Thread: Ask Me About Tarot

Do you seriously believe in tarot?

I've found rolling animal bones to be much more accurate.

Is it like Pokémon?

What is/are your favorite deck/decks?

Which spreads do you find the most useful.

Do you pick a significator to represent the querrant and leave it out of the deck, do you put it back in the deck, or do you not pick one at all?

If you use a significator, how do you choose it?

Where do you believe the "information" comes from? Do you think the tarot cards themselves are magical in some way, or do you think it is just information that is drawn from our own subconscious, possibly connected to the collective consciousness.

I've heard many versions of this but I'm interested in your take on where the tarot comes from and for how long it has been around.

@Xei - Yes. Don't you?

@Likestotrip - Sarcasm..... creative. And they don't roll bones they toss them.

@Spartiate - XD no, not like pokemon, but Tarot is the root of the modern day playing cards. If you leave out the major arcana, and the pages (or knights, whichever) you have a fully functional poker deck.


Thanks for the serious questions Aquanina

I haven't found the perfect deck for me yet, but I use the traditional Rider-Waite deck. I tend to enjoy darker imagery so the Deviant Moon Tarot resonates with me, as well as Legacy of the Divine deck, and hell, even the Angel Paths deck

I have a few spreads that I use regularly. There is always the cross spread, the Celtic cross spread, the fan spread, Chakra spread, and Energy flow spread. Because of the high percentage of people asking about relationships I also tend to use a Pillar spread often as well.

For the Fan spread I use a significator, it stays out of the deck, and I do not separate the royal arcana to do it. Otherwise I don't use one. I don't like it because I find it distracts from the rest of the cards and it doesn't read very easily.

This is the more complicated question. What I believe in is the psychology. The Archetypes represented in these cards are the bullet point metaphors that encompasses every experience we have. I think of Tarot like a story. You hear the story, draw your own conclusion, and whatever moral you draw from the story becomes part of your actions, and therefore part of who you are...The story itself will have no bearing on you, but the moral will. Tarot is these "morals," The staple experiences we all share and understand.

When you ask the cards a question, what is represented is different aspects of your psyche, the different levels of human experience (mental, emotional, spiritual, physical) The mind takes these clear images and self reflects, juxtaposing the answers on its own thoughts and actions. And they WILL match up, because on some level EVERY card is ALWAYS the truth, The power comes from being a key that the mind can pry itself open with to understand its own actions and the projection of where those actions will lead.

That is my scientific answer.... It explains the cards in a neat little box defining and logically explaining how they maneuver in the real world and denying any spiritual or otherworldly power....so its not my full answer.

Yes I believe in the psychology of the cards. I also believe in something more. I don't believe in coincidences, I believe that the cards will be laid out where they are supposed to be so the querrant hears what they need to hear. I am agnostic, I have no definition for god, or the after-life, or spirits, but I try to find the answers in the most scientific way I can. Tarot, as a tool rumored to be a window into something more, has not proven to be false after years of reading them. That's all I know.


As someone who is obviously educated about the cards and interested in the topic, what are your answers to those questions Aquanina? (and you don't have to worry about getting into a petty fight with me if your answers don't match mine, I enjoy debate for what it is )

Do you have any personal evidence that Tarot is real, i.e. consistently produces results better than expected from just a random process (e.g. guessing)?

I think Tarot is useful in a way. It gives you a bit of randomization and allows you to think of problems you're facing in new ways. Kind of like an ancient version of Oblique Strategies.

Originally Posted by RebelSeven

I haven't found the perfect deck for me yet, but I use the traditional Rider-Waite deck. I tend to enjoy darker imagery so the Deviant Moon Tarot resonates with me, as well as Legacy of the Divine deck, and hell, even the Angel Paths deck

Deviant Moon Tarot is the perfect deck for me. I can't even express how much I love this deck, not only is the artistic style right up my alley, but I also find it to be the most accurate. Also the man who created it, Patrick Valenza, is an extremely awesome person, who sent me (and 4 other people) a free deck of the cards wrapped in paper with his own original hand drawn artwork on it! Just for leaving a comment on his facebook page. I am really looking forward to the various decks he will be putting out in the next few years as well as the companion book.

Even though I love DM so much...I also still want to create my own deck. I've wanted to do this for a very long time, and will...just as soon as I have the time to devote to such an undertaking.

Originally Posted by RebelSeven

I have a few spreads that I use regularly. There is always the cross spread, the Celtic cross spread, the fan spread, Chakra spread, and Energy flow spread. Because of the high percentage of people asking about relationships I also tend to use a Pillar spread often as well.

For the Fan spread I use a significator, it stays out of the deck, and I do not separate the royal arcana to do it. Otherwise I don't use one. I don't like it because I find it distracts from the rest of the cards and it doesn't read very easily.

I had tarot cards given to me as a gift nearly ten years ago, but I haven't really made the decision to learn the cards and practice using them until about a year ago. So I'm still very new to the game. I'm only familiar with a few basic spreads and the Celtric cross of course. I'm still trying to understand what I should do with the Significator, and I guess that's something I will need to figure out on my own.

Originally Posted by RebelSeven

This is the more complicated question. What I believe in is the psychology. The Archetypes represented in these cards are the bullet point metaphors that encompasses every experience we have. I think of Tarot like a story. You hear the story, draw your own conclusion, and whatever moral you draw from the story becomes part of your actions, and therefore part of who you are...The story itself will have no bearing on you, but the moral will. Tarot is these "morals," The staple experiences we all share and understand.

When you ask the cards a question, what is represented is different aspects of your psyche, the different levels of human experience (mental, emotional, spiritual, physical) The mind takes these clear images and self reflects, juxtaposing the answers on its own thoughts and actions. And they WILL match up, because on some level EVERY card is ALWAYS the truth, The power comes from being a key that the mind can pry itself open with to understand its own actions and the projection of where those actions will lead.

That is my scientific answer.... It explains the cards in a neat little box defining and logically explaining how they maneuver in the real world and denying any spiritual or otherworldly power....so its not my full answer.

Yes I believe in the psychology of the cards. I also believe in something more. I don't believe in coincidences, I believe that the cards will be laid out where they are supposed to be so the querrant hears what they need to hear. I am agnostic, I have no definition for god, or the after-life, or spirits, but I try to find the answers in the most scientific way I can. Tarot, as a tool rumored to be a window into something more, has not proven to be false after years of reading them. That's all I know.

Great answers. Couldn't have said it better myself. You sound a lot like me in fact, as far as your beliefs.

Would you be interested in giving me a reading? And/or perhaps mentoring me in some way? I read for myself really well, and my sister quite a lot, but other than that I have no experience reading for others...so maybe you could help me out a bit in developing my skill? Would it be too difficult to give readings online do you think?

@Xei - I do, but it's not big impressive feats, like foretelling a tsunami, or a death. What makes the cards "real" is that the querrant can "see" themselves. Understand their "path" and what is keeping them on it, and how to improve it. I won't give examples, firstly because it's none of my business to talk about these peoples spreads, and secondly, because it would sound like empty bragging.

@Replicon - Thanks for bringing those up! When using just a psychological viewpoint of the cards they can be very similar, but the sheer breadth and resourcefulness of the cards outstrips those strategies tenfold.

@Aquanina - Hm... I don't know about giving a reading online. When I read for someone it is like a conversation, Each and every card encompasses such a huge range of possible connections that I work with the querrant to find the answers in the cards. I need to read the person in order to find how their cards interact with each other. But as for the mentoring, I would be glad to help you!!! I believe that the relationship between the reader and the cards is what makes someone a good reader or not. I believe that there is no true "universal meaning" for the cards, but only the individual readers understanding of them and the more in depth and sincere relationship with the cards, the more fluid and capable the reader. I, myself, never had a time where I just read for myself and not a multitude of people. I was reading out of the book for every card and giving static answers but no one seemed to mind, lol. It helped to keep the reading jitters out. Send me a pm and I would be glad to give any help I can.