More and more I'm asked questions for Tarot tips, and questions about Tarot, from first decks, to cleansing, reading and more.
Some basic Tarot tips are:
keep your cards in a Tarot bag. This keeps your cards together, neat, and you have less chance of a stray card being left in a box.
When you get a new Tarot deck, shuffle it a lot, very frequently, and sleep with it near the head of your bed.
cleanse your deck after each use if you use it for others, or once a day if used for yourself.
never try (and I stress the "try") to read the cards when a reading is being done for you. It's a HUGE faux pas. It's disrespectful to the Reader and you don't know what the reader is intuitively picking up from the cards, so by you trying to read the cards, it is not at all conducive to the reading.
Here are the most common questions I'm asked and my responses.
Q.
Do you have to be gifted your first deck?
A.
Not at all. Sometimes, it can be a tradition, but it's not necessary for a deck to be gifted. In fact, a deck will work better for you if you have a connection to it, if it's one you're drawn to.
In my case, I was gifted my first deck when I was 15. Not everyone is gifted decks, and that's completely ok. The deck I was gifted was an RWS deck that I learned on, and I never read with it. I read only with the decks that I'm drawn to. This is commonplace.
Q.
How do you cleanse and charge your decks?
A.
I use my decks regularly, and if you've seen my office, you've seen part of my collection. There's no way I have enough table space or counter space to set out my decks to cleanse and charge, so I go the simplified route.
Simple answer: selenite towers and pieces. Selenite cleanses and charges all by itself.
I flat out refuse to charge my decks under the moon as lunar energy changes, sometimes peaceful, sometimes chaotic. I cannot use chaotic energy in my tarot decks. So, selenite it is. You can also use white sage, just hold the cards over the smoke. You want to sage each card, so it will take a little while. For more on cleansing and clearing, visit this blog for dos & don'ts and what's what.
Q.
What deck is best to learn on?
A.
Rider Waite Smith (RWS) is best, Universal or Radiant are my preferred to teach Tarot with. Although they're rarely the preferred deck for reading anymore, with so many RWS Based decks out there, people are usually drawn to decks that are "more pretty" or have artwork of a preferred style.
However, RWS will translate to other styled decks easily. You can clearly depict the meanings of the cards through the imagery and colors used, making it much easier to learn to read. It's the only style I'll teach Beginner classes on until Intermediate and Advanced classes.
Q.
a.) Do you have to read from the top of the deck after the shuffle?
b.) Do you have to include the card on the bottom of the deck?
A.
a.) It's not common anymore, but back in the day, when I first began reading, it was more common to shuffle the deck and pull the cards right off the top of he deck. Some readers still use this method. Personally, I don't use it and I don't like it. It puts added pressure on the shuffler to make sure they shuffle just so. If you're the kind of reader that doesn't let anyone shuffle your deck, the pressure is on you. If you prefer the Questioner shuffles, well, they've likely already got some anxiety for being read in the first place, but that's not being added to by making them shuffle just so. I don't feel as though that's setting the Questioner up for the best experience, so I prefer the energy method. If you've had a reading from me, you will be familiar with this method. Just have the Questioner touch the cards, the shuffle isn't important. Then allow them to choose from anywhere in the deck, whatever cards they're drawn to. Having used both of these methods, I find the latter my preferred and most effective for my readings.
b.) Using the Reverse side of the deck is more common recently, I'm not sure exactly when it came into favor, but I don't do it in most readings. It usually represents the shadow. A hidden element in your reading. In some readings, it's necessary. Not all, by any means. I don't use it at all in my traditional readings, but I will if the need arises.
Q.
a.) Why don't you read reversals?
b.) Don't you have to read them?
c.) What happens if you don't read them?
A.
a.) I've been reading Tarot for a long time. I've seen the reaction of my sitters (Questioners) when I read reversals vs when I don't. The overall experience is much more positively received with I don't read reversals.
b.) It's the readers choice to read reversals or not. If you choose to, have your shuffle work anyway and be sure to turn all of your cards the same way to ensure the direction is as it was face down in the spread. If you choose not to, set that intention before your readings begin, either with the one client, for the day, or if you read the same way all the time, daily, you can set the intention until you change it. This is done by meditation.
c.) If you opt not to read reversals, other cards will come up in the upright placement to represent the meaning of the reversed card. This is why it's so important to know the meanings of the cards themselves and not solely read intuitively.
Q.
How will I know what Tarot Spread to use?
A.
It's best to have a working knowledge of each, a 3, 5, 7 & 10 card spread, even if you rarely use them all. The simplest answer is a question itself, how in depth do you want the reading to be? I use anywhere up to a 24 card spread in my longer readings, a 7 and 5 card spread in promo readings. Use what you feel will give your Sitter the answers they need.
As mentioned, I do teach Tarot and have a certificate course available. If you'd like to learn, contact us and we'll let you know when the next Tarot Full Course dates have been added. Intuitive Tarot Classes are available as well.
Comments