How Traditional is My Take of Tarot?

I asked myself one day, "Am I a Tarot purest?"
This was after reading a comment someone had made about 'not needing a book to learn to read tarot and to just look at the pictures and say what comes to mind'.

My knee jerk reaction to such comments, "Um, No." But I don't want to sound like a know it all or snob so I reflected upon that moment and my reaction.

So first, to understand where I am coming from, it might be helpful to know a little bit about how I came to tarot. I did NOT come by way of the traditional Rider Waite Smith deck. At the time, I did not even know it existed. I actually started back in 1991 with The Native American Tarot by Magda Weck Gonzalez and J. A. Gonzalez; published by U.S. Games (not affiliated, just sharing the link). I chose this deck because I very much relate to and identify with the culture in both philosophy and spirituality. This inclination I have for the Native ways has been with me from very early on in my life. I was that kid that had no clue the goings on in the story of a black and white western movie, but I was rooting for the Natives. Watching westerns turned into reading books. I learned and continue to learn as much as I can and have had the honor to be invited and introduced to ceremonies and rituals.

So when I picked up this deck, study came easy. All the stories and traditions used to create the cards were all things I was already very familiar with.
I knew NOTHING about tarot as a whole. I did not know that there were so many decks already on the market. I was a complete noob and totally in the dark. But then this thing called the internet happened. Being the occult nerd that I am, the first thing I did when I got plugged into the WWW, I searched ‘Tarot’ and that was when I found the Aeclectic Tarot Forums. A whole new world of tarot opened up to me and where I was a dabbler in the cards, Tarot became a serious study.
 
So having come this far in my tarot journey and seeing everything out there in the tarot learning circles and groups, I will make it ‘official’  and state it here and now about my perspective and approach to tarot...
I am a bit of a tarot purist but I am also an artist.
HUH? Let me explain. Be prepared, I am going to take the long way to get there....
 
There is a saying that you must first learn the rules if you want to break them.  One of the rules for life supposedly given to us by the Dali Lama. But for sure Pablo Picassio said,
“Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.
And then there was my mom who taught me, ‘Rules are meant to be bent’.
 
‘They’ Say ~
Start with the Rider Waite Smith deck  - I say, “Only if you like it.”
 
There are so many other options out there. I am not at all attracted to the art of the original RWS deck, yes, I can appreciate it as an artist, but it's not in my taste. I’m also, as you may already know, not religious nor have I ever been. So this deck is not for me and if it’s not for you or anyone else, do not feel pressured into getting the deck because you feel that is what you need in order to be skilled at tarot.
 
‘They’ Say ~
You don’t need a book, just lay the cards out and use your intuition. - I say, “Do you really want to learn Tarot?”
Sure a picture is worth 1,000 words and with the gestalt approach you will find meaning in your cards. But that is not really learning how to read Tarot.
 
WITH THAT SAID ~
It’s a fact that one can come up with some fantastic insights when approaching the cards by just looking at them and never opening a book about tarot cards and their meanings. However, if you want to learn tarot, you are going to need to do some studying.
 
Tarot is built with a structure that is rooted in symbolism that is ages old. So when I say I am a tarot purist, I am talking about using the cards with the structure that they come with.
 

The suit of cups is focused on emotional parts of life. To apply some material definition such as finding employment, or some legal aspect like a court case would not be fitting. Those meanings belong to the suit of pentacles for material things and the suit of swords for the mental (legal) things.
Also worth mentioning is that knowing this structure makes learning the individual meanings of the cards a whole lot easier.
 
If you learn this structure and use a deck that is expressive with it’s imagery and is inline with the RWS tradition, you will find that you can read just about any deck. Some will be a little more difficult. Those that lack illustrated pips, those with limited scenery, those that stray from the traditional, and those that are of the ‘other tarot tradition’. By other tarot tradition, I mean those decks that are modeled after the Marseilles or Thoth decks.
 
But… I am not that snobby of a tarot purist. As an artist, I get that such things evolve. What was once a tradition known by few has become a fascination of the many and more and more independent and unique decks are being created and published. I’m sure there are over a dozen in development on kickstarter as I write this.
 
Now, while I am a strong proponent for knowing the bones of tarot, I also strongly encourage the intuitive aspect. For many, the psychic side is the harder 'study' compared to learning the card meanings. But the hard part in the psychic study is not so much learning as it's totally natural, it is trusting and discerning those impressions. Now, with that said,  I had occasional clairaudient impressions as a child but when I started using the cards, my clair changed to clairvoyant, clairsentient and claircognizant and one reading when it was a clairalience experience, have not had another since.

If you take up a serious study of the cards learn the symbolism on a universal level and work within the perimeters of the system, you will find that the cards in combination with your intuition makes from some readings that will give you goosebumps... I am still in awe of how Spirit communicates when I start shuffling cards.






A Bit About Tarot ~ And A Little Bonus

THE EDUCATIONAL PART ~

The History of Tarot ~ A Time Line in the Life of the Cards

* Master researcher on the subject of Tarot, Stewart Kaplan states that tarot started as a card game in the early 1400's. 

* In 1572, 'Tarocchi Appropriati' became something of a fortune telling game, the holder of a card created a narrative from it.

* 1770 Ettellia, a French occultist publishes a book about reading fortunes with playing cards.

* Court de Gébelin publishes his writings in 1781 making claims that tarot is the product of ancient Egyptian wisdom. Note: There is no evidence to support this. The Comte de Mellet also wrote about Hebew letters and thier association to the cards and this was included in Gébelin's published works.

* In 1775 Ettellia publishes a second book, but this time on reading tarot cards specifically. And in 1788 the first deck to be used specifically with divination in mind was published by Ettellia.

* In the mid 1800's Eliphas Levi would attribute the Kabbala to tarot. This information would be instilled into the workings of the Order of the Golden Dawn.

* Arthur Waite, a member of the Order of the Golden Dawn would collaborate with artist Pamela Coleman and create a deck that was first published in 1910 by William Rider & Son of London publishing company. This is the deck that has becomes the 'standard' and is the most well known of all tarot decks used for divination.

The second most recognized deck is the the Thoth created under the instruction of Aleister Crowley and the artist Lady Frieda Harris. This deck would not be published until 1969 even thought the project began in 1938 and was completed in 1943.

The Tarot Deck~ ‘What defines a Tarot deck?’

Tarot is just one of many kinds of divination decks in print today. Any deck that is used for divination can be called an oracle deck but not all oracle decks are tarot. Somehow people tend to use the word tarot to mean any deck of cards that are used for divination and that is just not the case. 

Tarot decks have a specific structure. 

There is the symbolism of the deck and the format of the deck. The format is 78 cards which are divided into two Arcanas; the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. The Major Arcana is a small deck of 22 cards numbered 0-21. They are considered the Trump cards of the deck. The Minor Arcana is very much like a regular deck of playing cards, having four suits and a set of four court (face) cards. The Minor Arcana are numbered from Ace to 10 and have Page, Knight, Queen & King for the court cards. Some decks will give different names to the court cards and the Trump cards. The symbolism is rooted in the history of tarot used as a divination tool. Each suit of the Minor Arcana is associated with an element and each element associates with an aspect of life.

MINOR ARCANA SUITS

FIRE - WANDS - ENERGETIC (life force, inspiration, creation) 

EARTH - PENTACLES - MATERIALISTIC (work, finances, skills)

AIR - SWORDS - INTELLECTUAL (communication, thoughts, legalities)

WATER - CUPS - EMOTIONAL (feelings, memories, intuition) 

 

There is different schools of thought on the differences between the Major and Minor Arcana. Some say the Majors represent the different phases of spiritual growth. There is the idea that Majors are external, things outside of our control and Minors are internal, things we have control over. Majors are Spiritual and Minors are mundane. 

Any deck that veers away from this format in a significant way is not really a tarot deck. The main exception would be a Trumps only deck.
 

Besides Tarot as a popular deck for reading, there are Lenormand cards which is a deck of 36 cards. They made their appearance at the turn of the 19th century. Added to Tarot and Lenormand cards, there is a plethora of all kinds of different themed decks that come in a varied number of cards and these are simply called oracle decks. 

Myths of Tarot~ 
Two common areas of misconception are how one gets a tarot deck and who can touch it.

It is often said that you should be given a deck for it to work. I can personally tell you that the process of choosing your deck can be a wonderful experience. However, gifted decks are often found to be special in some way as well. As far as having a deck given to you as a gift, that is not necessary at all. Do not let this myth hinder acquiring your first tarot deck.

There are three different schools of thoughts about people handling tarot decks.
1- ‘Never let another person touch your deck, their energy will enter the deck and not work for you.’
2- ‘The person getting the reading MUST shuffle and cut the deck in order to put their energy into the reading.’
3- Energy is energy and it does not matter who touches them.... or not.
There is energy everywhere, that is a fact; energy does transfer from one object to another, that is life. Energy is constantly in motion. Everyone has a different experience with energy.
For some readers having the clients shuffle the cards is how they connect to the energy of that person. People who may be overly sensitive to other people's energy may want to keep their decks free of any energy that is not their own. 
What it boils down to is that you do what you feel is right for you, what works for you.

Lastly- 

‘OH NO- I got the DEATH card! Am I going to die?’

The Death card is often feared because so many think that this card means that they or someone close to them will die. This is rarely the case. If the Death card shows up in a reading, it is usually a card that reflects a message of change. Out with the old and in with the new. The Death card has an astrological association, Scorpio. Scorpio is the sign of Death and Rebirth, a card of legacy. A keyword often used for the Death card is 'Transformation'.

How Tarot Works~

Each individual card has a very specific root meaning to it and while it may be similar to other cards- it is still different.

For example, all Ace cards speak of new beginnings. If the card is a Cups card then it is about some emotional beginning and if it is a Swords card then it is some new way of thinking. The depth of the card's meaning just builds from there.

The finer details are found in the numerous symbols that are seen in each card, as well as how several cards interact with each other when arranged in a spread. Each position in a spread has it's own focus. A commonly used and simple example is the 'Past, Present, Future' spread. The card falling into each of those positions speak of that time frame. Note: Future positions do not speak in absolutes. What is seen is a potential future based on everything else. It may be a desired future or one that might be best avoided. It is up to the one receiving the reading to take proper action and either encourage or change that future.

'How does a person read for another if they are not sitting with them?'

This is again about energy, the collective unconscious, the Anima Mundi which means World Soul. There are many who believe that we are all connected in spirit. It is this place of connectedness that a psychic will reach into and gather the information that is needed. Some use guides to help them through the Ether, others will use runes, tea leaves, what ever.

THE PROMOTIONAL PART

~ Who I am as an Intuitive Reader of Tarot ~

My love of playing cards started when I was very young. I was a challenging player in any game taught to me.

My interest in card reading started when I was 12 and my aunt read for me with a regular deck of playing cards. It would be a few years before I had an actual Tarot deck, that was in the summer of 1991.

When I do readings, all I want is the question or focus for the reading, I can also do a ‘general’ reading where no question is asked and the cards are just drawn and the message from spirit is relayed. 

The card images and symbolism triggers my connection to the Anima Mundi. It may be a vision, a smell or some other impression I feel that brings more depth to the reading.

BONUS - I'm giving free readings

I am building a library of actual readings that I use to demonstrate my reading style. I have several different spreads that I do not have samples for, and I would like more than one for each spread as well. You may have a situation that you would like a little insight on and fits the bill for what I need, if so, you are in luck! I do want a few general reading samples as well.

If you would like to be considered for a free reading, KNOW THIS: your reading will be presented to the public. NO names, locations or other personal/specific information will be included in the reading, so it is totally anonymous. If you are good with that, please fill out THIS FORM.... I will choose those I read for based on 1) the question asked; like it is a unique subject that I do not already have. 2) It's a subject that fits the specific spread I need samples for, and 3) my time availability, as some questions are time sensitive.

Tarot & Fortune Telling ETA: And the Romani

Did tarot start with the Romani? And what About Fortune Telling?

Let's begin with these questions by taking a closer look.

What is Tarot?
      Tarot is a deck of 78 cards that came into existence in Italy in the mid 1400's.  At that time, the cards where used for the card game called Tarocchi which is played by rules much like Bridge.  These original decks were hand painted commissioned works, made at the request of wealthy merchants.  The earliest known deck dates to about 1441.  It would not be until after the invention of the printing press that tarot cards would be mass produced.   While a deck was made specifically for divination in the 1800's, it was not until 1910 that ever so popular and well known Rider Waite Smith deck was published.


But before all this... A French occultist, Eliphas Levi, found that the 22 Trump cards of the Tarrocchi deck neatly correlated with the Tree of Life, the foundation of Kabbalah.  It was this connection that he utilized tarot playing cards with mysticism and magic.

   • Some added interesting info and dates...
Eliphas Levi was born in 1810, Arthur Edward Waite was born in 1857, Edward Alexander Crowley (Aleister Crowley) was born in 1875.  And what is the link with these three besides tarot?  Both Waite and Crowley translated and published some of Eliphas Levi's written works.  Levi's works became a major part of the foundation of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn.  The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was a magical paternity (that allowed women) started in 1888 by William Westcott and Samuel Mathers; the order 'died' in 1903.  However, both Waite (joined in 1891) and Crowley (initiated in 1898) had been members and when the HOGD was no more, both men created a spin-off order of their own.

Art by Morgaine du Mer

Prints available at MagickMermaid

How about those Gypsies?
       Gypsy is not the preferred term and is viewed as a ethnic slur.  This is the Romani people; traditionally and historically a nomadic people.  They are found all over the world today, but where do they come from originally?   With advances in genetics and DNA testing, it has been found that their origins are from Northern India and Pakistan.  Exactly why they migrated as they did is still in question for the Romani people have no written history.

       When the word 'gypsy' is mentioned it often brings to mind the idea of a psychic fortune-teller.  Where the idea of the Romani people being fortune-tellers comes from cannot be totally nailed down, it is a bit like the 'which came first, chicken or the egg?' question.
Palmistry and Vedic Astrology has a very long history in India and the Far East, so it would stand to reason that a people who originally came from India and the Far East would likely be skilled in these practices.  Even today, the cultural structure of the Romani has its foundation in Caste system found in Hinduism.
        In the early 1300's there was a linguistic association made.  The language of the Romani contain many dialects that originate from Sanskrit.   A group of Romani was compared to another group called Mandapolos due to the language spoken.  Mandapolos is thought to be derived from the Greek word that means 'fortune-teller'.

        With a nomadic lifestyle one must be quite creative and adaptive in making a living.  With the Indian and Hindu origin of the people, they likely already had the know-how for reading palms.
So did the early Romani utilize this 'fortune-teller' image and give the people what they were looking for?  Or did the 'label' fit from the start and just grow from there?
As for the cards, given that Tarot is known today as a form of divination, it is easy to see that the people and the cards would go hand in hand.  The Romani did arrive in Italy roughly the same time that the first tarot (game) cards are known to have appeared. But cards were commissioned works of art that only aristocrats and such could afford.

Is there such a thing as Fortune Telling?
       Fortune telling is a term used for the practice of divination. There is a distinction between the two terms; divination was conducted during a religious ritual, where as fortune-telling is less formal and more personal. Divination can be done with many different tools or none at all. Cards of any kind, not just tarot cards, can be used as well as tea leaves, the lumps and wrinkles on one's head, a persons palm and the classic crystal ball.
      "You will meet a tall, dark and handsome man."... this idea comes from the early days of cartomancy (using playing cards for divination) in the 18th century. Each court card in a standard deck of playing cards had been given specific meaning in the form of 'who' as in what they looked like and their age.  Readings done during this time was more of a form of parlor entertainment than it was actual divination. These types of meanings given to the cards have come a long way since then, as has the art of cartomancy.
       Today, tarot is more of a guidance tool. The cards reflect a different perspective than what a person may be clinging to. It introduces to the mind other possibilities and situations that had not been previously considered. However, there is still a bit of mysticism to the cards depending upon who is doing the reading. This is where intuition and psychic impressions come into the picture. It is not the cards that can predict the future, it is the reader who taps into the interconnectedness of the collective consciousness. And then there is the person who is astute in logic progression; 'If you do 'A', then 'B' will happen'.
       All good tarot readers as well as psychics will say that no future is set in stone. That there is the current path that one is on and that path can be changed. If a reader tells a client that their relationship is headed towards a nasty ending, then there is already trouble in the relationship. In order for that to change, the person must take steps to change it. The relationship could be healed, or could end on a softer note. Either way, the person receiving the reading has been given a seed of thought to contemplate and prepare for, or take necessary measures to avoid.
      What about things like pregnancies and accidents? There are specific cards that are indicators of these things, but they each have other meanings as well. It is all in the intuition of the reader that deciphers what the specifics in the card are relevant and important in the reading.

So what can we formulate from all this information?

   • Did the Romani really bring tarot cards to the world? 
I feel pretty safe in even saying 'absolutely not!'
Coincidentally, they were in the same place at the same time, however, evidence and logic would have it that the two never had any connection.
    • How so?
Though they where both in Italy at the same time, Tarot cards where only for the elite.  They where the only ones who could afford them.  The Romani people had a hard enough time making a living and were always on the move; there would be no way they could possibly afford to commission a deck to made for them, let alone stick around long enough for its completion.
    • How about fortune telling?
Is it just coincidence through a logical view of events and how these typically progress?  Or is there really some magic to it all?
Predicting the future can be done, but is quite rare.  I believe that it is a bit of both; a lucky and, or, logical guesswork, but at times, can be truly intuitive.
I am reminded of an account told to me by someone who was at the World Trade Center on that fateful day.  He was to attend a meeting and minutes before the meeting he had the strong urge to leave the building.  He did not know the 'why' for the impression he had, but heeded the feeling. He did not predict the attack specifically, but something deep within told him that he should not be in the building. He is alive today because of it.

Tarot of the Cat People

XVIII The Moon

VI The Lovers

Read about the deck on Owl Ka Myst's mother blog, 

Under a Magic Moon 

  Tarot of the Cat People

Queen of Swords