Jan 18 2009
Tools of Paganism: Tarot Cards
Tarot cards are tools used by many pagans (and non-pagans) and are widely recognized in mainstream society today. In America, there is a general acceptance of those who get their cards read “for fun,” but a stigma associated with anyone who might take card reading seriously. I find it interesting that most people are okay with playing cards (which derived from tarot), but the moment one attempts to find meaning in a simple object, it becomes immoral.
As an English major and a woman of Irish descent rather drawn to Celtic mythology, I can hardly avoid seeing symbols in the world around me. I take comfort in literature because I don’t feel so alone in interpreting the world in terms of symbols. I believe that symbols can help me to find a clearer path to such a point that I experienced great disappointment in the controversial nature of the Da Vinci Code. I found the book rather comforting.
Tarot card readers never imply that what is written on the cards is written in stone. There are also different card spreads, some of which go into more detail than others. Some of these spreads even examine different possible choices and courses of action.
I enjoy doing tarot card readings because they make me feel disciplined and helpful. If I do not feel helpful in my jobs and personal relationships, I tend to feel useless. I also feel as though there is a great responsibility in leading someone through the reading. I am not a tarot expert–I am just an extremely intuitive, interpretive, sensitive person. I believe that the tarot deck is a tool through which people can examine possibilities they might not have otherwise uncovered, see a situation from another perspective, and learn new things about themselves and each other.
I consider this approach to be particularly relevant to my path as a pagan (and as a human) because it involves a great deal of self-empowerment. When reading for someone else, I feel not only the responsibility of assisting them with interpretation, but also the importance in explaining how things can change.
If someone receives what they perceive to be a particularly negative spread, I tend to do a three card spread follow up concerning the specific situation. This allows us to interpret the situation very specifically in terms of past, present, future.
The Death card is an excellent example of a commonly misinterpreted card–and a card with which others often need assistance in interpreting. Death does not only (or even frequently) represent a literal loss of life. If death came about in a job outlook spread, for example, I might interpret it as shedding past responsibilities.
I have provided a nice overview of tarot card readings below.
What are your feelings on the tarot? How have they shaped your life?
My grandmother taught me the very basics of reading cards with regular playing cards when I was a little girl - I have a very strong memory of her turning over cards and telling me what they meant. I got my own first deck of Tarot cards when I was 13 years old - from, of all places, Scholastic Magazine (The Pop/Rock Tarot Calendar, 1972). I always felt a much deeper meaning to the cards than what you could find in most of the popular books back then, and the Tarot led me to exploring paganism, wicca, ancient religions, Celtic religions and eventually, to creating my own spiritual beliefs which are the underpinning of my life. I use the Tarot often to help me focus myself back on the inner/world view when everyday things get in the way of my spiritual growth. Isn’t it funny how hard it is to talk about this stuff without sounding all new-age-y and pretentious?