A Crash Course in Tarot for Newbies #1
The Tarot is not just a divinatory tool, but it can also be
utilized in the appropriately trained hands as a tool for
providing counsel and advice with which we can navigate life. It
is an antique form of divination that predates popular
psychology, but has been shown to have archetypal energies that
work well from a Jungian perspective. Tarot becomes a book of
wisdom offering you a living parable or myth that reflects your
life journey in the hands of the right Diviner. It describes a
journey that mirrors your path in life. Usually the story is a
direct description of what is going to happen in a particular
window of time although talented readers can tell you much more
than that from looking at the symbols in the cards! One of the
main purposes of the use of the cards is to construct a future
narrative so that you can make decisions to change your fate.
The reader shuffles cards and lays them out in a specific
pattern usually called a "spread." This can be compared to a
snapshot or map of your life. Each card position in the layout
of the spread represents a characteristic of the situation in
question --what forces are beyond your control, what your
particular strengths are in the current or future situation, and
what the likely outcome is if you continue as you have been
doing. As the cards fall into their positions, meaning is
created by the unique placement of the symbolic meanings of each
card. Together they weave a synchronistic tapestry that may seem
random at first, but in reality is a very careful map which you
may follow or not as you wish to bring about or avert the
outcome of your reading. Synchronicity is a principle that is
not only referred to constantly in psychology, but also in
quantum physics. The entire system of Tarot cards can be
described as a pictorial or numerological expression of the
human condition. The Tarot cards can be compared to a wise
friend who we can turn to when we wish to make a wise decision
regarding a relationship or a career. The wisdom found inside
the Tarot, is actually the same wisdom that is found inside each
and every one of us. The whole purpose of a reading is to tell
you what you don't know so that you can use your free will to
take appropriate actions that are good for your soul. Now, this
does not necessarily mean telling you what you want to hear