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By Neoli Marcos

Whether we admit or not, most of us have quaint notions of what tarot cards are. On the surface, they are merely a deck of illustrated cards used in predictions, while the tarot card reader is an eccentric person dressed in robes seated behind the fortune-telling booth in the town fair.

This image of tarot cards is, of course, clichéd, and yet we’d rather feel comfortable with its familiarity than dig deeper.

We resort to the more convenient explanation rather than actually investigate the sometimes unpleasant yet gratifying truth of tarot cards.

Perhaps, the most famous among the tarot cards is the Death Card, a card quite unfairly invested with too much negative meanings and energies behind it, so much so that we usually think of tarot cards as tools of the occult, vehicles of evil even. While we can’t deny the fact that indeed tarot can be used for such purposes, tarot cards can also be perfectly well-intentioned and can be actually used for good causes.

As a matter of fact, the earliest use of tarot cards in fifteenth century Italy was as a game, much like a deck of regular playing cards but with the addition of trump cards. It wasn’t until late 17th or 18th century that tarot cards began to take on a more serious role in divination.

Over the years, the pictures in the tarot cards, their rich symbolisms, procedures, purposes, and meanings evolved in such a way that the characters portrayed in them have come to mirror all our follies, fears, strengths, and hopes. By stringing them together into a tale, we are able to retell and uncover the past as we would have liked it unfold, as well as get a sense of a manageable future we can feel safe with.

A radical and inevitable shift indeed for tarot cards from a simple game to life-changing therapy.

Carl Jung, a world renowned psychologist has always considered tarot as an alternative psychotherapy. By utilising the rich imagery encapsulated in every tarot card, we are able to voice out our concerns, look into our past, and prepare for the future.

In some cases, children who don’t yet know how to speak can use the images and characters in the tarot deck to piece together their thoughts and tell their story. Tarot cards then offer an alternative language system through which we can bring our Unconscious up to the light.

Jung explains that tarot cards represent different archetypes of human personality and situations. The Death Card then is not just simplistically a dreary card foretelling iretractable death to the querent (person who asks questions in a tarot card reading). Rather, the death card can be seen as the death, an end of something inside us: a vice, long standing pain, bad habits, sorrow, signaling rebirth.

We do not just blindly pick out cards from the tarot deck. Every moment of our lives we are armed with choices, choices that spell out and define our fate. It’s not just what you keep out from your life that matters; it’s also what you allow to make a difference. Even if they’re just a deck of tarot cards.

About the Author

This article was written by Neoli Marcos for Psychic Guild: online provider of phone tarot reading, love advice and psychic reader

(ArticlesBase SC #152900)

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ – Tarot Cards as Alternative Therapy

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Tarot Card XIII, DeathImage by Yellow.Cat via Flickr

By: Fred Street

Myth 1 – “Tarot cards can predict the future”

Predicting the future is not difficult; we can all do it. If for example you know someone who is consistently spending more than they earn and paying for it by building up a credit card debt then it’s not hard to predict where that one is heading.

Or if you know someone who is expecting a baby you may, based on experience, accurately predict that they will have many months of sleep deprivation and tiredness ahead of them.

The Tarot does little more than this. It has centuries of human experience distilled into a simple philosophy and meaning for each card. Another way to look at it is to say the Tarot doesn’t make precise predictions of the future it merely allows us glimpses at some of the likely possibilities.

Myth 2 – “The Tarot come from Ancient Egypt”

The earliest that Tarot can be dated back to is 16th century Italy. There is no evidence of Tarot existing anywhere else in the world prior to this. Some people claim the cards derive from India or China but this is also baseless speculation.

Myth 3 – “Receiving the Death card means someone is about to die”

Unlikely. The whole point of the symbolism of the cards is that they represent deeper life truths. To take any of the cards literally would be to miss out on a layers of meaning and insight.

In the case of the Death card, to the medieval mind Death represented an inevitable change and often a passing to a better place. The card represents change and evolution. One can’t, however, rule out the possibility of this occasionally actually signifying a death.

Myth 4 – “Reading Tarot is dabbling in the occult”

There are many claims that the Tarot have Pagan, witchcraft or shamanic roots and some have even implicated the Tarot in devil worship and satanic rites. Another frequent claim is that the Tarot derives from ancient religions now forgotten. None of this is true.

Tarot , as has already been said, originated in medieval Italy and the predominant cultural backdrop of that time was christian. The symbolism of the cards is either christian or jewish – new testament or old. The word ‘occult’ merely means ‘hidden’ so in that sense one could say taking a reading is dealing with the occult because one is trying to reveal what is hidden.

Myth 5 – “Reading your own cards will bring misfortune”

This is one which professional readers and those experienced with the cards know not to be true but which often gets repeated. It may have arisen from the fact that Tarot card readers will avoid reading their own cards. Not because it is unlucky but simply because it is not effective.

A good Tarot reading requires three parties; the questioner, the reader and the deck. The reader tries to remain objective and reports to the questioner what the cards are saying without any bias or desire to hear a particular message. Playing this role for your own reading is difficult if not impossible.

Myth 6 – “You need to have some psychic ability to read the Tarot”

Most people can learn to read the Tarot to a lesser or greater extent. No psychic powers are necessary because all the wisdom is in the cards and the meanings which have been developed over the years.

In fact if one was psychic why would you need to use the Tarot? Tarot works best when the reader drops their preconceptions and feelings about a problem and just lets the cards do the talking.

Myth 7 – “Nobody should ever handle your Tarot deck”

There are some practitioners that wont let anyone else touch their Tarot cards. Even when they carry out a reading they won’t allow the questioner to shuffle the deck for themselves.

In my experience this precious attitude comes from those who want to build up themselves and their deck to be something special. A control thing if you like.

This is against the spirit of Tarot, which promotes open enquiry and sharing of understanding. Allowing clients to shuffle the cards helps them to feel a part of the process and focus on the problem at hand.

Myth 8 “The Tarot can be used to cast spells or effect other people”

It is sometimes thought that the Tarot can be used to make things happen rather than predict them. To influence someone’s life from afar, for good or evil.

This is a long way from what the cards are actually about, which is simply gaining understanding. There is no reason to believe that the Tarot has any power other than that of insight.

One of the frequent messages that comes out of Tarot readings is actually how little ability we sometimes have to influence our own lives let alone someone else’s. Put in a nutshell the Tarot would probably say ‘get your own act together before you try to change others’.

Myth 9 – “Different decks give different readings”

This is slightly subjective but in my experience, no. Whatever the deck the meanings derived over four centuries remain the same.

Different people will however relate more warmly to some decks rather than others and the images that the client is most comfortable with will create the best atmosphere for a reading. A cynical person might suspect this myth is propagated by the deck manufacturers.

Myth 10 – “It is dangerous to have too many Tarot readings”

There is a belief that people who become obsessed with Tarot and keep taking one reading after another bring themselves bad luck or even risk pushing themselves over the edge. This maybe true in as much as seeking constant advice can be a sign of some sort of impending crisis.

Such people may also have been close to the edge anyway. The main thing is that too much advice is bad for anyone and only leads to confusion.

For more information about Tarot cards and their meanings visit http://www.tarotcardmeaning.info/ or try our free online Tarot card reading.

About the Author

Fred Street is the creator of http://www.tarot-cards-reading.com a free Tarot reading site which offers a wide range of readings online and by email. Ideal for anyone learning Tarot%d%a  (ArticlesBase SC #667700)

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ – Top Ten Myths About Tarot Cards and Tarot Reading

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Aleister Crowley via last.fm

 

By: Donald Carroll

My own psychic abilities were best demonstrated in my practice of the Tarot. Also as regards Tarot, and Yoga, I was mostly influenced by a Tarot and Yoga expert named Aleister Crowley.

I sought to purchase every book that I could find by Aleister Crowley on both Tarot and Yoga, and I also joined an Order that taught both Tarot and Yoga in accordance with the Western Tradition of Magick called the Hermetic Society of the Golden Dawn. (Aleister Crowley was once a member of the original version of this Order.)

I also became a member of another Order that taught both Tarot and Yoga – Aleister Crowley’s own Magickal Order, the Astrum Argentum, A.A., or Order of the Silver Star. Aleister Crowley’s Order is still in existence today, and still maintains a great amount of secrecy in order to better preserve the heart of the Order’s teachings, especially as regards both Tarot and Yoga.

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I was also once scheduled to attend a feast and an initiation into the Order of Ordo Templi Orientis, or O.T.O. (Aleister Crowley later became a prominent figure head within this Order. I am not certain if this Order teaches Tarot and/or Yoga.)

In studying the works of Aleister Crowley, I learned a lot about Tarot and Yoga. From Aleister Crowley, I learned the initiated meanings of Tarot Card symbols, astrological symbols, and religious symbols. In Yoga, I learned how to heighten my awareness, focus, and concentration.

I learned the art of Tarot par excellence, and how to read Tarot Cards. (I believe that I may have been born with a psychic gift, or I have a bizarre talent with the Tarot. My own personal experiences with the Tarot have remained to this day unexplainable, even to me; I am heavily influenced by Aleister Crowley’s writings on the Tarot.)

With the Tarot, I prefer to use the Tarot deck designed by Aleister Crowley. I always lay out an accurate Tarot reading, no matter what the object or subject of the Tarot divination is. I can only demonstrate this psychic ability with Tarot Cards – any deck of Tarot Cards, not just the Aleister Crowley deck.

My mother has had a couple of prophetic dreams that she shared with me once. She never practiced neither Yoga nor Tarot. I may have inherited her gift for prophecy. Her gift manifests in the form of a dream, and for me it is always demonstrated in the practice of reading Tarot Cards!

In accordance with Aleister Crowley’s guidelines for study and experimentation I also experimented with pendulum dowsing and obtained remarkably inaccurate results – so astonishingly incorrect as to suggest psychic ability, but at the same time so undependable that I left my studies with pendulum dowsing to pursue my practice with the Tarot.

VISIT OUR FREE BOOKS, E-BOOKS, AND SOFTWARE SECTIONS. BROWSE THROUGH CLASSIC AND NEWER SELECTIONS FOR YOGA, TAROT, AND ALL OF THE OCCULT CLASSICS INCLUDING ALL OF ALEISTER CROWLEY’S WORKS, WORKS ON YOGA AND TAROT, ASTROLOGY SOFTWARE, TAROT CARD SOFTWARE, AND MUCH, MUCH MORE!!!

Reading Tarot Cards takes years to learn how to do correctly because of the complexity of Tarot card symbolism; the individual meanings of each of the seventy-eight Tarot Cards, and the meanings of each of the positions, depending upon which layout method you are utilizing.

With Tarot, Yoga, (and even Aleister Crowley), repetition, practice, and experience count for everything! The symbolism of the Tarot is deep and at times quite obscure – mastery also depends, theoretically, on a psychic gift. I can demonstrate extraordinary abilities with the Tarot, and I have done so for more than fifteen years.

I want to write a small, practical book on how to learn and practice the Art of Tarot (and even Yoga) correctly, and how to gauge your own progress in a scientific manner! I will then make this book available through Green Planet Fantasy Malls!

Reading Tarot Cards, Yoga, and even Aleister Crowley are things that I know a lot about, and I am very well versed in other religious and mystical studies. Like Aleister Crowley, I do not personally believe in a Devil as some people believe, nor do I understand God to be as personal of a person as people sometimes portray Him, or think about Him. It is the same in Yoga.

For the most part, occult practices (including Tarot and Yoga) have more to do with cultivating self-discipline, focus, concentration, self-healing, physical and emotional healing, and later even learning to heal and/or help others. Aleister Crowley outlines numerous exercises in Yoga, breathing, meditation, and Tarot.

Also included in the works of Aleister Crowley there are practices of invoking and evoking forces, ritual, prayer, Yoga, working miracles, and Tarot divination. In some of these areas there is perhaps a lot of rubbish as far as writings and teachings go, but there also writings and practices that are gems; teachings and understandings in both Tarot and Yoga that anyone can benefit from.

True practice of the occult sciences (including the practices of the Tarot and Yoga) is to initiate you to a path of self-understanding, self acceptance, and self-discipline! As Aleister Crowley pointed out, it is to place yourself onto the Path that eventually leads you to YOU – to Love, Peace, Strength, Honor, and Devotion; the One, True Path (as in Yoga) that brings us closer to ourselves, and to God, and teaches us to be more Christ like!

This Path (which includes teachings from both Yoga and the Tarot) is as unique as each individual is, but the method of approach is very much the same for all of us!

At least some people have heard of the infamous Aleister Crowley, and perhaps even the infamous Aleister Crowley Castle. Aleister Crowley was a famous writer (on both Tarot and Yoga) who flourished around the turn of the century. Aleister Crowley was also a world record holder in the sport of mountain climbing, a world class chess player, and a big game hunter.

Aleister Crowley traveled the world, wrote books on Yoga and Tarot, studied heavily in the occult sciences, and was often referred to as a genius (especially in Yoga and Tarot) and was once even kicked out of Italy by none other than Mussolini himself. Many know of Aleister Crowley only because he was once hailed to be the wickedest man in the world in the tabloids of the 1940’s!

The Aleister Crowley Castle is not really a castle at all...see my pic at the bottom of this page! Most people who have heard of the infamous Aleister Crowley Castle have heard about it because it is now owned by the famous rock guitar player for Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page!

Though I myself once possessed a rare collection of Aleister Crowley’s works, including his best works on Yoga and the Tarot, Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin has collected an enormous amount of Aleister Crowley memorabilia. And, yes, he even bought Aleister Crowley’s flat on Loch Ness – the Aleister Crowley Castle!

(Aleister Crowley only lived in the Aleister Crowley Castle himself for roughly six months! The Magickal Work, Yoga, and Tarot he practiced there supposedly made the place haunted, and so even Aleister Crowley himself eventually left the flat!!!)

So, what did Aleister Crowley do during his six month stay on Loch Ness? Well, Aleister Crowley obtained a book called “The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage.”  Aside from practicing in Yoga and Tarot, he was, at that time, aspiring to the Magickal Grade of Adeptus Minor. (Yoga and Tarot are both important aspects of this Grade.)

Anyway, Aleister Crowley sought out and bought a place to retire for six months (sometimes referred to as a magickal retirement) while he carried out the instructions in the above mentioned book; a six month Ritual of Yoga and Magick in which the goal was to obtain to The Knowledge and Conversation of The Holy Guardian Angel.

I understand a thing or two about this particular Grade Work myself, and, if accomplished correctly, attainment in this Grade means simply that you now understand what God’s True Will is for you. (As I stated already, both Yoga and Tarot are important to this Grade.) In the next Magickal Grade of Work you set out to rearrange your life in accordance with your Divine understanding.

Attainment in this Magickal Grade means that you finally understand your strengths and weaknesses in such a way as to know what God’s will is for you; it is like finally understanding who you are, and what your purpose is, especially from the Divine perspective. This is all a rather complicated subject, as Aleister Crowley would agree!

Whether or not Aleister Crowley succeeded in this Work or not was heavily debated within his own circles. But, the flat pictured below is where Aleister Crowley settled down to undertake this Magickal Work. The Aleister Crowley Castle is purportedly haunted as a direct result of Aleister Crowley’s Work there! I suppose we could all ask Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin if the Aleister Crowley castle is really haunted, assuming he himself has ever been there!

About the Author

For more on this article and for more great “how to” articles and FREE downloads, visit Green Planet Fantasy Theater. Music artists, Tarot, Computer Games, and Poker, plus DVD Movies, Music Collections, Games, Books, Software, and Adult XXX Movies, Videos, and PC Games FREE.

(ArticlesBase SC #625291)

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ – Tarot, Yoga, and Aleister Crowley

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Condottiere Francesco Sforza, painted by Bonifacio Bemo, c. 1460. Image via Wikipedia

Author: Janet Francis

Tarot cards—a clever marketing strategy or an ancient mystical guide?

There is much mystery surrounding the history of the tarot and countless myths about its origins. Cynics say that this mystery has been manipulated as a marketing tool for tarot card salesmen!

However, by just looking at the evidence and opinions supplied by other tarot enthusiasts we see that the earliest surviving full deck was painted in 1422 by Italian artist Bonifacio Bembo. This is known as the Visconti deck, named after the Duke of Milan, who commissioned them.

Although accounts of Ancient Egyptian, Celtic, Indian and earlier Italian links have been suggested, there is no evidence of any earlier decks.

The cards were originally used for a game called Tarocchi or ‘Game of Triumphs’ which was similar to Bridge. The game was played mainly by the Upper Classes and has continued in some circles.

The tarot’s use by the Upper Classes probably saved the game from being banned by the Church even though it was considered to be heresy and was outlawed by the Church. Indeed in the latter half of the fifteenth century some church sermons labelled tarot as the work of the Devil, but the Church had better foes to fight where cards were concerned- mainly games promoting gambling.

It is believed that the cards were used for inspiration for poetry, describing aspects of the human mind and character traits. The cards have obviously evolved according to the culture of the times and attitudes from whence they were used.

Probably the most important manifestations and manipulations of the Tarot deck were by Alistair Crowley and Waite of the Rider-Waite deck. The imagery on this deck is the one with which we are most familiar today. The Rider- Waite deck was introduced into America in the twentieth century and the one most available to the American public.

For more information on tarot cards visit http://www.thetextperts.co.uk/tarot.html

About the Author:
Janet Francis is currently opening her own business while continuing to freelance as a commercial writer. Check out her new services at http://www.entourageangels.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Tarot Cards- a Clever Marketing Strategy or an Ancient Mystical Guide?

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Image by fling93 via Flickr

Author: Lori Hampson

Tarot – myths and misconceptions

A Tarot deck is a pack of 78 picture cards – yes, that simple. However, the pictures on these cards are worth more than a thousand words – they paint a picture of life. A Tarot deck can also be thought of as a Book of Life but every time you read this book, the pages are rearranged and it tells a different story.

Over the years, some strange myths have grown up around Tarot and Tarot reading. However weird and outdated these ideas may seem today, there is often some truth in their origins.

• One of the first Tarot myths encountered is that it is bad luck to buy your own deck. – it should be bought for you by someone else. You could wait for ever for this to happen and then it may be one you don’t like. Choose and buy your own first deck, examine the images carefully and make sure you can relate to them i.e. don’t buy a dragon deck if you are frightened of dragons.

• You have to be psychic to be able to read the Tarot. Many who read the Tarot are psychic and this will lead to a different type of reading but not necessarily a better one. Anyone can learn to read the tarot although, as with anything, some will have more of an aptitude for it than others.

• The Tarot cards must be wrapped in black silk to protect them from “negative forces?” That is entirely up to you although personally I feel that dust and children’s fingers may be a greater danger. By all means take the necessary precautions to keep the cards clean and in good condition. They are, after all, your tools.

• Never let anyone else touch your cards. This is another personal choice. In a face to face reading situation it can be beneficial to let the querent (questioner) shuffle the cards in order to impart some of their energies into the deck.

• You should not read your own cards. Some say this is unlucky, I say it can be difficult to read ones own cards objectively. By this I mean it is easy to see what you want to see in your own cards.

• The “Death” card means that someone around you is going to die. Theoretically, this is possible as we are all going to die but it is highly unlikely that this card on its own will prophesise someone’s death.

• What the Tarot cards say is always right. Nothing is set in stone – more like written in sand. We all have our free will and the Tarot gives us guidance along with choices that we can make in our lives. It is up to us to choose our paths. If we see something in a reading that we do not like then we have the choice to do something about changing that thing.

• Tarot is evil. Also described as the “Devil’s Picture Book”. It is human nature to be afraid of something that is not fully understood or what is viewed as threatening. True, some of the images may be a bit scary in some decks but so are some great works of art – they aren’t thought of as evil.

At the end of the day, they are your cards for you to do what you wish with them. If performing a ritual before a reading makes you feel better – then do it. Just use your common sense. As long as it harms no one else – do what you wish.

About the Author:

Tarot reader, Lori Hampson, offers advice and guidance for all life’s challenges through her website. Please visit http://www.tarotforlifeguidance.co.uk for further insights and information on Tarot readings, Tarot cards, events and Tarot in general.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Tarot – Myths and Misconceptions

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Le Bateleur (The Magician) from the Marseilles deck.

Author: Malc Moore

The first description of tarot decks appeared as early as the beginning of the 15th century when Martiano da Tortona mentioned some card games that resembled a lot to tarot. The symbols on these early illustrations were Greek deities while the suits matched four types of birds, a pattern totally different from the basic Italian decks.

These forefathers of the tarot deck counted only sixteen cards, but they surely enjoyed great popularity. Later, other decks are described by Italian documents throughout the 15th century. Given the heraldic, social, poetical and philosophical interpretations of the cards, modern researchers are surely impressed by the vividness of the symbolism and the ideology behind it.

The oldest tarot deck preserved to our times were designed according to the specifications of the Visconti family. The sixty-six cards are presently on public display at the Yale University Library in New Haven.

Le Bateleur (The Magician) from the Oswald Wirth deck

Another well-known deck was painted by Bonifacio Bembo according to the instructions of Maria Visconti. They are preserved with the exception of two who were either lost or never existed. These latter tarot decks are known as Visconti-Sforza and their design is very popular nowadays too.

Lots of modern reproductions combine batons, swords, coins and cups with trump cards as the clear image of traditional iconography of the old times.

An analysis of the first-made tarot decks indicates a reduced number given the painstaking effort required for their design. Tarot decks have survived from Marseilles, Egypt or Switzerland and in time they came to be associated with magic and mysticism. Occultism and magic fans were the first to embrace and widely use the cards for all sorts of symbolic interpretations that have survived to our modern world too.

The Magician from the Rider-Waite deck

The tarot deck cannot be given a clear origin, yet, some scientists revealed that the etymology of the word tarot is Egyptian, meaning the royal road. According to tradition, Gypsies are said to have spread the tradition of card reading in the first place, but we don’t know for sure when tarot decks started to gain mass attention.

What we know for sure is that Eliphas Levi introduced the tarot in the English speaking world, initially for aristocrats and then among the middle classes.

About the Author:

For more about psychic tarot and tarot decks, check out our website at www.psychics4you.co.uk

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Different Tarot Decks Designs

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