Hi there! i'm interested in tarot reading since I feel aligned with fortune telling, but I'm unsure where to start and I have many questions, if anyone could answer them it would be much appreciated!
- can I make my own tarot deck or should I buy from a trusted seller?
- What does each card mean or is there a way to tell or is it just off of what you think?
- how do you conduct a reading with someone? is it good to practice with someone you know or should you wait until someone comes up to you?
Thank you for your time! i hope to learn everything I can :3
Hi there, I've been reading since I was 15 [nearly 20 years now, yeesh I'm old lol] and I'd love to help you start out
- can I make my own tarot deck or should I buy from a trusted seller?
Whatever resonates with you. Personally, I'd suggest buying a deck and learning the symbolism and traditional meanings first before creating your own. Rider-Waite Smith is the traditional "first deck" and mine was Le Tarot De Marseille [both amazing starter decks] I didn't connect with my readings until I got my Dragon Tarot and we just clicked. There is little symbolism, the art is dark and muddy and it can be murky overall but I resonated with them immediately and share a strong bond with it. [you can still learn if you don't have that bond with a deck, but you'll know when you get it because normally it comes with practice. The more you get to know the deck, the better you become]
- What does each card mean or is there a way to tell or is it just off of what you think?
99% of tarot decks come with a little booklet which explains the symbolism of each card. I'd suggest meditating with each card to get a feel for each as well as studying the artwork of the card to get a feel for the cards meaning. You don't have to memorize all the cards [because that's 78 cards that change depending if they're upright or direct and can change depending on which card it's paired with and the placement in a spread] There are also several sites online with information on the cards. My go-to to this day is biddytarot.com It includes the meaning behind the cards, suits, major and minor arcana and cheat sheets to help you learn [type in the card, click on the meaning page and there's the "upright" and "reverse" on the top, but also an entire article about the symbolism and deeper meaning of each card]
Keep in mind, however, that this is just a way to help. A lot of tarot reading relies on intuition. If a card is about fertility, and you've got a strong feeling it means "grow a garden" or "grow an idea" and the book screams it means "have a baby" Go with your intuition that it's metaphoric fertility over literal. You will get an idea, a vision, or hear something and think it's silly, but that's your intuition/spirit contacting you with a message. Just because the book says one thing, listen to the other.
- how do you conduct a reading with someone? is it good to practice with someone you know or should you wait until someone comes up to you?
*crack's knuckles* OKAY! The first step is to find your deck. Pick a deck that screams "Pick me" [some say it should be a gift, but it doesn't make any difference] Don't overthink it either. There is literally a tarot deck for everything [I own Disney Villian, Hocus Pocus and Nightmare Before Christmas. There is also witch, goth, gargoyle, Dragon, faerie, Alice in Wonderland, Winnie The Pooh, Classic Movies, Tattoo, Bones, Raven, Celtic, Lord of the Rings, Meryl Streep, mermaids, LGBT, Star Wars/Trek, Doctor Who, and on, and on, and on] You like a thing? Google it plus "tarot" and I guarantee there is a 99% chance you'll find a deck.
Next, cleanse the deck. There are many ways to do this, the easiest are smoke, sound and salt water. Burn cleansing incense and pass each card through the smoke and say a blessing [you are purified and blessed] Take one card at a time and ring a bell or snap your fingers while saying a blessing. Put some salt in some water and flick a few drops on the card and as you dry it say a blessing. [please note, not too much water, just a drop] Once all of the cards have been cleansed and blessed, hold the deck and charge it with energy. Try to connect with the deck's energy. Attune with it as best you can.
I would then shuffle the deck. Just shuffle it. Shuffle it for as long as you'd like, just to get it all mixed up [if you're reading reverse cards, make sure to flip them back and forth too] and when you feel ready to do a reading, close your eyes and shuffle with an intention in mind. I suggest your first reading be a "get to know your deck" reading [you can find them online] This article has one I use https://www.patheos.com/blogs/matauryn/2018/02/20/interviewing-your-tarot-decks/ Now, you can draw cards in a few ways. You can shuffle until you feel it's time to draw cards, you can shuffle then cut the deck into 3 piles and use your intuition which deck to pull from, you can shuffle until you feel certain cards are sticking out at you [like 2 are literally sticking out of the deck at you] or shuffle until cards start to fall/fly out [I use this method. I used to do the 3 piles but I always had "jump" cards and it feels more natural and less influenced by me] Then place the cards in the order they were pulled [first card first spot on the spread, second card on the second spot so on] and then combining the meaning of the spot on the spread with the meaning of the card, you should begin to get an idea of what the deck is saying.
You can then do the same thing for yourself to get to know yourself better. But some people can't do this [just not their strength] so they'll have better luck with others [you don't have to read for others if you don't want to but it could help you strengthen your clairvoyance] If you want them to shuffle your deck you can, some people say it makes their energy rub off on the deck and effect its energy, but I've done both ways and the only difference I saw was having to cleanse it a bit more often.
You can also try daily pulls. Pull 1 card every day and reflect on it [you can do this in the morning as a prediction, or in the evening as a reflection, or both] Basically, the more you practice, the more you'll connect, the better your skills will grow.
