Do you need all of the "Big Three" decks to truly learn Tarot?

[Guest Night Shade]

Hello everyone

 

I've been wondering; do you need to study all of the "Big Three" decks - the RWS, the Thoth, and the TdM - in order to learn all there is to know about Tarot?  I have the RWS, but to be honest, I've never really been attracted to the Thoth or the TdM.  Lately though, I've been thinking that I should have them, just because they've been so prominent and  influential in the history and development of Tarot.  What do you think - is it enough to just study and work with decks you like and connect with, or is it essential to study the historical decks as well?

[Guest libra]

Depends on what you want out of tarot. You can dabble with one - or hone in as an expert on one. You could dabble with all of them or become an expert in all of them.

 

I mean, to know all there is to know about tarot, yep of course you'd need to get into all three! That's sorta defined within "all there is to know" lol. But you really don't need to know all three systems to be a proficient tarot reader.

[Asher]

Great question! And one that I go back and forth on when I try and answer it for myself.

 

At one time, my answer would have been a resounding yes. I bought a Thoth (well, a few, as well as some Thoth-y decks, whatever that means  ;)), read some books about it and read with it, with some success. Now, I do pull out my decks and look at them, admire the artwork, and occasionally read with the Urban Tarot. But more than that, not so much.

 

I do have a couple of TdMs that I find attractive, but have never been moved to read with them. Have played around with figuring out a pip-reading system that works for me, but ran out of steam. So those decks are in the take-em-out-and-look-at-em pile. I have begun reading Yoav Ben-Doav's book Tarot:The Open Reading. There is much I like in the book, but it doesn't move me to want to read with the decks...sigh.

 

At this stage in my Tarot life, I would answer the question differently. No, I don't need all of the "Big Three" to truly learn Tarot. Other people may, indeed, want to learn all three and I say go for it! I am very content with all of my RWS variants (decks and books) and they will keep me quite busy for years to come. I don't regret learning about the other two, though. In the future...who knows?

 

Probably way more than you wanted to know, but it was a good exercise for me. Thanks for asking!

 

 

[Guest Night Shade]

Probably way more than you wanted to know, but it was a good exercise for me.

 

Not at all - I thought your answer was wonderful! (and I have a take-em-out-and-look-at-em-pile too).

 

I don't think a pip-reading system would really resonate with me, either.  I need pictures on the cards to trigger my intuition.

[gregory]

Need - no. But over time you will probably find that you want at least to dally with all three. Even if only to find that your first love remains the love of your life.

[Flaxen]

It depends where your interest in Tarot lies. Personally, I think it’s useful to have examples of all three. You can then examine the evolution of ideas and symbolism in the system. How people viewed the images in the 17th century will be different to how people react to them now. The many layers of symbolism is what makes them so rich to read with.

 

 

[River]

I think you don't need to. The archetypes in tarot existed way before Waite or Crowley dressed them up with symbols from their spiritual paths.

[Metafizzypop]

I don't think it's as important to learn all three systems as it is to just learn one system really well. Each has a lot of depth, and a lot of history. You can spend a lifetime learning, and still not know a deck completely.

 

But I do think that once you get a good grip on one system, that it's worth checking out another, and another. Because there's some overlap in the meanings. The decks have a more or less shared history. RWS and Thoth both come from the Golden Dawn school of thought. Some Marseille systems (and there's a few of those) seem to have connections to the RWS meanings.

 

There's more systems besides the major three mentioned already. If you really want to be a tarot scholar (and/or drive yourself nuts), it might be worth looking into Ettiella and Oswald Wirth. In the Wirth system, Swords are represented by water, and Cups are air.

 

 

[Page of Ghosts]

At some point in the past I wanted to learn all three. I started with the RWS and later got a Thoth deck, with plans for the Marseilles. This year I've changed my mind and realised I'm not very into the esoteric, occult stuff that comes with the territory when you study the Thoth, and that's fine. I tried it and figured out how I like it, and found out I would much rather stick to the good old RWS, where I still have much to learn. The Marseilles still looks very attractive to me, so I might check it out in the future.

 

I think overall it depends on what you want to achieve. For the stuff I do with the tarot, which is a lot of introspective work, getting advice on stuff, admiring beautiful artwork, the RWS system is perfectly fine.

[Raggydoll]

If your goal is to truly try and learn all there is to know about tarot, then yeah, you will probably want to explore all the different systems. But if your goal is to truly learn tarot (and not 'all about it') then - no, you can settle for whatever systems you feel resonates most with you. I did not even know that there existed more systems than one before I started taking part in the online communities some 10 years ago. So I spent many years reading without even contemplating these things, and I think it is fair to say that I was doing really well even without all the extra bells and whistles.

[Wheel of Fantastic]

Learning all three has certainly helped me, I'm now able to pretty much pick up any tarot deck - including pip decks - and read with them.

 

I don't think it's necessary but if you want to learn all three then go for it, it will enhance your readings.

 

If you only want to learn two then go RWS and Thoth - they are both Golden Dawn decks. Learning the Thoth will give you new insight into what the RWS minors actually refer to.

[Cookie]

Learning all three has certainly helped me, I'm now able to pretty much pick up any tarot deck - including pip decks - and read with them.

 

I don't think it's necessary but if you want to learn all three then go for it, it will enhance your readings.

 

If you only want to learn two then go RWS and Thoth - they are both Golden Dawn decks. Learning the Thoth will give you new insight into what the RWS minors actually refer to.

 

Yes, W of F but you wouldn't have thought they were related in this way at first analysis.  So different cards & different characters (and timing) but apparently close to each other...shows how powerful the Golden Dawn & Mathers really were. i haven't got the Thoth deck as i'm not ready i feel...but interesting what you say.

[Wheel of Fantastic]

A.E Waite deliberately made some of the esoteric meanings vague when he created the RWS and Key to the Tarot. He didn't want the masses to learn all the Golden Dawn secrets.

 

On the other hand, Crowley put all the 'secret' esoteric knowledge of the Golden Dawn into the Thoth - he couldn't care less.

 

Both the RWS and the Thoth have the Book T as their source; they are not really different traditions at all but RWS is more accessible.

[Guest Night Shade]

I mean, to know all there is to know about tarot, yep of course you'd need to get into all three! That's sorta defined within "all there is to know" lol.

 

You're right, this should have been obvious - I guess I wasn't thinking.  I swear I'm not a complete idiot (although sometimes I wonder  :-[)

[Raggydoll]

A.E Waite deliberately made some of the esoteric meanings vague when he created the RWS and Key to the Tarot. He didn't want the masses to learn all the Golden Dawn secrets.

 

On the other hand, Crowley put all the 'secret' esoteric knowledge of the Golden Dawn into the Thoth - he couldn't care less.

 

Both the RWS and the Thoth have the Book T as their source; they are not really different traditions at all but RWS is more accessible.

 

I agree that these two decks have much more in common than not. I know that they disagreed on some things such as certain kabbalistic correspondences for the majors, but as a whole they are not very different. The RWS is ironically seen as more accessible even though Waite did his very best to obfuscate his message, and Crowley’s openness/bluntness had quite the opposite effect on accessibility. I think they could both be classified as ‘Golden Dawn tradition’.

[Jewel]

Need - no. But over time you will probably find that you want at least to dally with all three. Even if only to find that your first love remains the love of your life.

So elegantly put  :).  If you like to study and learn they by all means go for it. I mainly work with RWS based decks, but as I have grown my interest in the other systems has also grown, and well I like learning new things.  Tarot is a journey, and I do not think we will ever learn all there is to know, but it is really fun exploring it all.  At some point I do intend to do an indepth study of the Thoth but it is simply because I want to, not a that I feel like I need to.  Like you, I also rely on the imagery of decks to get my intuition flowing so both the RWS and Thoth are best suited for my style of reading.  I do keep a TDM just to have it, who knows some day I may decide to explore that too but my interest in it is less than in the other two systems because of the pips.

[DanielJUK]

I would have said no, because I was only interested in RWS and RWS based decks but just recently I am tipping my toe into Thoth and TdeM decks. So my opinion has changed on this this year. I think it depends what you want out of tarot, it's a good idea in time (no hurry at all, we have the rest of our lives to study and learn tarot :) ) to explore all the different tarot systems. I personally have a need to learn every divinatory system as a hobby (not just tarot), I want to be able to at least master each in a basic way. So I have started with Thoth and TdeM but in early stages :) I think I realise now that it's the furthering of my tarot skills and wisdom, like another level to add even if I don't like them and don't use them much, I have explored it :)

[Jewel]

I feel the same way DanielJUK, I think I will be quite old by time I get to the TdM though  :biggrin:

[Guest Night Shade]

So I have started with Thoth and TdeM but in early stages :) I think I realise now that it's the furthering of my tarot skills and wisdom, like another level to add even if I don't like them and don't use them much, I have explored it :)

 

I like this idea.  My problem is, if I don't like something, then I won't stick with it.  I guess it's a matter of discipline (or not having any  ;D) - which is why I still consider myself a beginner, even though I've been into Tarot for so long.