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How do You Select a Deck To Read?


Guest Night Shade

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Guest Night Shade

http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=194419

by Aeric

 

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How do you select a deck to read?


I presume most people here own more than one deck. How do you choose which one to read with when the desire arises?

Does the deck you choose depend on your mood? Is there a deck you grab for a specific situation or type of question? Does it depend on time of day or year? Do you just pick randomly? Do you stick with one deck for a long time and put the others away until you grow tired and want a change?

What determines your selection behaviour? No right answers, just interesting responses!

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Guest Night Shade

I try to find a deck to suit the question.  If it's a spiritual question, I'll use a deck like Dark Angels or Universal Goddess.  If I'm trying to sort out my feelings, I'll use maybe the Happy Tarot, or a comfort deck like the Hanson-Roberts Tarot, and so on.  I don't think you have to match the deck to the question, it's just something I like to do.  In the end, I guess the deck that calls out to me at the moment is the right one to use.

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stephanelli

I tend to go with the deck I feel most drawn to at the time I want to do the reading!

Admittedly, my deck collection is fairly small so it's not normally a problem that I feel drawn to lots of decks at one time.

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I tend to go for one which I think will suit the question unless I’m doing an intensive deck study, then it will be that deck for all readings.

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AJ-ish/Sharyn

I cycle my entire collection one week at a time. It  began as a way to justify what I'd spent but has turned out to be a way to weed the gold from the dross. 

Using the deck for everything and every situation during the week pushes me to be open and pushes the deck to earn its keep. 

If I choose decks for specific reasons I'd never know what it's real worth was. Or how to read any deck in any situation.

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12 minutes ago, AJ-ish/Sharyn said:

I cycle my entire collection one week at a time. It  began as a way to justify what I'd spent but has turned out to be a way to weed the gold from the dross. 

Using the deck for everything and every situation during the week pushes me to be open and pushes the deck to earn its keep. 

If I choose decks for specific reasons I'd never know what it's real worth was. Or how to read any deck in any situation.

I agree here, it's an excellent habit to keep cycling through decks and using them to answer all types of questions. Of course there are decks better suited for specific questions, but keeping them all in use and accountable really does help weed the gold from the dross. I usually end up realizing I can discard a deck after I realize it's not hardy enough to be put in all situations. Then there are the exceptions, like the Victorian Romantic for example or LXXXI The Magician's deck which are very specific. The VicRom I use for writing and creating narratives. LXXXI I use for specifically spiritual and magical questions etc. But in general, all my decks have to usable all around, if not I cannot justify keeping it. Even it is a rare deck. 

I admit, looking back at what I wrote and thinking on this approach to decks, gives deck using and collecting a utilitarian flavor that is distasteful (at least to me). But the way I see it, how I make peace with myself, is that I don't have unlimited funds to be amassing decks I will not use. If I had unlimited funds and space I would definitely 100% be a fancy deck collector. But I am only a "cobbler" working and living a regular life. So my decks have to conform to how I live and my means. 

Until I have space for amassing and collecting this is my approach. 😊

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It mostly depends on my mood. There are some decks I know read better for certain questions, but that's not the only determining factor when I'm picking a deck. I like to pick the decks that are calling to me to be read for the question I have in mind. If I'm not sure of what deck to use, sometimes I'll consult a pendulum to pick the best deck for the question

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If I'm feeling ambitious, I'll use the TdM. If I'm feeling lazy (or doing public readings), it will be an RWS. The Thoth has been my go-to deck for a long time but I find I don't pull it out too much any more. I think I need a crisp new copy in a pocket size. My two large-format and standard size decks are feeling a bit limp..

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Saturn Celeste

I am lucky to have a deck portfolio on my site.  I let my clients pick out their own deck they want me to read with.  If they don't pick one, I pick a deck that relates to the type reading they want, pet, writer, erotic, relationship, past lives, etc.  If it's a really serious situation with a client, I will use a RW deck.

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I use my favourite deck of the moment.  For the past couple of years, possibly more, that's been the World Spirit.  But before that it was the Druidcraft, the Tarot Nova and the Phantasmagoric Theater.  There was a time when I used other decks as well and asked clients to pick the one they liked, but I find I read better with a deck that I've chosen.

 

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When i do paid readings for others i most often use the cosmic tarot. I find it straight forward, sometimes a bit to straight forward. If i feel the need for a softer and more "you coud Think of the matter like this or like that" approach i tend to use the shadowscape tarot. So i guess it depend of the questions, the situation and the pearson i do the reading for. I also always ask the deck if it would like to guide and help in the matter of the question or the person i read for.  For myself i almost always use the ludy lescot. It gives me clearer answers and connect better to me and my way to understand life/issues/the world. I also use that deck if the person i read for can take the more dark pictures presented. So again i chose from purpose and the person i read for. And Always whit permission from the deck.

 

/Emswe 

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I have a limited number of decks I use, although these can change over time as I change, or a new deck catches my eye. Out of those I'll pick whichever feels right.

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I agree that client readings require a very clear, straightforward deck, one that I've used a lot for years, or at least a good deck that adheres closely to a system I know well: a Baba deck in place of RWS, for example.
Reading for myself, for practice readings and experiments, I'll use any deck I liked enough to purchase. But for those times when I can't afford to make mistakes, I treat it like a client reading and use a familiar Tarot, or, often, Lenormand or Kippers.
I don't require different decks for different kinds of questions. I think any good deck will answer any kind of question, if you put the answer in context. My main reasons for having more than a handful of decks are learning different systems, and having something different to look at.

 

 

Edited by katrinka
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I do have a certain amount of decks I use for reading face to face in public or for clients that come to my home.

Then there are my tried and trusted all time favourite decks I love to read with for myself.

Then there usually is a new deck I got, that is there to challenge me and teach me something new. to keep my fresh outlook on Tarot and learn new things from cards and about myself.

Often I do my daily draws with them, but private deeper readings are for Greenwood or Ironwing or the Origins.... 🙂 

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It's good to hear somebody's still using the Ironwing. I was all kinds of broke during the time it was available, but I used to admire it - it's the only blacksmithing Tarot I've seen, and my grandpa was a blacksmith, as was my first boyfriend's dad. And iron itself is awesome - cast iron cookware, wrought iron...! :bubble_blove:

It looked like a very unique system, but in a good way. Something that would be an effective reading deck once you learned it.
All the buzz at the time was "Ironwing! Ironwing!" and a lot of people bought it, but I seldom see evidence of people sticking with it. So props! I think the same thing is happening with Benebell's Tarot, it's trending now, but next year people will pile on another bandwagon.
Lorena was planning another deck years ago, a playing card deck of black cats, but I don't think it ever came to fruition. She's still around, she's just gotten out of the card game.
Visionary. This is coming around again, I think: http://www.mineralarts.com/artwork/tsunamiart.html

Apologies for the OT. Onward!
 

Edited by katrinka
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I don't have a large number of decks, but I have found that I use a few more often than others. I tend to pick the one I feel like at the moment. I should rotate more...

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Ealasaid Enfys

I only have 4 decks myself and I tend to rotate between my decks in order to get a feel for the cards in different situations and different placements in the spread. Sometimes I do the same spread with a different deck to compare and get some more insight.

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I usually take into account the question and what deck the querent is drawn to.  If I am reading for myself I generally try to cycle my decks through 1 month rotations and use the deck of the month for the majority of my readings both for myself an my querents unless the querent prefers another deck.  I usually always give them choices, especially since I have grown more comfortable using quite a relatively large variety.  There are times a specific deck may jump to mind and in those cases I will use that deck.  I guess I have no hard and fast rule for this.

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Natural Mystic Guide

When I am reading professionally, I always have four decks on the table.  These correspond to the four kabbalistic worlds:  Assiyah - the world of materiality, the body, finances, right livelihood, hearth and home; Yetzirah - the world of emotions and relationships; Briyah - the world of the mind, discrimination, communication, ethics, decision making; and Atzilut - the world of creativity and spirituality.  Usually a querant's question falls into one of these categories and the choice is easy.  Currently the four decks that I am using are:  Assiyah:  Mystic Mondays; Yetzirah:  The Star Tarot; Briyah:  The Illuminated Tarot; and Atzilut:  the St. Croix Tarot.

If I am in a different context -- reading for myself, for friends, or doing an article -- I ask my Spiritual Guidance team which deck I should use.  I have more than fifty Tarot and oracle decks.

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Hmmm... I have a few favourites that I tend to use most the time. Usually I got a strong feeling which one to use. If I feel indecisive or I don't have a feeling then I use my pendulum to pick one for me 🙂 On the rare occasions that I read for others, usually and exchange here, I'm happy to let my partner/querent pick.

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11 hours ago, Natural Mystic Guide said:

When I am reading professionally, I always have four decks on the table.  These correspond to the four kabbalistic worlds:  Assiyah - the world of materiality, the body, finances, right livelihood, hearth and home; Yetzirah - the world of emotions and relationships; Briyah - the world of the mind, discrimination, communication, ethics, decision making; and Atzilut - the world of creativity and spirituality.  Usually a querant's question falls into one of these categories and the choice is easy.  Currently the four decks that I am using are:  Assiyah:  Mystic Mondays; Yetzirah:  The Star Tarot; Briyah:  The Illuminated Tarot; and Atzilut:  the St. Croix Tarot.

If I am in a different context -- reading for myself, for friends, or doing an article -- I ask my Spiritual Guidance team which deck I should use.  I have more than fifty Tarot and oracle decks.

This is so interesting! Thank you for sharing!

 

 

---

 

In the case that I can't decide which deck to use by feel, semi-recently I find rolling a d12 does the trick.

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I like that idea of cycling through them deliberately. I've a few decks that are rather neglected because I didn't connect particularly well with them.

 

I have a couple of go-to decks; the Spiral in particular (RWS based and very painterly) is always reliable. It's my trusty, neverfail deck. I'd buy a spare except that I figure the reprint would likely be inferior quality.  Otherwise, I tend to choose based on the type of issue - whether it's big spiritual stuff (Druidcraft, Rohrig, and now Gaian) or more mundane life-and-work, day-to-day things - the Housewives (seriously, this deck doesn't take any prisoners), RWS, or sometimes the Touchstone - though it's a bit highfalutin so not for trivial things. This helps me to keep the reading on-topic and not feel like these parts of life are spilling over each other.

 

I need to keep my personal and for-others decks separate if I'm doing any reading exchanges. I feel my personal connections with my favorites clouds my judgement, and I always feel like it's actually about me.

 

 

 

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I'm not reading much at the moment (Damn you, Covid!), but I did my first professional reading since the disease started stalking, in the last week or so. It was in the home of the client, so I didn't have the full setup - just took along a nice dopatta as a table cover and two decks. My collection, six months after moving, is still largely in unsorted boxes <blush>, so I grabbed the first traditional-looking deck I could find (the Tinned Centennial) and the first non-traditional deck I could find (the Roots of Asia). Given that choice, she sensibly went for the Roots.

 

Normally if I have a regular gig at a venue, I'll have a few decks on my table: a Marseille or Ancient Italian deck, a Visconti (usually the gold-foil LoS for all that glam), a RW-clone, the John Matthews Grail deck for the anti-Tarot Christian hecklers so that I can show them the figure of Christ in a deck, and one random modern deck, could be anything. Except for the Grail where I always have the Gnostic Christ card showing, I'll have the same Major Arcana card showing in every deck, and I ask the client to make the choice based on their favourite artwork.

 

At home, when I'm just playing rather than reading (and my collection's organised), it'll suddenly occur to me that I haven't seen such-and0such a deck for a while, and I'll go and pull it out and pore over the images. I love doing that - but I never read at times like that. I'll shuffle, and look at the images one by one lingering on some of them, shuffle again. The beauty of having a collection that numbers in the three figures is that there's always a deck you haven't seen for some time, and rediscovering it like that is always a lush joy.

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