Learning to Tarot

Reading and discovering about the Tarot is a very enjoyable pass time for me. It is like when you have to do some work around the house, but you like doing it so much that it is not really a chore, but something that relaxes you and energizes you.

The same with my reading about Tarot, with the difference that I read other people’s work and some books are easier to follow, some are more difficult, some make it more interesting, some are just stating facts and make the process a bit dry.

During this process of learning about the tarot I have started to have favorites among the writers I read from. This post is about them.

I have no interest to write about the books that make it hard to understand, mainly because I did not spend that much time on them. I usually pick my resources after a bit of research, and I have been lucky enough so far to find some really good authors.

I am 100% sure that there are many more out there and I look forward to discovering them, for now I can just speak of some of the ones that I discovered so far.

My top three favorites would be Liz Dean, Barbara Moore and Anthony Louis. Although recently I discovered a French author and deck creator that I quite like, Emanuelle Iger.

But of course I am also looking into the greats Rachel Pollack, Mary K. Greer, Paul Fenton-Smith, Liz Greene. I have browsed Eden Gray and Arthur Edward Waite, looked through Aleister Crowley, and I think I have many more years ahead of enjoying my learning process. A thing wonderful to know.

The amount of materials and the number of tarot decks out there is absolutely mind boggling. It is a great time to be a wanna-be tarot expert, or how you prefer to title yourself. I have chosen for myself the title of tarot enthusiast.

I am not a reader as I do not do readings, I am not an expert as I have loads more to learn, but for sure I am an enthusiast as I am fascinated by the symbolism, the overlapping of archetypes and the evolution of tarot through the ages.

With a new passion comes a new collection, what else! And this is a tarot decks collection. I have read that there are people that have thousands of decks, I can totally believe that. When visiting Amsterdam I had the chance to visit an esoteric shop that, amongst other things, had an impressive collection of tarot and oracle decks.

While I am not that much into oracle decks, I am fascinated by the tarot ones, and I was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of decks there. They also have some old decks, but sadly I did not have time to make an appointment to see them. On another occasion maybe.

I have started a little collection of my own with decks that caught my eye. As I am fascinated with things being differently than one expects, I fell in love with a Giant Rider-Waite-Smith Deck I had to wait one month for to come from the States. They did not disappoint. They are indeed giant, the quality is very good and they are great for learning as you can see all the details on them.

I like the Rider-Waite-Smith ones the best and most that I have are variations on it, but I also have Liz Greene’s Mythic Tarot, which is a great match for me as I have a keen interest in mythology. I also have the Wonderland Tarot and the Classic Tarot created by Barbara Moore with art by Eugene Smith, which has the most amazing images.

I have some fancy ones, Dali’s and Sola Busca, but just for fun, as I do not see myself ever using them in a reading. It is nice to have them though, they are very special.

I have an idea of doing a ‘deck reviews’ section with the decks that I like. Just a thought.

It is a huge world of tarot out there and it is so wonderful to be part of it, to study it and to learn from it.

It is a great moment in time to be a tarot enthusiast. Yey!