Is Tarot Haram?

Tarot is a deck of cards that is used for divination, or the practice of predicting the future. The cards are believed to hold spiritual or symbolic meaning, and a skilled reader, or tarotist, can use the cards to answer questions or provide guidance on a person’s life. While tarot has a long history and has been used by many people for many purposes, its use for divination is the most well-known.

Some people believe that tarot cards have the power to reveal hidden truths and provide insight into a person’s life. The cards are typically arranged in a spread, with each position in the spread representing a different aspect of the person’s life or question they have asked. The tarotist then interprets the cards based on their positions in the spread and their relationship to each other.

While tarot is not considered haram, or forbidden, by all Muslims, some interpretations of Islamic law view divination as haram. Divination is the practice of using supernatural or magical means to predict the future, and some people believe that tarot falls into this category.

It is generally considered haram (forbidden) to believe in or practice divination, which includes using tarot cards. This is because divination is seen as a form of seeking knowledge or guidance from sources other than God, and Islam teaches that only God has complete knowledge and control over the future. Belief in or practice of divination is also considered a form of shirk, which is the sin of attributing partners to God or seeking help from other beings besides God.

However, it is important to note that Islamic teachings and practices can vary among different sects and schools of thought within Islam. Some Muslims may believe that tarot reading or other forms of divination are acceptable, while others may consider them haram.

Ultimately, whether or not tarot is considered haram depends on an individual’s interpretation of Islamic law and their own personal beliefs. Some Muslims may see tarot as a harmless form of entertainment, while others may view it as a sinful or forbidden practice.

Tarot, generally can be quite contentious through religions, especially Abrahamic religions. The question as to whether Tarot is Good or Evil comes up quite a lot. Some view any form of divination as abhorrent, others see it more of a game, nothing to be taken seriously.

Some religions have a core concept of what is right and wrong, permitted or forbidden. Islam and Judaism are two well known examples of this. Their followers use rules to guide their lives into what acts and foods are allowed, and which ones are not.

Tarot is not explicitly mentioned in the great texts of either, which is not surprising, as Tarot was invented over a thousand years after the Qu’ran was written, and many more years after the Tanakh. This article will explore Islam and it’s stance on divination. (Spoiler: it’s not a positive one).

Both texts from Judaism and Islam mention soothsayers. Divination has been practised in one form of another for thousands of years, possibly even the length of human history. There are some interesting passages about divination in religious texts; usually negative.

To start with, it is safe to say that Tarot is considered Haram (not permitted to be practised) within the Islamic faith. Islam views divination and seekers as an insult to Allan and Muhammed.

In Islamic teachings, fortune-telling and divination are considered acts of shirk (associating partners with God), as they involve seeking knowledge of the unseen through means other than those permitted by Allah. As such, Muslims are generally discouraged from engaging in practices that involve the use of tarot cards or any other form of divination.

It is important to note that Islamic teachings emphasize the importance of seeking knowledge and wisdom, but this should be done through means that are permissible and in accordance with Islamic values and principles.

There is a belief that when an act of divination occurs, the Diviner is in actuality talking to Jinn (or Djinn (Genies)), spirits who have their own agendas. “They twist the word of heaven and spell it out to the diviner, who then adds their own lies”. An interesting quote that puts both diviners and the querent in a negative light.

Seeking a Soothsayer to find our your future is seen as an act of faithlessness. It is said that whomever wants to know the future has no faith in what Allah has laid out for them. Tarot reading, and interpreting Tarot cards would surely fall under this category.

I think it is quite conclusive that Tarot is considered Haram within Islamic belief. If you are a Muslim and practice Tarot, you’ll likely have to think things over.

I’d like to continue exploring divination across the cultures of the world, there is more than just Tarot if you want to perform divination!

Getting a wider view of everyone’s opinions is important too, especially, like Islam here, the opinions of those that view your practice in a negative light.

Summer Update

Well, five months in already. What a journey Tarot Nova is becoming! Our last news post was in June, and time sure has flown since then! Lots has been happening in my personal life, and sadly I have been neglecting the website! This is all due to change however. Things are now sorted and it is time to get back on track!

Pentacles Completed

You may have seen, but the Pentacles tarot card meanings are now ‘complete’. I say ‘complete’ with quotation marks because they aren’t complete, they are just at a good base level to grow from. Once all the card meanings have reached this v1.0 stage, I’ll look to add more; reversals, symbology and astrological meanings.

Wands are getting there!

The Wands suit is nearly complete too. Things have just been so hectic in my life, what with moving into a new place coupled with some job complications, I haven’t been able to make the July deadline I set myself. here is hoping that August should see the Wands suit reaching v1.0.

How to shuffle tarot cards

A small article was added regarding shuffling. Some cool things to try out that you may not have considered.

Tarot Nova Discord server

Currently, this is only advertised right here, and the invite link is for a small number of people only. I’m looking to build a small team to discuss how we can work together to make the site better, as well as chat about Tarot! Feel free to join if you are interested in helping out or would like to discuss other collaboration!

Future goals

The goal for the future is simple and clear. Finish the card meanings. Add more spread descriptions. I have such a backlog of notes to work through and Tarot Nova is an ongoing, evolving project. If you’d like to submit an article or chat about collaborating, fire me an email, comment here, or join the discord server!

Thanks for reading this update post, I hope you have a great day.

Happy new year all

Welcome to 2020, and a Happy new year from all at Tarot Nova (so, just me then!) I hope that 2019 was a good year for you and that this continues into 2020. There was a massive issue on the site which meant that no links were working, which is now fixed. Hooray!

Here are the plans for Tarot nova this year:

  • Further work on the card descriptions, they need some more details and I like to review them every now and then to make sure I haven’t made any silly mistakes!
  • Work on and add more the spreads, I have lots written down that I just need to turn into fancy graphics and upload. Also, the current graphics could do with improving.
  • Change the site theme, this one seems to break a lot and has a very heavy feeling, something light and easy to read would be ideal.
  • Work on the Tarot deck! I’ve been meaning to do this for ages, so now is a good time to start. Expect to hear about this some point this year, there is no rush!
  • Add a bunch more articles I have planned, as well as reach out to others whom would like to contribute to the site.

Wishing you all a happy, healthy January. It’s a busy one for me, so my next post will likely be on Tarot Nova’s first birthday, which I have unofficially set to be April 1st (or thereabouts)

I have been cutting down my social media use, but there is a page for us which you may follow if you feel so inclined: https://www.facebook.com/Tarot-Nova

Regards,

May 2019 Update

A lot has been happening this month, the second month of Tarot Nova. On Beltane, it seems fitting to wrap up what has happened so far and look forward to what is going to come.

Card Meanings

Ten card meanings have been written and revised from old notes. The first ten cards of the Major Arcana are all there, ready for your perusal. This is what the site is all about, so I’m happy to have managed ten cards despite other commitments right now.

Somewhat naively, I’m looking to add the equivalent of one new card meaning per day, meaning that all the card meanings should be in place by the 8th of July. Whether this happens or not is anyone’s guess, but it’s good to set a goal in any case. With an upcoming milestone birthday, it’s likely I will not make this ‘deadline’, but anything can happen.

The Logo

I’m loving the logo. Much like the older Tarot-Explained logo, this was designed by Jio Butler. You can find her below. She’s currently doing a lot of cute and cosy illustrations, as well as some funny and informative cartoons.

About

There is an about page now, with a little bit of history of the site. This will be updated in due course, as well as having information about our contributors added, which leads us nicely towards:

Get in Touch

If you’d like to contribute to Tarot Nova, then by all means get in touch. Tarot-Explained was a solo affair, and I would like Tarot Nova to be more of a group endeavour. If you feel you have something to contribute, or would simply like a chat, then by all means get in touch through the form provided.

We’re especially looking for people who would like to contribute regularly, but don’t worry if this isn’t you! I realise this is a very early stage of the site right now so I am not expecting much in terms of contact, but the offer is always there.

That’s it for news this month. Back to the card meanings for me!

Kali

How to shuffle Tarot cards

Shuffling Tarot cards has become an art within itself; there are so many ways to shuffle or otherwise prepare your Tarot deck for a reading.

There are a lot of different ways to shuffle a Tarot deck. Maybe you have never considered how you shuffle your deck, or perhaps you have a very unique way of doing it.

Below I’ll describe some well known and some lesser known ways to shuffle your Tarot deck!

Regular hand shuffling

Regular shuffling is exactly what you’d expect. Holding the cards in your hands, picking up some and distributing them randomly within the deck, just as you would with regular playing cards.

This works for so many reasons; it’s mindless nature adds to the random outcome. When you truly want an answer from somewhere else, random shuffling is the go-to method for preparing your deck.

Make sure you don’t peek at any cards, even by accident. If you do happen to glimpse a card, just keep shuffling until you have no idea where it is.

There is no time limit when shuffling a deck, just keep going until you feel happy to stop.

When you do feel that the deck has been shuffled enough, put it down and draw your cards from the top.

Deck cutting

This is a practice I’ve been doing more and more, and it works well for larger spreads, or when you want to perform multiple spreads.

Deck cutting involves (unsurprisingly!) cutting your deck, and only using a certain number of cards, rather than the whole deck. Truth be told, there are a lot of ways to cut your deck, so I’ll show by example.

Take your deck and cut it in two. It doesn’t have to be even. Put one half aside.

Of the remaining half, you may choose to shuffle them regularly, or use them as-is.

Deal the spread using the cut cards.

This works especially well if you are intending to perform multiple spreads. using a smaller number of cards overall will keep the theme tighter, and you may get a more concise answer.

A benefit of using fewer cards over multiple spreads is that you may see more repetitions. Take the messages from any repeated cards seriously.

Fanning

This is an especially good way to shuffle and present your deck when performing a reading for somebody else.

Holding your deck, lay it on a table. Spread out the deck so that the backs of each card are visible.

Ask your querent to choose a number of tarot cards at random. The number of cards they choose should correspond to the number in the spread you are going to perform.

Fanning cards out adds a level of interaction for the querent, and can make the reading more engaging, rather than being a purely passive affair.

Once they have chosen the cards, discard the rest of the deck and work solely with these cards for the spread.

Do you shuffle your Tarot deck is a specific way? Let me know in the comments, I’d love to hear!

How a Tarot Reader learned Lenormand

The following is a guest post; Chelsea is 27, and a professional tarot reader from Southern California. You can find out more about her at her website; Pigeon Sauvage Tarot.

I love Tarot. Since I write about it, run an online community about it, and devote most of my social media and any spare cash to it, I think it’s pretty safe to say that I really love tarot. I have been reading since I was a youngster, and I can say without a doubt that tarot has shaped who I am, simply because I have been using tarot for most of my life. There are lots of things I love about tarot, such as the complexity and the fact that holding a deck of tarot cards really is like holding a small, yet complete world in your hand.

For years, I only read using tarot. Sure, I picked up the odd oracle deck here and there, and as much as I liked them, I would almost always use them as an added element to a tarot reading. Tarot was the cake, the filling, and the frosting- and then there was an oracle card acting as the decorative sprinkles.

Then I found myself in a position where I needed to give succinct readings that got to the point quickly. I could get the answers with tarot, but any tarot enthusiast will tell you that more experience leads to longer and more complex readings, not shorter ones! The more you know about tarot, the more layers of nuance you will see in the cards.

That’s when I turned an eye to Lenormand, a system which contains thirty-six cards with names of commonplace items, although they are based on playing cards. It was very quick to learn and I found that I really loved using the system. Where tarot is tons of symbolism and hidden meanings, Lenormand is fast and blunt- after all, the only symbol on a Lenormand card that really matters is the one which tells you its name!

It might sound like Lenormand is the exact opposite of tarot which is mostly true. The main difference between the two is that you will never draw a single Lenormand card- you need at least two in order to read them. This is because Lenormand is read by seeing how the cards near each other relate to one another. If you draw Garden (social situations) and Dog (loyal friend), you can expect a gathering with your closest friends. But if you draw Garden and Mountain (obstacles), you might want to prepare yourself for a rough night! You can add further cards to clarify and give context, and you can place up to five of these in a line. Where the cards fall in the line makes a difference, as how near or far any two cards are from each other will tell you how much they influence each other.

This brings us to the next major difference between tarot and Lenormand- which spreads you use for each one. There are tons of tarot spreads, and you can find one for any topic, using as many cards as you like. Each position in the spread will have a meaning assigned to it- this one means “the situation”, that one means “what to do about it”, and so on. This may rattle your tarot reading mind, but… Lenormand spreads are determined almost entirely by how many cards you want to use. That’s right. They have no names. The positions do not each have a special significance. They are laid out in a gridlike pattern. The reason for all of this is really simple- the way you read a Lenormand spread is by seeing how the cards relate to one another and where they fall. A card placed above another will have a different meaning than the same card falling underneath it. A card touching another card will have a different influence on each other than the same cards spaced further apart. When you lay out a nine card grid, you are actually reading several three card spreads- three horizontal, three vertical, and two diagonal. But you can also look at any two cards to see where they fall and how they relate to each other. It’s a pattern of reading that is both much more simple (no spreads to remember!) and much more complex (all the positions to keep in mind!) than tarot.

I mentioned earlier that the only relevant symbol on a Lenormand card is the one which gives that card a name. This is another big difference between tarot and Lenormand. Whether or not a tarot deck works for you is often decided by how well the symbolism used resonates with you. Ultimately, a tarot deck is a tarot deck because of the symbolism that the creator used to represent each part of that seventy-eight card system, and you might find that a card in one deck gives you a very different impression than the same card in another deck. Symbolism in Lenormand is very different. Some readers will read using directionality- as in, where a figure faces or which side of the card is shadowy or sunny will impact the interpretations- but this is optional. While many decks are beautifully detailed and fully illustrated, the full image isn’t so important, as every single card means the exact same thing in every deck. As long as Clover has a clover on it, it’s fine. The grassy field or blank space behind that clover don’t mean anything. This can make choosing a deck easier, because your only concern is that you like the art and the relevant symbols are easily identified. However, you don’t get much help from the cards when you read, so part of learning Lenormand is memorizing what the cards mean.

The last major difference that I will touch on is how you learn and memorize each system. Most of us don’t want to learn tarot the way one would memorize flash cards, both because you would be losing out on the symbolism and because that would be a lot of flash cards to memorize. Over time, you will learn what each card means, but usually you’ll be learning how to read the symbolism and naturally have each card committed to memory. In my experience, Lenormand is the opposite. You might need to intentionally memorize that Fox can be either an enemy or a job, because the only symbol on the card is a fox. Intentional memorization is less of an issue with Lenormand because the symbolism isn’t there for you to miss out on, and because there are only thirty-six cards. It’s more like learning the parts of a sentence in order to make up a message than learning the complexities that can describe the entire world.

There are plenty of reasons to love Lenormand. I like that answers are quick and can be blunt. I also like that it’s easy to get specific details, and that yes-or-no questions are easy to answer. Probably the thing that I love most is that Lenormand tends to focus on the everyday and on how events will affect the querent in a practical sense. Tarot is my first love, but I can’t imagine ever giving up my Lenormand decks.

Chelsea is 27, and a professional tarot reader from Southern California. You can find out more about her at her website; Pigeon Sauvage Tarot.

The Ethics of Tarot

It’s easy for a tarot reader to get so swept away with what they can see that they don’t stop to consider what they should see, and more importantly, what kind of information they should be sharing!

Ethical concerns in regards to tarot is a topic which comes up often, and most readers with even a little bit of experience will be able to tell you what they’re willing (or unwilling) to read for. Everyone will have a different code of ethics, and this article will focus on some of the more common moral questions, to help you design your own code of ethics.

Do you read for health questions?

Health questions aren’t the most common, but they do come up. You might get asked anything from “Am I pregnant?” to “What is this growth?” I don’t personally tell querents anything that a doctor should tell them.

Why? Because I am most emphatically not a doctor. If you don’t want me to decipher your medical charts, then you also shouldn’t want me consulting the cards to figure out what’s going on with your body. I recommend staying away from health questions, although some readers will tell someone that they see something health-related, and urge the querent to see a doctor.

Do you give financial advice?

Do you work in finance? If not, I would also recommend staying away from giving specific financial advice. The key word here is “specific”.

I won’t tell someone which stocks to buy, but I will tell them if they need to save money or if I’m seeing something about a career change. I will also tell them if I see a period of wealth or hardship, and I will also let them know if a career opportunity will be a good option for them.

Do you offer legal advice?

The same thing that I said about doctors and financial advisors also applies here. If you are not a lawyer, I recommend staying away from giving any legal advice. I will give insights into how the case may develop, or pull a few cards to see what impact the legal situation in question will have on the querent’s life.

The questions regarding health, financial, and legal advice can be pretty straightforward, ethically. My own rule of thumb is that if the question would usually require a professional in that particular field to answer, then it’s not my place to answer it.

This is for my protection as well as the querent’s- I don’t want to lead them down the wrong path because I didn’t understand what I was looking at, and I also do not want anyone to seek legal action against me because my misunderstanding had disastrous consequences for them.

Some readers will take these questions, and I would never say that they’re wrong for doing so- but it is an ethical concern that at some point, you’ll have to find a solution for. I don’t mind doing general readings for querents with these types of questions and giving them an opinion based on what I can see in the cards, to the best of my understanding.

This means that they don’t get a diagnosis of their illness, but it means that maybe I can tell them that yes, they should see that doctor, and here are the things they should keep in mind when they do.

It can be much harder to define boundaries when it comes to questions that might touch on a gray area. It’s impossible to completely see from someone else’s eyes, and there is always going to be context that you don’t know about when someone comes to you for guidance.

Are you willing to perform a third-party reading?

There are a ton of people who might approach you to ask about how their partner feels about them, what’s going on in their adult son/daughter’s life, or if their best friend has feelings for the same person they do.

How far are you willing to venture into someone else’s private business, when they haven’t consented to the reading? Some readers will dive right in, and some stay completely out of it. I am willing to read into someone else’s business to the extent that it will help my querent.

Finding out that your partner or your close friend are not who they say they are is helpful. Snooping into someone else’s private life just because it’s eating you up and you can snoop is definitely not helpful.

How will you handle readings for subjects that you personally disagree with?

If someone is cheating on their partner or is the affair partner for someone else, does that mean that you don’t want to read for their relationship question? What if they want a reading about a lie they’ve been telling to someone close to them? I’m willing to take these questions.

In no way do I condone dishonesty, but I do my best to set that aside and possibly try to help someone sort out a part of their life that isn’t going to plan. I’m honest about what the cards say, even if it’s not the advice that I would give based on my personal values.

Some readers may not want to take these kinds of questions, and that’s completely understandable.

Are you willing to read for illegal activities?

This is one of the few topics that I turn down flat. Yes, I know there are laws that are outdated, don’t make sense, or are unfair. I’m still not ever going to assist my querent in doing something illegal, because at the very least I don’t want to be complicit in illegal activity.

To me, the purpose of a reading is to help the querent make sense of their life and figure out how to improve their situation- encouraging them to break the law will not serve that purpose! Many readers will take questions about illegal activity, which is also a valid choice.

That being said, the same kind of legal problem that may come along with giving health/legal/financial advice can also come up when giving these types of readings.

How will you respond to querents intending to make unhealthy choices?

You can see in the cards that their partner is no good, that the dream they’re chasing won’t give them good results, or that they are way too dependant on their parents… but that’s not what they came to figure out.

You can tell them that the person they’ve fallen in love with is totally wrong for them, but they don’t really care about that– they just want to know when they’ll get married. Plenty of readers will choose not to continue the reading, or will refuse to answer the question. I think that’s fine- if you don’t want to give them bad advice, it can be best not to entertain questions about pursuing a path that won’t be healthy.

However, if you do wish to continue the reading, you may want to reiterate what the cards have shown you, and then approach the question. Saying something like “The cards show me that this is wrong for you because of these reasons, however, if you did want to follow this path, this is what will happen,” will still allow you to answer the question and state your concerns.

How do you approach readings for major life decisions?

Sometimes, you’ll be asked to advise on a choice that would completely alter someone’s life. This is a big responsibility, and it can (and should) feel like a heavy thing that’s being asked of you.

While I would never tell someone to do exactly what a tarot reader or psychic tells them to do without giving it quite a lot of consideration, the fact is that once you give someone advice, they can do whatever they want with it. It’s out there, and it can’t be taken back.

So how do you handle someone asking if they should get a divorce, or have a baby, or move to a different country with $40 and a dream? I don’t think that you need to turn down these questions.

Rather, I think you need to figure out how to approach the reading with respect and give the question appropriate consideration. If you can’t do that, it’s best to be honest. Tell them that there’s no way you can tell them whether or not to have a baby with just three cards and fifteen minutes, or that you need to have more context before you can do the reading.

The cards, the knowledge, and the intuition are only part of the tarot experience. It’s also incredibly important to make sure that you are giving readings that you feel proud of, and that you’re happy with the influence you have on the lives of your querents.

Chelsea is 27, and a professional tarot reader from Southern California. You can find out more about her at her website; Pigeon Sauvage Tarot.

Every question you ever wanted to ask about Tarot!

Ever had a question about Tarot which you just felt was too silly to bring up? Don’t worry, the definitive Tarot FAQ is finally here! I’ve attempted to answer questions I would expect anybody new to Tarot to have.

These come from questions I have had myself, friends and strangers have posed to me, as well as common-sense questions that everybody should know concerning Tarot. I thought it’d be best to arrange them all into one easy to find post!

A lot of the headline titles for each question are links; so if the question hasn’t satiated your appetite, simply click the title!

This post will be regularly updated when new questions are sent in, so be sure to check back! For now, I hope you find what you need. If you have a question you’d like to see answered, or maybe you have a different opinion on the answer, then by all means let us know!

What is Tarot?

Tarot is a complex form of divination; using a 78-card deck, which is divided into five suits. A tarot reader will deal tarot cards in a prescribed pattern, and then using the inherent meanings of the cards, as well as their own intuition, they will decode the message that the cards are portraying.

Tarot is used in a number of beliefs and in multiple ways. Tarot is a very complex, but eclectic form of divination; one reader may use a Tarot deck in a completely different way to another.

Is Tarot dangerous at all?

The honest answer here is potentially. Tarot is potentially dangerous. As it is a tool, it all depends on how it is used, and how you interpret ‘danger’.

The cards themselves are not dangerous, but the person who uses them may have an ulterior motive. If you receive a reading; carefully examine the result. Was the reader genuine and honest with you at all times?

If you decide to perform a reading for yourself or others, then you should always look at the message given as a suggestions, advice or counsel, rather than an instruction or order. The tarot gives you a message, but nobody is forcing you to act on it.

Where did Tarot come from?

As with many mystic practices, the origins are not entirely clear. It is generally understood that Tarot cards evolved from playing cards in and around the 15th century.

As a form of divination, Tarot comes about thanks to a french pastor; Antoine Court de Gébelin. He proposed that Tarot cards held mystic knowledge, from the Egyptian mystery tradition, and worked to unlock it’s secrets.’Le Monde primitif’ is a book by de Gébelin, which features a chapter on Tarot.

Gébelin wrote that the Egyptian god Thoth invented the cards and that they held within them the secrets of the Egyptians. He proposed that the Tarot deck was a visual representation of the Book of Thoth. News of this spread, and soon Tarot readers sprung up, interpreting the cards as having meanings and giving out messages.

How does Tarot work?

Tarot works usually through dealing a defined ‘spread’. Cards are placed in certain patterns, each pattern resembling an aspect of the answer to the question the spread was placed for.

A reader will shuffle the deck, place cards, and then define a message from the placement of the cards; the meaning of the cards, and their intuition on the cards.

A Tarot reading can be an intimate and personal affair, and the conversation the querent and reader have can help the reading grow and unlock.

How can I learn to read Tarot?

The best advice anybody can give you (and this isn’t just for Tarot!) is this; Just start. You learn Tarot by doing. You’ll be terrible at first but once you start to learn what cards mean and grow your own thoughts and feelings for them, you’ll become a more confident reader. Do readings for yourself, for friends and family.

For starters, you need to buy a deck. Then you’ll need to learn the meanings of the cards. You can do this while learning spreads. Tarot isn’t a science. Buy a journal and keep it; record your readings and your thoughts about the cards. This could be a whole post (and it likely will soon!)

We also have a free Tarot guide available on Tarot Nova. The guide takes you from a complete novice to a confident reader. Be sure to check it out below! The guide is completely free, and updated frequently, so be sure to check back often!

Do you need to be special to read Tarot cards?

No not at all. It is my belief that anybody can learn tarot. It is a skill you need to practice. There is a lot of differing beliefs in Tarot, and the occult world as a whole. Some people believe in psychic gifts, others do not.

Personally, I do not believe myself to have any innate psychic ability, and I can read tarot cards as well as other readers. Others have told me my readers were right on the money. All you need to do is have the right mentality, and practice.

What is a ‘Querent’ and why do I keep seeing this word!?

Quite a strange word, isn’t it? Quite simply a Querent is somebody receiving a reading. The Wikipedia entry for Querent is quite interesting, but it can be summarised as simply somebody receiving an answer from an oracle (somebody who performs divination).

Simply put, if somebody is performing a tarot reading for you, then you are the querent, even if you’re reading a spread for yourself!

Can Tarot cards predict the future?

It’s a slight misconception that Tarot tells the future. The Tarot can give you a possible future, but not a definite one. A great way to think about the Tarot is as a separate entity, giving advice. You certainly don’t have to take advice you are given!

Tarot Nova card meanings do have future sections, and many spreads deal with the future. These are in place to help the querent keep these things in mind, and to keep an open mind to potential possibilities. Why might this be happening? What could cause that to happen? How can I stop it? How can I make sure that happens?

Tarot is best used in situations where you need help. A tarot reading will help you see a particular scenario from another perspective. It can ease tensions when you see an argument from the other side, and having a bigger picture almost always helps you make an informed decision if a choice is concerned.

What is a Tarot ‘Spread’?

A Tarot spread is the way that Tarot cards are laid out and interpreted. A famous spread is the ‘Celtic cross’, but spreads can have as few as one or two cards. A simple spread is ‘Past, Present and Future’. You deal three cards, each one pertaining to each period of time.

Card meanings on Tarot Nova are divided into category sections to help with reading spreads. The process is quite simple; shuffle the deck, place the cards, read the meanings if you need to and then use your intuition to come up with a message or answer.

It can be a lot of fun to create your own Tarot spreads, but if you are just starting out, then it is best to follow traditional ones to learn from.

What is the ‘Major Arcana’?

The Major Arcana are the 22 face cards in the Tarot deck. Whereas a regular playing card deck has four suits, the Tarot deck has five; four regular numbered suits (Cups, Pentacles, Wands, Swords) and one ‘Trump’ deck, the Major Arcana.

The Major Arcana follow the ‘Journey of the Fool’. Most of the well known Tarot cards; The Fool, The Hermit, The Lovers, Death, belong to the Major Arcana. The Major Arcana each depict a unique scene, usually containing a person, and they each tie into a specific aspect of life and learning.

The Journey of the Fool depicts our journey through life. We start ignorant, grow and learn to completion, and then the cycle returns to the start. Each card in the Major Arcana represents a moment on this journey. Major Arcana cards are more direct and definite compared to the Minor Arcana.

So what is the Minor Arcana?

Each other suit in the Tarot deck is divided into 4 suits; Cups, Wands, Pentacles and Swords. There are 14 cards in each, and they slightly resemble contemporary playing cards. There are numbered cards, and Court cards (Like the King, Queen and Jack in normal playing cards).

The Minor Arcana represent different aspects of a persons life, and each suit represents a different aspect of life; Cups represent emotions. Wands represent will. Pentacles represent possession. Swords represent beliefs.

Are there different types of Tarot card reader?

Definitely! Some Tarot card readers will use Tarot as a therapeutic tool, others will use it as a means to contact spirits or the dead. Tarot is simply a tool, used by many people from different walks of life. Some readers will live the mystic life outwardly, others would have a surprising, regular appearance.

Once you start having readings from multiple Tarot readers, you will be able to tell the different types of readers apart. Experience plays a big part, but also the techniques they use. You could have a completely non-mystical, informal tarot card reading in a pub, given to you by a friend, and it would be just as meaningful as having to enter a Gypsy style wagon and talk to an old woman in a shawl.

Break the rules; if you’re learning to read Tarot then you’ll soon adopt your own style.

My personal style is very informal, but direct. I do not claim to be a psychic when I perform a reading, I just know the meanings of the cards and have my own inbuilt, personal thoughts and feelings concerning them and how they relate.

I will tell people the meaning of the spread, but I will not claim that any authority or otherworldly force has given me this message.

How accurate is a Tarot card reading?

As you may be learning, Tarot is an intuitive art, and not an exact science. Tarot card readings can be accurate and precise, or less on the mark and a bit more vague. Really it can all depend on how you use Tarot and which questions you ask.

Asking a vague question may result in a vague answer. Tarot requires a certain level of belief and connecting the dots. If you use it as a tool, you won’t worry about accuracy. You’ll simply see the message given and choose whether or not you want to follow it.

How much does intuition count in Tarot?

Intuition counts a lot in Tarot! At first I thought Tarot was an exact science, but after you jump the first hurdle it is a very personal journey. You can tell which reader is using their intuition and wisdom in a reader, and which readers are simply repeating meanings they have read in the little white leaflet.

At the start, you should have the mentality of just going with the flow. Read the leaflet that comes with the cards, check card meanings online. Eventually you’ll learn the meanings of the cards and then you’l start to grow your own meanings from these seeds. You’ll effectively grow your intuition the more you practise tarot. Tarot is an art, not a science!

Are Tarot cards religious?

Not especially! Tarot cards are coated with religious symbology; you’ll see the Pentacle for instance, and certain illustrations in the Rider-Waite deck are linked to Abrahamic religions.

Egyptian symbology is also prevalent, and you can see elements of Kabbalah also. Tarot cards take all these influences symbolically to present unique illustrations which makes interpretation easier.

The cards themselves are not religious, and the practice of Tarot reading can be used by people from any religion if they wish. Some may use Tarot cards to talk to spirits or the dead, others will not. It all echoes the eclectic nature of Tarot; it can be whatever you want it to be!

Is Tarot evil?

No, not at all. If it were, then I wouldn’t have made this site. Tarot is a tool. And while it can be used for evil, or negative rituals if the practitioner so wishes, it is about as evil as a spoon, a hammer, or glue.

Nowadays, Tarot is seen as relatively harmless, but this wasn’t always the case. The ‘satanic panic’ trend of the mid 80’s classified many occult practices as ‘evil’, and some are only just starting to recover now.

If you tell somebody you are interested in Tarot nowadays, you may at worst get a strange look. Tarot is becoming so common and well known that you can now even buy decks in regular bookstores.

In any case, don’t let somebody else’s opinion about something affect yours. If you want to give tarot a try, by all means do so!

Do Tarot cards use energy?

You might already be able to predict the answer to this one, but; possibly. Some believe tarot cards and decks contain a certain type of energy. Others do not.

Personally, I don’t. There can be something said of energy as a whole, but I would never go so far as to never let somebody else handle a deck I own.

If you believe in energy, and energy work, then it is likely that a tarot deck you own would maintain it’s own energy, or feel. Many people believe this and use it in their practice, so much so that they need to ‘cleanse’ their decks after use.

This being said, a cleansing ritual can still be something that is worth performing, if just to set the stage and get you in the right mindset.

What does it mean when I keep seeing the same card?

Generally, if you keep seeing the same sign, then you should investigate it. Don’t ignore repetition. If you see a card multiple times, then be sure you are clear with it’s meaning, and then try to work out how it is playing into your life. Repetition may be seen as the universe making sure you are aware of the message it is trying to send.

Once early in my tarot ‘career’ I performed a reading for myself, around my general future. I made a note of the cards drawn. A few weeks later I performed another reading, and it turned up the exact same cards. I won’t go into the spread itself, but the chances of that happening are astronomical. I don’t need to tell you that I paid attention.

What is Tarot suited for?

It is my belief that Tarot is best suited when you are at a crossroads, with choices you are unsure about, or an uncertain future. Using a Tarot spread, you can build up a persona which will offer you advice. Tarot can allow you to step outside of yourself and gain advice which you would have otherwise discounted.

Tarot is not suited for rash, spontaneous hard hitting decisions. I would never use it to decide which house to buy, for example, or use a Tarot reading as a definite answer on how to deal with a partner if there was an argument or similar. Sure, I would draw a spread for both of these scenarios, but I would not follow them blindly.

There are certain aspects of life which some do not read for. A code of ethics is something you should think about when you start reading Tarot cards for others.

Does it matter which tarot deck you have?

Not at all. All Tarot decks follow the same guideline; all will have the same number of cards. Some prefer illustrations which are prettier, others more simplistic.

There is no ‘starter Tarot deck’ when it comes to reading, and no ‘difficulty level’. Some may find it best to start with a well known deck; for example the Rider-Waite deck contains illustrations which support the card meanings.

The Rider-Waite deck is a very common first deck, and the illustrations have had a lot of influence over Tarot today (Thanks Pamela!). If you are choosing a deck, just choose a deck which feels right for you.

Personally, I (currently) only have one deck, the Rider-Waite, and I will use it until it is bare and worn. Others like to collect many decks. Both approaches are fine.

Where can I get a Tarot deck from?

Nowadays, you can buy a tarot card from high street bookstores, or even chain supermarkets. I bought my first deck from Amazon. There used to be an old superstition where you should only ever be gifted (or steal) a tarot deck. Nowadays, this just isn’t the case. It is fine to buy them!

How many Tarot decks are there?

So many. There are new decks created every day. This isn’t something you should worry about unless you aim to collect them all. No one tarot deck is ‘better’ than another.

Some Tarot decks will be a little more obvious with their meanings, some will be more stylised. You should go with your intuition when buying a deck. Buy one which feels right for you.

Are Tarot decks really that different?

Not particularly, when boiled down. There will always be Minor and Major Arcana, but the numbers of cards can change sometimes, as well as the positioning. Strength and Justice are cards which are both commonly swapped, for example.

The real difference is the illustration which comes with the deck. Some tarot decks feel ‘premium’, and have beautiful stylised art, but this is just a question of function and form. All tarot cards function the same, even one you create yourself, with pen and paper.

How do I choose the right deck for me?

Buying your first Tarot deck can be a daunting task, but it shouldn’t be. Tarot decks are quite inexpensive. I did a lot of thinking before buying my first deck, but i shouldn’t have. It just postponed my learning beforehand.

While somewhere like Amazon can be fine (and brilliant, just look at the choice they have!), nothing can compare to going into a shop and buying one. You can see the size and illustrations beforehand in person. Shop around and you’ll find you are spoiled for choice.

Handle a deck if you can, and check out the illustrations. Do you like them? How well sized are the cards? Are they coated or made with a premium card? You don’t want a deck which will damage easily. There are so many decks around that you’ll likely find a deck which feels right for you.

What does the Death Tarot card really mean?

Death is the 13th card of the Major Arcana. It is a tarot card, but it’s meaning might not be what you expect. Rather than referring to the end of life, the Death tarot card indicates change and transformation. While this can include actual Death, it isn’t always the case.

Are there any bad Tarot cards?

Well, yes and no. Some cards are just so negative you’ll never really want to see them except in very specific cases. The Ten of Swords is widely seen as a very negative card, along with The Tower. This isn’t to say that they are all bad, it all depends on the question you are posing.

Is a ‘Tarot Birth Card’ really a thing?

This has been popularised recently, a ‘Tarot Birthday’ or ‘Tarot Birth card’ is a card from the Major Arcana which represents that persons life as a whole. The Birth card is essence forms the ‘theme’ of that persons life.

There are a umber of ways to calculate your Tarot Birth card. You could simply write your birthday out in for following format: (DD MM YYYY), and then add every single digit together.

If the number is greater than 21, then add the numbers together until you get a number less than 21. Look this card up and voila; that is your birth card.

Birth cards can just be another tool in your Tarot knowledge arsenal, but like reversals it is up to you to if you want to use these. Remember that Tarot is eclectic, you can pick and choose how you want to read cards.

What is Cartomancy?

Divination using cards is called Cartomancy. Tarot exists within this, but also other methods, such as Lenormand and Oracle. You can even perform divination with regular playing cards. Other methods of cartomancy can be interesting to read about if you are familiar with Tarot.

Can I trust an online Tarot reading, or a phone reading, or should I get a face to face one?

An online Tarot reading is completely different to a face to face reading or a phone reading. They are all just different experiences.

A face to face reading is usually a personal affair, and you’ll get results instantly. An online reading may take a few days. A phone reading can be seen as a middle ground; still personal but still detached. When it comes to trust and technique however, all methods are as viable as each other.

A face to face meeting should really be seen as the standard, but this isn’t said to discredit online readings, I used to offer online readings myself, and they were a lot of fun and very insightful!

Do witches use Tarot cards?

We aren’t going to affirm the consequent here at all; not all Witches use Tarot, and not all Tarot users are Witches! Many people from all walks of life use Tarot cards on a daily bases, and they wouldn’t want to be called Witches. However, there certainly are some Witches who use Tarot cards.

Is Tarot a scam?

The best answer here is that it can be. Tarot definitely can be a scam. It all depends on who is performing the reading. There are scammers in any field, and there definitely are tarot readers who will perform a session with the intent to sell solutions, or they will only tell you good things so you keep returning to them. Some readers may even ask for personal information, which you should not give away freely.

If you are considering going for a reading, then do your best to minimise the risk of being scammed. Go to a recommended reader. Look up pricing to see if you are paying a reasonable rate.

If there are extras fees involved, then they should always be optional. Agree on a price before the reading takes place. If a reader asks for more money, then you should walk away immediately.

If you are a querent in a reading and a ‘curse’ is mentioned, then you are likely sitting face to face with a scam artist. They will probably ask for more money, which you should absolutely not hand over. Just use common sense, Tarot readings have an air of mysticism about them, but don’t be lured in. You can’t pay away your problems.

How do you pronounce ‘Tarot’?

However you want, really! Most people will pronouce it ‘Tarrow’, rhyming with ‘Harrow’, ‘Hallo’, ‘Marshmallow’. When I started, I wasn’t at all familiar with Tarot, so I even pronounced it Taro[T], with a hard T at the end. As the word is french in origin, it is expected that the last ‘T’ be dropped.

What is the ‘Little white book’?

It’s a common phrase in Tarot; the ‘little white leaflet’, or ‘little white book’, referring to the little book of card meanings that come with some, but not all, tarot decks. These books are usually both quite short and very vague, but they seem to be the starting point for everybody starting out in Tarot, and this isn’t especially a bad thing, as everyone needs to start somewhere.

The white book is intended to give you a head start and easy point of reference before you jump in and start creating your own notes or tarot diary. As we have seen, Tarot is a very subjective practice, and it can help to look at as many sources as possible.

The card meanings on Tarot Nova are a result of this; I spent a lot of time gathering information from many sources, collating it, and adding my own thoughts. Tarot Nova is essentially a digital copy of my notes about Tarot, written in a nice way for others to read!

Should I read Tarot reversals?

You can if you like. Tarot reversals aren’t exactly a contentious issue, but you will find some who do read reversals, and some who never read reversals. Reading reversals is a (relatively) modern technique within Tarot. Personally, I don’t read reversals, but I don’t think they have any less credibility from a standard reading.

A tarot reversal will usually go one of two ways. Firstly, a reversal can mean the complete opposite of the upright meaning, positive turns negative, black turns white, good becomes bad, death into life. The Fool becomes about endings, The Magician about internal solitude, The Eight of Pentacles about being lazy and unmotivated.

The other main way of reading a tarot reversal is to swap their bearing; an internal card becomes external. Cards that represent helping others will mean helping yourself, cards about being alone ask you to help those out of solitude.

Consider reading reversals if you are experienced in the upright meanings of Tarot cards, but remember, you don’t have to read reversals if you don’t want to!

Do I need to take a Tarot course, or gain a Tarot certification?

Nope. What if I told you that everything you could learn from any course is present in books, on YouTube, or for free, on sites such as this. Personally, I have never taken a Tarot course, but gained my experience through performing readings for others.

I would honestly suggest that you do the same. The only thing you need to own is a Tarot deck; no course, certification or other bit of paper.

No Tarot certification is universal, it is just a course somebody has designed. There are certain Tarot Groups however (such as the Tarot Association of the British Isles ) which offer guidance and support in learning Tarot. Groups such as these aren’t to be discredited!

End of June Update

A photograph I took of Buachaille Etive Mor on a hike last year. Scotland is lovely!

I hope you all had a brilliant June. I certainly did! June marks my Birthday, and is also the third month of Tarot Nova. It’s been a busy month here on Tarot Nova! I’m starting to enjoy these monthly posts; it makes me realise how much work is going into Tarot Nova. The very lofty goal is to become the best free Tarot resource online. While there are many good sites, I hope I’m offering something fun and easy to read, easy to understand and useful. Lets get onto the updates!

More card meanings added!

Previously I mentioned the 8th of July would be the final date for all of the tarot card meanings to be added. Well, this just isn’t going to happen I’m afraid. With my birthday, I took a week off, and things at work got in the way, yada yada I won’t make excuses. I got too busy and couldn’t do it, it’s as simple as that! However, the Pentacles suit has been started (we’re currently up to the Seven of Pentacles), and it’s looking like these will be finished within the week. I am hoping by the end of July that another suit is completed. Slow and steady!

The Ethics of Tarot – A guest article

The first guest article in June was posted by Chelsea, from the Tarot discord server, you can view the article here. The article is so insightful, and deals with creating a code of ethics. What should you use tarot for? Everyone is different, but Chelsea gives you a look at how she uses Tarot and her decisions behind her choices.

Breaking the Tarot Rules – A guest article

The second guest article was also written by Chelsea! This article deals with how tarot has evolved now to have codified rules, and talks about the subjectivity of Tarot as a whole. “ Let me be crystal clear- there aren’t rules in tarot, other than the ones you choose to follow. ” is a brilliant quote from the article. Check it out here.

How a Tarot Reader learned Lenormand- A guest article

The final guest article was also from Chelsea. Thanks Chelsea! This article deals with Lenormand, another form of cartomancy. A little autobiographical, a lot informational, this article explains how Lenormand works, and what you might expect coming from Tarot. Check it out here!

The Tarot FAQ

You might have seen a new option on the menu; the Tarot FAQ. This is an enormous post I decided to create to have a one-stop place for all of those small questions you have when you are just starting out. What is Tarot? Is Tarot dangerous at all? Where did Tarot come from? Find out in the Tarot FAQ!

The big article plan

This month I’ve been planning some articles of my own! Seeing questions and conversations on the tarot discord server is good inspiration for some articles. While some of these questions may just become a part of the Tarot FAQ, others are more deserving of a full post. I’m hoping to get a few published in July. I really enjoy writing articles, and while turning my notes in to card meanings is important, it can be a bit of a slog now and then.

Write with us!

As always, I’m opening up the floor to anybody who wishes to write about Tarot. Please visit the Contact page for more information. Also, if you’d just like to have a chat, by all means send a message too.

Well, what an update. Once again a big thank you to Chelsea and her insane three article contribution! I hope you all stick around and see Tarot Nova grow. Thanks for taking the time to read the post and leave a comment or get in touch if you’d like to have a chat.

Kali

Breaking the Tarot Rules

Anyone who has dipped their toes into the tarot waters is aware of the Do’s and Don’ts list that seems to pop up on almost every tarot website and blog. Many of these things are superstition (stealing a deck is a no-no, and will not make your readings more accurate!). Some are pulled from tradition (such as sleeping with your cards under your pillow), and some are based in common sense. Most of the latter are along the lines of “What you can, or can’t use tarot for.”

Let me be crystal clear- there aren’t rules in tarot, other than the ones you choose to follow. However, there are certain things that tarot is not usually considered “good at”, and in this article I will go over some of those things with you, as well as how to (gasp!) use tarot for those very things!

One of the first bits of advice given to a new querent is “Don’t ask a yes-or-no question.” This isn’t bad advice, because ultimately tarot is a system created to give nuanced and complex answers, and many layers of meaning do not necessarily tie themselves up into a simple “Yes!” or “No!” But sometimes… well, you really just want to know something on a yes-or-no scale. It is possible to use tarot in this way, but you’re going to have to look at it a little differently. You need to interpret for the yes or no. I would personally recommend going with a single card for this- remember, we want to remove complexity, not add more of it!

Let’s say our querent Holly wants to know if the passion-project small business she’s running will become her full-time job this year. We pull a single card- The Star. Yes. Or at the very least, Holly should be hopeful that sometime this year, her business will grow. You can also add a little more detail to this- possibly, her small business will become her full-time job after she has a setback with her current full-time job. The small business is her beacon of hope during a dark time.

The next thing that I have heard is that tarot should not be used for timing. And it’s true- there aren’t really “time” cards in the tarot. However, you can use tarot to establish an approximate timeline for when something is likely to happen. Personally, I tend to see Wands and Swords as “sooner” and Cups and Pentacles as “later”, but aside from that, you can still use any card in the deck to establish a timeline. For this I would also recommend starting with one card at a time and pulling clarifiers if needed, since you aren’t really looking for the card’s interpretive meaning. The goal is to find out what the card’s meaning says about timing.

Now, let’s return to Holly. She’s excited about her career prospects, but now she wants to know about her love life- so when is her boyfriend going to propose marriage? The card we pull is Temperance. I would say that this represents a period of time between seasons, such as when you can still feel winter in the air, but a few plants are beginning to bloom. To narrow it down, pull another card- Ace of Swords, which represents both duality and cutting away unnecessary things.

I would say that Holly should expect a proposal during the time when the leaves are almost completely off the trees and autumn is becoming winter. I based this on the idea that the “unnecessary” thing that is being cut away are the dead leaves falling from the trees. The duality represented by the Ace of Swords also reflects the duality in Temperance- the time we are looking at is at the middle point, in between two distinct seasons, which are blended and intertwined to create a unique period of time.

The last thing I will focus on is whether or not you can use tarot to ascertain specific details. Tarot often paints with broad brush strokes, and it’s up to the reader to figure out what is being said. I can pull the Two of Cups, Four of Wands, and The Lovers and figure out that there’s probably a marriage proposal in the querent’s future, but there is no “marriage” card in tarot. So can you get detailed answers from a tarot deck?

Personally, I believe you can, but it’s important to keep up a conversation between yourself and the querent (even if the querent is yourself). When you pull a card, think about what that card really signifies. Going back to Holly, she wants to know what her wedding dress will look like. We pull the Nine of Pentacles. How does the meaning of that card apply to a wedding dress?

I would say that this either means that this is a dress she will design (or have designed for her) or a dress that she’s worked really hard to be able to afford. And for more detail, I’ll pull another card- The Tower. This is usually seen as a negative card, but in this case, I think it refers more to the idea that the dress that Holly is currently envisioning won’t be the dress that she winds up falling totally in love with, so she should try on things she thinks she may not like!

It’s true that tarot has some limits, but I think that these tend to be overstated. I think that if you want to use tarot for things on the “Don’t” list, all you really need to do is shake up what you might expect out of tarot, look at tarot concepts a little sideways. The answers are all there for you.

Chelsea is 27, and a professional tarot reader from Southern California. You can find out more about her at her website; Pigeon Sauvage Tarot.