Tarot basics 4: What to do with a new Tarot deck

If you’ve been reading my series on Tarot, you should now have a deck of Tarot cards, a Tarot book and someplace to read them. (If you don’t have a deck of cards or a book yet, take a look at this post on choosing a deck and this one on choosing a book.)

Finally, we’ve come to the real action.

If you’re new to Tarot, you are probably eager to dive in and lay out your first reading. Yet there is still a tiny bit of preparation to do. It’s lovely to look through your new cards and enjoy their amazing, magical imagery, but before you start the real work with them, it’s a good idea to decide exactly how and where they’ll be stored.

Image by Arie Farnam

Some decks will come with a little pouch made of plastic material that isn’t very pleasant. Many people suggest storing Tarot cards only in natural silk cloth or in a special wooden box of the right shape and size. Both of those options are delightful and may well lift your mood each time you touch your cards.

However, Tarot has travelled a long and humble road since its beginnings in Renaissance Italy and it is not snobby. If natural silk or a pretty wooden box are hard to come by—as they are for 80 percent of the world’s population—don’t stress about it. The perfect container will probably show up eventually.

Until then, keep your cards clean, dry and together in a safe place, wrapped in a nice cloth or tucked inside a small cloth bag. They are much harder to shuffle well when they get bent, wet, sticky or battered around the corners.

Another consideration before diving in is an energetic cleansing of your new cards. As I’ve explained in previous posts, most theories of Tarot are based on tapping into an energetic level of reality in which everything and everyone is connected by relationships that have various energies.

Every Tarot deck also has it’s own energetic signature, just as people have auras. This is not really because Tarot decks are extra special, magical objects. All objects have some degree of energy signature. But Tarot decks usually have particularly potent energy because of the artistic and scholarly work that goes into their creation.

Cleansing will not erase the innate energy of the cards. There will always be some amount of the energy of the author, who wrote the book you use, and the artist, who designed the cards. Older decks and decks whose makers have attracted the respect and attention of large numbers of people are likely to have extraordinarily potent auras.

For instance, I have always been magnetically drawn to my mother’s ancient Thoth deck and at the same time, that deck has an intense, even dark, energy. That has to do with the fact that the author Alister Crowley, who gave instructions to the painter Lady Frieda Harris to create the deck, had some issues with control, sex and human relationships that can carry over into the cards. The fact that his fame has outlived him by more than seventy years has only increased its potency.

No amount of cleansing is going to erase those energies from a Thoth deck, especially one with the age and experience of my mother’s. But there are many stagnant and unwelcome energies which can be cleared relatively easily. And fortunately, most Tarot decks come with innate energy that is helpful and supportive.

Most Tarot cards are made to be receptive to your energy or the energy of whoever comes into contact with them. That means they have likely been receptive since they were made and they might well have picked up the energies of people who handled them during the manufacturing, packaging and retail process or the energy of customers who considered buying this particular physical deck before you. Either way, they came through a commercial process fraught with global problems and individual stress, so they are unlikely to arrive in your hands without some less-than-wonderful energetic baggage.

For this reason, it is a good idea to do an energetic cleansing of some kind and then introduce your new deck and book to your energy in a positive and purposeful way.

Energetic cleansing is like clearing cobwebs out of the corners of your house. Stagnant and problematic energy can go almost unnoticed, like cobwebs in unused parts of a room, but it gives a certain dusty, unkempt feel to a place or object. Like cobwebs, this energy can be brushed away relatively easily, but it does tend to stick unless you make a specific effort.

Some methods of cleansing energy on a Tarot deck (or any other object really), which you can use when the deck is new or after someone else has handled your cards, include:

1. Use a bundle of cleansing herbs such as white sage, lavender, mugwort, kitchen sage or another natural incense to waft fragrant smoke all around your deck and book. At the same time visualize any dusty, tense or residual energies drifting away and being replaced by a clear light.

2. Place your deck of cards and book on a sunny windowsill for one day and ask the sun’s rays to cleanse their energy. Don’t leave them there longer because prolonged sunlight can warp paper and fade inks. If you can, leave the deck and book on a south-facing windowsill over night on the full moon for added cleansing and energizing benefits.

3. Place a clear quartz and/or smokey quartz stone on top of your book and deck and ask the stone or stones to cleanse the deck. Leave it there for at least 24 hours and up to a week.

4. If you have tried one of the other methods and still feel that there is negative, interfering or stagnant energy around your cards, place your cards in a shallow bowl and cover them with coarse sea salt for at least 24-hours or up to a week, depending on your sense of the need. Salt has strong purifying effects, but this is usually not necessary.

When your deck has been cleansed and you feel only a clear and bright energy from it, even if it may be distinctive in some way specific to the deck or its creator, you are ready to formally introduce yourself to the cards.

I love to look through each one, read about the specific deck and shuffle the cards without a specific reading in mind to get to know them and let them get to know me. You may conduct a small ritual to dedicate this deck to you, to your divination work for others or to any other specific task. It isn’t mandatory but can be helpful for focus.

A simple way to do this is to prepare symbols of the four elements: earth, water, fire and air. Prepare a bowl of salt and a bowl or cup of water. Light a candle and an energetic incense or herb bundle (mugwort, sandalwood or frankincense are particularly useful here).

Sprinkle the deck with salt and say, “By earth, I dedicate you…” You may finish the sentence with a specific dedication if you like or leave it as is.

Pass the cards through the smoke of your incense or herb bundle and say, “By air, I dedicate you…”

Pass the cards over the candle three times and say, “By fire, I dedicate you…”

Sprinkle a very few drops of water on the deck and say, “By water, I dedicate you…” Again you can finish the sentence, but also wipe the water so that it doesn’t damage the cards.

These four elemental powers are specifically needed in Tarot work and they can be a great aid in dedication. You may also dedicate the cards in the name of a deity. or honored ancestor with a particular interest in divination.

Hekate is a goddess often associated with divination and close enough to the origins of Tarot to be specifically interested. It is best if you do this once you already have a reciprocal relationship with Hekate. But this can also be a time to start such a relationship. Just be serious in your determination to study and learn from Hekate, to follow her teachings and give whatever thanks or offering she may require of you.

In the next post, I’ll go into all the issues about shuffling the cards, so that you can draw a card for information or meditation as well as begin the practice of Tarot readings.

Tarot basics: Choosing a good Tarot book

In my first post on the Tarot, I made much of the fact that it is as good as the Bible or other ancient and revered religious texts.

Does this make Tarot books scripture? There are thousands after all. You might be thinking that they can’t possibly all be scripture (or even very good). And you would be right.

It is eminently possible to write a bad Tarot book and many of them are less than stellar. Even among the good ones, few people will agree on which are the best. When I said that the Tarot can be used the way people use the Bible to read a random bit of spiritual guidance, I was referring more specifically to the cards themselves.

There are 78 cards in the traditional Tarot deck developed over centuries of study. Each card is a symbol, an abstract concept—love, work, study, beginning, enthusiasm, conflict, death, rebirth, wholeness… But these words in any ordinary language are woefully insufficient to capture the full meaning of each concept.

However, the Tarot is a language that does possess the nuance and depth to capture the fullness of these concepts and to do so in the context of ever-changing life. And more importantly the Tarot provides a language for communication between you and your Self (or the Gods or your ancestors, depending on your goal).

That is the text of tremendous meaning I was talking about: the concepts of the 78 cards in an infinite variety of combinations. In many decks, symbols are used within the picture or a key word is printed on the card to help jog your intuition or memory of the key aspects that the card represents.

That is why it is fine to have many different decks of cards that appeal to many different individuals and communities. The original Tarot had a limited audience of western, European, esoteric intellectuals in a Judeo-Christian paradigm. The symbols in those cards necessarily speak to and are most useful to that demographic.

That’s why, in the previous post, I encouraged you to choose a deck that reflects your personal tastes and culture. Chances are the symbols in such a deck will be more comprehensible and useful to you.

Many people take just that—a deck with symbols they understand or key words—and read with it. They use the cards as a dictionary and start a kind of Pigeon conversation with their inner self, their gods or whatever entities they contact.

And there is nothing inherently wrong with doing it like that without a book. If it works for you, it can be valuable and a good way to leave space for your intuition.

However, for many of us, that way is too limited. The vocabulary is necessarily just about 78 words, or theoretically 156 if you count each reversal as an opposite. It’s still a more limited language than I would like to have for an in-depth conversation of complex practical and spiritual matters.

That is why I recommend using interpretation books. These are like translators to help you decode the more nuanced meanings in your Tarot conversation. Many of them are quite good and hopefully I can help you choose one (or a few) to start with.

The book that comes with your deck

Many Tarot decks have a specific book devoted to them. If you have chosen a very specific type of deck and it has a book that goes with it, it is a good idea to obtain and use this book at least for a while until you get used to that deck and its symbols.

However, there are conceivable reasons you may want a different book. Sometimes you’ll get a deck and there either is no book to go along with it or you can’t obtain the book for whatever reason.

Then, there are quite a few specialized decks that only come with a small booklet including a vague sentence or two about each card. Such decks may be designed by someone with greater talent in visual art and symbols than with words, or it may have been a decision by a publisher that the artist couldn’t necessarily control. Either way, that little booklet is unlikely to give you the kind of depth you need.

Finally, you may have already used the book that came with the deck for some time and found it lacking, though you may love the cards.

Any of these are legitimate reasons to be on the look-out for a new book. Sometimes I am also looking for a new book with its own cards and my decision on which deck to get will be based both on how the cards look and the contents of the book.

What to look for in a Tarot book

There are people who own a hundred or more Tarot books. While I’m an experienced reader, I’m not among the worst offenders, though this is partly due to lack of finances rather than self control. I own more than a dozen Tarot books. I variously inherited some of them, but others I sought out through a painstaking process of research and careful consideration of the options.

The most important consideration for a book is that it should address the same number of and structure of cards (Major and Minor arcana, suits, etc.) as the deck you are using, though it doesn’t necessarily have to call the cards the same thing. If your cards refer to the “Prince of Wands” and the book refers to the “Knight of fire” instead, this is not a big problem. Here are a few examples of the different kinds of terminology you may find:

Minor Arcana = Lesser mysteries

Wands = fire = will = spirit

Swords = air = mind = thought

Disks = pentacles = coins = earth = body

Cups = chalices = goblets = water = heart

Page = princess = child

Knight = prince = explorer

Queen = priestess = guardian

King = priest = elder

Major arcana = Greater mysteries

The Fool = the Seeker

The Magician = the Witch

The Empress = the Lady = the Mother

The Emperor = the Lord = the Father

The Hierophant = the High Priest = the Teacher

The Chariot = the Canoe = other vehicles

The Hermit = the Shaman = the Holly King

Temperance = The Fferyllt = The Healer

The Hanged Man = the Sacrifice

Death = Rebirth

Judgement = Rebirth (different decks)

The World = the World Tree = Wholeness = Enlightenment

Though these terms may vary and those I have listed are only examples, there should be a rough correspondence if the book refers to 78 cards including 22 major cards and the rest being divided in to four suits. You can certainly choose to work with other systems that have fewer (or possibly more) cards but you will need to have the book and the deck from the same system and if you find that one or the other isn’t ideal for you, you’ll be stuck. This is one reason I recommend starting out with a somewhat standard deck.

Be aware that while most systems place Strength as number eight among the Major Arcana and Justice as number eleven, some books (and some decks) switch their number correspondence for complex historical and numerological reasons. Just be sure to check these particular cards and their numbering in your book.

A discrepancy in the numbering between your book and your deck is not a terrible thing, but you’ll have to remember to read the correct card meaning, rather than the number.

Just as with Tarot decks, there are lot of other personal considerations in your choice of a book. Here is a general list of what to look out for:

1. The text should be legible and clearly written with a minimum of grammatical errors. This shows attention to detail, which will hopefully translate into accuracy in the card interpretations as well.

2. There should be a section explaining the philosophy and approach of the author.

3. There may or may not be specific layouts and readings described with sample interpretations. If you are just beginning and don’t have a teacher, you will find it helpful to have some sample layouts and examples of readings and how they can be interpreted. If you are more experienced, you may not be as interested in this section, which often comes at the end of the book.

4. There should be separate sections for Major and Minor Arcana. The major arcana section generally devotes more space to each card—at least a full page, if not multiple pages. The Major Arcana are complex symbols. Some books explain the major arcana not only in isolation but in relation to one another. I did not truly understand these more complex concepts until I read several books that perceived the major arcana as a depiction of the Hero’s Journey and divided them into three levels of initiation. I recommend looking for books that do this, particularly if you struggle with the Major Arcana, which many new readers do.

5. It should have a separate heading for each of the Minor Arcana—ace through ten and four court cards in each suit. In some books, there may be only a few lines explaining the card. Depending on your take on the Tarot, Minor Arcana can be viewed as simple representations of terms or practical concepts and as such they may only need a few words of explanation. But I prefer to have a page of explanation along with key words.

6. Some books list a somewhat different meaning if a card is reversed (upside down) in a reading. Others advise you to read them as the opposite or a subtler or subconscious version of the upright meaning or to read them the same as upright and to ignore the reversal. Your choice of book may depend on your feelings about this. My mother has always resisted reading reversals and her focus in the Tarot is on personal growth. She seeks out the positive messages in the Tarot and works to integrate the wisdom of the cards into her life. My focus is on a detailed and honest conversation, including conversation with my shadow. I prefer to have reverse definitions and generally will steer clear of books that don’t list at least a “shadow side.” You can hear difficult messages from the Tarot even without reading reversals. A number of cards have troubling or negative meanings when upright. But the majority of the cards are relatively positive in meaning when upright, so if you want to focus on the positive rather than delving into and solving problems, you may prefer to read without considering reversals.

7. Some books have a picture of the card next to its description. Because I don’t always use the deck that goes with the book, I prefer books that have such a picture but again it is not entirely necessary.

8. What I do find indispensable is a short list of key words along with a descriptive text. There are types of readings where I will use only the key words, and once I have read the same book several times, the key words provide helpful reminders.

9. Some books have only one block of descriptive text about each card. Others have a bit describing and explaining the symbols and then a second bit interpreting what the card means for you or even in specific contexts, such as a person, a process or an event. I personally prefer books that clearly mark meanings and contexts in separate subheadings from description. My way of reading is somewhat analytical, so this may be personal taste. Other books have affirmations or questions for meditation or journaling attached to each card. It is worth taking the time to skim through the descriptions for Major- and Minor-Arcana cards before deciding on a book.

10. Some books will rely heavily on esoteric symbols or astrology to explain and interpret the cards. If you also pursue these areas of study, you may wish to choose books which relate to the cards in this way. However, if you don’t have a solid background in astrology or esoteric symbols, I find that an over-reliance on them in a book can be a barrier to understanding. It is best to choose a book which speaks in terms that are familiar and relatively easy for you to understand. Straightforward, lay-person’s language does not necessarily mean less wisdom, just a different approach to it.

11. Similarly, some books will rely heavily on other fields, such as psychology, psychotherapy, art, religion, magick, herbal medicine or science to explain the cards. It is wonderful to have a book that interprets the Tarot in the context of a field you are well versed in. But if a book focuses on a field which you don’t know well and have little interest in, this will only complicate matters.

12. Look for a book that speaks directly to you. You should be able to relate the description of a random card to an experience or concept in your own life. The text should be interesting and accessibly written. The themes and philosophy of the book should be something you enjoy and feel comfortable with.

There are several books I have found to be invaluable for increasing my understanding of the Tarot but my list of favorites will not necessarily agree with that of other experienced readers.

I will provide the names of some of my favorite books here, because some of my readers may share my proclivities (given that you are odd enough to read my blog). Be forewarned, that I lean toward Celtic-flavored Paganism and an emotional, social and practical outlook on divination. I don’t mind some astrology and esoteric symbols in my Tarot, but it isn’t my primary focus. I demand that books be written in a conversational and accessible tone.

Here is my short list:

• The Complete Book of Tarot by Juliet Sharman-Burke was my introductory text some thirty years ago. It is a slim volume with very brief descriptions of the Minor Arcana cards. I had several other books and at the time few books were written in accessible language. This was the best of them for me. I don’t know if it is the best book for beginners today but it served me well.

• Spiritual Tarot by Sign E. Echols MS., Robert Mueller, Ph.D., and Sandra A. Thomson is a clearly and pleasantly written book with solid psychological underpinnings. If you are interested in the Tarot for personal development or emotional and spiritual growth this is an excellent choice. It includes user-friendly descriptions of the Major Arcana based on the Hero’s Journey.

• The DruidCraft Tarot by Philip and Stephanie Carr-Gomm is my favorite book (and my favorite deck going along with it) at the moment. The writing is never dull and the descriptions are clear, practical and personally interesting. Whereas many books put the Major Arcana first, this one recognizes that these cards are more difficult to master and puts what is easiest first. It groups the Minors according to number rather than suit, which makes them easier to look up quickly. Most importantly it not only follows a Hero’s Journey model of describing the Major Arcana but relates each part of the journey to specific scenes in Celtic mythology, which is something that personally speaks to me.

• Gaian Tarot by Joanna Powell Colbert was clearly a labor of love. This is another book that has a deck to go along with it. The artist photographed her friends to make the various characters in the cards. The photographs are manipulated to fit the meanings of the cards but they are based on real photos. Even if you don’t have (or want) the matching cards, the book is exceptionally well written and includes specific subheadings for personal reflection on each card. This book is particularly helpful for those with a social justice and ecological outlook.

Coming out as a Tarot reader and a reading for a new year

It might seem strange that I consider Tarot reading something I’d have to “come out” about when I’ve been blogging about being a practicing spiritual Pagan for years. But that’s my honest reaction to the idea of talking publicly about Tarot.

It may have something to do with the fact that when I was a child I had no solid concept of Pagan spirituality—beyond the idea that my family didn’t attend the churches everyone else did—while at the same time Tarot was concrete and explicitly secret. I knew that Tarot was something one NEVER discussed with anyone who didn’t already know my mother and I did it.

I don’t remember a time before I knew what Tarot was. I do remember when my mother gave me my first deck of cards. I was thirteen and it was a simple black-and-white version of the Rider Waite deck meant to be colored in. I studiously read about each card and colored it with corresponding colors. The deck is well-travelled, but I still have it.

Photo by Arie Farnam

Clearly, I took Tarot seriously even as a young teen, but it was something I shared with a very select group of people who already knew I knew. The first time I let a stranger know I knew about Tarot was when I was 22 and traveling as an independent film maker in Kazakhstan. I met a professional Tarot reader and confided about my practices.

That meeting had a strong influence on me, and for ten years after that, I carried a tattered blue school notebook filled with hastily recorded notes about the Kazakh reader’s insights in my pack, even though some of her teachings were very different from my mother’s. To this day, I can’t get her admonition not to cross my feet while I do a reading out of my head, as superstitious as it sounded.

Superstitious? If you are reading this only because you enjoy my other writing and you think of me as practical, rational and down-to-earth, you may be confused. Isn’t everything about Tarot superstitious?

That is another reason I feel it is something to “come out” about. Not only did I have secrecy around Tarot engrained in me due to the isolated and traditionally religious nature of the community around where I grew up, Tarot also remains one of the least socially acceptable aspects of modern Pagan traditions.

On the surface of it, Tarot shares its roots with playing cards used in gambling, dating back to around the fifteenth century in northern Italy as best historians can guess. There were no doubt divination systems long before that in Italy and other parts of Europe. Every culture tends to come up with something. But Tarot likely began largely as a parlor game for the upper classes, perhaps combining the influences of mystical Christianity with “quaint” folk divination of the day.

Why would I place any stock in it then?

The simple answer and the one that matters most is that it helps. It is a structure for investigating complex problems, both emotional and practical. It gives comfort. It calms me and helps me think through difficulties rationally and deeply. If there were no other reason, this would be enough. The world today is chaotic and disturbing and therapy is really expensive.

A tongue-in-cheek adage has it that Tarot is “the poor woman’s therapist,” and there is something to that. However, I’ve seen some good (or at least high-priced and well-recommended) therapists in my day, and if forced to choose whether to never see Tarot again or never see a therapist again, there would be no contest.

Tarot works. Therapists are definitely a mixed bag. In this case, the poor people’s version isn’t necessarily inferior.

Why does Tarot work if it was developed from a parlor game?

I have done readings for friends over the years and recently I’ve taken a few paid clients on the same terms under which I tutor professionals in English as a second language. And here is what I and most other authentic Tarot readers tell people who ask how it works:

1. The interpretation books I use are well-written with a lot of spiritual and emotional wisdom. If you take any book written with spiritual and emotional wisdom and flip randomly to a page and read a passage for guidance, you will usually calm down, feel more centered and gain some insight. People do this all the time with the Bible and other religious texts The best Tarot books are on a similar level of sophistication today, though it has taken several hundred years to get there.

2. The images in Tarot cards are rich in symbolism, as are the texts. These symbols, through our subconscious associations with them, have powerful effects on our thinking. Looking at the images and reading or hearing a description of those symbols affects us on a subconscious level, providing spiritual connection and psychological benefits.

3. While Tarot may have initially come from something frivolous, several centuries of serious development has turned it into a kind of universal language for every part of human experience. One way or another it covers every eventuality and speaks to the universal needs and struggles we all face. There is real wisdom in the structure of the cards.

So, essentially those three points add up to a sort of pseudo-psychological, utterly non-mystical explanation that may or may not satisfy all psychological doctors, although it does satisfy quite a few. The bottom line is that the benefits are observable.

But astute friends and clients will still tend to ask, “Yes, but does it really work?” When pressed they reveal that what they mean by this is, “Does Tarot tell you things you don’t already know? Does it predict the future?”

The answer to that question is far more individual. My answer to those I do readings with is that it provides psychological and spiritual benefits, wise counsel and comfort. That is indisputable. It doesn’t really matter if you believe it predicts the future or mysteriously provides information you don’t already know. It will still be helpful.

My personal belief is that I have on occasion gained insight and information, which I can’t explain, from the Tarot. But I have also often been confused. Personally I think sometimes Tarot can give information in ways that the pseudo-scientific explanation doesn’t cover, but that is, at least for me, an unpredictable aspect.

I can usually tell if profound and unexpected information is there and if it is trustworthy, but that is a rare outcome. Most of the time, the cards reflect things we do already know at least subconsciously. Our conscious minds recognize the true parts of what the explanations of the cards say and because the structure allows for healthy and calm consideration, we come away more clear-headed.

And when we don’t recognize the truth there, which also happens, usually it is just not a great reading and we don’t understand. Only occasionally do I get the sense that something important and previously unknown has been revealed.

My Kazakh mentor claimed that the only time Tarot should actually be used to predict the future is on the winter solstice. I have always done predictive readings on the solstice ever since, but it is more for the tradition than anything else. The predictions aren’t really anything one could act on anyway, just a vague sense of the year ahead.

And although for awhile I followed her stricture and did not do predictive readings at other times of the year, I no longer follow that religiously. The rule I do adhere to is that I never make decisions based solely on predictive Tarot readings and I advise clients and friends not to either.

I have certainly used a predictive reading to help me make a difficult decision. If the reading indicates a positive outcome associated with a direction I am already intuitively inclined to go, it gives me some peace of mind and it is then easier to bite the bullet and make a decision when I have to take a shot in the dark.

On the other hand, I revisit my reasoning and check and recheck my decision-making on those occasions when the reading does not support the direction I intuitively feel like going. Sometimes that does change my eventual decision, not directly due to the reading, but rather due to that cautious reappraisal.

Most often I think Tarot affects my decision making for the better on those occasions when my intuitive sense of the best decision conflicts with what I selfishly or lazily want to do. The Tarot overwhelmingly tends to support my intuitive sense of right and wrong over my personal desires and it has a way of talking me (and my friends and clients) into healthier decisions that require self-regulation.

I do personally find that the Tarot gives good predictive advice. But I am not set in a fixed belief about it’s predictive or mystical powers. I could be convinced by evidence to change my stance on that aspect of the Tarot, and it wouldn’t have a significant impact on my use of it, since most of the Tarot work I do isn’t predictive, but much more self-reflective and analytical.

Whether that satisfies skeptics and ridiculers is debatable, but this is my declaration as a Tarot reader. I plan on posting about Tarot, including useful readings for various full or new moons, in 2020, so if you do enjoy this type of self-care, stay tuned.

To get started here is a reading for the new year, which I developed and found particularly helpful. It can be adapted to any topic or area of your life that you have concerns about and it is well suited to tomorrow’s first full moon of the new year.

Reading for setting hopes and goals

A lot of New Year’s readings either attempt to predict what is going to happen in the new year or encourage you to set whatever goal you want. This one is a healthy compromise between the two. The philosophy of the Tarot is not predetermination. Even those who believe Tarot does literally predict the future insist that the prediction is valid only “if you persist on the same path.”

In short, we have free will and Tarot only reflects the consequences of our choices. This reading frees us a little to consider possible positive outcomes, results that we could gain this year, if we are willing to change paths or persist as the case may be. The goal here is to help us find possible and achievable hopes for the new year.

To begin, identify one or more areas of your life in which you would like to see improvement. This can be general or specific. For instance, I tried out the categories of “physical health and well-being,” “emotional well-being and healing,” “my writing profession,” “my family,” and “my social and community relationships.”

Write these down in your journal or other record book in a numbered list, leaving a few inches of space in which to record your results.

Next, it is good to set up your Tarot spot in a way that is supportive of calm and reflection. For most of us that means a place where you won’t be disturbed, possibly with a candle or a special cloth to lay your cards out on.

Many readers have very strict rules about how and where and when Tarot may be done. I have my own, which I will write about in other posts, but the bottom line is that what matters is your frame of mind, and if laying out your cards at a night club or among the tea things on your kitchen table or on a log in the woods or on your messy bed gives you a sense of being grounded and centered, then that’s fine for now.

For each topic you want to set goals for, you will have three cards. Shuffle the deck well, cut the deck (i.e. divide it into two or three piles, depending on your tradition, and restack it) and draw three cards off the top.

This is a sample reading about a young person’s aspiration to develop as an actress. Reading from the left, card one indicates some conservatism or stinginess in the situation. Possibly the young person is overly reticent or she encounters stinginess in opportunities to practice acting. Card 2 indicates that the young person could gain intellectual understanding or make a firm decision about her path during this year. Card 3 indicates that something regarding attraction or passion is the main challenge, possibly meaning either over-enthusiasm or balancing this aspiration with a romantic relationship. Image by Arie Farnam

Card 1 (placed to the left) represents the status quo or your current situation with that topic.

Card 2 (placed to the right) represents what is the most favorable outcome you can achieve during the year. In some readings this is called “the aspiration.” It is something you can work toward.

Card 3 (placed perpendicular to Card 2 further to the right) represents the challlenge or what will cross your path as you try to reach your aspiration.

This is a quick, clear reading that can be done separately for a number of topics. The only tricky part comes when you may A. receive a card in the first position that seems opposed to what you think your current situation is, B. receive a somewhat negative card in the second position, or C. receive a positive card in the third position.

People sometimes claim that Tarot is intentionally vague so that you can read just about anything into any card. But that is far from true. In fact, the cards can be very specific. However, there are multiple meanings to each card in order to cover all of the myriad archetypal aspects of human existence. That means you always have a positive or a negative aspect to choose from in each card.

And given the positions of the cards here, it is clear which interpretation of the card you are meant to choose. Card 1 may be mystifying to you if your situation is very difficult and you get a very cheerful card. Consider that the good cheer may be what is going on around you, while you suffer, or it may be pointing to a silver lining to your situation that you are not paying enough attention to.

Card 2 will have some positive aspect that you should focus on. Classically, Death can be read as an ending but it also necessitates a deep transformation and a new beginning. The Hermit may mean loneliness and isolation in some contexts but it also may mean simply standing out from the crowd and carrying a light for others to follow. The Five of Swords may look grim and unpleasant but it can mean that you’ll simply win a hard fought battle one way or another.

Card 3 on the other hand has to be read for it’s difficult sides. Just as every card has a positive aspect, there is always an inherent difficulty. The Ten of Disks may be lovely to look at but it’s focus on family legacy and togetherness can imply that family, as positive as it may be at the time, is somehow limiting or complicating your development in another area. This is natural and does not mean we should abandon our families. It simply points to what will give challenge to that aspiration in the year ahead.

Experiment, keep a record of this reading and look back at it in a few months to see if anything that didn’t make sense initially makes more sense later on. Good luck!

There is certainly more to write about Tarot and I will be posting on a number of connected topics, including how I set up a Tarot space, how to shuffle, whether and how to read reversals and more. For now, explore, pay attention to your intuition and be well.