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Reflections in the runes May 2022

May Rune Reading 2022

What are the runes?

The word ‘rune’ comes from the old Germanic, ‘runa’ or ‘runo’ meaning a secret thing, a mystery. The northern peoples saw the Earth, its forces and all things in nature seen as living forces or spirits to be honoured and respected. The runes were and still are used for psychic readings and advice- divination -or used for magical purposes and good luck – seidr.

Runes were the first systems of writing developed and used by the Norse and other Germanic peoples. These runic alphabets are known as “futharks” after the first six runes (Fehu, Uruz, Thurisaz, Ansuz, Raidho, and Kenaz) – just as the word “alphabet” comes from the names of the first two Semitic letters (Aleph, Beth).

There are three rune alphabets or futharks: the Elder, Younger and Saxon futharks. The 24-character Elder Futhark was the first fully-formed runic alphabet, dating back, so far as we know, to the first century CE/AD, though it may have been in development from about 200 BCE.

Today we are working with the Elder Futhark, illustrated below.

Fehu Uruz Thurisaz Ansuz Raido Kenaz Gyfu Wunjo

Hagall Nied Isa Jera Eiwaz Perthro Elhaz Sowilo

Tiwaz Berkana Ehwaz Mannaz Laguz Ingwaz Dagaz Othala

The more specific the question, the more specific and detailed the reading. Here, we have no specific question., so the findings are very general. The reader is looking for the feel of things, the tone, and for challenges, opportunities or guidance contained within the runes selected blindly and at random.

Review -April rune reading

In a rune reading done late March 2022, the runes talked about a highly volatile, tense and unstable month to come in April 2022.

The reader wrote, “Thurisaz is the Thorn rune, symbolizing the hammer of Thor, the Norse god of Thunder and Thursdays. This rune is known as the rune of chaos, such as we have all been witnessing at extreme levels in recent weeks. Thurisaz talks about ‘thorny issues’- major challenges. It describes or forecasts situations of defence, attack and storms. This may also refer to other related natural events, such as floods or tsunamis in April.”

12-14 April we witnessed floods in South Africa, Kwazulu, Durban, 12-14 April as reported here in the ‘The New York Times’ 19 April 2022:-

Nearly 4,000 homes have been destroyed and more than twice as many damaged in the Durban area after a week of punishing rains and mudslides. The death toll is now 448, with about four dozen people unaccounted for.

Photo by Kathryn Archibald on Pexels.com

Runes, like astrology, like Tarot or card reading, may be used for guidance and advice, for forecasting/prediction or for both. Many readers nowadays use runes purely for personal guidance. The problem with forecasting is, we will not always like it, and what can we do about it anyway? The answer to this can only be that forewarned is forearmed. The forecast may turn out to be wrong. It may prove to be unduly pessimistic, and if we are feeling anxious or depressed, this may only add to the weight of our burden.

The best way to use psychic prediction is to treat is as a hint , see how it fits with your own assessment and gut feeling, and for the rest, time will tell. If a weather forecaster says it’s sunny outside right now, and there is not a cloud in the sky, but the weather forecaster tells us there is a new weather front on the way and it’s going to rain later, we can decide whether or not to go out and if we do, whether to take a raincoat.

Runecast for May 2022

We have drawn two runes for this coming month, Elhaz and Ingwaz, choosing these runes to represent the general tone and dynamic in world affairs and in our personal affairs as well this month.

Such a reading will obviously be general in scope but there are seasons in events, just as there are different seasons in the year. We have times that are quieter than others. Then we have times of mass general turmoil, as with World Wars 1 and 11 for instance, 1939-1945, and these things tend to go in cycles. We are currently in a cycle of which began in 2019 and which astrologers suggest will calm down 2025/2026.

IMG Katie-Ellen Hazeldine

Elhaz/Algiz/Eohl

KEYWORDS: Protection, guardian, awakening, courage, defence, acting on our instinct

The rune on the left, Elhaz the Elk is also known as Eohl or Algiz.

It means The Elk or The Sedge, or even, The Elk-Sedge. The runes were inspired by things familiar in the landscapes inhabited by these various northern peoples. The wild antlered elk was still roaming wild in northern Europe at that time. The sedge is a grass-like plant that grows on wet ground, found in temperate and colder climates.

Here, Elhaz has been drawn reversed (merkstave.) First let us imagine it turned upright. Now you see the ‘antlers’ and you can see that this rune also looks like rather a person raising their arms to heaven in appeal for help, or else making an invocation.

Elhaz is a rune of general protection, very powerful but the power comes from the mind of the person using it to protect themselves or another. It will not remove all obstacles. We cannot and will not always be comfortable and safe in this life. Sometimes we struggle. Sometimes we need to stand up for ourselves and fight our own corner. We will never arrive at our full power if we always run away from a fight. Viking warriors used to decorate their shields with this rune but some still died in battle. The Vikings did not take this as a sign that the rune had no power, but instead as a sign that this was the warrior’s time to die; that The Norns or Fates had decreed it. It is worth noting, that the Norns, although they scratched our names and destinies in the bark of the World Tree at the moment of our birth, did allow scope for a mortal to change their own destiny, unlike the Fates of Greek mythology. The Norns saw the future in more fluid terms, less a fixed destiny, more of ‘becoming,’ or that which should be.

Personal Reflection

Elhaz reversed is a sign of vulnerability or warns us that we may be making a sacrifice with no gain. Perhaps this month we need to watch out that we are not misled by others or possibly conned out of our money, or made a scapegoat for someone else’s mistakes. Elhaz reversed warns us to pay attention to our surroundings, not to take our own safety for granted, and not to make any big moves too soon in a new relationship. We need to give it more time, and learn more about this person. Everyone makes mistakes. But we must learn from any past mistakes or be doomed to repeat them.

There may be a person to avoid this month or an offer which should be refused. The classic advice applies with Elhaz reversed. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Ingwaz

KEYWORDS: Protection, guardian, awakening, courage, defence, instincts

The rune on the right, Ingwaz is also known as Ing or Inguz. It may look like a simple diamond, as illustrated above. Alternatively it may look like this:

The word Ingwaz means literally ‘god-seed’. This rune, Ingwaz, Inguz or Ing, comes from an ancient god image Ing, which was an older name for Freyr, a later Swedish Viking god of virility, fertility and agriculture, like another famous pre- Christian figure of mythology, The Green Man.

*The Green Man, Rochester Cathedral via Wiki*

Ingwaz is talking about the earth itself; the planting of seeds, germination and new life. It is talking about fertility, in this case especially masculine fertility. But it may also be talking in a more abstract sense as in, planting the seeds of a new idea.

Ingwaz is a favourable rune of positive action, unity, agreements, and peace, although the situation may require plenty of careful treatment, and enough time and space to flourish. Ingwaz is all about ‘doing.’

‘Ing’ is in constant use in modern English as a language participle “-ing” adding action to a verb. We say ‘Go-ing’, ‘Read-ing’, ‘See-ing etc. The addition of “ing” represents action.

Ingwaz suggests a successful conclusion in solving a problem at hand. Ingwaz can signify milestone events, such as a new baby or a new job. It cannot be reversed. It looks the same right way up as it does upside down so it has no negative meaning unless it is surrounded by negative runes. Here, it has been drawn opposite Elhaz reversed, a negative meaning of danger. The appearance of Ingwaz in this context offers a faint glimmer of hope for diplomatic efforts to bear some fruit in May. But if not, this fiery rune promises a very determined and courageous on-going resistance to attack, wherever it is being waged by one state against another.

Ingwaz the ‘seed’ is by extension also to do with agriculture-food. Looking at Ingwaz in relation to our first rune, Elhaz merkstave, we can see that issues to do with food supplies, shortages and increases in the cost of food will be featuring large in the news this coming month, as Russia’s war on Ukraine affects exports globally, but especially Egypt and Africa.

The danger of Elhaz drawn reversed married up with the vital spark of Ing can mean sudden fiery events in May 2022, such as rockets and missiles, as we are so horrifically seeing, or wildfire such as we have witnessed in New Mexico already this month.

It may also be worth noting that 10 May big bold Jupiter, the ‘Greater Benefic’ an optimistic, generous, benevolent planet in astrological terms, left deep watery Pisces and moved into bold, fiery, hyperactive Aries, where it stays until 28 October 2022. This is big, bold, active energy for good or bad,

Generally, this planetary transit is understood as a positive influence, happening only every 11 or 12 years, although the potential for disruption is self evident. World War 1 and World War 11 both began during a Jupiter in Aries transit, but that also meant of course, a number of such transits in between these events with no war, so let us not worry too much.

Personal Reflection

Ingwaz is a powerfully positive rune in general. It tends to bring an easing of something that has been worrying us. There may be a sense of relief about something this coming month or a sense of excitement, pride or accomplishment for a problem sorted or a job well done, or a new project coming over the horizon.

Ingwaz is a positive rune in relationships, starting a family or launching a new project or venture if that is what we are looking for. It brings a boost of energy, physical and mental.

Ingwaz indicates that this coming month is a good time for home improvements on the one hand, spring cleaning, maintenance and upgrades, and at the other end of the scale, taking into account the challenges in this coming month signified by, Elhaz reversed, do we need to review our safeguarding, home security or our personal security?

In our personal lives, this rune is has a particularly masculine energy. It signifies good times, new love relationships and weddings. We could see that a project starts coming together. With care, discipline and patience, this rune says it will bear fruit.

Putin and Xi: a Tarot’s Eye View 19 -28 March

An esteemed astrologer friend Patrick Arundell messaged me this morning to say had I seen this article by John Varga via The Daily Express online?

Xi loses patience with Putin as China pulls plug on £380m deal in blow to Russian economy

The decision will come as a huge blow to the Russian President, who had been counting on Beijing’s assistance in overcoming Western sanctions. China’s president has up until now been a staunch supporter and key ally of the Russian strongman in his fight to take on the West. Prior to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, the two leaders met in Beijing ahead of the Winter Olympics, where they reaffirmed their commitment to one another.

In a joint statement both Xi and Putin declared there were “no limits” between Moscow and Beijing.

However, there are signs that Beijing may be re-evaluating its relationship with Moscow.

China’s state-run Sinopec Group has pulled out of a $500million (£380million) deal to market Russian gas for Sibur in China due to fears of being targeted with sanctions.

One of Sibur’s directors and investors is Gennady Timchenko, a long-term ally of Putin.

Mr Timchenko has already been sanctioned by the West in the wake of Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014…...

click to read more SOURCE

Patrick was following up on a conversation we had online a few days ago discussing an astrological chart he had posted, President Putin’s own natal chart.

Patrick is one of the few astrologers who publicly forecast the invasion in the days before it happened, while Putin was still assuring the world these were purely mass military exercises, and many very seasoned political commentators did not believe he would actually go ahead and do it. I didn’t either. I felt in January I had a bad feeling about 2022. I did not like this Jupiter in Pisces business one bit. I didn’t like that astrological vision of Jupiter expanding in a fathomless ocean, and I still don’t, and I wrote that I expected tsunamis and a number of other things besides. But Patrick expressed an explicit concern that Putin was about to attack Mariupol.

Patrick later tweeted Putin’s natal chart 25 February: commenting (Patrick has kindly given me permission to quote):

“Putin’s Mercury conjunct Neptune in the 12th and with Saturn close by, despite its exaltation in Libra, shameless cold detached lies. Classic smoke-n-mirrors. Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s PR’s Sun is exactly conjunct Putin’s Mercury”.

Here we are, only a few weeks later, so much destruction and death has happened since, sadly hideous beyond belief.

19 March I drew the card spread below asking to be shown “Putin’s thinking at this present moment in respect of the situation in Ukraine.”

Tweeted 23 March

Cards 19 March, see that 10 Swords central, then top far right, the 9 Swords. China bottom right, 9 Pentacles. Lovers. P(utin) gone too far to withdraw and pretend he is ready to settle for less but is constantly recalculating options (Lovers, Gemini) World reversed up ahead. Non completion.

Card meanings in summary:

Putin looking very unhappy (central 10 Swords)

Putin frustrated with slow progress re Mariupol and Kyiv (top card 8 Swords) He has to get that control of the sea of Azov (Queen of Cups reversed, at the bottom =seaside/port)and he has to have it by the summer (Queen of Cups = the zodiac sign of Cancer, late June-late July.)

Putin had a major decision coming up (strategy) Awkward choices (The Lovers means unequal or conflicted decisions and choices, not just romance.)

The least Putin might settle for (?) will be that Zelenskyy concedes the territory of the 2 republics of Donetsk and Luhansk (2 Pentacles)

Putin is having sleepless nights (9 Swords)

A decision or agreement may possibly materialize in Gemini time, late May- late June (Lovers again plus the 9 Swords can correlate with second decan Gemini.)

Putin frustrated with slow progress re Mariupol and Kyiv (top card 8 Swords- a city by the sea under siege.)

Putin wants this signed, sealed, done and dusted before the end of this year (3 Pentacles = job done + it correlates with Capricorn, December) The World card reversed shows the end of the year and suggests a task enterprise or cycle has that not been completed. On occasion, the World reversed can indicate a death, as in, someone leaves this world. ( Reminder: the focus here is on Putin individually, his own situation and surroundings.)

Putin is worried about China and money…that 8 of Pentacles card at the bottom right reflects a pressing concern or preoccupation.

Here is that same card again in close up.

You can see this is a money card, and the China connection is suggested by virtue of the artwork itself. Had I been using a different deck, I would not have drawn such an obviously relevant image, but that’s how it goes. I did choose this deck and not one of the several others I might have used instead. The lady, ‘China’, holds her hawk on her wrist. She controls the hawk of her own wild impulses. She is watchful, she keeps her house in order, she will delay gratification if need be. She has many beautiful things but she has known what it is to do without. China is playing it cool here.

As for the article, one supposes it is possible that £380 million is still only chickenfeed to President Putin.

But what if it is a straw on a changing wind now blowing in from Beijing?

China’s business heart: the city of Shanghai is now contending with a whole new and massive wave of covid with millions locked down again and oil prices falling within the last 9 hours at the time of writing..

Things are moving so fast.

What if we look at President Putin today?

Illuminati Tarot 28 March 2022

These cards suggest that Mr Putin is feeling less fraught than last time we looked but still, he is seriously not happy on a number of points.

Putin’s war could be in serious trouble by late October. The 5 of Cups is Scorpio 23 October-2 November. The Crowley meaning of the card is ‘Lord Of Loss in Pleasure’.

Closer in time The Four of Wands is showing me the Turkish government. Four = building/place of work/business/government. See the Crescent moon on top. I feel Putin is not pleased with Erdogan. Why not? Perhaps he thinks Erdogan is using him to try and cozy up with the West for his own gains.

The Nine of Wands reversed. This central card drawn upside down, means someone loses their nerve or strength, backs down or bottles out. Perhaps Putin feels that Turkey is trying to cozy up with the US at his expense?

Reminder: the reader doesn’t claim to know anything we don’t all know. This is an exercise with the Tarot, a demonstration of divination in modern usage, illustrating a process that readers generally don’t tend to discuss with non-readers.

The Chariot Reversed is the third card in the row. Card meanings: progress is slow, halted, lack of unity, problems of communication. Two horses not working as a team, loss of control.

The Charioteer here is Mr Putin himself. Not fully in control. He really does not like it. He fears a ‘car crash.’ This is likely purely metaphorical, but may also refer literally to tank regiments -or more.

What else?

We have The King of Pentacles drawn reversed. Taurus time is coming soon – this card is ruled by Taurus. It will likely bring even more money troubles for Putin. In addition, this card is President Xi himself….drawn upside down because ….Putin has had/will have some further bad news from that quarter?

See the card when it is drawn the right way up. China + Mr Moneybags.

Yes, this card is clearly meant to be saying Japan and this king looks Samurai and does not look remotely like President Xi personally, but the Tarot is doing its best and we can’t ask for everything. Notice he wears the horns of Taurus, the heavenly Bull, 20 April-20 May approx, and with a partial solar eclipse on Saturday 30 April. In astrology eclipses, even partial ones, are always, but always considered significant trigger points or turning points in world events, even if the consequences are a while coming. Taurus is at about 10 degrees in that forthcoming eclipse. (I was born 30 April at 9 degrees of Taurus. Oo-err, I had better beware of the bull.)

In practical terms it can mean big world banking woes for Putin in addition to whatever is happening with China.

What next for President Putin?

That last card on the right, the 5 Cups is about reckoning with losses, seeing what can still be achieved. recovered or retained. This figure has lost 3 precious cups, but 2 remain to him. Here is the hope that a ceasefire may happen soon, possibly in April soonest has been previously suggested by multiple appearances of the Queen of Wands (Aries season, 20 March-20 April)

President Putin still confidently expects to acquire the 2 breakaway republics, Donetsk and Luhansk – Mariupol too, once he has battered Ukraine and Zelenskyy into a frame of mind more amenable to his demands, but which is taking a whole lot of doing as they are defending their own, and there is no more powerful human motivation.

These are not predictions but are purely the Tarot’s impressions in respect of President Putin himself, as seen in the cards between 19 March and today, 28 March.

Dark days, troubled times. Every day in some corner of the world, someone’s crying in this ‘vale of tears’.

We are all walking the winding road. But spring is coming, and something good is never impossible. The best news indicated at this point in the cards, is the indication that this old-new former Russian territory state Ukraine, survives as an autonomous sovereign entity. The worst, well it is happening, and Putin may still get what he ought not to get- the Donbass -and all its potentially lucrative minerals.

Until next time.

Doing a One-Card ‘Yes/No’ Psychic Card Reading for yourself using Playing Cards

First let’s take a minute to consider what is meant by this word, ‘psychic.’ It comes from the Greek word psychikos (‘of the mind’ or ‘mental’) and the Greek word ‘psyche’ means ‘soul’ or ‘breath.’

That’s pretty vague, but we’ll broadly understand what we’re talking about here. It is the (sometimes spooky) experience of feeling you know something, without knowing how you know it or why you feel it, and then getting the proof, and finding out you were right, though you still don’t know how.

Wiki Moon card.jpg — *The Moon from the Gilded Royale Tarot, Ciro Marchetti*

Everyone is psychic to a degree. It’s fascinating, but it’s natural. It might be uncanny, and often it is. It really, really is, but that doesn’t mean it’s supernatural. It is you. It is nothing to do with the occult. It is nothing directly to do with religion or witchcraft, though these activities are connected to or derive from that aspect of the human mind/psyche.

It’s about your innate animal intelligence, your instinct and intuition, and is simply a more acute manifestation of these natural functions of the human mind -your sensory capabilities. Intuition is acutely heightened instinct. It’s built in to your software, maybe even your hardware and is a key element in your survival tool-kit.

Jung was interested in the archetypes of Tarot.

So you took an instant dislike to someone but you don’t know why? Don’t simply dismiss that feeling; the reasons may become apparent later. Meanwhile, give it the benefit of the doubt but tread with care.

So you feel an overpowering reluctance to do something, but you don’t quite know why? Trust yourself. You have your reasons.

Feelings can be wrong, of course, in which case we can always reassess the situation or our reactions, and change our minds. But far more often they are right, and they work faster than conscious reasoning. Far, far faster, and it is this very speed that can save our life. That if something feels bad, it probably is.

Avoid.

But if we’re all psychic, why do people pay to go and consult someone else, or go to a professional psychic practitioner for readings?

They are looking for a service, and that depends on skill and a specific kind of experience. Professional psychics can not rely solely on their intuitive ability in order to deliver a service on demand. Psychic experiences happen when they happen, but the psychic reader needs to respond on demand, and to do this they have trained their abilities, developing specific skills, possibly involving many years of individual study, time and practice so that they can deliver insights that are relevant and that mean something to a total stranger, right here, right now.

But everyone had to start somewhere, and that doesn’t mean we can’t try it for ourselves.

Sometimes we might find ourselves undecided whether to go route A or route B. Using the playing cards might well give us a response that simply reflects what we already knew, or guessed, or suspected, but that is largely the point of doing such readings, and validation can itself be helpful in letting us know we read that situation correctly, whether or not it’s what we were hoping for.

Points to consider

Professional psychic readers are not permitted by law to take payment, reading for people aged under-18.

Or at least, it is not allowed in the UK without the authorization of a parent or guardian. There are good reasons for this, to do with maturity and vulnerability, and a word of caution applies here too, in reading for yourself if you are under 18.

There is a risk is you will not get it right and misunderstand the message. Beware wishful thinking or fearful thinking. Calm your mind. Try and place yourself in a neutral frame of mind.

You may for instance draw the Death card and get frightened, interpreting this as a prediction of imminent death. What is far more likely is that the Death card is reflecting back at you something that has been on your mind lately. Perhaps there has been a death in your circle or perhaps you have been thinking of leaving a job or ending a relationship or other connection, or leaving one area to move away. Professional readers do not always get it right either. Until, and unless you are getting correct answers more than 55% of the time, your results are statistically no better than lucky guesses. Getting it wrong doesn’t mean you don’t have psychic ability, but this ability builds with practise and confidence.

Stay humble or you will be riding for a fall. This is not about power. No-one knows it all, and no one likes a know all. No-one has a 100% accuracy rate.

Is is unwise to make decisions based solely on the turn of a card.

The cards are to be regarded as an opportunity to pause, reflect and maybe think again. Start with easy but specific questions that you can quickly and easily validate, e.g. ‘will it be sunny here outside my window at 10.00 tomorrow morning?’

You might not understand or like the answer.

This is the very real risk in consulting with oracles, even your own – or especially your own. It needs discipline. Words matter. Be clear in your mind what it is you are really asking. Avoid repeating the same questions over and over in hope of getting the answer you want. You may get that answer in the end, but this is not conducive to accuracy, and if it becomes a compulsion, and you find you are doing it A LOT, or if you are experiencing, or have lately experienced depression or anxiety, you will be well advised to leave such activities alone for the time being. It could make matters worse.

Now let’s look at how to get an advisory yes or no answer using just one playing card. That’s all it is, an advisory answer; no court of law could treat this as admissible evidence.

The One-Card Spread

Ordinary playing cards have been used in this way since at least the 1600’s and probably longer. A deck of playing cards is readily affordable and easy to obtain in many shops and online if you do not already have a deck.

The One- Card Spread is the simplest spread of all, but can do the job perfectly well, delivering an accurate yes or no answer.

First, for simplification and for the avoidance of confusion, remove the Joker. The Joker is a complex card. It correlates to the Fool in the Tarot and may mean a yes, no or maybe depending on a number of factors, so is not ideal for our purposes today.

You need somewhere quiet, no distractions. Some people like to use rituals, smudging, candles etc. I don’t use those myself in doing card readings, but this is purely a matter of personal preference.

Doing the reading

First you need to decide the code or system you will use for your one card spread. How are you going to interpret the answer?

Classical cartomancy uses this system:

Any red suit card, Hearts or Diamonds, will mean yes, irrespective of its meaning

Any black suit card, Clubs or Spades will mean no, irrespective of its meaning

There are no rules except that you decide your system and then stick with it.

Consistency and repetition is crucially important. This is what professional card readers do. They ‘self-programme’ by telling themselves that this card means X and this other card means Y until with repetition and practise – it actually does.

They do it till they make it so.

Consider the question. It needs to be clear and unambiguous, asking for an answer that will serve your highest good, harming none.

You remain in charge, using the cards for advice only. You could, for example, ask questions along the lines of, ‘Is it a good idea/plan/will it work out well at this time (meaning is it in my best interests) to go here, go there, speak to, do this, do that…?” etc.

Now shuffle the deck, keeping the cards blind, asking your question aloud or just silently to yourself.

Draw a card whenever you feel ready. There are no rights and wrongs here, but it is this act of stopping and choosing a card completely at random that is actually the psychic activity involved in the reading.

You have here a deck of 52 cards but you are drawing just one, and expecting it to be meaningful and relevant, more so than all the other cards that you didn’t draw, that have remained in the deck. The cards that are missing may be just as significant in answering your question, as the ones that appear.

What have we got here?

A red card or a black card?

No further action is required or even desirable at this point. Simply log the card. Make a note and allow time to discover if the answer is correct.

If you would like to go beyond the probable yes or no answer, and look at the reasons why you got that answer, you could look up the actual card meaning for additional feedback, to treat that as an extra comment or piece of advice, referring to this very basic key below.

Playing Card Suits

Hearts (Cups) = emotions, health, offers, invitations, friendship.
Diamonds (Pentacles) = money, health, house, career, communications.
Spades (Swords) = intellect, law, IT, planning, challenges.
Clubs (Wands/Staves) = action and creativity, travel, marketing, study, ideas, inspiration

Card Numbers

In general, the higher the number of your ‘yes’ or ‘no card, the stronger the answer, except for Aces, which are the lowest number, 1, but are the strongest cards. So the strongest yes answers would be the Ace of Diamonds or Hearts, or the 10 of Diamonds or hearts. The strongest no answers would be the Ace of Spades or Clubs, or the 10 of Spades or Clubs.