Reading 2/2

For Dantalion

You / Dantalion: 8 of Cups / 7 of Swords (reversed)
Your Will: 10 of Pentacles

Evocation: 9 of Cups
Risks / Advantages: 9 of Pentacles (reversed) / The Empress
Bad Result / Good Result: 5 of Swords (reversed) / The Tower
Projected Outcome: The Hanged Man
Advice: Knight of Swords

Invocation: 6 of Wands
Risks / Advantages: 2 of Pentacles / Page of Pentacles
Bad Result / Good Result: Wheel of Fortune (reversed) / 8 of Pentacles (reversed)
Projected Outcome: Queen of Wands (reversed)
Advice: 3 of Swords

Once again, I'm not going to talk about the primary significator cards expressly, but I do see some similar themes popping up, but the focus is different. Somehow, this seems slightly gentler than the “very specific entity.” Given that Dantalion is goetic, it makes me wonder who the other entity is...


Anyway, let's start with the evocation, with the significator of the 9 of Cups. Right off the bat, we have the desire for a happy home and emotional stability calling back to the meta Will portion.

The primary concern I see is a lack of appropriate perspective. Why? Well, you're aiming for the 10 of Pentacles, but your risk is the 9 of Pentacles in reverse, which represents blocked abundance and codependence, or otherwise not having the resources necessary. Reading these two in sequence, the lack of these necessary resources is blocking your progression towards your Will. You can't have step B if step A isn't figured out, and this manifests as lack of appropriate perspective, sort of like trying to start a business in an industry you don't know. Makes sense, right? Unmitigated, this risk leads to the bad result, which is the 5 of Swords in reverse: ruin, defeat, lost resources, wasted energy, etc.

Well, the good result is represented by The Tower. This isn't traditionally a very pleasant card, but I get the sense that you're trying to make some big things happen with this work. Why else would you be calling Dantalion, if not to make big changes occur? Well, the changes might be chaotic and painful, but they seem to be in line with your Will: breaking down the boundaries that separate you from that 10 of Pentacles. Your advantage here is The Empress. Put simply, you're a kind-hearted person, and your nurturing nature can help you weather the storm. It could also refer to people in your life who care about you and can offer emotional support in times of duress. If you have such individuals available to you, make use of them.

The projected outcome here is The Hanged Man, which represents sacrifice and release. Your fear may get the better of you, or otherwise you might feel the need to work for the benefit of others, rather than yourself. In some strange way, these cards seem to suggest that you can get farther by helping others and accepting their help than by attempting grand schemes that rely on black and white solutions; welcome some warm grey into your life.

As far as advice, the Knight of Swords cautions you to use your head. You may be rushing forth without thinking things through clearly, and this will affect your outcome. At the same time, this spread is strange in saying that destruction and chaos is precisely what you want to happen, so maybe pulling a Shia.jpg is precisely what you need to do. You shouldn't be surprised if you end up biting off more than you can chew, but this seems to be what you want, and you seem willing to make sacrifices to get it, so...


Moving on to invocation, we start with the 6 of Wands as the significator. Like the working with the “very specific entity,” we have a firey intrepid equestrian to inform us here, and I think the meaning is similar: you want to be victorious and be the big hero here.

If the evocation side spoke of potentially getting in over your head, the invocation side echoes it as well. In this case, your drive towards being the conquering hero might lead you to take on more tasks than you can feasibly handle on your own. By trying to handle everything by yourself, you end up stretched too thin, and your performance suffers, as well as you feeling overwhelmed.

On the plus side, you have a great advantage in your keen mind and organizational skills. When it comes to learning something new, you're brilliant, and you should take better advantage of that. You have plenty of learning resources available to you, and you may be looking for more distant solutions when closer ones can be more helpful than you realize. The Page in question could also represent someone who has resources who can help you; don't discount the help of those who are genuinely interested in your well-being.

The bad result, which is the consequence of attempting to handle everything on your own without accepting help is the Wheel of Fortune in reverse: shit hitting the fan, basically, and poor investments; this is the “do not make this move” card, if ever there was one. If you're not prepared to have the appropriate support, an invocation of Dantalion is going to wreck your shit, to put it simply. Even the good result sucks here: the 8 of Pentacles in reverse suggests that this will be a wasted effort, and you wont get what you want out of it at all. So, you'll fall somewhere between wasting your time and getting rekt, so this isn't likely a good idea.

Wherever you fall along that spectrum, it's going to change you in a way you don't want to be changed: the Queen of Wands in reverse shows your frustration due to a poor result leading you to become cruel and abusive towards others, letting of your anger in bolts of fury that hurt those around you.

The advice here: don't do it. I'm not a fan of giving black and white readings, but this potential invocation is so exceedingly negative that I would be remiss if I didn't insist you not do it. Whatever emotional turmoil it is that has driven you to consider invocation, just work through it; face it head on and defeat it; the answer will be better found in yourself not possessed.


Once again, evocation is clearly the less shitty of the two options. Like with the other work, both have the potential to bring about more than you bargained for and bring about your intended change through chaos and great changes, but the invocation is likely to change /you/ for the worse, and that's something I would recommend to avoid.

As a closing reflection, I have used bibliomancy to find this passage:
"People often ask me if they should do any cross-training for their running. My response is, if you think you need to build muscles, it's best to build them in the motion they'll be used while running. I believe in core-muscle training, but I don't believe in weight training for running. Building muscles that you don't use while running will only increase your muscle mass, creating more weight you'll have to carry around. No thanks, I'll pass on that. I practice T'ai Chi for cross-training my core muscles and focusing my mind."
-Chi Running, pp146-147

In this context, this reminds you to consider the true benefit of additional works and responsibility, for some things that might seem like an advantage can actually be a burden in disguise. Things that seem positive and lovely on the surface can come back to detriment you in ways you didn't consider, by sheer virtue of their nature, as well as the nature of your intended goal and True Will.