esoteric knowledge contains information about the structure of the human being. It is generally accepted that a person has not only a physical body — the one that can be seen with the eyes and perceived by the senses. Working with Tarot, one can see the full structure of a person in all its completeness. After all, sometimes situations occur in life that cannot be explained scientifically, and very often medicine, for example, can only throw up its hands in its inability to help a person deal with one problem or another. The '7 Bodies' spread reveals the condition of all seven subtle bodies of a person in three temporal aspects: the karmic baggage of the past, the present incarnation, and the direction of future development.
Spread Diagram
Card Positions
Physical Body — karma
The dense physical body. The karmic baggage we brought into this world. The card in this position indicates inherited health conditions, innate predispositions, and characteristics of the organism.
Physical Body — present
The dense physical body. The present incarnation in which we act. The card in this position indicates the current state of health.
Physical Body — future
The dense physical body. Where future development directs us. Health tendencies you are moving toward.
Etheric Body — karma
The etheric body; Aura. The energy emitted by the physical body. The etheric body is directly dependent on the physical — if the physical body is tired and weakened, it will produce less energy. The karmic baggage we brought into this world.
Etheric Body — present
The etheric body; Aura. The present incarnation in which we act. The card tells how much energy the person has at the moment and what quality it is.
Etheric Body — future
The etheric body; Aura. Where future development directs us. What your energy potential will be — whether energy will increase or decrease.
Astral Body — karma
The astral or emotional body. This is where emotions reside. The karmic baggage we brought into this world. Emotional patterns and reactions brought from past lives.
Astral Body — present
The astral or emotional body. The present incarnation in which we act. The card will indicate which emotions are dominant at this stage of the person's life.
Astral Body — future
The astral or emotional body. Where future development directs us. Which emotions will dominate in the near future.
Mental Body — karma
The mental body. The karmic baggage we brought into this world. Thought patterns and beliefs brought from past incarnations.
Mental Body — present
The mental body. The present incarnation in which we act. The card in this position tells what occupies the person's thoughts, what they think about most right now.
Mental Body — future
The mental body. Where future development directs us. What thoughts and ideas will occupy your mind, what realizations you will come to.
Causal Body — karma
The causal body. The karmic baggage we brought into this world. Cause-and-effect connections from past lives that determine current life circumstances.
Causal Body — present
The causal body. The present incarnation in which we act. The card in this position can be interpreted as a method for the best way out of the client's situation. What they need to become, or what character qualities they need to engage.
Causal Body — future
The causal body. Where future development directs us. What cause-and-effect connections are forming, what life circumstances this will lead to.
Buddhic Body — karma
The buddhic body. Here lie our life values, principles, and knowledge of the ideal self. Buddhic values may have been imposed by parents, teachers, and mentors during life. To find out what your ideal behavior is, recall who you wanted to be as a child. What qualities did you attribute to that profession? That is who you want to be. The karmic baggage we brought into this world.
Buddhic Body — present
The buddhic body. The present incarnation in which we act. The card tells what energies and principles the client is currently using to achieve their ideal or to fulfill their mission. Depending on the card, these values may be right (for achieving the ideal) or wrong.
Buddhic Body — future
The buddhic body. Where future development directs us. How your values and principles will transform, whether you will come closer to your ideal.
Atmic Body — karma
The atmic body. This body depends not on the person themselves, their psyche or body, but on God. Or the Cosmos, whichever you prefer. Here lies the Mission, the person's purpose on earth. A file with plans for the client from the heavenly chancellery. The card in this position may indicate the ray itself, the client's mission, or tell which (someone else's) mission they have ended up in. The karmic baggage we brought into this world.
Atmic Body — present
The atmic body. The present incarnation in which we act. The card may directly indicate the client's mission or tell which arcanum currently influences their life. If a mission spread has already been done, the card will most likely speak about which arcanum currently influences the client's life.
Atmic Body — future
The atmic body. Where future development directs us. How your mission will unfold, what cosmic energies will guide your life.
How to Read
Shuffle the deck while focusing on a question about the condition of your subtle bodies. Draw 21 cards and lay them out in three rows of 7 cards. The top row (cards 1–7) — the karmic baggage you brought into this world. The middle row (cards 8–14, marked 1A–7A) — the present incarnation in which you act. The bottom row (cards 15–21, marked 1C–7C) — where future development directs you. Each vertical column corresponds to one of the seven bodies: 1 — physical, 2 — etheric, 3 — astral, 4 — mental, 5 — causal, 6 — buddhic, 7 — atmic. Read the spread by columns: first assess the karmic baggage (top card), then the current state (middle), then the development tendency (bottom).
Tips & Advice
The '7 Bodies' spread is one of the deepest and most informative. Pay special attention to columns where all three cards are negative — this indicates a serious problem in that body requiring work. If karma (top row) and present (middle row) show difficult cards, but the future (bottom row) shows a positive one, the situation is improving. Remember: the etheric body is directly dependent on the physical — if the physical body is tired and weakened, it will produce less energy. To find out what your ideal behavior is (buddhic body), recall who you wanted to be as a child and what qualities you attributed to that profession. The atmic body does not depend on you — it is the plan of the Cosmos, and the card here shows your true mission.
Other Spreads
Who Am I?7 cards
A spread designed for self-discovery and reflection on your personal development and future plans.
Planets11 cards
Describes a person using the astrological system of ten planets plus the ascendant.
Full Cup4 cards
If you have financial problems, this spread reveals their cause and suggests what action to take.