As many of us start to take our first cautious steps out into social gatherings and group experiences again, it can feel like a lot to get used to…being around people, remembering how to converse outside of video calls, and perhaps most notably, interacting with the energies that each of us holds within ourselves.

　　Whether you identify as a highly sensitive person (HSP), an empath, or are simply someone that relies on your intuition to navigate the daily challenges and victories of life. The chances are that you will at various points find yourself responding to the energies that people carry, to their emotions and desires, to the things that they want, and the things that they avoid.

　　And if you are an HSP or an empath, you may find these energies deeply overwhelming and sometimes difficult to navigate.

　　

What is an Empath?

Empaths are people that are extremely sensitive to the thoughts and emotions of the people, animals, or spaces around them, sometimes to the point that physical sensations are experienced.

　　This is often seen as a gift but can bring a variety of stressors with it, making it incredibly important to establish rituals of separation and support. With so many sensations constantly being filtered and absorbed, it can be challenging for empaths or highly sensitive people to identify and honor the emotions they themselves are creating and separate their own needs from those around them.

　　And while there are a number of different kinds of empaths, anyone who feels that they fit on this particular spectrum can benefit from being intentional about recovery, introspection, and taking time to reflect.

　　As you practice daily rituals of self-care, you may find that the Tarot can act as a useful tool for checking in with yourself, recognizing what you want or need, and focusing on your own emotions rather than those that are swirling around you.

　　Even if you aren’t an empath or an HSP, you can still benefit from using this divination tool to tap into your own intuitive powers and cultivate a regular practice of listening to your own inner wisdom.

　　

Tarot for Empaths

The Tarot itself acts as a tool to both activate and heighten our natural sense of intuition. In shuffling the cards, in asking ourselves questions, in honoring the emotions that come forward when we work with certain archetypes or pips, we allow our intuition to speak to us.

　　And when it comes to making decisions, weighing different choices, or understanding our emotions, the Tarot can help reflect our own insights back to us. What does it mean to allow our intuition to speak freely?

　　When we open our hearts, what thoughts, needs, fears, and desires reveal themselves?

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4-Card Tarot Spread to Unlock Your Inner Empath

This Tarot spread is a simple one, designed to help set up a structure for your intuition to flow freely within. As you come to the cards, work to be open to whatever messages you receive, honor whatever bubbles up, and not judge yourself for whatever you discover.

　　If you have a strong reaction to the cards you pull, that can help indicate what you may be working through or need to spend more time thinking about.

　　If you feel neutral or uncertain, that is your intuition speaking as well, letting you know that a better solution may still be out there or that you need to do some deeper digging into whatever you are considering.

　　Working with our intuition is a lifelong practice, one that can get easier with time and effort. And whether this is your first time honing into this natural sixth sense or you’re someone that frequently creates space for your heart to speak, this spread can help guide you farther along this path and perhaps tap into some empathic skills you didn’t realize that you had.

　　The sample reading below is meant to offer you insights into how to work with this spread in your personal rituals and uses The Muse Tarot.

　　

Card One: Something to Recognize About My Intuition

The Sun

This archetype is one of celebration and joy, of being our full and most authentic selves, honoring the clarity that we’ve found, and integrating all of our pieces into one unified whole.

　　And as an insight into intuition, the Sun reminds us to keep things simple and honest, to look at things for how they truly are instead of trying to make them what we want them to be.

　　Our intuition often serves as a shift in perspective, helping a truth or insight click into place. In this position, the Sun suggests that intuition is something to find power and magic in rather than something to fear, avoid, or hide away.

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Card Two: Something My Intuition is Particularly Valuable

4 of Emotions/Cups

This card is often associated with boundaries around the emotional self, the ways that we protect ourselves or even cut ourselves off from pleasure, connection, and community in an effort to avoid heartbreak.

　　Sometimes the 4 of Cups asks us to be more open with our hearts, to share our emotions and fantasies and desires with those we trust; yet in this position, this card indicates that our intuition can help to keep us safe, pinging when we need to guard ourselves or not reveal all of our vulnerabilities to others.

　　Our intuition can be valuable in protecting us and is worth listening to particularly in difficult or dangerous circumstances.

　　

Card Three: A Way to Honor My Intuition More Deeply

2 of Materials/Pentacles

Twos in the Tarot always speak of balance and juggling, which we can see quite literally depicted in this particular image. And when we look at the 2 of Pentacles, we specifically think about how we are integrating new plans into old responsibilities, finding harmony between the things we want and the things we need.

　　In this third card position, we find lessons around balancing our intuition with the other things that we know to be true and giving those instincts and emotions equal weight among our mind, body, and spirit.

　　Intuition shouldn’t be the only thing that we rely on, but it also needs to be a significant part of the conversation and help guide us forward in a way that allows us to keep making progress.

　　

Card Four: A Way to Protect Myself From Being Overwhelmed

3 of Emotions/Cups

A card of community, chosen family, and deep trust, the 3 of Cups reminds us of the people that love us, and the support systems that we have established for ourselves. Intuition and empathy are deeply personal things, a kind of magic that lives within us, yet in staying connected with those that know us intimately, in sharing that kind of vulnerability and expression with other people, we can find strength and purpose.

　　Sometimes we need outside voices to help us remember our own, and in this position, the 3 of Cups wants us to find support from friends and loved ones as a way to avoid being overwhelmed.

　　

Harness Your Inner Empath

Intuition is a powerful tool, no matter how sensitive your own natural sense might be. And in being intentional about the ways that we listen and trust those personal instincts and deep inner wisdom, we can choose paths forward that truly reflect what we want and need, rather than getting caught up in what other people are doing.

　　How do you honor your intuition? Do you identify as an empath or highly sensitive person, and how does that impact the ways that you work with Tarot? How can this spread help you to be more purposeful in listening to your own inner voice?