What are Tarot cards? How does a Tarot reading work?

I always find it interesting when people consider the tarot cards or a tarot reading a part of the “occult”, witchery, or weird, wrong, dark, etc. I have never been intimidated by them and see them as a tool for people to use symbolism and energy to “see” or “validate” thoughts or things that might be transpiring with the person who is receiving the reading.

Tarot

What is tarot? There are 78 tarot cards. 24 major arcana that represent larger things going on in your life, connected to the bigger picture. The numbered cards, 1-10 is daily life and also represent different parts of the hero’s journey. There are 4 sections, wands, pentacles, cups, and swords. Each one represents different things, like wands represent work and social life. Swords considers trifles and looking at both sides of something, splitting hairs, introspect. Pentacles represent health and money, and cups represent love, relationship, and spirituality. Some cards will be upright and some may be reversed, which can represent either the opposite of the original card upright or difficulty in obtaining the upright due to an obstacle of sorts.

The cards that the playing cards we use today came from the tarot deck. They were used so many years ago, but only used for royalty. They were used regardless of religion. Nowadays, they can be used for fun, for dark use, or for gaining insight. I personally feel it helps validate people, where they are at, what they are thinking about and what might their next steps be. When I give a reading, I make sure the person is comfortable with receiving the reading. If there is some kind of fear surrounding the cards or the idea that the person can be “read” from the cards, I explain that if people receive something like the DEATH card, what it means is that something is coming to an end and that from the ashes of whatever finished or ended will rise a new day. It doesn’t mean you will DIE. People who provide dramatic readings are not doing it for the good of the person, they are doing it for the drama and money.

Tarot Reading

Be careful whom you choose to do your reading, or be prepared to take it lightly. There is an intention that needs to be present when the reading is given if you really want to glean something from it. It needs to come from both sides. Curiosity should be the driver. I usually provide light, 3 card draws, which provides a bit about the person’s past, their present state and their near future. When providing the reading, I make sure I am clear of any distractions or other energies, other than the intent of the general forecast of that person in front of me.

You might just want to question the tarot reader what cards they use, how long they have been reading and what their favorite layout is. The most used cards are the universal tarot set. I choose not to use those cards because it makes it easy for anyone who knows the cards to put their own spin on it, and this energy for the reading should be pure with no interpretation. The cards are a guide, not the end all be all. Keep that in mind when receiving a reading. The person providing the reading is good when they don’t rely solely on the cards for the reading. If they only go based strictly on the cards, the energy that is present is not being utilized, there is only someone putting their spin on it.

Energy

Energy is in everything and it makes up our very being, the earth, stars, universe and non-space. It comes forth in all ways, not just a card reading. It is used for healing, for weaponry, for movement and for life itself. The energy used in a reading is no different than the energies described for other uses. A good tarot card reader will fully admit they have very little to do with how the cards lay out or the reading itself, they will state that it is the energy the person is putting out, and they will have cleared their own energy and the energy of those that had received readings in the past from the cards.

This article was written by April Hartmeister. She wrote another post about handmade jewelry.

You can find more about April on her website: April’s Design