Author: A Solitary Pagan
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 2: What are tarot cards?
Each card in a deck has its own unique imagery, and the deck as a whole is broken into two categories: the Major and Minor Arcana. The Major Arcana consists of 22 cards, spanning from numbers 0 through 21 that tell “the fool’s journey.” In short, it’s an archetypal story of life. The Minor Arcana is made up of all four elements—fire, air, water, and earth are represented by wands, swords, cu...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 3: What is the history of tarot?
Tarot cards are thought to have originated in the 15th century in Europe, more specifically in Italy, and originally the deck was called Tarocchi. The cards quickly gained traction throughout many other European countries after the French conquered Milan and the Piedmont in 1499. The Major Arcana, previously dubbed trump cards, were custom made and painted for wealthy families, including multiple ...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 4: What was the original purpose of tarot?
While we know that tarot cards were used in aristocratic society, their original purpose is still not fully known. Whether they were family heirlooms to be passed down to the next of kin, simply a fun customized card game, or something in between is up for debate. What matters now: Over time, tarot cards became symbolic divinatory tools. Their use has far expanded beyond their original purpose as ...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 5: What is the difference between tarot and oracle cards?
Tarot decks have to consist of exactly 78 cards made up of 22 Major Arcana cards and 56 Minor Arcana cards. No more and no less. They also need to include four different suits. In the traditional Rider-Waite deck, these are pentacles, swords, cups, and wands; however, some decks use different representations of these same four elements. Tarot will also always include court cards (traditionally pag...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 6: How can I learn how to read tarot?
Tarot as a tool of divination is meant to give clarity to the person being read for. That could be either you reading for yourself, you reading for someone else, or someone else reading for you. In order to learn how to read tarot, it’s important to start by understanding the meaning behind each archetypal card. Much as we learn words before we start stringing together sentences, knowing the meani...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 7: How do you ask tarot questions?
When you are asking your tarot deck questions, it’s important to set an intention first. Try something like, “I call forth my spirit guides of the purest and highest intention to give me messages of clarity for each question being asked hereafter.” From that point, ask the tarot questions that are both specific and nonspecific. A specific question would be, “Should I move forward with the new job ...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 8: Why is it important to clean tarot?
If you’re the owner of the tarot deck you’re reading from—so, reading for yourself—keep your deck clean and treat it with care. Clean your deck by smoking it using sustainably harvested sage or palo santo, bathing it in the aura of cleansing crystals like clear quartz or selenite, or placing the cards under the moonlight. This helps clear energy away from previous readings and any influence not fr...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 9: What are tarot card spreads?
The position of the cards that you put down on the table to be read is called a tarot spread, meaning that cards are placed down in a specific order and spot, and each placement has its own meaning. Two of the most common tarot spreads include: Past, Present, Future: A three-card spread in which the cards are placed with the leftmost (and first) representing the energy of the past, the middle...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 10: Which tarot cards represent which zodiac signs?
Although they are not intrinsically interwoven, there’s been a long-standing tradition of placing astrological influence onto each tarot card. This helps to get more accurate readings with timing and identifying the people whose energy is showing up in a reading. It’s said that each suit is associated with an element in the zodiac, so: Wands = fire sign energy; Cups = water sign&nbs...
Tarot A Beginner’s Guide 11: What is the most powerful tarot card?
Each of the 78 tarot cards holds different importance to each person who interprets them. The 22 Major Arcana cards are said to be representative of big, life-changing events in comparison with the Minor Arcana’s 56 cards, which are more indicative of emotions, people, and day-to-day experiences. For this reason alone, we can say that one of the Majors is more likely to be the objectively mo...
ASK PERMISSION
Before cutting the branch of a tree or removing a flower, tell the spirit of the tree or plant what you are going to do, so that they can withdraw their energy from that place and not feel the cut so strong. When you go to nature and want to take a stone that was in the river, ask the river keeper if he allows you to take one of his sacred stones. If you have to climb a mountain or make a pilgrima...
The Sator Square and its Potential for Tarot
The Sator Square is an old Latin word puzzle. It’s made up of five words that read the same in every direction—left to right, right to left, top to bottom, and bottom to top. The five words are: OPERA, which means “works” or “efforts.” ROTAS, which means “wheels.” SATOR, which means “sower” or “creator.” TENET, which means “holds” or “keeps.” And AREPO, which is probably a name, but some think it ...