Understanding how the cards work together, what I like to call “trends and blends”, is essential to effective tarot reading.

Most readers pay attention to the card numbers and will make note of a trend of more than one of the same number or rank appearing in a spread, or of a consecutive run within suit.

Recently I have started noticing cards within suit with doubled numbers. That is, when the four and eight of the same suit appear together, or the three and six. Very often, doubled-number cards work together, even if they do not appear next to each other in a spread.

Double number cards may tell a story. One card may provide a resolution for the problem shown in the other card.

For example, the Four of Swords suggests meditation as a remedy for the anxiety of the Eight of Swords.

The Six of Cups reminds the Three of Cups not to party too much, lest we do something we will regret in retrospect.

The Six of Swords suggests that logical thinking will remedy the heartache of the Three of Swords.

I shared this concept with a tarot group recently. The connections, correlations and insights that came from that exercise were profound.

The next time you see doubled numbers within the same suit in a tarot spread, see what additional messages you can pull from that configuration.