Charm Casting Part 8: Interpretation
Interpretation begins after I've removed the charms that won't be interpreted - see the previous post for information about that.
The first question is where the hell to start. For me, it depends. I look at the position of the meeple representing the querent and I look at where there are clusters of charms. If there are many clusters in a particular segment of the map, or adjacent segments, I usually tackle more isolated clusters first because it's easier to start with smaller chunks of information.
If I think the meeple location and orientation are key - such as when the meeple is standing and has a lot of charms around it - I'll start there because it's likely to put a lot of other things in context if I know what the meeple is doing. Some other meeple results, like being on its side with head down, off of the board, indicate the querent is in a position of little power/influence and stating that right off the bat may be helpful.
The meeple's orientation and location tells me about the heart of the situation and how the querent is doing or going to do in the situation. If it's off the map, there's a significant factor outside of their control or the outcome may be out of their control or even irrelevant. If it's in a particular segment of the map, or lying across the boundary between two or more segments, the themes of those segments are the most significant. They may be sources of strength or the biggest problems, depending on the other charms in those segments.
Some readers only consider charms to relate to each other if they're touching. I consider them related if they're nearby - with the definition of nearby being relative. If you see distinct groups of charms, consider how separated the charms in a cluster are on average; anything much farther than that is separate.
If the charms in a cluster are in no particular order, interpreting that cluster may be more open-ended, whereas if the charms form a rough line, you might interpret them as a chronological sequence or a sentence going in the order they show up. The subject is at the end of the line you feel is the beginning, the verb is in the middle, and the object or result is at the other end.
Remember that the location on the map affects how the charm expresses its meaning too - for example, a line on a map representing the Pagan elements that starts in Spirit and ends in Fire may be talking about divine influences (past or current) that affect your motivations (in the present or future). If I have charms representing service and frienship at the beginning, I say that the Powers are calling this person to be of service to friends or community. Let's say the charm in the middle of the line represents change; now we know that this call to service will mean a change in the querent's life, and further context might show up in whether it's in Spirit (a change dictated from outside) or Fire (changing motivations leading the querent to do things differently on their own). On the other end of the line, in Fire, let's say we have the charm representing short-distance travel. I would read this as saying that the querent will be motivated to take more local trips (such as to visit friends and offer help) or may have a new regular commute to go to this service gig.
You can also create sentences from nonlinear clusters; charms that are near the middle, on top, or surrounding another are more likely to read as the subject in my experience. For example, I have an ouroboros charm and other charms have ended up inside it more than once.
Part of this is learning to see and sense connections between the individual charm meanings, and feel how they relate in the specific combination at that specific location.
Continue moving from cluster to cluster, and interpret individual charms as factors that don't form "sentences". For example, on that Pagan elements map from the earlier example, maybe the wealth charm is by itself in Water. This would be a less specific message that emotions are affecting or will affect the querent's finances.
Some clusters or charms by themselves may appear to form a theme despite not being near each other, and some may stand on their own. Taking a person's life as a whole in any given moment is messy; parts of it connect to themes or the same past influence, and some don't. If you wrote down your interpretation (I suggest you do), reread it once you've covered everything to see if any themes stand out.
There's a lot of information to go through if you've followed my advice or gone more maximalist than I do - it's okay to feel overwhelmed at first. If you take pictures of the casting, you can refer back to them later and possibly find things you missed the first time. And practicing will help you make associations so that you become faster and more confident.
