The Tarot: Part 1
A Beginner's View

by Moirai

Merry Meet to all! I'm a beginner to the world of Tarot cards but my interest was awoken some years ago. I remember finding a pack of 'fortune telling' cards in a gift shop. This was not a proper Tarot set, the pack only had 20 cards decorated with pretty, pastel paintings or drawings of people and scenery set in 18th Century France. I don't think that they helped much with divination at the time but it certainly created a long-lasting impression! There's no shortage of card sets, online resources and books available for a beginner (or more experienced person) to browse through. If you are a beginner or just thinking you'd like to try using the Tarot at some point this wealth of information can make it seem difficult to choose where to start. Which is why I thought it might be helpful to others to share my experiences, what I think are some useful tips and a little bit of history.
	A Very Short History of Tarot Condensing such a rich and complex history down to a few paragraphs means that a lot of details and names have been omitted. I hope that this brief introduction will raise your interest if you've not come across it before and that any errors be kindly forgiven! One of the facets of Tarot history that I find most interesting is the mystery as to the origins of the cards.
So far it seems that no-one can prove for certain when the Tarot came into existence, who created them first or the reason for doing so. It remains the subject of intense debate with as many theories and hypotheses as there are people who use the cards! The consensus view roughly agrees that hand-painted Tarot cards appeared in Italy and France around the 14th/15th Century. This is backed up by cards that survived from that period and other documents that mention them. At that point in history it seems that individuals' Tarot varied considerably from set to set in the number of cards included and design, unlike today's packs that have a more coherent system, and they were used for games or gambling rather than a divination tool. The common link between then and now is that the cards have always been rich in symbolism: mixing cultural and ceremonial imagery. Skipping forward to to 19th Century France: two students of mystical and arcane knowledge each became influential in creating the importance of Tarot as a divination/mystical rite. These individuals were Eliphas Levi Zahed (Alphonse-Louis Constant, he chose to use the Hebrew translation of his name) and Gerard Encausse, also known as Papus. Their works were key to Tarot revisions that helped create the sets that we know and use today. The next major step in the evolution of Tarot cards came in the 20th Century, when two, now very well known, members of The Golden Dawn society in England reformulated and rationalised the Tarot according to their vision. Arthur Edward Waite, with Pamela Colman Smith as illustrator, created the Rider-Waite Tarot set, which has become the benchmark for Tarot card sets and remains hugely popular. Aleister Crowley, with Lady Frieda Harris as illustrator, created the Thoth Tarot set, although this was published years after the Rider-Waite set and posthumously for both Aleister Crowley and Lady Harris. These were two of the first truly modern sets with the 78 cards of the Major and Minor Arcana put into order and combining the mixture of Pagan, Christian, Qabalah and other important symbols and elements which had been used previously and also with new design interpretations. This is only the tiniest scratch in the surface of what a vast number of people have used, created, transformed and written about for over six hundred years! There is no lack of further in-depth reading available both in books and online resources.
The Beginner's View Starting to learn about Tarot can be a fascinating but slightly confusing experience. Once I decided that I would like to try and do my own readings I was overwhelmed by the amount of choices on offer. How do you choose your cards, learn about how to use them best and interpret their meaning?
Like so many things working out the best for you is the most important decision. On another note - What I've written about here is just from a personal point of view of things that I've tried in the short time since I started. I haven't as yet done any readings on behalf of someone else and there are differences when doing so but they aren't included in this piece.
	Choosing Your Set The best advice I've come across is to choose the Tarot set that you feel most drawn to. There are plenty of cards that are designed and sold with the beginner in mind, as well as many, many others inspired by different cultures and beliefs. Whether you are buying them online or in a shop I found it helpful to ask myself these questions: do you feel a connection to the images, can you visualize using them or get a positive feeling when you look at/ hold them? I took a couple of months to decide. At first I thought that since the Rider-Waite set is so well known and has many recommendations that I should start with that.
Having looked at various images of the cards I just couldn't feel a connection to them, try as I might. Looking at the Goddess Tarot set illustrated by Kris Waldherr made me feel immediately drawn to them and so they were the ones I bought. Don't feel that you have to rush your decision as finding the set you feel most comfortable with is very helpful when you start your readings. Preparations From what I've read about preparations before a reading they can range from simply taking a few deep breaths and clearing your mind to rituals with bathing for purification, meditation for putting your conscious and subconscious mind in harmony, using crystals that have correspondences to divination, incense, candles and prayers. Again, it's what suits you best. I decided to start off with a bath and a bit of meditation with a favourite crystal. Anything that aids you being relaxed and with your mind ready to concentrate on what you want to ask is good (alcohol might not be a good choice though!). I try and aim to be in a calm and receptive frame of mind. Some other good advice I've come across is to think of the question(s) you want to ask beforehand. I've usually thought of a specific question I want to ask before preparing and spend the time in the bath for choosing how I want to word my question. Asking Your Questions Try to get your question(s) precise as you can. Tarot has worked best for me if I've defined as clearly as possible what it is I wanted an answer to. Most of my questions haven't been complex so I've worked out in my head what I wanted to ask but you can write it down if it helps. And don't worry about limiting yourself to one big question. For example: If you have a work-related issue and you have two or more options but aren't certain which would be the best solution you could do a reading and ask "If I choose to do Option X will this problem be beneficially resolved?" and then ask "If I choose to do Option Y etc." so you can compare what the different answers tell you. Again from what I've read some people will ask their questions aloud, others silently or by visualizing what they wish to know, either starting as they shuffle and cut the Tarot deck or as they pick the individual cards for their reading. The choice is down to what feels the right way for you. Picking And Placing The method I use is: shuffle my set of cards until I feel ready and ask my question aloud as I split the deck into two piles, keeping the cards face down. The pile of cards that was at the bottom of the pack when I split them is where I draw the cards from. I'll take the first four cards from the top of that pile and lay them down going from left to right. Then I'll turn the cards over, one at a time and going from left to right. The first card (from the left) represents the past, the second the present, the third the future and the fourth is an overview/summary card for the other three. This method was included in the guide booklet with the Tarot cards and so far I've found it works very well for me. As you pick your cards you can choose to lay them down in a particular "spread", which are patterns that can aid your questioning in particular ways. I've not experimented with the some of the more elaborate spreads and have stuck with doing a three or four card reading until I'm more familiar with the cards. Interpreting The Answers This is probably the most difficult aspect to write about as a beginner! How do you work out what your reading is telling you if it some of the cards appear to contradict each other or don't seem relevant to the question? Some cards will have an obvious meaning to you and others will not. If there is a book that is specifically written for your set of tarot cards it could be well worth investing in one to help, but don't feel obligated to do that. I've managed to start my readings with just the help of the card set booklet, and by reading general Tarot information online. If there's been a card appear in a spread that didn't seem to immediately 'belong' there I've made a note after the reading and had a think about what the underlying connection might be. Or you could try another reading of the same question at a different time. The general advice that I've read and agree with is that practice is the key thing, as you become more familiar with the your card set your bond with it and understanding will grow. One particular thing I feel I should mention: in the readings I have done for myself to date I have not encountered any answer that has upset or disturbed me. That said, I have found some of the answers to be very honest and direct. The answers you receive may not be what you had hoped for or what you had expected. It may sound obvious but if you have any doubts about asking a particular question, or you are in an heightened emotional state, then please do take some time to consider carefully whether asking the Tarot for guidance or truth is really the right thing for you. For me using the Tarot with a healthy respect and a readiness to understand what is revealed is paramount. I hope that what I've written here is of help in taking your first steps toward using the Tarot. Since my first reading I've found the experience to be absorbing, fascinating and enlightening and I hope that you will too! Brightest Blessings. Moirai

Useful links for beginners:-

Learn The Tarot (Free Online Course)
Goddess & Tarot Art - Thalia Took
Aeclectic Tarot (Over 600 Tarot Decks photos and reviews)
TABI - The Tarot Association of the British Isles