Make your own deck?

Merry Meet!

I am wanting to learn how to read tarot cards only there is no way possible that i can buy a deck so i was wondering if i can make my own. I don't know what they look like so i really need some help! Like how many cards are in a deck? And what's on each card? Thanks in advance,

Willow )o(

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Gosh, you CAN make your own, but it's a pain in the neck to get everything down. I recommend buying one.

Personally? I use a regular deck of playing cards when I don't have a tarot deck.. they cover the minor arcana. But a tarot deck is seventy eight cards, with twenty two major arcana and fifty six minor arcana. The minor arcana range from ace through king, with a page and knight instead of just a jack. There are four suits to the minor arcana : swords, cups, pentacles and wands. For the ace through ten, I recommend just drawing the symbol that many times on a blank card. However, the page, knight, queen and king may be more difficult. And as for the major arcana? Do an internet search for the basic symbology for each..

That's the best advice I can offer.

Wowzers! That many cards?? I think i may pass in that case.

"Wowzers! That many cards?? I think i may pass in that case."

I totally don't mean any insult by this, but I think the fact that you didn't even know how many cards are in a tarot deck is a pretty clear indicator that you're not ready to make your own cards.

Tarot uses a complex symbolic language to bring information to the reader. Figuring out how to express it in your own deck is actually very difficult and is something better left to one who has spent a great deal of time studying divination.

For the sake of illustration, here is an example of a brief overview of the meaning and symbolism of one of my favorite cards from Crowley's Thoth deck;

http://www.tryskelion.com/tryskelion/hierophant.htm

Sorry Red Chiron, I don't mean to insult those with far greater knowlege than me, i was just wondering and thought it could be interesting. Please pardon my poor knowlege.

No, no! No scraping and knee-bending and "those with far greater knowledge than me" stuff. I was just trying to make clear that tarot is actually this really big art and science unto itself. It seems simple enough on the surface, and a lot of people only skim the surface of it deep enough to perform basic tarot divination (which is totally fine), but tarot itself goes way beyond just that. I've studied it on and off for a few years, mostly because it's so huge an art that it sort of intimidates me.

... Why can't you buy a deck, anyway?

I can't buy a deck because my parents (mum) are against anything that has to do with the occult. Over time i have brought up little things like crystals, herbs, potions, wanting a cauldron, etc. And realised that she really doesn't like the fact that i am interested in this stuff. When i asked to buy a tarot deck. She said i had to wait til i was fifteen for unsaid reasons. That's why :(

Wow, I can't buy my own Tarot deck as well. My family is really poor, and my mom wouldn't have allowed one anyways.. I already knew that it has 78 cards altogether, and it doesn't bother me at all :) So like I've heard that when you're making one you'd use either wood or a rough material because you don't want them to bend, or have anything related to toxic chemicals on them..?

"When i asked to buy a tarot deck. She said i had to wait til i was fifteen for unsaid reasons. That's why :("

You know, that's actually a pretty positive response from a parent who doesn't seem real open to magick. I know this is probably the most annoying piece of advice you'll ever get, but it would probably be better just to wait then. If you get all sneaky and subversive with it and your mom finds it, she'll not only be super angry but she'll also have what to her will feel is evidence that magick is a bad influence on you.

But also remember, this only means you cannot own and use a tarot deck at your home. You can still study tarot in books and on-line, you can still potentially borrow the tarot deck of any magical friends you make, and you can still own and use other forms of divination like pendulums or cowrie shells. Pendulums are particularly useful here because it's really just any weighted thing on a cord that can swing. Necklaces are a very common make-shift pendulum, and little hanging crystal ornaments like people hang in their windows to reflect light make awesome pendulums. In fact, the only difference between one of those and a lot of pendulums is that pendulums are typically sort of pointy rather than real spherical.

And as Ravec pointed out, a plain deck of playing cards makes a pretty good stand-in for a full tarot deck. In fact tarot cards and playing cards were the same thing for the first 400-500 years of their history.

"So like I've heard that when you're making one you'd use either wood or a rough material because you don't want them to bend, or have anything related to toxic chemicals on them..?"

I wouldn't suggest wood since that seems a bit much, but you do want a good strong cardstock so that your cards won't get all mangled.