You might not be a confident tarot card reader but we’ve all been there. All tarot readers start off not feeling truly confident about reading the cards.
It might be that you are not a person who turns the tarot cards every day and therefore feel you have not enough experience, but if you are using the inherent meaning of the tarot as laid out with the deck in LWB (Little White Book) you are reading the tarot, OK? Of course, the more you do use them the quicker you are going to gain confidence, and be able to read the cards without the book.
Using the tarot cards regularly:
This doesn’t necessarily mean reading for other people, but really just practising using the cards and asking for outcomes on minor questions you have in your life. Questions can range from ‘Will Abigail pass her exams?’, ‘Will my mother/father visit in the next month?’ – yes or no questions – to ‘What changes/successes can I expect in the next month?’ interpreting what the cards are indicating for you. (FYI If you turn mostly Major Arcana over the answer is likely to be yes. People, often say that the evens and female cards in the Minor Arcana are yes, and odd and male cards are no. But just use this as a starting point because I have a bit more to say on the matter further on.)
Asking the right questions;
Asking questions which the tarot cards find easy to answer is the first task at hand, if you are not clear in your question, the tarot can reach deeper levels and access things in your psyche you might not even be thinking of at that moment. This can often ensue in cards that don’t really make sense to you.
Which deck to use:
I personally, always use the same deck, and you might have heard people refer to their ‘go-to deck’, this is probably the one that they use the most, and in this we have some understanding that by using one particular tarot deck, you start to understand the differences of each of the tarot card meanings – or the feelings you get from them – because over time you start to see how the cards answer the questions you ask. It might be that you see a particular card come up which would normally mean the final end of a relationship, but because you know this deck, you might realise that in this particular reading, in this particular circumstance, that it means something slightly different……….this is what people mean when they say the cards ‘speak to them’. There are many different individual interpretation of tarot cards in the world, and you have to understand that no-one can say they are necessarily ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ – if the outcome of the reading is what the tarot cards indicated to you, then the cards have answered the question. (Incidentally, asking the same question of the cards, over and over again, will also cause you confusion, and it is best to just stick to asking that question once a day.)
Sticking points:
If you speak to different tarot readers, they will often have struggled with certain aspects of a deck, or a card, or even a suit in the deck. They may have had trouble with certain tarot spreads such as the Celtic Cross because it is quite overwhelming and you must adapt to what you feel happy doing – If you like pulling three cards to answer a question that’s fine – the more you use the cards is what is important. Occasionally, take an hour to do an ‘in depth’ reading to help you access deeper understanding of who you are reading for and all the influences around them – but it will come in time, and you will get far more enjoyment out of the deeper spreads once you are confident with what the cards are telling you.
Getting used to reading:
The best way to learn about your deck is to use it often but not necessarily for long periods of time. Just check out the basic meaning of a card in a reading and examine what you are feeling about that card in that position, in that spread and over time you will see that your interpretation of the cards is uniquely yours. I like to assume that every Major Arcana card is saying something positive unless it is surrounded with cards that indicate pressure or strife – but someone else wouldn’t necessarily agree with that. If I am asking a ‘yes/no’ question I might get all Major Arcana but if they are made up of The Tower, Death and so-on, I will assume the answer is no. I might get all Minor Arcana and odd numbers but if I get the three of Cups, Nine of Pentacles or especially Nine of Cups I would say it is a yes! – you see about interpretations? – yours will be just as valid once you work with the same deck and start to have a rapport with it.
Build a relationship with a particular tarot deck, then when you are confident with that one you are likely to be able to pick up others and work well with it.
Good luck and don’t forget we have lots of help for you at www.simplytarot.com for help with tarot meanings, readings, The Tarot House Deck and more.
See you real soon <3
Patricia x
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