The Tarot is possibly the most written about Divination device in existence, and those writings range from the simple to the esoteric. If you have a well-drawn deck, reading them becomes easier, because the pictures tell you the story. Generally speaking, though it is hard to find a lot of information that explains the minor arcana in a way that makes them easy to read.

Part of the challenge is in deciding what the suits mean. Pentacles or disks are fairly straight forward – material things, abundance, wealth; generally associated with the element of Earth and with the body aspect of self. Cups are equally straightforward – emotions, love, the unconscious; associated with the element of Water and the emotional self. The difficulty comes in the difference between swords and wands. Both move energy, both are about change, both can draw boundaries; but swords are about cutting things away and wands are about bringing things in. Various decks will differ as to which one is Air and which one is Fire; Air is usually associated (in Western Occult tradition) with the mental aspects of self and Fire with the will. It is those associations that can trip you up. If you just thing of swords being about releasing and wands as being about bringing in, you should do fine.

There are patterns in the values of the cards as well. Cards 2-7 tend to deal with things that are within our control or are more personal and 8-10 are things that are less in our control, things that are outside of ourselves.  The Ace is the best possible manifestation of the theme of its suit, and 10 is those themes taken to their logical conclusion. The Page represents an innocent or simple expression of the theme. The Knight is an immature, idealistic, or imbalanced expression of the theme. The Queen is a mature expression of being, rather than of doing; and the King expresses the theme through action and practicality.

If you have a Tarot deck, take a look at your cards of the  minor arcana from this point of view, and see what new information comes to you. Does this change how the cards work for you?

Regardless of what the experts say, regardless of what the book that came with your deck says, regardless of what anyone tells you about your cards, it is your deck. Your experiences, your internal database, your filters do come into play in a good reading. What the cards bring to your mind is much more important than any information from a book or a class or a website. Yes, the more information you have, the more information you are likely to see when doing divination, because your subconscious has more to play with, more to use, but divination is not about the mind and what knowledge you have gathered. Getting out of your own way does not mean removing yourself from the process, it means removing ego and judgment from the process.

If you are interested in learning more about the Tarot, or about yourself, I will be teaching a class on Wednesdays, starting this week through November 30th, at the Crystal Matrix in Atwater Village. We will be using the Major Arcana as a vehicle for personal growth and seeing the world, as well as learning how to interpret the cards for ourselves. Please call 323-644-7625 to reserve your place in the class.