Tarot Talk & Technique

So this is the box where I keep my tarot. It's an old cutlery canteen on legs that I ripped the insides out of and relined with new velvet. Unfortunately the new velvet isn't that pleasant violet colour but a more standard royal blue that didn't photograph well (budget and all that) but it still looks smick regardless. The shape's a little odd but there's enough room for my notebooks and all my decks. I'm pretty happy with it. It stands at the bottom of my bed.

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Hi all, About reading tarot and using other divination methods and 'where to draw the line' with what to accept as 'the right answer.' Recently I've been experimenting with coin tossing and online Yes/No button to predict. Unlike Tarot cards, these give strictly binary yes/no answers. However, I've noticed that often the answer doesn't fit, because the situation is ambiguous, for example: Will it rain during my walk? NO. There ended up being a slight drizzle but nothing so heavy I would have required an umbrella. So is this rain or not? Technically, it is rain, but the purpose of my question was do I need an umbrella. Tarot often gives answers that are 'ye…

For me, one of the major ways that I work on intuitive reading is to work with my cards in an out-of-the-box or of way. Not for reading or contemplation, but just for fun. It gets me out of my head with the cards and stuff comes up when I'm in "play" mode with them that actually is really helpful in my more serious tarot practice! One of my little games is to pull 3-6 cards and create a "family portrait" out of them. Every card, whether it be Major, Minor or Court is a member of the family. A card or two or three steps into the role of parental figures, maybe one is the quintessential vodka aunt of the family, maybe there is a kid or two, maybe the grandparents make an…

I often do a "5-4-3-2-1" exercise to ground, and I discovered it can actually be used in tarot to really get into the cards and read from a different perspective! To start off, let me explain the grounding exercise. It starts by finding 5 things that you can see, then 4 things that you can hear, then 3 things that you can smell, then 2 things you can touch, then 1 thing you can sense. The idea is that by doing this, you can get out of your head and back into your body, but I've been using it to get into a card! I do this by pulling a 3 card spread, using a deck that has people in it. Then, I choose one of them that is the basis of the reading (usually the middle ca…

When I read, I ask the cards to tell me a story about me that is true for today. I don’t ask yes or no questions, I don’t do divination, I don’t apply my readings to specific situations, and I definitely don’t ask “third party” questions such as “Does he love me?” or “Is she cheating on her husband?” Tarot is for me a spiritual Rorschach test, a mirror into my soul. I just read to see what is going on with me today. I use a five card spread of my own design – the Axis of Time and the Axis of Place – like this: 5 this is around me 2 this is behind me 1 this is the here and now 3 this is before me …

Have you ever found that your decks seem to have chosen a card that actually represents the deck? The same way you may find signifiers for yourself or others in your life within the deck, I find that the deck often has a card that really seems to just show the personality of the deck itself. For example, Archeon Tarot personifies itself with The Magician. When working with the deck, it's like I have The Magician from this deck conjuring up the images for me to see. Shadowscapes is also an interesting one, being very Queen of Cups. She steps down from the cosmos, bringing all the love and wisdom of the universe with her. Do your decks personify themselves i…

In a similar vein to the recent Tower thread - or, rather, the direction it was occasionally going - let's talk about the cards that challenge us. The Tower, The Devil, Death, 3 of Swords, etc etc. Let's talk about how we experience them in our lives, what lessons they bring, what growth comes from the experiences! Feel free to jump on with whatever thoughts you have about any card that challenges you, or to continue the conversations started by someone else!

Hello. I´d like to know what´s the meaning of repeatedly drawing the same card, over time, regarding a same subject, but also about different subjects, generally about outcomes, always regarding the same consultant?

Hello What is carrying in right hand the central figure of Le Monde in Marseille deck? btw Is the figure a woman or is androgynous?

Hey there! What tools do you pros like when rounding off the square corners on some tarot decks? I heard someone once mention some Japanese corner cutter...any suggestions? And I don’t want to use scissors, so let’s leave that one off the list (;

Do you think it's necessary to have a lot of real life experiences to be able to read Tarot better? To see all the different possibilities and paths? The thing is, I have overprotective parents, I've never done things people my age has done and I'm lacking behind most people in terms of experience. I'm what you would call "book smart, but not street smart." So, unlike most Tarot readers, I don't understand the real world or real people well enough. I'm not good at giving advice on most topics because I, myself, don't have any experiences in those areas. I think this is a big obstacle for me in learning tarot and trying to read them from different perspectives. I kn…

Hello everyone Are there any decks that you're really attracted to, but you just can't get yourself to say yes to? Mine is the Crystal Visions Tarot. It's a beautiful deck, and it's on my wish list, but when it comes down to it, I just can't get myself to buy it. Are there any decks that you feel this way about?

Many times do I see on Tarot social media sites, people saying that their fave card is The Tower, Death, The Devil, Moon reversed etc. Now, I know that these are fascinating cards, however favourite cards? And they seem to welcome the appearance in readings of these. The main reasons are that they: ...like a challenge...it's best to embrace the darkness ... it makes you more spiritual etc. Now i appreciate that these statements are true, but to me these are hard-core cards with tradition & pedigree of hard times to say the least. And as much as people in the west like to think of themselves as Zen we don't have the philosophy of the Orient: in the west, unless…

Based upon the original and only authorized edition of the famous 78-card Rider-Waite. What is the difference of this version to the Rider Waite? I am a bit confused as the keywords in the LWB are different to what Biddy uses, but she says Keywords are based on RW? For example Ace of Cups According to my LWB: True heart, joy, content, abode, nourishment, abundance, fertility, holy table, felicity hereof According to Biddy: Love, new relationships, compassion, creativity https://www.biddytarot.com/tarot-card-meanings/minor-arcana/suit-of-cups/ace-of-cups/ Thanks for shining some light here ;D

I was wondering HOW you pick your cards for a spread. I always shuffle like with playing cards.While doing that I think of the question or situation.I try to imagine the personsame involved and feel the situation that they are dealing with in the present. Then I cut the cards in half.I hold the deck in my one hand and with the other I kind of open them like a fan and feel them.with my fingers and my eyes closed .while picking the card I say what position it for.ex.this is for current situation or risk is for what she is scared of ect I've seeing many videos on YouTube that he parts aren't picked out but instead after halfing the deck they just open the cards one by one…

Hello guys, how would you describe 8oC person? -someone who is far away from a seeker -someone who is dissatisfied, restless and he walks away....a wanderer -mysterious person with a lot of hidden things inside -elusive, irrepressible, beyond seeker´s control ....what do you think?How is your idea of 8oC guy? O. <3 <3 <3

When I was young (about 13) I watched a documentary about near-death experiences. An ordinary working class lad who'd had a bike accident was explaining how he'd "died" for a few minutes at the scene. He said his "spirit" left his body and he found himself walking along a path for what seemed like days, and among many exp he said that coming the other way was a really fat man dressed in extraordinary clothes and he was laughing; the lad stopped and asked him why he was laughing, and the man explained he was laughing so much because he was so happy and he was so fat because he was so full of love. Anyway, they revived the lad & he lived to tell the tale. When I g…

I have a great interest in the RWS infamous "stage cards". For those of you who haven't noticed (i only noticed 2-3 months ago, and i've studying them for 10 months) in certain minor cards Pamela Coleman-smith has drawn two thin lines at the bottom of the card, which makes it look like a stage at a theater and the background a backdrop...perhaps the 2 of cups and the page of cups are the best examples. Apparently Coleman-smith worked as an artist at the theater at the time, and Waite was secretive and a bit of a pompous-ass about the meanings. I have counted 15 although a couple are debatable. I have read that there are two reasons and meanings for the stage cards…

This is actually a response to Cookie[/member]. The conversation started about the so called 'Stage Cards' and then the concept of Gate Cards was also brought up. (You can find the original thread here: https://www.thetarotforum.com/using-tarot/rws-stage-cards/) The term 'Gate Cards' were introduced by Rachel Pollack in her book 78 degrees of wisdom (a real classic!) and here is a quote from her book where she explains it more in depth. (From 78 degrees of Wisdom by Rachel Pollack) "If the Rider Minor cards serve us primarily as a commentary on ordinary life, they do not ignore or cut us off from deeper perceptions. On the contrary, the philosophical bias of the …

Hey, I am new in this forum, would be nice if you can help me, because I am kinda afraid and confused. I`ve always been drawn to tarot, gemstones and white as well as dark magical things. But everytime I start getting a little bit more into it I get this weird feeling. My english is not good enough to explain it the right way... Just yesterday I tried another run oracle and as soon as I touched the stones the feelings came back. I tried to explain it to myself that it is imagination something psycholigic, but as older as I grow the more I am sure about it being no imagination. I am not the little girl anymore, imagine fairies and imagine seeing aura. So, you se…

Over the last year or so since I took up tarot, I have developed an interest in not only the meaning etc, but also the myths and lore that seems to surround tarot. They absolutely fascinate me, and I suspect that tarot has a bigger influence on days of yore & trends than historians would have us believe. I suspect, like most folk legends and Trixie tales, there is a little truth in them all. From the gems i've picked up from books & sites, here are a few i can remember off the top of my head. If anyone has any that they've heard/read I would love to hear them. Unlucky 13, which is very common in modern day culture, is said to have originated from The De…

So, I have never ever used reverse cards...not that I've been "afraid" to use them. I've just always felt if the cards have a message to show...whether the cards are reversed or not....the message will come through! But last night, I had a dream of me reading for someone and I was using reversed cards!! I'm wondering why...could this be a sign that it's time to change my ways? I've always read intuitively (very successfully), so then how can I incorporate reversed?? The deck I'm using now, Mystic Faerie Tarot, the guidebook says that if a card comes up reversed, that means to pay specific attention to it, not that it may hold a different meaning. I'm a tad confused but I…