How To Learn Tarot
Our selection at Villagers has expanded in the past few months to include a topic that might seem a little odd for an urban homesteading store: tarot. But tarot and homesteading have more in common than you might think. At Villagers, we aim to bring you tools for self-empowered living, and that is precisely what tarot can provide. It's a way to have a deep conversation with yourself, to get clear on what's going on, and receive ideas for where you need to go.
Tarot can bring us the knowledge and awareness necessary to live an empowered life. So, how do you learn to use it?
To start, you only need two things: a tarot deck, and your brain. Selecting a deck is a deeply personal experience, but if you are just diving into tarot, just try to find one with art that you enjoy. One of the most popular decks is the Rider Waite, and many of the best books about tarot use it as their example. There are many variations on the Rider Waite featuring everything from cats to herbs, but my favorite is the beautifully muted Smith-Waite Centennial Edition.
Once you have a deck, then it's up to your brain to get things going. Reading tarot requires a healthy mix of memorization and the willingness to throw out the rules. You have to know what the cards mean in order to put those meanings aside and approach from a more intuitive space. The images on most popular decks are created to invoke certain feelings, and spending time looking at the pictures is a great place to begin. Once you're ready to dig deeper, a book like Tarot Wisdom by Rachel Pollack can provide the background information to expand your innate understanding of the images.
As you begin to explore your deck, one of the best ways to learn is to actually use it. Don't wait until you're completely confident in the card meanings to start reaping the benefits. If you're feeling stuck, have a question, or just need some help getting out of the story in your head and into the present moment, select a tarot card. There is no need for fancy rituals or large spreads unless that helps you get into the mood. Shuffle your deck and ask: what do I most need to know right now? Pull a card and see what the image brings up for you.
It's that simple. That's learning tarot and using it in your life.
It can seem daunting to pick up a tarot deck with 78 cards. How can we possibly learn them all, and get to the place of using this as a tool for empowered living? The overwhelm is natural, but if you want to be able to use tarot to move through your life with more ease, I urge you to push through and do it anyway. The ability to investigate your thoughts and feelings through tarot is a large step towards self-reliance and learning to be able to help yourself.