Tarot Reading & Learning

Tarot is a deck of 78 picture cards that have been used for centuries to gain insight and reveal hidden truths. These cards appeared at roughly the same time as the now-universal 52-card deck though it is a matter of dispute which came first. In recent times interest in the Tarot has grown enormously as people have discovered, in the Tarot, a powerful tool for personal growth and insight. More and more people are seeking ways to blend inner and outer realities so they can live their lives more creatively. Uses for Tarot cards are varied. They can of course be used in a traditional fortune telling layout. But they can also be used as inspiration cards, affirmation tools, or for self-discovery and intuition building.

Tarot is often used in 'fortune telling', or divination and is called cartomancy. The deck consists of four numbered suits like a regular deck of playing cards but with twenty two picture cards numbered one to twenty-two or, in some decks, zero to twenty-one. The Tarot deck has fourteen cards in each suit, versus thirteen for playing cards; the Tarot 'court cards' include a page along with the knight (knave), queen and king. The twenty-two picture cards, called the Major Arcana (the suited cards are the Minor Arcana), were originally permanent trump cards. The suits are analogous to standard playing cards: swords are spades, cups are hearts, pentacles (coins, discs) are diamonds and wands (staves) are clubs.

How Does This Course Work?
The main purpose of this course is to teach you how to use the cards for yourself with demonstrations of layouts and different types of spreads. The Tarot can help you understand yourself better and teach you how to tap your inner resources more confidently. You do not need to have "psychic powers" to use the Tarot successfully, all you need is the willingness to honor and develop your natural intuition.

What Can the Tarot Cards Tell You?
Tarot cards are not fortune-telling cards; they will not tell you that a certain event is definitely going to happen. The philosophy behind Tarot is that all future events are subject to change and if you are forewarned of unpleasant events, you can prevent them. Tarot cards benevolently warn you that danger lies ahead if you stay on your current course and change nothing. You may choose to ignore this warning, but when you pass the danger zone, you will pay quite severely or you can take preventive measures and change the course of events.
Tarot does not tell fortunes because divulging details of an unalterable future is counter-productive. (But you are saying the future is not fixed but can be changed) On the contrary, its purpose is to make you think and act. It subscribes to the view that future events can be changed if you take note of them and act appropriately. If they predict good times, you must still make a conscious effort to continue doing whatever you are doing now or the prediction will go unfulfilled! Tarot cards never tell you what is going to happen - they tell you what is likely to happen, based on your present course of action.

Tarot cards can answer questions about the past, future and they can reveal the present as well. Often, the cards show the thoughts, feelings and motivations of the questioner and of others who are relevant to the question and most relationship spreads have positions for both partners for this reason. If there is something that you must know in order to solve a problem, Tarot can, and will, reveal it to you. Often, you'll find that you already knew the answer but you overlooked it or ignored it. Tarot cards are a wonderful source of advice and guidance and, in the hands of an expert, Tarot cards are an excellent and perceptive counselor.

They may not always tell you what you want to know but they will always tell what you need to know. They may not always answer the question that you ask but will always answer the question that needs answering the most.

Usha is a member of the World Tarot Network and a Certified Reiki Master, she has been involved in alternative healing and Tarot readings for over 14 years. By combining intuition and practical advice her readings aim to provide clarity and depth to any situation.

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