TAROT 101—Lesson 1

INTRODUCTION

First of all, let’s begin with what constitutes a REAL Tarot deck!

A real Tarot deck is comprised of 78 cards. There are a lot of other decks out there that are called Meditation or Divination decks or some other such name that do not have 78 cards and have some lovely artwork and are REALLY beautiful to look at. THESE ARE NOT TAROT CARDS!!! They do serve a purpose all on their own, but they are not for use with these lessons.

The REAL Tarot deck is divided into two sections, the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. The Major Arcana is the section that is also referred to as the TRUMPS.

These cards from this part of the deck refer to the querant’s spiritual state. There are 21 of these with a ‘0" card which is the Fool (which has evolved into the Joker in the modern playing deck). So there are 22 cards in this section all total!

The Minor Arcana is comprised of 56 cards, with 16 of these being COURT or PEOPLE cards. These cards represent the people in our lives or mundane happenings.

As far as different decks go…there are as many as you can think of with a myriad of different themes, artwork, colors, shapes…etc. The most well known deck in English speaking countries is the Rider-Waite and its various counter-parts such as the Universal Waite and the Albano Waite, which are colored differently. These are great decks to learn with as they show a picture for each one of the Minor Arcana cards that a student can associate with the card’s meaning. Other decks that are ‘easy’ to learn with are the Hanson Roberts, the Robin Wood, and the Aquarian decks…but there are so many more to choose from!

(I have a few favorites that I use from my collection of over 50 decks…the Universal Waite, the Hanson Roberts, the Motherpeace Round, the Sacred Circle, the Merry Day and the Nefertari’s (Egyptian) deck that is embossed with gold foil…truly beautiful. The next deck that I will purchase when I am flush is the Salvador Dali Tarot deck.)

I encourage using the standard decks for learning, though.

What should you do with the deck when you first purchase it or it is given to you?

If you want to be a collector, be sure to keep the box and the inner packaging.

But if you are using the deck for learning alone, rip that box apart, throw it away and get your hands all over the cards! Start by cleansing the deck with sage…or you can leave the deck on the windowsill with a large quartz in the moonlight or the sunlight…or sleep with them…whatever works best for you.

Just as there are many different decks, there are many different ways to store them. You can use a decorative wooden or glass box or a velvet bag or wrap them in a silk scarf, whatever you like. Wood is a good channel for energy as is silk. If you wrap them in silk or velvet, use your soul color. This is a good way to get even more of your own personal energy all over the cards.

 

CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE!