Mastering Foundational Tarot Skills (Rider Waite Smith Deck Focus)
Introduction: Why Solid Foundations Are Non-Negotiable
Mastering the art of tarot divination requires more than memorizing tarot card keywords, learning a few tarot spreads and hoping for the best. Many aspiring tarot readers are still stuck after 2-5 years of practice on issues like; how to memorize all 78 card meanings (plus reversals!) how to read tarot card combinations, how to read tarot intuitively, how to interpret contradictory cards and how to read tarot court cards (sometimes whilst claiming to read professionally).
But whilst most readers would not dare go professional within a decade (and certainly not before mastering the fundamentals), it is actually possible to overcome all of these issues within the first few years, especially if you have a mentor.
Moreover, it is essential to learn tarot reading on a strong foundation if you wish to attain the goal of genuine mastery so that you can move on without having to backtrack due to missing things out initially.
Now, is this easy? No. It takes a lot of hard work and a well-designed course of study, preferably under 1-to-1 mentorship the entire time. And is the effort worth it? That depends on your goals, resources and enthusiasm. But if you are still reading this article then you don’t need me to tell you that nothing in life comes without hard work and sacrifice.
In this cornerstone post, I will outline the essential foundational skills cultivated within the online Tarot Apprenticeship course. I will explain the general structure of a tarot deck, justify my recommendation of the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck for beginner tarot students (even with the availability of many others) and I will detail the core knowledge and techniques needed before progressing onto advanced tarot divination techniques and even public practice readings.
Summary
Overcoming common tarot learning plateaus requires a structured focus on foundational skills.
The Rider Waite Smith tarot deck is recommended as the primary tool for foundational learning.
Effective tarot interpretation involves a combination of intellectual analysis (reading tarot cards in combination, interpreting tarot card symbolism) and trusting your intuition.
Ethics is not just a topic for aspiring tarot professionals; it directly impacts the quality and integrity of every tarot divination reading.
Key I: Magician from the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck.
Why Use The Rider Waite Smith Tarot Deck?
Choosing and understanding your primary tool is fundamental to any craft. But with so many tarot decks in print, which tarot deck should a beginner start with? I recommend the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck for beginners and I will now justify why.
A Brief History of the RWS Deck
The Rider Waite Smith tarot deck (1909) was commissioned by A.E Waite, illustrated by Pamela Coleman Smith and published with Rider publishing company. Both Waite and Smith were initiates of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, an influential 19th century magical order. Also, Smith was a lover of all theatre. Both of these influences can be observed throughout the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck.
The Rider Waite Smith tarot deck was also innovative for it’s illustrated pip (Ace-10) cards. Unlike the abstract pip cards of most older decks (see Marcus Katz’s Tarosophy Squared), the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck contains scenic illustrations on every card. This means firstly that the deck is particularly useful for divination; symbols giving rise to intuitive insights and secondly that the deck is relatively easy to learn once you understand what is happening in each scene. This is not to say, however, that the deck is easy to master; it contains quite a lot of deep esoteric symbolism which most of it’s users are unaware of.
Partly due to these illustrated pips, the RWS deck is also by far the most popular tarot deck, inspiring many tarot teachers and deck creators in their work. For example, The Tarot of the New Vision (by Berti & Cestaro) which brilliantly depicts the Rider Waite Smith tarot scenes from a different angle. This concept has even been further explored with the Before tarot and After tarot, decks which had the artists imagine the RWS scenes within time rather than space. Taken together, these 3 decks plus the RWS deck give insightful depth to the RWS images.
Soon, I will talk about buying your deck (and the myth of needing to have it gifted to you). But first, please allow me to explain the structure of a tarot deck.
The Structure Of A Tarot Deck
To explain the structure of a tarot deck, it is helpful to consider ordinary playing cards. In a standard playing card deck of today, there are 52 cards in 4 suits. Each of these suits has 13 cards within it; Ace (1) to Ten and then 3 face cards - a Jack, a King and a Queen. Playing cards are used for games like blackjack, poker and so on.
What does this have to do with tarot? The tarot deck structure is a recognizable innovation of ordinary playing cards. There are 78 cards in any typical tarot deck, split into two main parts:
22 Major Arcana (“Greater Secrets”) cards: Representing broad archetypes, significant life lessons, and dramatic events.
56 Minor Arcana (“Lesser Secrets”) cards: Reflecting more specific situations, challenges, thoughts, feelings, and actions of everyday life.
The Minors subdivide into four suits which are in turn correspond to the four main occult elements of the Western Esoteric Tradition; Earth, Air, Water and Fire.
Wands (Fire): volition and creative inspiration.
Cups (Water): emotions, desires and relationships.
Swords (Air): intellect, communication, conflict and decisions.
Pentacles (Earth): actions, money and health.
Note: the terms “Major Arcana” and “Minor Arcana” are titles created by Jean-Baptiste Pitois (1811-1877), pseudonym Paul Christian. Pitois should not be confused with Jean-Baptiste Allietta (1738-1791), pseudonym Etteilla, the man credited today as the first professional tarot reader.
Your Tarot Deck: Gifting, Choosing, Cleansing, Charging and Handling
In a divinatory context, there are a lot of strong opinions about how to handle your tarot deck. Some people swear that they have never cleansed or charged their deck in 30 or more years of practice. Others assure beginners that cleansing, charging and careful handling of your tarot deck is imperative for the safest and more accurate readings.
I point to the rule of cause and effect. For the duration of a structured training under 1-to-1 guidance, I believe it is very unlikely that you will need to make much effort with deck cleansing and handling. However, those with certain spiritual/occult practises may not just wish, but need, to take this far more seriously. Regardless, knowledge of deck cleansing is always good to have in case you need it. Different results under different conditions.
Accordingly, I will now discuss all aspects of handling your tarot deck, from gifting (or being gifted) a deck, to cleansing, charging and storing it.
Gifting A Tarot Deck
When I told my Mother that I was going to buy a tarot deck, her response was: “You can’t buy it yourself. You have to be gifted your tarot deck.” You see, my Mother is a New Age spiritualist and not against following superstitions.
I obviously ignored her advice and bought it anyway. Nonetheless, my Mother was well-intentioned in perpetuating this myth. If you’re wondering where it comes from, no-one knows for certain. But one plausible theory is that buying a tarot deck used to be illegal due to legislation which forbade fortune-telling. In some parts of the United States, such as New York, this legislation still exists today.
Anyway, I often find that superstitions contain truth in them. So what about this superstition about being gifted your tarot deck? Does it contain any truth? Actually, yes, as far as I am concerned.
I believe that tarot is a magical art. So tarot decks gifted and received with genuine (agape) love can imbue the deck with very positive energy, giving spiritual sustenance to a reader for months or years to come. So if you know someone who is thinking about getting a tarot deck, you may in fact wish to gift them one.
The same applies to crystals; I once received a gift of crystals from a mentor and they proved very useful for the next several months based on the spirit of Infectious Joy alone.
But if you are not being gifted your first deck then you will of course need to buy it.
Buying Your Rider Waite Smith Tarot Deck
You can get your Rider Waite Smith deck (or appropriate RWS-based deck, such as the Universal Waite) from most metaphysical shops, in person or online. Amazon hosts sellers offering the RWS deck in several re-coloured and re-published versions such as the Universal Waite and Radiant Rider Waite.
If you are wondering why the name Smith is omitted in these titles, this is because Pamela Coleman Smith has only recently been given due credit by scholars; the wider community is still catching up.
For more information about Pamela Coleman Smith’s life, as well as her influence on the deck that she should be fully credited for illustrating, please get the books Pamela Colman Smith: The Untold Story (by Stuart R. Kaplan & Mary K. Greer) and New Directions in Tarot: Decoding the Tarot Illustrations of Pamela Colman Smith (by Scott Martin) respectively. Not sponsored.
How much does a tarot deck cost? A Rider Waite Smith tarot deck is around $20 or £20 from Amazon or your local metaphysical store. In the UK, anything below £18 is almost certainly fake unless second-hand and worn. If you live in the US then you can buy your Rider Waite Smith tarot deck from the well-known seller U.S. Games Inc.
How (And Why) To Cleanse Your Tarot Deck
To cleanse a tarot deck is to effectively reset it’s energy so that it’s energy does not interfere with your readings. I say effectively reset because the energy never actually goes away. It is just rendered neutral to your readings.
There are many claimed ways to cleanse your tarot deck but not all of them are actually advisable. For example, cleansing (or charging) your deck under the moonlight might sound like a perfectly sensible option if you’re a magical beginner (divination being a form of magic). But those with any magical experience quickly learn that the moon’s influence is not always positive. Then, the practice of smudging/saging is often recommended - without mention of cultural appropriation. So unless you know what you are doing, I strongly recommend to keep it very simple.
Two foolproof cleansing methods are;
Basic cleansing: firmly knocking on your tarot deck between readings (always with the intention of cleansing it).
More thorough cleansing: reordering the deck sequentially back into its order Namely, Majors 0-21, then Wands, Cups, Swords, Pentacles. Court Cards go; Knight, Page, Queen, King (as far as the order that I use).
If you have not been gifted your deck, then you may wish to cleanse it with a simple prayer before you knock on it. I should also be clear that this is nothing to do with cleansing yourself psychologically. Cleansing yourself is important but it is a different matter entirely. The purpose of cleansing your tarot deck is to alter it’s aura (magnetic field) so that this energy does not negatively impact the tarot reading.
How To Charge (And Consecreate) Your Tarot Deck
What is the difference between concecrating and charging your tarot deck? Consecration is a general blessing whilst charging is enchanting; inbuing the object with a specific energy (good or bad). If you are new to magic, I recommend sticking with consecration until you know to manipulate energies on yourself. This internal alchemy is standard preparatory training for white magicians within the Western Esoteric Tradition.
Now, how do you cleanse or concecreate a tarot deck? You can find many spiritual exercises for both of these (often involving visualization, breathwork or mantras) but I use prayer.
What do I say in my prayer? Whatever comes to mind. The things necessary for your prayer to effectively charge the tarot deck are; peace, concentration, faith, willpower, imagination and a selfless intention. This is general knowledge within Right Hand Path schools of Western magic.
Note: imagination does not mean visualization as much as a firm grasp of the intended result.
These six things apply to all acts of white magic.
Caring For Your Tarot Deck (Respectful Storage & Handling)
Some divinatory tarot readers, such as Josephine McCarthy (founder of the magical school Quareia), say you should wrap the deck in silk etc. Under my personal guidance, this is not really necessary. However, if you decide to follow Josephine McCarthy’s Quareia system, you will need to do it to her instructions to remain safe.
My main concerns with storage and handling of your tarot deck are related to the issue of other people touching your deck. This is once again because every object has an aura which can be influenced when touched. So, anyone who uses your tarot deck whilst emotional (such as a lot of tarot querents) may alter the aura if they are not in harmony with it’s current energy.
Assuming cause & effect once again, the impact will be either strong or weak depending on factors which you can probably already guess; how much you already used the deck, how much you charged the deck with energy, how much someone else uses your deck and so on. In practice then, I will generally minimize, although not prohibit, the act of other people touching my deck (especially during in person readings).
Key VII: Chariot from the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck
Learning Rider Waite Smith Tarot Card Meanings
Now I will talk about learning the tarot card meanings. By this, I mean all 78 cards, although not all at once. As far as reversals (upside down card with extra sets of meanings), you can choose to read them or not in the beginning. But I do suggest learning how they work at some point, even if you go back to reading only upright cards again later.
You can reference the RWS meanings when interpreting your beginner self-readings. Tarot beginners used to use the little white book (LWB) but nowadays you can learn the Rider Waite Smith tarot meanings from a book like LLewellyn’s Complete Book of the Rider Waite Smith Tarot by Sasha Graham. You can also read A.E Waite’s primary source; Key To The Tarot (1910) for free online, since it is in the public domain.
At first, you may simply rely on the keywords and ideas given on the site you are using. But after a few weeks or months you may want to start considering new interpretations based on overall card themes and archetypes.
To avoid confusion and overwhelm in your learning journey, you may also wish to practice with the Major Arcana only at first before adding in the pips (Ace-10s) and finally the face (Court) cards. Don’t worry about how this doesn’t use the full tarot deck; this is a perfectly legitimate method even for some established tarot readers.
Now, how long does it take to learn tarot card meanings off by heart? Whilst the various videos on social media like “learn tarot in 2 hours” are obviously nonsense designed to get clicks, it is still less tricky than it may appear. If you study and practice regularly, you can likely memorize the meanings within 12-30 months. There are also some alleged techniques to learn them even faster. But the problem with these methods is that they lead to superficial learning. I give the 12-30 month timeframe based on the premise that you are seeking genuine mastery over gimmicks and shortcuts.
What about resources to learn the Rider Waite Smith tarot cards specifically? During keyword research for my content plan, I have been surprised to learn that there are currently no comprehensive resources for the Rider Waite Smith tarot card meanings available for free online. Therefore, I have decided to create this resource myself. So over the next 6 months, I am going to cover all 78 cards (Major and Minor Arcana) individually as well as deep dives into each of the four (Minor Arcana) suits, the pip (Ace-10) and Court Cards as categories and the Major Arcana. More specifically, I will be covering the Rider Waite Smith tarot card meanings in depth with reference to relevant tarot experts and scholars such as Robert M. Place, Sasha Graham, Mary K. Greer, Marcus Katz and of course A.E Waite himself.
Interpreting the Rider Waite Smith Tarot Cards
Now I will suggest some different ways to interpret the Rider Waite Smith tarot cards in your readings. We will start with looking at how to read tarot card combinations before discussing how to interpret Rider Waite Smith symbolism, how to read tarot intuitively and how to use basic esoteric correspondences in your readings. Finally (and perhaps most importantly), we will look at how to deliver the insights gained from these interpretative methods in a clear and understandable way.
How To Read Tarot Card Interactions And Combinations
To read tarot spreads fluently, it is not enough to look at each individual card in isolation; an essential skill is looking at how the cards interact in their combinations. This makes the reading flow, like speaking a language with fluency. It may be contrasted with the beginner reader who looks at each card individually with explicit reference to common keywords. This leads to dry readings which ignore a lot of potential insights in the cards.
A solid beginner method for this is to look at the keyword, question and spread position.
Let’s start with just two positions of situation + advice. Now let’s say we pulled the 5 of Pentacles + the Sun. Some keywords for each card are;
5 of Pentacles: poverty, sickness, job loss, bad luck, destitution, homelessness, etc.
The Sun: success, life, clarity, children, following your heart, confidence, fame, etc.
Now let’s look at the different keywords in the different position meanings. When the situation is the Sun and the advice is the 5 of Pentacles, possible interpretations are:
The advice is to give up your current situation of fame and power.
The advice is to stop spoiling your children in this situation.
The advice is to take the current situation more seriously than you currently are.
The advice is do not flaunt your wealth in this current situation.
Finally, let us add a question to our reading. "Tell me about my safety when I go to the bank tomorrow."
To give visual aid, I have used formatting to indicate where certain words are coming from. If more than one formatting option is applied, it means more than one card combination key applies to the word(s) under format. Question: Italics. Card Keywords: bold. Spread position: underline.
The Sun in the situation position + the 5 of Pentacles in the advice position. The advice is to not flaunt the wealth that you currently possess (Sun + 5 of pentacles, situation + advice) when you go to the bank tomorrow (question). In fact, when you go to the bank tomorrow (question) you should make it appear as if you are not wealthy so as to remain inconspicuous (Sun + 5 of Pentacles + question).
In summary:
Do not flaunt your wealth during your trip to the bank tomorrow.
Blend in.
Notice how the final sentence, “blend in”, seamlessly and tacitly incorporates all 3 keys to reading tarot combinations. This level of fluency is the goal before moving on to larger spreads.
To achieve this, it will help to write out the longer version and then edit down. Then, the process of reading more complex spreads (such as the celtic cross) is the same, just with much more work. The celtic cross spread, for example, might very well take 40-60 minutes to interpret for a while. Eventually though, you may find that you can pull a large spread for yourself and receive the overall message within an instant or two. This will never replace the need to then interpret the cards but it will be one sign that you are becoming competent in a particular spread.
Click here to learn about reading tarot card combinations in larger spreads.
How To Interpret RWS Tarot Card Symbolism
Once you understand the main symbols of the RWS deck, it’s illustrations make interpretation relatively easy. This applies to most of the cards.
Consider the Five of Cups:
Five of Cups from the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck
A figure cloaked in black focuses on three spilled cups (loss, regret), ignoring two full cups behind them (remaining potential). Their posture (head bowed, back turned), clothes (black, mourning) and the bleak landscape reinforce grief, anguish and loss. Yet, the flowing water of the river suggests that time can provide emotional refreshment whilst the bridge offers safe passage to everyday stability.
As you can see, then, analyzing these symbols provides far more insight than just the keywords of "loss" or “pessimism”.
Integrating Intuitive Insights Into The Reading
It may appear that the card combinations method just given is an intellectual exercise, but this is not actually the case. Even with the three interpretative constraints (question, keyword and spread position), there will inevitably be readings when more than one card keyword could apply. Also, even when only one keyword does apply, there may well be multiple interpretations available. How then, it is possible for a divinatory tarot reader to interpret accurately and confidently in these situations? The answer is intuition.
What is intuition? Many tarot readers do not know, even if they think they do. Intuition is often confused for various things, including the psychic senses or the instinct. But intuition is a faculty of the incarnating soul or what you might know as the higher self. This premise of occult anthropology is the key to working out how we can use our intuition effectively, first by awakening it and then by getting rid of anything that blocks or distorts it’s insights.
We can do both of these things to some extent during our reading preparation, with results compounding through consistent and sincere practice. See the next section for details. However, it is worth noting that, since intuition is a faculty of the soul, effective intuition ultimately results from purification of the soul, or theurgy. Thus, when Western Esotericists talk about how intuition is developed naturally through spiritual focused tarot reading, they are quite possibly implying that tarot reading is a theurgic practice. The purists will not be pleased!
Simple Esoteric Correspondences
Finally, you can incorporate tarot card correspondences into your readings. A correspondence is simply an analogy or conformity between things. Since Western Esotericists started theorizing about tarot’s origins, they have superimposed correspondences into the entire structure of tarot decks.
Some of these correspondences are simple whilst others are complex. For the purposes of my content plan, then, I have corresponded (excuse the pun) the simpler ones to foundational tarot skills and the more complex ones to advanced tarot skills. This distinction is subjective and has been made for two main reasons;
To facilitate learning; to avoid overwhelming the beginner or dragging out the foundational material.
Thus, to avoid dogmatic and ahistorical adherence to the superimposition of Western Esoteric lore upon the tradition of tarot divination. Thus, to give my students the freedom and prestige to be considered tarot divination masters without belonging to the Western Esoteric Tradition.
Much within the topic of tarot correspondences is arguably advanced, such as the incorporation of Kabbalah and astrology. But you will be pleased to know that there are easy foundational ways to use correspondences in your readings. In fact, I already alluded to correspondences in the beginning of this article when I mentioned the four Suits of the Minor Arcana cards. The Suit of Wands, for example, indicates volition, passion etc. based on the idea that the occult Element of Fire indicates volition and passion. Similarly, the Suit of Cups indicates emotions and relationships because the occult Element of Water indicates emotions.
The Hermetic Principle of correspondence can also be used to explain why the Minors are considered smaller instances within everyday human life whilst the Major Arcana considered to represent grand cosmic ideas like Karma (KEY XI Justice). It also explains the division of the tarot into the 22 Trumps of the Major Arcana (Greater Secrets) and 56 pip (Ace-10) and face (Court) cards of the Minor Arcana (Lesser Secrets).
The Language of Tarot: Communicating Messages Clearly
Now it is time to bring the techniques together in a clear and understandable way. When you observe some experienced tarot readers (say a YouTube tarotscope creator), you will notice that they can use the cards to talk about any topic in an ordinary way, almost as if the cards weren’t there. I believe this skill to be one sign (although not a prerequisite) that a tarot reader has reached mastery, specifically because it shows a deep understanding of the language of the tarot.
Even if you choose to keep your readings explicitly focused on the cards, it would be good to learn the skill of speaking in tarot without speaking in tarot. Why? It keeps the readings understandable and valuable for the querent (even if the querent is you).
This is especially true should you decide to start incorporating all of the Western Esoteric ideas (Kabbalah, astrology, numerology, mythology) into your intepretations. These symbol systems and knowledge sets can be very useful, but unless you are talking to a fellow esotericist (or want to make esoteric reading your niche), plain language is the most insightful to most people. I would emphasize this even more powerfully if you want a job on a psychic hotline, where plain and concise communication is simply a necessity.
Ten of Pentacles from the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck
Essential Techniques for Practice
Having looked at tarot deck handling and introduced the art of reading the tarot cards, let’s look at how to perform your first ever tarot reading. I will cover the following topics: how ethical living will benefit your tarot practice; how to prepare for a tarot reading; how to ask your question; how to shuffle and select your tarot cards; how to mitigate bias when reading for yourself; beginner tarot spreads; journalling your readings. I will also cover: significator, clarifier and shadow cards; tips for trusting your intuition and
Before You Do Anything: The Importance of Tarot Reader Ethics
According to the ideas which I teach from, ethical living is not just a social necessity but a foundational skill of tarot divination. But not to worry; the Divine is not concerned about what we eat or who we have sex with as much it is with how we moderate our food intake and control our lust, regulate our speech and avoid deliberate cruelty.
By ethics, then, I refer to things like;
Self-control; moderation of the bodily appetites and the cultivation of virtue
Sincere and selfless intention towards others
Honest but tactful speech
Non-violence, as far as possible
A realistic but ultimately optimistic attitude towards life and it’s challenges
The consistent practise of these (and similar) ethical principles will quite simply give you more accurate and insightful readings for yourself and others. The supposed metaphysical explanation for this is given in my article about how tarot divination actually works. To tease, it has to do with the interconnectedness of existence, the nature of realms beyond the physical and spiritual constitution of man.
Now I will move on to preparing for your tarot reading.
Preparing For Your Tarot Reading
First, do you even need to prepare for your tarot reading? In a divinatory context, yes. It is often possible to get away with storing your tarot deck in the box you bought it in, read in noisy environments and let other people touch your deck. But it is not possible to consistently provide accurate and insightful readings if you do not prepare. This is because, in an instance of tarot divination, reading preparation is the step at which you connect to the Divine rather than something else. Now, you may eventually find that you can prepare rapidly - in mere seconds. But i a reasonable expectation is that relaxation alone will take 5-15 minutes in the beginning.
The practice of preparation, involves three things, decisions, relaxation and prayer/ritual.
Set your reading conditions: a reading condition is a rule about how you will conduct your reading. The purpose of setting reading conditions is to keep you connected to the Divine throughout your reading. This is a simple yet profound concept that I created when I was second-guessing my own readings and it helps massively.
Examples of reading conditions are;
What question you will ask (if any)
What spread you will use (if any)
Whether you will cut the deck after shuffling
Whether you will read reversals (and if so, how you will be shuffling them into the pack)
How you will select cards for your reading (e.g. whether to pull jumper cards - see note)
Whether you will pull clarifiers
Note: Strictly speaking, a “jumper” is a card which flies out of the deck when you are shuffling. Loosely speaking, it may also be a card which juts out a bit. There is some controversy over whether people should use jumper cards in tarot readings or not - some people much prefer to pull cards off the top or fan them out. My stance on jumpers is that you are fine to use them if you wish. I would only add that I do often select jumpers (usually in the loose sense of the term) since it is one way to select cards individually by intuition without being jolted out of a deep meditative state.
It is already common practice for tarot readers to automatically decide some reading conditions (such as whether to read reversals). The uniqueness of my suggestion here comes in two aspects a) the extent to which reading conditions are used b) the fact that they are set consciously before any individual reading.
As you practice tarot divination, you will notice more reading conditions than the ones listed. Anyway, once you have selected your reading conditions you can move on to relaxation and prayer.
Relaxation. Specifically, you need to learn to relax your body until it is like a dead weight and to relax your mind until it is completely blank. If you are skeptical of the ability to do this second requirement, I assure you that it’s not that difficult, although it may take several months to master. Just practice regularly and you should be good. Also, your practice does not necessarily need to be daily at a fixed time. I mastered these skills by practising in my spare moments on top of sitting down deliberately to do them whenever I had the energy.
Prayer. I like to ask for (Divine) wisdom, guidance and protection. Also, I have what is at this point an in-built ethical intention for any message to be for the Highest Good of all and any involved. Another way to put it would be to pray for God’s Will to be done (rather than our own personal will).
Formulating An Effective Tarot Question
Now I will talk about effective questions to ask in a tarot reading before giving examples.
There are a lot of made up rules about asking effective tarot questions. But I believe that The Divine (however you conceive of it) knows your heart and will answer your enquiry unless something else is vitally more important.
It is true that specific questions can sometimes help, but to give a general prescription that you should ask specific questions would be to ignore how the law of cause and effect makes this strictly conditional.
The only general prescription that I will give is a reminder of how ethics is so important to accurate and insightful divination - whether tarot or any other form. But let me also repeat that I am simply telling you what my presumed metaphysics implies about giving the most insightful and accurate tarot readings.
Now, here are some questions to ask for a tarot reading:
How can I be successful in my [activity];
Tell me about [situation e.g. finding work] over the next [timeframe];
How is [situation] likely to play out;
Where is the [lost item];
Who will win the [competition];
How can I better develop [skill/quality];
Should I/would it be appropriate to do [thing];
You will notice that I broke some supposed question rules here. For example, in question 7 I suggested a question which both asks for advice and suggests a yes/no answer.
I am happy to ask such questions because, you will remember, I am teaching tarot divination here - communication with the Divine. In this context, yes/no questions are perfectly acceptable because the answer is not a mere “yes” or “no” but will usually also be read to tell the diviner
a) under what conditions, qualifications or stipulations the answer occurs (i.e. yes if you do x within y timeframe) and
b) why the answer is what it is (e.g. you will only manage x success because y and z factors).
In other words, the diviner seeks answers about situations not just to find out what but to understand why and how; to gain spiritual wisdom. Also, yes, tarot divination can sometimes be that specific when you practically apply knowledge of how it works.
Enquiring into things like, and then applying the answers, helps the diviner to take control of their own fate and destiny as far as this is possible. It helps you to take responsibility for your life. This does not necessarily mean that you will become “successful” in terms of your extermal life circumstances (wealth, love, career, reputation, longevity etc.). But it does mean that you will be able to respond to life’s tribulations with more resilience, faith and humour whilst taking significantly better advantage of any opportunities that do come your way, whether they are rare or frequent. You will be able to make great lemonade out of lemons, so to speak.
Wheel of Fortune from the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck
How To Shuffle And Pull Cards
Once prepared for your reading, the next step is to shuffle and select (“pull”) your tarot cards. In a divinatory context, this is topic far deeper than most (divinatory) tarot readers give it credit for and therefore a lot could be said on it. For example, the purpose of shuffling in a divinatory tarot reading is not randomization and, in a divinatory tarot context, there actually might be a wrong way to shuffle. But for this article, allow me to simply mention the three main shuffling methods, how to know when to stop shuffling and my suggested way of pulling cards.
The three main methods of shuffling are: overhand, riffling and smooshing (washing). I don’t recommend smooshing the cards. Instead, I combine overhand and riffle shuffling under guidance from my intuition. There are deep reasons for this beyond the scope of this article.
The shuffling tips which I’ll give you here are;
Relax your hand and fingers so that you can shuffle smoothly and calmly.
Let your intuition guide you on how to shuffle and when to stop. For me, this feels like the deck is physically heavier in my hands. But you may experience something completely different.
Also select your cards based on intuition, pulling in sections for larger spreads such as the celtic cross (i.e. don’t just pull 10+ cards off the top of the pack in one go).
Please note: Nothing that I have said here is made up or rash. There are definite reasons for these specific tips based on things like maths and occult anthropology. It has taken me years of deep thinking to come up with these simple ideas that you see before you.
Significator, Clarifier and Shadow Cards
Since they are a common concern for beginners, I will now briefly discuss signifcator (signifier), clarifier and shadow cards.
Significator cards: a signifiator (or signifier) card is a card which represents the subject of the reading. Most commonly, significators are Court Cards used to represent the querent, although there are exceptions to both of these descriptors.
You do not need to worry about significator cards at all if you don’t want to - they are simply an optional extra. But if you are going to use them, you should also keep in mind that the technique involves taking the significator card out of the deck. Thus, unless you have a second deck, it is advisable to use a Court Card as usual, since this is far less significant than omitting the other sorts of cards from your reading.
Clarifier Cards: once you have interpreted all of the cards in your reading, you can pull extra cards - clarifiers - for more information.
There are two main risks here: You pull too many clarifiers and end up confused or; with cards missing from your deck, you may not pull the most appropriate clarifier for conveying the extra message. As a beginner, the easiest way to fix this is to use a second deck.
Shadow Card: After you have laid out your spread, this is a tarot card on the top or bottom of the deck which commonly indicates one out of the following options; an overall energy for the reading, a piece of advice (especially a spiritual lesson) or a hidden/unrecognized energy within the reading. This is entirely optional and is often helpful for the beginner or even the advanced reader.
My only suggestion here is that you choose the shadow card based on intuition. This means either you check the bottom card only when intuitively guided or you actually do extra shuffling for it. These two options are just to make sure that it’s the most appropriate card for the message.
How To (Mostly) Read Tarot Accurately For Yourself
Can you even read accurately for yourself? Whilst secular readers have come to consensus that the answer is “yes, of course”, divinatory tarot readers are still divided on the issue. One divinatory reader who mentored me is still hesitant to read for himself despite being a magical teacher. As a result, he will still go to professional readers on serious divinatory issues. This may seem odd at first. But it is based on the sensible admission that human bias and delusion can only be mitigated much of the time and never eliminated.
Nonetheless, I believe that learning to mostly divine with tarot for oneself is invaluable precisely because it requires overcoming the obstacles of entrenched personal biases in the pursuit of self-awareness, both psychological and spiritual.
It is the nature of how tarot divination works which prevents us from accurately reading for ourselves. But if you master the foundational tarot skills given in this article, you will be putting yourself at an advantage to master this hard-earned skill because my teaching method addresses the difficulty head on and from the start.
Foundational Spreads in Practice
In my opinion, foundational tarot spreads would not be dependent on size so might actually include large classics like A.E Waite’s traditional celtic cross. However, for the purposes of this article I will talk briefly about smaller spreads and link to a full article on the topic.
Daily Pull
The Daily Pull is a great choice when starting out, especially if you limit it to the Majors only at first. Done consistently over time, this small practise will quicken the assimilation of card meanings into your long-term memory. It is also a manageable opportunity to practice various foundational tarot skills every single day.
3 Card Situation, Advice, Outcome Spread
Practising a 3 card spread from the start (say 3-5 times per week) will get you reading card combinations from the start. Whilst you can choose any 3 card spread, my favourite is Situation / Action / Outcome (if Action taken).
Position 1 (Situation): Illuminates the core energy or circumstances regarding the query.
Position 2 (Action): Offers advice for the situation.
Position 3 (Outcome): Suggests the likely result if the action is followed.
Remember to read the cards in combination.
5 Card Horseshoe Spread
The five card horseshoe spread is a logical continuation of the spread above (situation, advice, outcome). It adds two new positions of Obstacles (things working against you) and Resources (things/people you can use to help you) to provide more information on your situation. Therefore, you will want to combine positions 1, 2 and 3 when you interpret this spread. You should also find a few other combinations as you practice it.
Situation
Resources
Advantages (Strengths/Resources)
Advice
Outcome (if advice followed)
Overcoming Doubt: Tips For Trusting Your Intuition
Now I want to talk about trusting your intuition even in the face of doubt.
Firstly, remember always that tarot divination is a magical art and faith is an important part of any magical operation.
Secondly, it is much more likely that you will doubt if you have not prepared for your reading by fully relaxing and praying before hand, or if you have not decided on your reading conditions (recall that these are things like how you will select cards, etc.). So get these sorted before you read.
Thirdly, you will for a long time have contradictory insights coming into your awareness. But if you train yourself to trust the first idea that comes into your head then that is a good thing. Intuition is quite literally faster than your normal thoughts so once you are able to quieten your mind, the first thing that comes into your head will undoubtedly be what it is telling you. Not to imply that intuition is always correct! Remember that it is distorted - and will always be distorted to some degree.
Journalling Your Tarot Readings
Journalling your readings is undoubtedly a very valuable tool for beginner readers. It aids in long-term memorization, helps you to convert keywords into insights, allows you to spot your more obvious personal biases and provides a means of verifying which intuitive hits are accurate.
Some things to include are:
The reading topic (often the question) and any relevant context.
The name of the spread (or technique) used.
The cards pulled (and their spread positions).
Your interpretation, including any psychic or intuitive insights or impressions.
For predictive readings (especially those with timing elements), you do want to include the date.
Any other relevant information.
You can then look back through your tarot journal every few weeks and months to reflect on your readings. This will give you further insights. Just be careful to avoid forming conclusions based on the desire to spot patterns - allow insights to come to you.
Key II: High Priestess from the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck
Building On Solid Foundations: Introduction To Advanced Tarot Divination Techniques
Once your foundation is solid, you might begin exploring advanced tarot topics.
Advanced Tarot Layouts:
Modifying standard tarot spreads for deeper insight
Designing custom tarot spreads
Reading lines and tableaus (historical tarot reading techniques)
“Reading Methods”: advanced techniques which may involve iterative layouts, conditional rules, or calculations. For example, specific processes for finding lost objects, ways to give general/open (“no question”) tarot readings, card counting layouts such as the Opening of the Key, spreads where some cards are read conditionally (e.g. Secret of the High Priestess).
Note: lines and tableaus are historical tarot techniques which could well be considered a beginner topic. I put them in this advanced section only in relation to my Tarot Apprenticeship curriculum, which focuses firstly on mastering tarot spreads before looking at alternatives.
Advanced Interpretation Methods
Predictive accuracy; event prediction, timing techniques, etc.
Symbolic pattern recognition: how suits, numbers, colours, directions and recurring themes can be significant (e.g. three 3s, all four Pages, no Cups)
Discerning intuitive and psychic insights when tarot reading
Adding or removing cards and modifying their usage: reversals; using clarifier, significator and shadow cards; taking cards out of the deck; pre-shuffle cards; indicator cards (e.g. Indication Not To Read (INTR), implied cards)
Exploring alternative decks, using multiple tarot decks and applying Emanationist tarot deck aesthetics
Incorporating complex tarot card correspondences (astrology, Hermetic Qabalah, etc.).
Public And Professional Practice
Giving free public practice readings
Offering professional (paid) tarot readings
Tarot reading ethics when reading for others (publicly or professionally): integrity, insurance, when not to read, disclaimers, etc.
Client communication methods: reading within timeframes, reading on psychic chatlines and phonelines, in person readings
These advanced areas are explored in detail in Stage III of the Tarot Apprenticeship course.
Conclusion: Laying the Groundwork for Mastery
Mastering the foundational skills outlined here forms the essential groundwork for any student who is serious about mastering the art of tarot divination. Learning these skills will prepare you for further practice such as reading for others, advanced tarot topics and, if it aligns with your goals, professional reading.
Next Steps:
Read the next article in the Foundational Tarot Skills series.
Learn about the Tarot Apprenticeship course by reading the prospectus or the Tarot Apprenticeship pathway series.
Provide your answer to the engagement question: What aspect of building a solid tarot foundation (symbolism, technique, consistency, etc.) do you currently find most challenging?
Note: Please do share your struggles in the comments and I will personally respond to them with solutions wherever I can (or resources if necessary - usually free ones). This allows me to help you for free whilst also hopefully boosting this article in search engines.
Thank you for reading,
Light and Truth
-Toby
