From the Rorschach Test to Tarot: Pareidolia and Visual Interpretation

When working with Tarot, we usually translate images into words: we look at a card, recognize a symbol, and interpret it to give a message.

But what happens if we switch roles?

We can invite the querent to first describe what they see and feel in front of the card. Without suggesting meanings, let the shapes, colors, and symbols activate their memory and imagination.

A symbol always represents more than its obvious or immediate meaning.

What’s fascinating is that these associations almost always connect with what the person is experiencing, with memories or emotions that emerge spontaneously. What appears on the card then becomes their mirror.

From Divination to Introspection

Since time immemorial, humanity has sought meaning in everyday life. In ancient times, divination systems were based on careful observation: reading the livers of animals, following the flight of birds, interpreting the shapes of clouds, or the movements of constellations (still present today).

These methods were part of predictive rituals: a sacred time and space were opened, the phenomenon was observed, and only then was an interpretation elaborated.

Today, we can revisit these same techniques from a different perspective. Not to predict external events, but as a tool for personal reflection.

Observation becomes a channel to listen to the unconscious and discover how we relate to what we see.

Rorschach, Pareidolia, and Tarot

Remember the famous Rorschach test? Those inkblots “mean nothing” and, at the same time, mean everything that the mind projects.

Test de Rorschach

Here comes pareidolia into play: a psychological phenomenon by which we perceive familiar forms (faces, animals, objects) in ambiguous or random stimuli. Seeing figures in clouds, recognizing a face in tree bark, or imagining a landscape in damp patches on a wall.

My coffee grounds, It looks like a goat standing on two legs.

Far from being experts like the ancients, who studied for years to offer precise predictive interpretations, we can use our brain’s natural ability to associate abstract shapes with symbols. This allows us to approach our unconscious and use it as a tool for self-exploration and self-knowledge.

Here are some examples of readings where we integrate conscious observation, pareidolia, and active exchange with the querent:

The Velella Velella and the Ace of Water

A month ago, I visited the Baltic Sea with a close friend. With the beautiful sunset in the background, I drew a card from my deck for her: the Ace of Water appeared. While I was looking for the poem to read to her, my friend looked at the card and said it reminded her of the Velella velella, a type of marine animal related to jellyfish, anemones, and corals. She had encountered one of them years ago in the sea, and it had left her with a lovely memory.

She showed me a photo of the creature, and I was surprised by how similar its shape was to the card—something I hadn’t known until that moment. We talked about the characteristics of the Velella velella and how they related to her current situation: its physiology, behavior, and the way it lives between water and air.

Ace of Water

Vellela Vellela

Two Perspectives on the Fire Weaver

In another reading with a querent she picked three cards, the last one was the Fire Weaver. When I asked the querent what she saw, she interpreted that the figure was being attacked from the outside and needed to defend herself. I, however, know this card as an active weaver: she throws the ribbon (or trap), she attacks, she acts.

Her interpretation reflected her emotional state at that moment: feeling defenseless. Tarot, however, invited her to reclaim action and power.

This example shows how a single symbol can open multiple interpretations, and by discussing them, perspective expands.

If you’re a tarot reader, you can also apply this idea: let the querent describe first what they see on the card and start the session from there, allowing their perception to guide the reading.

The Stain on the Table and the Project

In this self-reading, the question was whether I should launch a project or not. When I drew the card, I noticed a stain on the table that surprisingly resembled the figure on the Fire Weaver card.

On the Ten of Air card, with a little imagination, you can connect points with dotted lines to see another figure with open legs, almost dancing and moving and almost touching the Fire Weavers foot. Curiously, this figure appeared three times, reminding me how surprising Tarot can be…

Here’s where pareidolia comes into play: my brain began making these connections, showing how abstract shapes can interact with the content of the reading.

The literal sense of “launching” is clear in Fire Weaver, and in the last card, the figure even seems to be kicking or energetically activating something.

In short: the Tarot (and the table itself, haha) seemed to be telling me that I should go ahead and launch the project.

This synchronicity reinforced the symbolic message of the reading and reminded me that, sometimes, interpretive triggers can appear outside the cards if we stay attentive and open to observing beyond the obvious.

My Trinum Tarot deck has an abstract and open-ended language, making it ideal for this kind of practice. But even if you use other decks, you can try it and see how the experience feels.

Exercises to Train Pareidolia

If you want to experiment with these exercises even outside Tarot, here are some simple practices. The idea is to open a conscious space-time, as if you were creating a small oracle, and let the images speak to you.

• Watching clouds → Take 5 minutes to observe what shapes appear and reflect on how they relate to your current moment.

• Coffee or tea grounds → Observe the remnants at the bottom of the cup and describe what you see.

• Drawing with closed eyes → Make random scribbles; when you open your eyes, look for figures in them.

• Exploring meanings → If an animal or object appears, research its symbolism and reflect on how you could integrate that energy into your life, or connect it with your first instinct.

Thanks for being on the other side—see you soon!

Felicitas

TRINUM