Clarifier card decks?

[Deshy]

Hi guys!

I'm new here, and I have seen some readers use a smaller card pack that they call clarifier cards. It's the same Rider deck but the cards are smaller.

What is this deck and do you use one like when one card's meaning is not clear and you want it to be further clarified or something along those lines...

[gregory]

I don't even use clarifier CARDS, never mind a whole deck. If you can't get the meaning from a card - wait and give it time. The meaning is always - ALWAYS - there. If you absolutely must, after a while use one - but never more than one - card to enlarge on he meaning you already have. But drawing more and more cards makes things more confusing rather than less.

 

I have to say that as a rule. when I see someone using clarifiers, it's been because they didn't like the meaning that was clear to people here giving their take - but the person posting the thread simply didn't happen to like it, and hoped by "clarifying" to get to the meaning they had wanted.

 

ETA there are loads of small Waite/Smith decks - I have one that's less than 1cm tall.

 

Here's a pocket one:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rider-Waite-Tarot-Deck-Pocket/dp/0880793465/ref=sr_1_1

Here are several sizes.

https://tarotgarden.com/rider-waite-tarot/

 

Be careful when buying from amazon; - there are a LOT of pirate ones out there.

 

Edited May 14, 2023 by gregory

[DanielJUK]

I've moved this thread to Tarot Talk & Technique, the main tarot discussion area 😀

edited to add:- this fits better in the Tarot Decks section, so it's moved there 

[Chariot]

I have never tried that technique with clarifier cards.  However, if you tend to use large spreads—10 cards or more—that would make sense.  After all, tarot is a language, and the more words the language has to speak to you with, the more specific it can be.  

While I agree with some of what @gregory says regarding clarifier cards—especially about pulling tons of them till you get the answer you 'want'—I find that the occasional clarifier is very helpful.  If a card appears in your layout that can mean several things (especially when reading 'future' rather than past or present) a clarifier card can pinpoint what this card will actually affect.  (Will it be your finances, your love life, your health, your political situation, your work, etc?)  One extra card can make that clear.

However, if you want to pull several clarifiers at the same reading, you might be trying to bypass thinking about what the original cards actually meant.  And the notion of pulling cards till you get the answer you want is not a good idea. The waters can get very muddy indeed.

 

Edited May 14, 2023 by Chariot

[gregory]

I did say if you MUST, pull ONE. But if one doesn't do it - you are missing the point somewhere. A whole deck for the purpose is unquestionably overkill.

[DanielJUK]

The tradition method is to take the next card from the top of the already shuffled deck in the reading. But you could use a different deck or an oracle / cartomancy or a playing card. I don't know there is a set deck to do it though. Smaller RWS deck could work but why not just use the same deck?

 

Clarifying makes readings more confusing a lot, I think that is why we mostly frown upon it in this forum. We then have to help members who have like 10 cards in a position 🙂 .

The idea is you take a clarifier card when the first card (or cards) don't make sense in a reading or position.

But people use this wrongly a lot and then get confused and post here for help.

 

First thing to think about, why can't you understand the first card(s)? Often when we don't have much experience, we take more cards when we don't understand the first card. But it's better to think about that card for longer or read up about different ideas about it. Clarifiers don't help when people don't understand the card, they are for when the first cards are unclear in the meaning or ideas you already know. Spend some more time on the cards you already have there.

 

If you do take one (or some), remember they are not as important as the original cards, they are secondary. People use them to disregard the original message. oh I don't like that card, so take more! The clarifier is not the answer, it brings clarity to the original card(s). For example, Does he still love me? you get 10 of Swords, clarifier Lovers. The meaning is 10 of Swords + Lovers

 

Use them wisely 🙂

[gregory]

1 hour ago, DanielJUK said:

Smaller RWS deck could work but why not just use the same deck?

 

Not least because if you use a second deck, there is the risk of drawing the same card again. Will you feel clarified ???

[Misterei]

10 hours ago, gregory said:

Be careful when buying from amazon; - there are a LOT of pirate ones out there.

I agree with your caution ... even *I* got taken-in buying a pirate deck on Amazon once.

BUT, the original RWS images are now part of Public Domain.

So RWS technically can't be pirated any more as long as the person is doing their own colorizing and not copying the US Games or Lo Scarabeo versions (for example)

 

As far as I know there are 3 decks in Public Domain:

1. RWS original B&W line art
2. Convers Ben Dov (donated to Public Domain by Ben Dov before he died)
3. Vacchetta B&W line art

 

I use this art to illustrate my books and manuals so as to not violate copyright.

Edited May 14, 2023 by Misterei