Tarot Card Reading
Nobody knows the true origin of Tarot cards. What we do have for
historical relics, are decks that have survived from 15th
century Italy, when they were used in card games, the decks
being individually drawn and painted, often commissioned by rich
patrons. At some point in the eighteenth century, they were
taken up again by scholars of the occult, with their designs and
patterns being credited for influence on certain areas and
features of life. Out of this rediscovery, came the modern day
interpretation of the Tarot cards as a tool of divining the
future, according to what cards were dealt.
The deck consists of 78 cards in two specific groups. One,
called the major arcana, consists of 22 cards having numbers and
specific designs relating to common areas of life or existence,
such as strength, love, justice, etc. The other 56 cards of the
deck are divided into four groups represented by cups, wands,
swords, and pentacles. Each of these groups is related to the
manner in which a person faces life.
A "spread" or dealing of the cards, may include 6-15 cards laid
out in a specific pattern. The interpretation of the cards is
based on: the position a particular card is in, which could
indicate that event is in the past, present or future; which
cards are nearest, thus influencing that aspect of a person's
life, and the reader's ability to relate the meaning of one
card, to the next.