The seven-card Horse Shoe is a convenient, basic layout that can be used to answer different types of questions, especially concerning questions where insight would be helpful. Like several other spreads, it has cards representing the past, present, and future.
The pinnacle of the Horse Shoe, looking like the top of the mountain, shows the obstacle or challenge that needs to be addressed and overcome. Card #6 suggests a course of action to meet this challenge. The final card shows the outcome or future, should this advice be followed.
Other clues are provided in Cards #3 and #5, which indicate hidden or outside influences that come into play, affecting the journey to your goal.
Obstacle  The Ship |
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Hidden Influences  The Child |
External Influences  The Lilies |
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The Present  The Crossroads |
Suggestion  The Heart |
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The Past  The Fox |
The Outcome  The Cross |
The Past Card represents past events that are affecting the question.
The Fox
Deviousness, plotting, hypocrisy, lies, a warning that something is not what it seems, worldly logic, temptations, trickery. When facing away from the affected card, it means absolute honesty and survival instincts.
The Crossroads
A choice, probability, not knowing, doubts. The Crossroads indicate the need to make a choice. You can easily avoid your problems, but you may wish to address these issues before they grow so big that they will take far more energy to deal with.
The Child
The Child indicates youth, inexperience, naiveness, playfulness, and small size. The appearance of the Child may foretell a child coming into your life.
The Ship
On a spiritual level, the Ship symbolises desire, hope, dreams, spiritual growth, exploration, and expansion. On a material level the Ship indicates incoming wealth and material gain. However, it may indicate loss, depending on neighbouring cards. You may be making a trip soon.
The Lilies
Development of the soul, success, conscience, holiness, and learning to accept good traits and bad. The Lilies signify a happy period accomplishment.
The Heart
Love, feelings, the heart of something, connection, the Soul.
The Cross
Symbol of fate, karma, guilt, knowledge, belief, tests, sacrifice, grand endings, tough love, and hard lessons. The Cross indicates that you may have to make a considerable sacrifice.