My Experience with Tarot
In this post, I'll give a brief history of tarot, my experience with tarot, and where to learn more.
So do you worship the Devil? - a question I have received once or twice (or three times) when I speak of my love of tarot. Sometimes I'll reply "yes" with a mischievous grin, solely for the reaction.
Tarot (pronounced tar-oh) has become associated with the dark arts throughout the centuries. This form of divination, which involves a deck of cards, has been used to predict the future, confirm life events, and to provide direction. To me, the tarot is a form of validation, guidance and comfort, and I try to express that in the people whose cards I read.
I receive questions about tarot when I share it on social media, so I figured I would share my limited, two-year tarot knowledge here. There is so much to the art of tarot, it's impossible to attempt to condense it all into one post. If you'd like another post, please let me know and I would be happy to oblige.
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A VERY Brief History of Tarot:
It is believed that tarot began in Italy in the late 1300s/early 1400s, originally as a parlor game among nobles. The Visconti-Sforza is the oldest known tarot deck, along with the Tarocchi of Magenta deck and Tarocchi of Venice deck. There is so much to learn, this website does a great job detailing its history.
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Elements of the Tarot:
There are 78 cards total, with 22 Major Arcana and 56 Minor Arcana cards. Any card that does not have a suit is a Major Arcana card. This includes cards like The Fool, The Tower, The Devil, etc. It is important to note that cards that are shown upside down are called "reversal cards" and have their own separate meaning. So in addition to knowing the meanings of 78 upright cards, there is also knowing 78 meaning of reversed cards. WHEW.
There are four suits: sword, pentacles, cup, and wands.
Swords - deal with decision making, thoughts and analysis.
Pentacles - deal with the material world; home, money, work, etc.
Cups - represent emotion and sensitivities.
Wands - signify movement, activity.
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Before I give my readings, I always give the same disclaimers:
Have an open mind.
What I say to you is not your fate.
If you are not comfortable discussing something, we can set boundaries.
If your card is upside down, leave it as it is.
And finally - do not scream if you pull the Devil Card - you will not be possessed by the devil.
There are several spreads one can use when reading cards; I typically do the Celtic Cross spread which involves 10 cards. But there are other spreads which involve 3, 4, or more than 10 cards. In between each reading, it's suggested to "cleanse" the deck of the previous person's energy. This can be used with sage, palo santo wood, blowing on the deck, or “knocking” the deck - a technique where you hit out the energy on the deck with your hand.
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The decks I own & tools I use:
Rider-Waite tarot, the most popular and well known tarot deck, created by Dr. Arthur Edward Waite, published William Rider, and illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith. This is the deck I connect with most.
The Philly Tarot Deck, by James Boyle and Gina Tomaine
The Modern Witch Tarot Deck, by Lisa Sterle, my latest purchase
The Holly Simple tarot guide book
The Ultimate Guide to Divination by Liz Dean
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My favorite cards in the Rider-Waite deck:
The High Priestess 🌙 - our connection from the physical world to the spiritual world, and our portal to our intuition, divine mysteries, and enlightenment. In readings when this card appears, I like to tell the recipient their Spirit Guides are watching over them & are sending them a message.
The Sun 🌞 - Perhaps the most popular or favorite card of all. Emitting positivity, optimism, and high energy, it tells us things will indeed get better
Three of Cups 🏆 - PARTY TIME. A card of friendship, celebration, and connection. I LOVE when this card shows up in a reading.
The World 🌎 - You can have it all, baby. Say hello to new beginnings, and celebrate the accomplishments in your past. You are whole 💕
If you want to learn more about tarot, here is who I suggest to follow:
No matter who you go to, you'll find a different interpretation of tarot. That's part of the beauty of it.
Questions? Shoot me a DM. And if you're ever interested in a reading, you know where to find me. ;)