Do card meanings change based on the deck you use?

[Sammirae]

Hello! Something I've been wondering when doing tarot readings is how other people may translate the cards! I know that each card tends to have a basic meaning that is used over all decks, but do some decks change the meaning?

 

I'm an artist, so I like to find meaning in the images on the cards and what they may represent. So when I use different decks with different artwork, sometimes I feel the meaning may vary slightly.

 

Have other people also felt this way? Is there any advice for translating cards from different decks? Thank you for your time!

[Soul Light]

This is something I've been wondering for a while too!

Tarot cards, even oracle, have general meanings, but so many times I've seen readers use the art to interpret the meaning.

I've had a reading done before where the 2 of swords in my spread was interpreted as following my intuition more, even though commonly, 2 of Swords is a stalemate or impasse.

 

I would love to see what other people have to say about this as well! I'm a baby beginner and can't give any helpful insight >.<

[Czenzi]

There are a couple of decks where I do think there is some difference in how certain cards read.

 

For example, I’ll pull the Moon card in a general RWS deck like the Universal deck and the same card in the Ethereal Visions deck. I think that they read fairly differently even though the Ethereal Visions deck is based on the RWS system.

 

I can see that they are both about intuition and illusion, but the feel of each is so different that it shades the meaning strongly for me.

[DanielJUK]

This depends on your method of reading the cards. Some people learn all the meanings or have keywords, they have a meaning for each card and an idea for it. They would use the same meaning for all versions of the card because they have a specific idea or keywords that is not affected by the artwork. Other people use their intuition, if you read by intuition you use your senses, what do you see in the card? what do you feel? smell? etc. They would change the meaning depending on the artwork. I think a lot of people are a mix of both, I have a foundation for each card that I have learnt as reference but then read the picture intuitively. For me, my readings are so much better when I read the artwork, so much more accurate. If you do read intuitively, I really recommend that you just let your ideas or what you see in the card flow in the reading, the intuitive meaning always has more importance than a learnt meaning or a meaning you get out of a book which is someone else's ideas about it.

 

I have had such amazing readings for other people when I read the picture, even if it's different to the traditional idea of the card. For me, I see a symbol or a part of the card which draws my eye first, that is the most important part for this reading. But I am an intuitive reader so the meanings do change depending on the artwork for me :)  :thumbsup:

[Guest D76]

I know that each card tends to have a basic meaning that is used over all decks,

 

Who told you that?

No universal meanings ​​for the cards. Everything is individual and very subjective.

 

[Wanderer]

I think it's generally fair to say that within a particular school of Tarot (e.g. RW, Thoth, Marseille) there are general conceptual meanings that are available to be applied to the cards. When you first start out, it's probable that these are the meanings that will come out of the readings. After that, though, it gets more complicated:

 

Firstly, there are indeed subtle variations in the tone and emphasis of cards, even among standard deck 'clones' that vary only slightly. These I normally think of as variations on a theme... for example, there's an active thread on whether the Fool is impulsive, and I really think it depends on the deck. In some cases, the artist has emphasised the carefree, foolish aspect, and in others has emphasized a deliberate stepping out into the unknown. Different decks each come with their own 'little white book' for a reason: the artists had slightly different meanings in mind when creating the deck, and this affects the readings.

 

Secondly, as you develop your readings, you'll find that the meanings change for you. Your own understanding of the cards will come to trump the original 'intended' meanings for that deck. This applies more to some people than for others, but that doesn't matter; the Tarot works with the understanding of the reader, rather than with some absolute meaning. The original meaning is there for us to accept, or to modify into an enhanced understanding - whatever works for us.

 

And then, as D76 says, there are some highly intuitive readers for whom the original meanings drop by the wayside. In that case, the cards hold no permanent meanings at all, but rather the appearance of the card and its context will be what generates an intuitive response in the reader. One card can then mean totally different things in successive readings.

 

For most people, I think there are elements of all of the above, in different balances. We learn to recognise what works for us, and to listen to what both the cards and our intuition are telling us on each occasion. Sorry... sometimes there just ain't no simple answer!  ??? ;D

[Sammirae]

Thank you so much for all of the input! I always wondered personal opinions on readings and meanings. I hope to reach a point of intuitively defining meanings of my own as I learn more about Tarot!

 

I also apologize if I misinterpret anything involving the standards of Tarot. I'm still pretty new so I hope to continue learning more!

[Raggydoll]

Thank you so much for all of the input! I always wondered personal opinions on readings and meanings. I hope to reach a point of intuitively defining meanings of my own as I learn more about Tarot!

 

I also apologize if I misinterpret anything involving the standards of Tarot. I'm still pretty new so I hope to continue learning more!

 

I just wanted to point out that from my experience with intuitive readings, that each interpretation is very much tied to the specific circumstances of every unique reading. So those meanings rarely translate to other readings. It can of course deepen ones understanding of the complexity of any tarot card, so it might be interesting to write it down. But generally speaking, the visions and insights that I get from a card in a specific reading belongs to that particular circumstances and moment in time. If that makes sense.

 

I have a solid foundation in traditional meanings too, and by that I am referring to commonly described card meanings from different decks and different traditions (RWS being the one I rely on most). That has helped a great deal with my intuitive development. For me, being calm and confident is very important in order to fully tap into my intuition. So if you know that you are well versed in your cardslinging skills then that will give you a good foundation for performing intuitive readings.

 

I have also found that the more psychic readings I do, the more it strengthens my gifts. These days a big portion of my readings are intuitive/psychic/channeled. And I also enjoy doing readings without any tools at all, though it is much more draining then regular card readings. That’s why I try to compromise and usually start of each reading with an intuitive session and the I do the actual card reading. I have found that this way I get a very good idea about what the core issue is, even before I’ve taken out my deck. And a lot of the time I use the information that I’ve gathered from my intuitive sessions to design a spread and formulate specific follow up questions. It’s a very interesting, organic process when you start to explore your intuition. I’m sure you will love it  <3

[DownUnderNZer]

 

Tarot I think would change if going by RW versus Thoth. Or just using intuition could do it as well. And some do read intuitively only.

 

For me - not with decks like the Lenormand or Kipper. But with the Lenormand it depends on the system.

 

As for all others - perhaps it would vary.

 

DND X/

[Sammirae]

Thank you so much for all of the input! I always wondered personal opinions on readings and meanings. I hope to reach a point of intuitively defining meanings of my own as I learn more about Tarot!

 

I also apologize if I misinterpret anything involving the standards of Tarot. I'm still pretty new so I hope to continue learning more!

 

I just wanted to point out that from my experience with intuitive readings, that each interpretation is very much tied to the specific circumstances of every unique reading. So those meanings rarely translate to other readings. It can of course deepen ones understanding of the complexity of any tarot card, so it might be interesting to write it down. But generally speaking, the visions and insights that I get from a card in a specific reading belongs to that particular circumstances and moment in time. If that makes sense.

 

I have a solid foundation in traditional meanings too, and by that I am referring to commonly described card meanings from different decks and different traditions (RWS being the one I rely on most). That has helped a great deal with my intuitive development. For me, being calm and confident is very important in order to fully tap into my intuition. So if you know that you are well versed in your cardslinging skills then that will give you a good foundation for performing intuitive readings.

 

I have also found that the more psychic readings I do, the more it strengthens my gifts. These days a big portion of my readings are intuitive/psychic/channeled. And I also enjoy doing readings without any tools at all, though it is much more draining then regular card readings. That’s why I try to compromise and usually start of each reading with an intuitive session and the I do the actual card reading. I have found that this way I get a very good idea about what the core issue is, even before I’ve taken out my deck. And a lot of the time I use the information that I’ve gathered from my intuitive sessions to design a spread and formulate specific follow up questions. It’s a very interesting, organic process when you start to explore your intuition. I’m sure you will love it  <3

 

Ok I see what you mean! This actually does clarify a lot that I was wondering when people come to their own meanings per reading. I'll definitely keep these things in mind when I explore it more. Thank you for your time!