More thoughts regarding chatGPT and AI Systems
Several years ago, I penned a Young Adult novel titled The Hypnotist that, among other things, is in the English curriculum at Neshaminy High School. Among other interesting aspects of the novel is a tarot card reading on the young female one warm, humid Louisiana afternoon. This is described in Chapter 13 below. The essence of the reading is as follows:
The person who is going to read the young woman’s fortune has dealt her five cards:
Present Position: The High Priestess.
Present Desires. Strength.
The Unexpected. The Devil.
The Immediate Future: The Moon
The Outcome: Death
You can read below how the reading evolves.
At the end of the story, I have posted what the artificial intelligent (AI) system chatGPT created using the same five cards. It took less than 30 seconds for the system to produce what you will see. Imagine my having this information while I was writing the novel so that it could be used as the basis for this chapter. Is it any wonder educators and others are so worried about this capability and its use to cheat by students and professionals alike.
Here's Chapter 13 of the novel to give you a baseline:
Chapter 13
Spring afternoons in Lafayette, Louisiana, tend to be warm and humid, and Tuesday was no exception. Students’ minds appeared to be on anything but their studies and homework. “Let’s go for a ride,” Tom called to Amanda as they met in the parking lot after school for what, up until a moment earlier, would have been a 20-minute ride home.
“Sure,” she replied, taking her cell phone out of her backpack. “Just let me tell my grandmother we’re going to be a little late.” With that she made a quick call home.
“Anyplace in particular you have in mind?” she asked, as he drove out of the school parking lot.
“Oh, I thought we’d take a hop down to Bayou Vermilion. It’s to the south of us.”
“I love the area,” Amanda gushed, “with all those old plantations and moss-covered trees—it’s just like it must have been during the Civil War.”
They took the road south, venturing into one of the oldest parts of Lafayette Parish. With the car radio set to New Orleans’s classical rock station BAYOU 95.7, the teenagers ‘rocked out’ to the strains of Fleetwood Mac, Van Halen, and KISS. “I wonder what Dr. Ferrari listens to when he’s driving to and from school?” asked Amanda.
“Well, he’s not much older than we are, you know . . . maybe nine or ten years, tops. My guess is he loves these old artists just like we do. Besides, everyone has to let their hair down once in a while!”
Van Halen’s Runnin' with the Devil was playing on the radio as they continued down the road. Tom turned the volume up and emphasized the base. Amanda started waving her arms back and forth and snapping her fingers in time with the music.
Tom chucked to himself. Life is anything but simple, Amanda, he thought, listening to the words of the song. Late the previous evening he had checked the story of Lia and her death at the hands of Miss LaLaurie. As he expected, it was true. All of it. Every single word. Amanda really outdid herself on this one, he thought. Even her story about the cook checked . . . the cook who was chained to her stove and who, in a failed attempt to commit suicide, set fire to the kitchen. You win, Amanda, he thought. There really was such a person as Miss LaLaurie. Her full name was just as Amanda had said, Marie Delphine LaLaurie. She was a Louisiana-born Creole socialite who, as a serial killer in the 1830s, tortured and murdered her slaves. Her Royal Street mansion was the site of Lia’s death, just as Amanda had described it under hypnosis.
And the fire? It occurred on April 10, 1834, and led to the discovery of bound slaves in the attic, all of whom showed signs of torture. Fortunately for her, LaLaurie escaped to Paris, where it is thought she died. Anyone could have found this information, Tom thought. But there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of similar stories. Why did she use this particular story? Nothing made sense. He had gone over everything they talked about in both sessions, over and over again. There were a million ways for her to play the game, he thought. She could have been almost anyone. Why choose a prostitute-turned-madam on one hand and a slave on the other, both from the New Orleans area?
He could not shake the feeling he had been ‘had.’ Yet, there was a little voice in the back of his head that kept asking, Could it be true? Did she really live those lives?
The strains of Van Halen’s Runnin' with the Devil had just died away into silence when Amanda suddenly shouted “Stop!”
Tom attempted to bring the car to an abrupt halt, causing the wheels to lose traction on the damp road surface, which, in turn, almost sent the car careening into the ditch. Startled, he turned and looked at her. “What happened? Did I hit something?” He craned his neck to see if perhaps he had hit a squirrel or some other small animal.
Amanda was shaking.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“I don’t know.”
He saw a strange look in her eyes. “All of a sudden I had the strangest feeling, like I’ve been here before . . . on this road, in front of this house.”
“You probably have. After all the time you and your mother have been living in Lafayette, I’d be surprised if your grandparents haven’t driven you through most of Bayou Vermilion.”
“They have. But I’ve never been down this road before. And I can tell you with absolute certainty I’ve never seen this house. Still, for some strange reason, it seems as familiar to me as the one I live in now or the apartment building on 88th Street we used to live in on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. I can almost tell you what it looks like inside, it’s that vivid in my mind’s eye. This is weird, Tom.”
Oh boy, here we go again, he thought. It’s bad enough she’s jerked me around in two make-believe hypnosis sessions at school, but now she’s taking me on a real ride without even pretending to be in a trance. What color is the sky in her world, anyway?
The sign on the fence at the entrance read Psychic Readings. Beyond it was a rutted, stone-covered drive overshadowed by large, moss-covered, old-growth oaks that judging by their height and girth were well over 100 years of age, many no doubt approaching 150. The antebellum mansion at the end of the drive was, like the roadway itself, badly in need of repair as was the yard, which was totally devoid of grass and covered with all manner of objects, including rusted automobile parts, some dating to the 1930s.
“I want to go inside,” Amanda insisted. “I must go inside!”
“Are you sure you want to do this?”
“I don’t think I have a choice,” she said. “It’s almost as if I’m being pulled into the house. I know it sounds strange, but you’ve got to believe me, Tom. Something about this place gives me the creeps but at the same time makes me feel as if I’ve been here before and should go in now.”
Tom put the car in Reverse, backed up, and then, with the car in Drive, turned onto the road leading to the mansion and drove to the building, which fronted on a circular drive. A large black Labrador, which had been sleeping on the front steps, rose and, wagging its tail, approached Tom as the couple walked to the entrance.
“What is it about you and dogs?” Amanda joked nervously. “They must know you’re an easy ‘mark’ for food.”
Tom and Amanda were just about to knock on the large front door when it opened and a woman dressed as a gypsy appeared. “My name is Madam Zu-Zu. You are here for a psychic reading, are you not? Please come in.”
Tom and Amanda looked at each other and shrugged. At this point there was no turning back. They followed Madam Zu-Zu into the entrance hall. Instantly the air turned cold and stale. Sunlit shafts of dust-filled light that beamed down on them from windows on the second floor were the only sources of illumination in the large entryway. “Please follow me,” said the gypsy.
She led them into a parlor on the right side of the hall. It contained a large, circular, cloth-covered table and six chairs. “Please sit over there,” she commanded, pointing to two chairs opposite where she would sit. Amanda took a seat to the right of Tom, who held the chair for her.
“I normally charge $50 for a reading, but because this is your first time, the charge will be only $25.”
She stood and waited.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” said Tom when he realized he was going to have to pay. He reached into his left rear pants pocket for his wallet and gave the woman $25, which she stuck down her blouse. Then she turned, went around the table, and took her seat opposite them.
“And who is asking for this reading?” she asked.
Amanda slowly and somewhat hesitantly raised her right hand. Madam Zu-Zu nodded. Then she picked up her deck of 22 major arcana tarot cards] and shuffled them over and over again with her eyes closed as she hummed softly to herself. After what seemed like an eternity—but what in reality was not more than a minute or two—she stopped, put the cards in front of Tom, and asked him to cut the deck, which he did. Then she dealt five cards face down on the table in the form of a horseshoe. Madam Zu-Zu explained that from her vantage point, the five cards represented, in order from left to right, Amanda’s Present Position, Present Desires, the Unexpected, the Immediate Future, and the Outcome.
Pulling back the sleeves on her blouse, she slowly turned over the first card representing Amanda’s Present Position. It was The High Priestess.
Madam Zu-Zu nodded. “I see a confused woman in front of me, one who has an unconscious awareness of something she can’t explain . . . a mystery unsolved . . . who, by her own intuition, and trusting her inner voice, has come to Madam Zu-Zu to help her sense the secret and hidden . . . to know what is being concealed from her. You are being called upon to go deeper. There is something beyond the obvious awaiting you, but at this point it is not clear, from the many possibilities, what you can or must do.”
Amanda turned to look at Tom, who shrugged his shoulders. To Amanda, it appeared what Madam Zu-Zu had said made some sense, albeit of a general nature. After all, they were sitting in her parlor for exactly the reason she had stated . . . an unconscious awareness of something she could not explain. Was this just by chance, a mere flip of the coin, the draw of the cards? Who knew?
Madam Zu-Zu turned over the second card, which was to represent Present Desires. It was Strength.
“Ah yes,” Madam Zu-Zu proclaimed, “how fitting this should follow The High Priestess. You must show unshakeable resolve. Be a rock! The task ahead will be frustrating, and it will require time and patience. Look at the card. See the lion being tamed by the hand of the woman. This will be you, finding strength, even in the most difficult moments . . . moments that will test every ounce of inner strength you possess.”
Amanda reached to her left and grabbed hold of Tom’s hand. “Maybe this wasn’t such a great idea after all,” she whispered. “This is really beginning to scare me.”
Tom leaned over and whispered in Amanda’s ear. “Come on, let’s leave. This is a bunch of crap. Anyone can buy a set of tarot cards and a book, memorize what the cards stand for, mix and match interpretations, and voilà, create a story. We could come back tomorrow and the results would be entirely different. And besides, what she’s said is totally generic. There hasn’t been one thing, not one thing, she’s said that’s specific to you, to anyone you know, to any situation in which you’re involved, or to anything—PERIOD.”
“Oh yeah, then how do you explain her saying I was here to clear up the confusion in my mind?” Amanda whispered back. “Or that I was here to expose what is hidden?”
“Well, why would anyone come to a psychic? Duh!”
Madam Zu-Zu cleared her throat, indicating they were wasting her time. Tom and Amanda immediately turned their attention back to the table, where the psychic turned over the third card representing the Unexpected. It was The Devil.
“Oh my, this is very bad,” Madam Zu-Zu intoned. “You will be tied down, lose your independence. Someone else will be in control. Be careful of being taken in by appearances. The future is bleak.”
Tom leaned over to Amanda, whose hand he felt had started to shake, and, cupping his hand over her ear, whispered, “If you want to leave now, just say the word.”
She did not answer him, but squeezed his hand tighter and shook her head ‘no.’
Madam Zu-Zu reached for the fourth card, the one representing the Immediate Future. As she turned it over they saw The Moon. “Ah yes, the realm of the unknown.” She nodded. “I expected it to appear, given what we already have seen. It is a harbinger of vivid dreams and visions, the release of inner demons. Be prepared to plumb your subconscious, to face the bizarre and outlandish in ways that leave you so confused and bewildered you will become disoriented and have trouble separating fact from fiction. Be careful, however, for The Moon can lead you astray with deceptions and false ideas. What is real? What is fantasy? The path you must follow is unclear, as is the clarity of your purpose in life.”
Tom and Amanda looked at each other. From the look on Tom’s face, it appeared Amanda was squeezing his hand so tightly is might actually have been hurting him. But she refused to leave the table, waiting for the last and final card, one she only could have dreaded, given what she already had been told.
Now Madam Zu-Zu extended her hand to the fifth and final card, the one representing the Outcome. Slowly she turned the card on its back, revealing Death.
Amanda put her hands to her mouth and gasped.
“Be not afraid, my dear. Death can have many meanings. The card is telling me you will bring something to a close, you will go through something that cannot be avoided. It is a matter of riding your fate and accepting what is inevitable in all human endeavors. The events you are about to face are inescapable, the forces inexorable, and you will transition to a new state.”
By now Amanda’s entire body was trembling. It was as if someone had pronounced a death sentence upon her, giving her everything but the date of her execution. She rose and ran from the mansion with Tom in hot pursuit.
They barely spoke during the trip back to Amanda’s house. Her fleeting “I’ve got to run” when he dropped her off appeared to unnerve him as, in retrospect, did the entire session with Madam Zu-Zu. I wish we’d never taken a ride this afternoon, he thought as he pulled away from the curb.
Prompt for chatGPT AI Session
Provide a 1000-word tarot card reading by a gypsy for a young woman who has been dealt the following five cards:
Present Position: The High Priestess.
Present Desires. Strength.
The Unexpected. The Devil.
The Immediate Future: The Moon.
The Outcome: Death.
Greetings young lady, welcome to my tent. I see that you have been dealt an interesting spread of cards today. Let us delve into their meanings and explore the insights they offer.
The High Priestess in your present position suggests that you are someone who values intuition, introspection, and inner wisdom. You are likely to be in tune with your subconscious mind, and perhaps even psychic in nature. You may also be drawn to the mysteries of the universe, spirituality, and esoteric knowledge.
Your present desires are represented by the Strength card. This card speaks to your need for courage, confidence, and inner fortitude. You may be facing a challenge or obstacle that requires you to dig deep within yourself and find the strength to overcome it. This card also suggests that you have a strong will and the ability to harness your passions and emotions.
The unexpected card in your spread is The Devil. This card can be interpreted in different ways, but generally, it signifies temptation, addiction, and materialism. It suggests that you may be dealing with an unhealthy habit or addiction that is holding you back from achieving your goals. Alternatively, it could represent a person or situation that is toxic or draining in your life.
Moving on to your immediate future, we have The Moon. This card is associated with emotions, intuition, and the subconscious mind. It suggests that you may be going through a period of uncertainty or confusion, and that your intuition will be your best guide during this time. The Moon can also indicate a need for reflection and introspection, as you navigate the waters of your own psyche.
Finally, we come to the outcome of your spread, which is represented by Death. This card can be alarming at first, but it is important to remember that in tarot, Death does not necessarily mean physical death. Rather, it signifies a major transformation or change in your life, which may be painful or difficult but ultimately necessary for growth and renewal. This card can be seen as a symbol of letting go of old patterns, habits, and beliefs that no longer serve you, and embracing new beginnings.
So, what do these cards tell us about your situation? It seems that you are someone who values intuition and inner strength, but you may be grappling with a challenge or temptation that is hindering your progress. The Moon in your immediate future suggests that you may be facing a period of uncertainty or confusion, but you have the tools to navigate it successfully. The outcome of your spread, Death, suggests that a major transformation is on the horizon, one that will require you to let go of old patterns and embrace new beginnings.
Overall, this spread encourages you to trust your inner wisdom, find the strength to overcome challenges, and embrace change as a necessary part of growth.
Remember, the cards do not dictate your fate, but rather offer guidance and insights that can help you make informed decisions and navigate life's twists and turns. Best of luck to you on your journey!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The last word: I’m sure you noticed some similarities between the reading I provided in my novel (which, by the way, was written using the pen name Alyssa Devine) and the reading created by chatGPT. The reason may be (most probably is), we both were “trained” by Joan Bunning’s using her Website on Tarot card readings: Learning the Tarot. Her assistance was invaluable to me and provided an exceptional depth of insight into the art. I gave her credit in the Acknowledgements of my novel. No such attribution (if her information was used) appeared in the output of the chatGPT reading, raising ethical questions related to Ms. Bunning’s copyrights.
Readers interested in Tarot are encouraged to visit Ms. Bunning at http://www.learntarot.com/top.htm.
Ted
The person who is going to read the young woman’s fortune has dealt her five cards:
Present Position: The High Priestess.
Present Desires. Strength.
The Unexpected. The Devil.
The Immediate Future: The Moon
The Outcome: Death
You can read below how the reading evolves.
At the end of the story, I have posted what the artificial intelligent (AI) system chatGPT created using the same five cards. It took less than 30 seconds for the system to produce what you will see. Imagine my having this information while I was writing the novel so that it could be used as the basis for this chapter. Is it any wonder educators and others are so worried about this capability and its use to cheat by students and professionals alike.
Here's Chapter 13 of the novel to give you a baseline:
Chapter 13
Spring afternoons in Lafayette, Louisiana, tend to be warm and humid, and Tuesday was no exception. Students’ minds appeared to be on anything but their studies and homework. “Let’s go for a ride,” Tom called to Amanda as they met in the parking lot after school for what, up until a moment earlier, would have been a 20-minute ride home.
“Sure,” she replied, taking her cell phone out of her backpack. “Just let me tell my grandmother we’re going to be a little late.” With that she made a quick call home.
“Anyplace in particular you have in mind?” she asked, as he drove out of the school parking lot.
“Oh, I thought we’d take a hop down to Bayou Vermilion. It’s to the south of us.”
“I love the area,” Amanda gushed, “with all those old plantations and moss-covered trees—it’s just like it must have been during the Civil War.”
They took the road south, venturing into one of the oldest parts of Lafayette Parish. With the car radio set to New Orleans’s classical rock station BAYOU 95.7, the teenagers ‘rocked out’ to the strains of Fleetwood Mac, Van Halen, and KISS. “I wonder what Dr. Ferrari listens to when he’s driving to and from school?” asked Amanda.
“Well, he’s not much older than we are, you know . . . maybe nine or ten years, tops. My guess is he loves these old artists just like we do. Besides, everyone has to let their hair down once in a while!”
Van Halen’s Runnin' with the Devil was playing on the radio as they continued down the road. Tom turned the volume up and emphasized the base. Amanda started waving her arms back and forth and snapping her fingers in time with the music.
Tom chucked to himself. Life is anything but simple, Amanda, he thought, listening to the words of the song. Late the previous evening he had checked the story of Lia and her death at the hands of Miss LaLaurie. As he expected, it was true. All of it. Every single word. Amanda really outdid herself on this one, he thought. Even her story about the cook checked . . . the cook who was chained to her stove and who, in a failed attempt to commit suicide, set fire to the kitchen. You win, Amanda, he thought. There really was such a person as Miss LaLaurie. Her full name was just as Amanda had said, Marie Delphine LaLaurie. She was a Louisiana-born Creole socialite who, as a serial killer in the 1830s, tortured and murdered her slaves. Her Royal Street mansion was the site of Lia’s death, just as Amanda had described it under hypnosis.
And the fire? It occurred on April 10, 1834, and led to the discovery of bound slaves in the attic, all of whom showed signs of torture. Fortunately for her, LaLaurie escaped to Paris, where it is thought she died. Anyone could have found this information, Tom thought. But there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of similar stories. Why did she use this particular story? Nothing made sense. He had gone over everything they talked about in both sessions, over and over again. There were a million ways for her to play the game, he thought. She could have been almost anyone. Why choose a prostitute-turned-madam on one hand and a slave on the other, both from the New Orleans area?
He could not shake the feeling he had been ‘had.’ Yet, there was a little voice in the back of his head that kept asking, Could it be true? Did she really live those lives?
The strains of Van Halen’s Runnin' with the Devil had just died away into silence when Amanda suddenly shouted “Stop!”
Tom attempted to bring the car to an abrupt halt, causing the wheels to lose traction on the damp road surface, which, in turn, almost sent the car careening into the ditch. Startled, he turned and looked at her. “What happened? Did I hit something?” He craned his neck to see if perhaps he had hit a squirrel or some other small animal.
Amanda was shaking.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“I don’t know.”
He saw a strange look in her eyes. “All of a sudden I had the strangest feeling, like I’ve been here before . . . on this road, in front of this house.”
“You probably have. After all the time you and your mother have been living in Lafayette, I’d be surprised if your grandparents haven’t driven you through most of Bayou Vermilion.”
“They have. But I’ve never been down this road before. And I can tell you with absolute certainty I’ve never seen this house. Still, for some strange reason, it seems as familiar to me as the one I live in now or the apartment building on 88th Street we used to live in on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. I can almost tell you what it looks like inside, it’s that vivid in my mind’s eye. This is weird, Tom.”
Oh boy, here we go again, he thought. It’s bad enough she’s jerked me around in two make-believe hypnosis sessions at school, but now she’s taking me on a real ride without even pretending to be in a trance. What color is the sky in her world, anyway?
The sign on the fence at the entrance read Psychic Readings. Beyond it was a rutted, stone-covered drive overshadowed by large, moss-covered, old-growth oaks that judging by their height and girth were well over 100 years of age, many no doubt approaching 150. The antebellum mansion at the end of the drive was, like the roadway itself, badly in need of repair as was the yard, which was totally devoid of grass and covered with all manner of objects, including rusted automobile parts, some dating to the 1930s.
“I want to go inside,” Amanda insisted. “I must go inside!”
“Are you sure you want to do this?”
“I don’t think I have a choice,” she said. “It’s almost as if I’m being pulled into the house. I know it sounds strange, but you’ve got to believe me, Tom. Something about this place gives me the creeps but at the same time makes me feel as if I’ve been here before and should go in now.”
Tom put the car in Reverse, backed up, and then, with the car in Drive, turned onto the road leading to the mansion and drove to the building, which fronted on a circular drive. A large black Labrador, which had been sleeping on the front steps, rose and, wagging its tail, approached Tom as the couple walked to the entrance.
“What is it about you and dogs?” Amanda joked nervously. “They must know you’re an easy ‘mark’ for food.”
Tom and Amanda were just about to knock on the large front door when it opened and a woman dressed as a gypsy appeared. “My name is Madam Zu-Zu. You are here for a psychic reading, are you not? Please come in.”
Tom and Amanda looked at each other and shrugged. At this point there was no turning back. They followed Madam Zu-Zu into the entrance hall. Instantly the air turned cold and stale. Sunlit shafts of dust-filled light that beamed down on them from windows on the second floor were the only sources of illumination in the large entryway. “Please follow me,” said the gypsy.
She led them into a parlor on the right side of the hall. It contained a large, circular, cloth-covered table and six chairs. “Please sit over there,” she commanded, pointing to two chairs opposite where she would sit. Amanda took a seat to the right of Tom, who held the chair for her.
“I normally charge $50 for a reading, but because this is your first time, the charge will be only $25.”
She stood and waited.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” said Tom when he realized he was going to have to pay. He reached into his left rear pants pocket for his wallet and gave the woman $25, which she stuck down her blouse. Then she turned, went around the table, and took her seat opposite them.
“And who is asking for this reading?” she asked.
Amanda slowly and somewhat hesitantly raised her right hand. Madam Zu-Zu nodded. Then she picked up her deck of 22 major arcana tarot cards] and shuffled them over and over again with her eyes closed as she hummed softly to herself. After what seemed like an eternity—but what in reality was not more than a minute or two—she stopped, put the cards in front of Tom, and asked him to cut the deck, which he did. Then she dealt five cards face down on the table in the form of a horseshoe. Madam Zu-Zu explained that from her vantage point, the five cards represented, in order from left to right, Amanda’s Present Position, Present Desires, the Unexpected, the Immediate Future, and the Outcome.
Pulling back the sleeves on her blouse, she slowly turned over the first card representing Amanda’s Present Position. It was The High Priestess.
Madam Zu-Zu nodded. “I see a confused woman in front of me, one who has an unconscious awareness of something she can’t explain . . . a mystery unsolved . . . who, by her own intuition, and trusting her inner voice, has come to Madam Zu-Zu to help her sense the secret and hidden . . . to know what is being concealed from her. You are being called upon to go deeper. There is something beyond the obvious awaiting you, but at this point it is not clear, from the many possibilities, what you can or must do.”
Amanda turned to look at Tom, who shrugged his shoulders. To Amanda, it appeared what Madam Zu-Zu had said made some sense, albeit of a general nature. After all, they were sitting in her parlor for exactly the reason she had stated . . . an unconscious awareness of something she could not explain. Was this just by chance, a mere flip of the coin, the draw of the cards? Who knew?
Madam Zu-Zu turned over the second card, which was to represent Present Desires. It was Strength.
“Ah yes,” Madam Zu-Zu proclaimed, “how fitting this should follow The High Priestess. You must show unshakeable resolve. Be a rock! The task ahead will be frustrating, and it will require time and patience. Look at the card. See the lion being tamed by the hand of the woman. This will be you, finding strength, even in the most difficult moments . . . moments that will test every ounce of inner strength you possess.”
Amanda reached to her left and grabbed hold of Tom’s hand. “Maybe this wasn’t such a great idea after all,” she whispered. “This is really beginning to scare me.”
Tom leaned over and whispered in Amanda’s ear. “Come on, let’s leave. This is a bunch of crap. Anyone can buy a set of tarot cards and a book, memorize what the cards stand for, mix and match interpretations, and voilà, create a story. We could come back tomorrow and the results would be entirely different. And besides, what she’s said is totally generic. There hasn’t been one thing, not one thing, she’s said that’s specific to you, to anyone you know, to any situation in which you’re involved, or to anything—PERIOD.”
“Oh yeah, then how do you explain her saying I was here to clear up the confusion in my mind?” Amanda whispered back. “Or that I was here to expose what is hidden?”
“Well, why would anyone come to a psychic? Duh!”
Madam Zu-Zu cleared her throat, indicating they were wasting her time. Tom and Amanda immediately turned their attention back to the table, where the psychic turned over the third card representing the Unexpected. It was The Devil.
“Oh my, this is very bad,” Madam Zu-Zu intoned. “You will be tied down, lose your independence. Someone else will be in control. Be careful of being taken in by appearances. The future is bleak.”
Tom leaned over to Amanda, whose hand he felt had started to shake, and, cupping his hand over her ear, whispered, “If you want to leave now, just say the word.”
She did not answer him, but squeezed his hand tighter and shook her head ‘no.’
Madam Zu-Zu reached for the fourth card, the one representing the Immediate Future. As she turned it over they saw The Moon. “Ah yes, the realm of the unknown.” She nodded. “I expected it to appear, given what we already have seen. It is a harbinger of vivid dreams and visions, the release of inner demons. Be prepared to plumb your subconscious, to face the bizarre and outlandish in ways that leave you so confused and bewildered you will become disoriented and have trouble separating fact from fiction. Be careful, however, for The Moon can lead you astray with deceptions and false ideas. What is real? What is fantasy? The path you must follow is unclear, as is the clarity of your purpose in life.”
Tom and Amanda looked at each other. From the look on Tom’s face, it appeared Amanda was squeezing his hand so tightly is might actually have been hurting him. But she refused to leave the table, waiting for the last and final card, one she only could have dreaded, given what she already had been told.
Now Madam Zu-Zu extended her hand to the fifth and final card, the one representing the Outcome. Slowly she turned the card on its back, revealing Death.
Amanda put her hands to her mouth and gasped.
“Be not afraid, my dear. Death can have many meanings. The card is telling me you will bring something to a close, you will go through something that cannot be avoided. It is a matter of riding your fate and accepting what is inevitable in all human endeavors. The events you are about to face are inescapable, the forces inexorable, and you will transition to a new state.”
By now Amanda’s entire body was trembling. It was as if someone had pronounced a death sentence upon her, giving her everything but the date of her execution. She rose and ran from the mansion with Tom in hot pursuit.
They barely spoke during the trip back to Amanda’s house. Her fleeting “I’ve got to run” when he dropped her off appeared to unnerve him as, in retrospect, did the entire session with Madam Zu-Zu. I wish we’d never taken a ride this afternoon, he thought as he pulled away from the curb.
Prompt for chatGPT AI Session
Provide a 1000-word tarot card reading by a gypsy for a young woman who has been dealt the following five cards:
Present Position: The High Priestess.
Present Desires. Strength.
The Unexpected. The Devil.
The Immediate Future: The Moon.
The Outcome: Death.
Greetings young lady, welcome to my tent. I see that you have been dealt an interesting spread of cards today. Let us delve into their meanings and explore the insights they offer.
The High Priestess in your present position suggests that you are someone who values intuition, introspection, and inner wisdom. You are likely to be in tune with your subconscious mind, and perhaps even psychic in nature. You may also be drawn to the mysteries of the universe, spirituality, and esoteric knowledge.
Your present desires are represented by the Strength card. This card speaks to your need for courage, confidence, and inner fortitude. You may be facing a challenge or obstacle that requires you to dig deep within yourself and find the strength to overcome it. This card also suggests that you have a strong will and the ability to harness your passions and emotions.
The unexpected card in your spread is The Devil. This card can be interpreted in different ways, but generally, it signifies temptation, addiction, and materialism. It suggests that you may be dealing with an unhealthy habit or addiction that is holding you back from achieving your goals. Alternatively, it could represent a person or situation that is toxic or draining in your life.
Moving on to your immediate future, we have The Moon. This card is associated with emotions, intuition, and the subconscious mind. It suggests that you may be going through a period of uncertainty or confusion, and that your intuition will be your best guide during this time. The Moon can also indicate a need for reflection and introspection, as you navigate the waters of your own psyche.
Finally, we come to the outcome of your spread, which is represented by Death. This card can be alarming at first, but it is important to remember that in tarot, Death does not necessarily mean physical death. Rather, it signifies a major transformation or change in your life, which may be painful or difficult but ultimately necessary for growth and renewal. This card can be seen as a symbol of letting go of old patterns, habits, and beliefs that no longer serve you, and embracing new beginnings.
So, what do these cards tell us about your situation? It seems that you are someone who values intuition and inner strength, but you may be grappling with a challenge or temptation that is hindering your progress. The Moon in your immediate future suggests that you may be facing a period of uncertainty or confusion, but you have the tools to navigate it successfully. The outcome of your spread, Death, suggests that a major transformation is on the horizon, one that will require you to let go of old patterns and embrace new beginnings.
Overall, this spread encourages you to trust your inner wisdom, find the strength to overcome challenges, and embrace change as a necessary part of growth.
Remember, the cards do not dictate your fate, but rather offer guidance and insights that can help you make informed decisions and navigate life's twists and turns. Best of luck to you on your journey!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The last word: I’m sure you noticed some similarities between the reading I provided in my novel (which, by the way, was written using the pen name Alyssa Devine) and the reading created by chatGPT. The reason may be (most probably is), we both were “trained” by Joan Bunning’s using her Website on Tarot card readings: Learning the Tarot. Her assistance was invaluable to me and provided an exceptional depth of insight into the art. I gave her credit in the Acknowledgements of my novel. No such attribution (if her information was used) appeared in the output of the chatGPT reading, raising ethical questions related to Ms. Bunning’s copyrights.
Readers interested in Tarot are encouraged to visit Ms. Bunning at http://www.learntarot.com/top.htm.
Ted
No comments have been added yet.
