About the Tarot
Tuning in through The Tarot
More in our series on Divining Tools... A series on working with the Tarot, a magical deck of cards, cards embedded with anciet symbols and archetypes, a remarkable tool for divining past, present and future.
An Introduction to the Power of the Tarot, a Tool for Activating Your Natural Psychic Abilities
With this powerful tool, you can read the energy to see what's coming - and what you can do about it.
It's fun, fascinating, worthwhile.Click here to purchase a Rider-Waite Tarot Deck from Amazon.com.
What is the Tarot
Says Danielle
For me, the Tarot is magic. It is much more than is a simple set of 78 pictorial cards. Once activated, these beautiful cards will tell thousands of stories, answer any number of questions and provide insights on countless lives - and loves.
The Tarot consists of 22 Major Arcana which depict the major steps in one's journey through life, and 56 Minor Arcana in four suits, Swords, Wands, Cups and Pentacles.
The Minor Arcana correspond to our modern day playing cards (and were probably derived from early playing cards, since it is believed that the Tarot formally came into existence as a card game.)
Click here to purchase a Rider-Waite Tarot Deck from Amazon.com
The Tarot is basically a divination tool that can be used to see the past, present and future and to give you insight on all aspects of life, from our dreams and relationships to past lives and worldly successes. I find the Tarot particularly useful in gaining insights around upcoming decisions and for obtaining background information around complex problems. Still, the Tarot seems to contain and is capable of describing all of life's infinite possibilities.Despite having used the Tarot in thousands of readings over some 30 years, I continue to be surprised at what it can tell me, and how it evolves with our circumstances. For example, who would think that a set of cards designed some 500 years ago could speak to a 21st Century reader about her client's interest in body-building?
In reality, one experiences the Tarot as opposed to reading it. The Tarot is imbedded with the universal symbols and archetypes that are contained in the Universal Consciousness. When the cards are open in front of you, they trigger immediate reactions within your psyche. Old soul memories, ancient knowledge rises to the surface of your being from the depths of your unconscious or subconscious self… the Tarot, like your dreams, is a way of talking with your soul, connecting with your higher self.
The Tarot is mysterious also in its origins. Records indicate that the Minor Arcana first appeared in the late 14th century as a set of 56 playing cards. Some 50 years later the Major Arcana appeared in Italy as an independent set of 22 cards, also used for playing a game. Soon after, the Major and Minor Arcana were combined as a beautifully painted set of 78 cards.To understand the Tarot, one must understand a little of its 15th Century history. That was the time of the great Renaissance in our thinking and beliefs, The Age of Enlightenment, a time when intellectuals and artists began to explore their natures – and to rebel against the controls of the Church and the Monarchy. The Tarot represented in those days a powerful tool for exploring one's psyche. By meditating on these cards, using them as a memory system, similar to the way that the Stations of the Cross are used in the Catholic Church, an individual could gain access to higher levels of consciousness, and powerful insights into the divine world. This is aptly described in the Mythic Tarot, by Juliet Sharman Burke and Liz Greene. (ISBN 0671658425.)
‘What a great miracle is man!' became the rallying cry of the Renaissance, for in the new vision man was a proud co-creator in God's cosmos. The Neoplatonic-Hermetic movement believed that the human being was in essence a microcosm of the greater universe, and that therefore self-knowledge – knowledge of the soul – was the only true religious path through which one might reconnect with one's divine origins…. And knowledge of self meant knowledge of the many diverse drives and impulses of the inner man or woman, some of them dark as well as light, as well as knowledge of the cycles of development at work in human life. … Moreover, if man was a great miracle and a co-creator in the cosmos, then he had the right to tamper with himself and his world, even improving upon God's not-so-perfect creation, rather than obediently accepting his lot according to religious dogma. It is no wonder that the Church retaliated with such great ferocity, eventually forcing this new vision underground in the ensuing two centuries.
Know Thyself, the first dictum of the Greeks, became also the dictum of the 15th century thinking man. It is no wonder that the Church and all in authority in those times were threatened by its popularity.It was not until the 18th century that the Tarot was taken out of the closet so to speak and brought back into play. The cards were modified to fit with the spiritual beliefs of the group or order which managed to get hold of them. Thus the cards are now a fascinating hybrid, an integration of myths, beliefs and archetypes that can be sourced to Cabalistic thought, Egyptian imagery, Biblical teachings, Arthurian legends, and Rosicrucian symbolism.
In the past 50 years, as we again embraced that old dictum "Know Thyself" and Quantum Physics was proving that our thoughts and feelings create our realities, the Tarot has seen a phenomenal resurgence and acceptance among the general population. Now there are hundreds of amazingly beautiful versions, and millions of people around the world consult with the Tarot, for fun and for profit.
How to Work With the Tarot
Choosing Your Deck
The Rider-Waite deck is one of the most popular, especially for teachers of the Tarot, probably because of its detailed imagery, clarity and consistency. But the choice of a ‘working" deck is highly personal, and there are hundreds to consider. Most retailers will provide sample sets so you can examine the decks in some depth before you decide which one is right for you. The trick is to choose the deck that you resonate with, the deck that triggers some reaction from you, the one that gets your mind and your feelings going.
Preparing and Storing Your Deck
As you will soon discover, the Tarot deserves some respect… this is not a deck of cards that you want to leave lying around for anyone to pick up and play with – especially once you activate it for your own use. In fact, leaving cards face up will set certain energies in motion – and there are times when these energies can cause you trouble. So, until you are knowledgeable enough with the Tarot to choose when and where to leave cards lying about, it is best to keep then under wraps when they are not in use. Most psychics recommend a little ritual to prepare and later activate the cards, and all will suggest that you keep your cards wrapped in a silk cloth.
Clearing Your Cards
As a first step in preparing your cards, you will need to clear them of any energy that has attached to them since they were made. To clear the cards when you first get a new deck, you can do one – or all - of several things:
soak them in sea salt
leave them sitting in the sun for a day
shuffle them repeatedly.
It is also useful to say a little prayer over them, in your own words asking that the cards be cleared of any old energy and prepared for your use.
Activating Your Cards
Once you have cleared your cards, you are ready to activate them for your own use. My partner in Global Psychics, Mary-Anne Alvaro, recommends that you sleep with the cards under your pillow for three or four nights before you start using them. This connects you, your soul self, and the cards on a subconscious level and helps you to tune into the messages they contain. To activate my own cards, I use a different kind of shuffle from the style I use to clear the cards, and I will shuffle the cards over and over again until I feel them softening and warming up. Then I know they are ready for reading.
I always say a prayer during this process of activation, in my own words asking that these cards be used for the Highest Good of all, that I be guided to work for the good of all, according to the free will of all, and always from the Highest Source available to me.
Special Note: Once you have activated your cards, do not allow others to mess around with them… these cards have now been attuned to your frequency, so allowing others to play with your cards will muddy up your readings.
