Which Tarot Deck Should I Get

For me, one of the most crucial elements of a tarot deck is the imagery; without a strong emotional connection to the images, I find it very challenging to decipher the meanings of the cards. I always select cards that seem lovely and stimulate my creativity since I need to feel excited when reading the cards.

I strongly advise purchasing the Rider Waite tarot deck if you are just getting started with tarot and have never even heard of one before. This is the original deck, and the imagery is one that most of us have seen in media. The Rider Waite deck’s illustrations are incredibly intricate and contain numerous hidden meanings and hints that can be used to provide extremely thorough readings.

How can I choose the right tarot deck to buy?

When Rachel True was eight years old, she came into contact with a deck of tarot cards for the first time. This is a language, and I can learn to speak it, she recalled thinking. So started the actress’s lifetime study of tarot, which culminated in the 2020 release of her own stunning deck, True Heart Intuitive Tarot (her face is on the Empress card, if you look closely).

Before purchasing a deck, psychic medium and tarot reader Sarah Potter advises looking at the artwork on websites like Aeclectic Tarot since it communicates the meaning of the cards. “It’s crucial to be able to relate to the imagery. Choose a deck that gives the appropriate mirror for you “she claims.

Tarot reader and astrologer Lexi Ferguson advises purchasing multiple decks if you’re undecided. “Eliminate any uncertainty. Choose one deck at a time from three, four, or five and observe your behavior “says Ferguson. “You don’t need to reflect about your life. It will feel like your deck at some point along the journey because you keep reaching for it.” Added trick? Tarot reader Michelle Tea advises considering a deck carefully before making a purchase. You’ll keep thinking about it, she explains, and that’s how you’ll know you really want it.

The stunning, top-rated tarot card decks that experts suggest for beginners are included below after we surveyed a variety of experts.

What Tarot deck is the most popular?

The RiderWaite tarot deck is one of the most extensively used decks for reading tarot cards. It is also referred to as the RiderWaiteSmith, WaiteSmith, or Tarot deck. The cards were first released by the Rider Company in 1909, based on the guidelines of scholar and mystic A. E. Waite and illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith, both of whom are members of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The deck has been released in several versions and served as the model for numerous variations and knockoffs. The deck is thought to exist in more than 20 countries in more than 100 million copies.

What tarot cards ought a novice to begin with?

If you find this daunting, Howe advises you to take a deep breath and believe in your own initiative. “In order to see it less as “This holds all of these secret meanings that I have to do all this work to access” and more as “I know all the meanings; it’s just a matter of establishing the connections and being able to articulate them,” use language or knowledge that you already possess. She points out that the four elementsearth, water, fire, and airplay a significant role in the tarot, which is advantageous because the majority of people already have an understanding of the meanings of each element. ” If you do that, your viewpoint will be more personal, and you will be able to express yourself more freely.

Howe suggests the three-card draw and the Celtic Cross as the two fundamental spreads for beginning readers. In the former, three cards are chosen at random from the deck to symbolize the subject’s mind, body, and spirit, or past, present, and future. According to Howe, you could even up the stakes and use a six-card draw, with one card for each location.

What Tarot deck came first?

The origin of playing cards is unknown, although they initially arrived in Europe in the late 14th century. The earliest records, mostly of card games being outlawed, are from Berne in 1367, and they appear to have spread throughout all of Europe quite quickly. Little is known about the design and quantity of these cards; the only significant information is found in a text written in Freiburg im Breisgau in 1377 by John of Rheinfelden, who, in addition to other versions, describes the basic pack as consisting of the four still-in-use suits of 13 cards, with the courts typically being the King, Ober, and Unter (“marshals”), although Dames and Queens were already well-known by that time.

The suits of Batons or Clubs, Coins, Swords, and Cups were one of the earliest card patterns to emerge. These suits are still present in classic decks of playing cards from Italy, Spain, and Portugal, as well as in contemporary (occult) tarot cards that originally appeared in the late 18th century.

Between 1440 and 1450, in Milan, Ferrara, Florence, and Bologna, additional trump cards with allegorical pictures were added to the conventional four-suit pack, resulting in the first known tarot decks. The additional cards, known simply as trionfi, later became known as “trumps” in English. These new decks were known as carte da trionfi, triumph cards, and trionfi. The first recorded account of trionfi can be discovered in a 1440 Florence court document referring to the transfer of two decks to Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta.

The about 15 Visconti-Sforza tarot decks that were painted in the middle of the 15th century for the rulers of the Duchy of Milan are the oldest surviving decks of tarot cards. Martiano da Tortona likely wrote about a missing tarot-like pack that Duke Filippo Maria Visconti had ordered between 1418 and 1425 because the painter he describes, Michelino da Besozzo, left for Milan in 1418 and Martiano himself passed away in 1425. He spoke of a deck of 60 cards, 16 of which featured Roman gods, and four different bird suits. The sixteen cards were referred to as “trumps” because Jacopo Antonio Marcello said that the now-deceased duke had created a new and magnificent category of triumphs in 1449. The Sola-Busca and Boiardo-Viti decks from the 1490s are two other early decks that also had classical themes.

The Minchiate enlarged deck was in use in Florence. Along with conventional tarot imagery, this 97-card deck also features astrological signs, the four elements, and other themes.

Tarot was not routinely condemned in its early history, despite a Dominican priest railing against the sinfulness of cards in a sermon from the 15th century (mostly because of their usage in gambling).

The initial decks of tarot cards are said to have been few in number because they were all hand-painted. The printing press was the first tool that made mass production of playing cards feasible. During the Italian Wars, tarot began to spread outside of Italy, first to France and then to Switzerland. The Tarot of Marseilles, which has Milanese origins, was the most widely used tarot deck in these two nations.

Are all tarot cards created equal?

Despite their vastly different designs, all tarot decks share a few characteristics. Each one has 78 playing cards, divided into the main and minor arcana. The major arcana, which are the deck’s 22 trump cards, generally allude to bigger influences and disclosures when they are revealed during a reading. These cards stand alone without a suit and represent key occasions or people in a person’s life.

In contrast, the minor arcana refer to influences and issues that are more commonplace. Wands, swords, pentacles, and cups make up the four suits that these 56 cards are divided into. (Occasionally, tarot decks will use different terminology, such as “Pentacles for coins, but they are exact equivalents to the four original divisions.) A different aspect of life is represented by each outfit. Wands typically represent imagination and passion, swords intelligence, pentacles work and wealth, and cups emotion. Additionally, each suit is associated with a certain set of astrological signs, such as wands being associated with fire, swords with air, pentacles with earth, and cups with water.

Since we’re beginners, the meanings you’ll most frequently refer to are the functional definitions, albeit these meanings can be used when cards symbolize people and their zodiac signs. For example, a three-card spread with three pentacle cards strongly denotes a financial concern. (More on the various spreads will follow.)

While much of this is up to the deck’s owner and what resonates with them, there are a few conventions that apply to the majority of tarot readings. If you’re reading cards for someone else, you should ask them to provide you with a question or suggest something they’re interested in, and keep that question in mind while you shuffle the deckalso referred to as “removing the effects of earlier research and readings. (An illustration would be, “When will I discover love?” Am I pursuing the correct career? “How can I get through my block?

Then you could query the person you are reading for (also known as “cutting the deck, once more concentrating on the querent. Although some readers will cut the deck for the querent, we prefer this option since it gives the querent a chance to feel linked to the deck personally. In any case, you will draw the necessary number of cards for your spread and, if you’re reading for yourself, place them between you and the querentor directly in front of you.

Tarot cards fly out for what reason?

I adore proverbs with a witchy theme. They are a part of an oral tradition that most likely began when illiteracy rates among rural residents were high. Witches created rhymes and other catchy words to help people remember their rituals before they could record their spells in intricate grimoires.

I’ve never been able to determine where the adage first appeared “What hits the ground makes its way to the door, but I believe it’s a keeper. The statement is applied by tarot readers to cards that fly out of the deck during the shuffle, whether they “either touch the table or the floor. Jumping cards is most definitely a message to pay attention to if, like me, you see the tarot as an oracle and a doorway to a higher plane of awareness.

Why Do Tarot Cards Jump Out of the Deck?

Cards may jump as a result of luck, inexperienced handling, or subconscious energy transference from the reader.

When seasoned tarot readers manipulate their decks, they infuse the cards with energy and intention. Empaths are particularly adept at transferring energy, so if you belong to this mystical group, you should be aware of any strange occurrences when you shuffle the cards.

amateur tarot readers

Additionally, anxious clients who shuffle the deck before a reading are more likely to make poor shuffles that cause cards to fall to the table or floor. In spite of this, their jumpers shouldn’t be dismissed as “accidents.” Regardless of the shuffler’s skill, every card that leaves the deck needs to be recorded.

How Do Cards Jump?

A card can emerge from the deck in a number of ways. Jumper cards are ranked in the following order, from least to most significant:

  • Several cards from the deck drop to the ground or the table. This mishap was probably just the result of a careless shuffle.
  • Without any ceremony or drama, one card is dealt face-down to the tabletop.
  • One card is dealt face-up and is placed on the table.
  • From the deck, one card flips enthusiastically and lands face-up on the surface of the table. Please read this carefully, dear reader. Hey, says the greeting card. Observe me! I want to share something with you.

Methods to Deal with a Jumping Tarot Card

It takes a lot of honesty and trust to read the tarot, especially for someone else. Even if you’ve only recently met and even if you’re reading for yourself, take a moment to pause and focus into the vibes surrounding your relationship with the querent whenever a card jumps out of the deck during a shuffle.

From the most cautious to the most important, here are the six ways to deal with an escaped card:

  • Reshuffle the deck after placing the card back in it as if nothing had happened.
  • Make a mental note of the jumper, reshuffle it, and only pay attention to it if it reappears in the spread you laid.
  • Lay your spread separately as usual, with the jumper face up on the table to the side. After that, assess whether the jumper has any bearing on the cards you laid. Only incorporate it into your reading if it “you and makes sense in the given situation.
  • The jumper should serve as the signifier. Particularly in spreads that feature a card meant to represent the inquirer, such as Card 1 in the Celtic Cross spread, treat this card as the beginning point for the remainder of your reading by placing it in the first place.
  • Think of the jumper as resetting the reading. The true question is frequently avoided by respondents out of fear. They are hesitant to discover their murkier, more hidden sides. Even though you are the one asking the question, there could be an opportunity to do so “Maybe the question you asked wasn’t quite the correct one. What exactly do you want to know?
  • Give the jumper a reading of its own. Because they lack the context that comes from reading cards in connection to other cards, one-card readings are probably the most challenging. However, there are instances when the most challenging tasks are also the ones that are most important. Examine the sweater thoroughly and attentively. Really go to it! Take into account all the information you have available about this card, including conventional keywords, your own interpretation of the symbolism, color, and numerology. Ask yourself if the jumper card might be a communication from the afterlife if your belief system includes communicating with the spirit realm.

Tarot card reading is a practice rather than a craft that can be mastered. There are numerous factors that effect every reading, making them unique. Avoid putting too much restriction on your practice. To make every reading the most meaningful and pertinent experience possible, open your heart, intellect, and sixth sense. This includes paying attention to feisty cards that demand your attention.

What Tarot card is the rarest?

The Fool is typically seen as a card from the Major Arcana when performing a tarot reading. Contrary to popular belief, the Fool does not fall under either category in tarot card games. Instead, the Fool serves a function that is distinct from both the simple suit cards and the trump cards. As a result, the Fool has no number assigned to it in the majority of tarot decks that were initially created for playing games. Although Waite assigns the Fool the number 0, in his book, the Fool is discussed between Judgment (number 20) and The World (number 21). The Tarocco Piemontese is the only traditional game deck that numbers the Fool 0. Since the 1930s, the corner index for the Fool in Tarot Nouveau decks has frequently been a black inverted mullet. The Fool is one of the most expensive cards in practically all tarot games.

What tarot decks do experts use?

The following are the top 5 tarot card sets, in the opinion of expert readers:

  • the tarot deck by Rider-Waite-Smith. Amazon.
  • The Modern Tarot Library’s Modern Witch tarot deck. Amazon.
  • Tarot deck from St. Croix.
  • Tarot deck by Morgan-Greer. Tarot.com.
  • The tarot deck and book set called The Wild Unknown. The Unknown Wild.

Is Tarot difficult to learn?

The amount of information you need to study and memorize to read tarot, though, can seem overwhelming. It doesn’t have to be that way, and that’s what we’re here to tell you. You’ll be an expert by the time your friends from college come around for drinks tonight if you just follow our quick-start tarot instruction.

Tarot reading has been practiced since the 14th or 15th century and may have started out as a card game, similar to poker, rather than a spiritual activity. Nevertheless, a spiritual component emerged, and tarot cards started to be employed for divination in the late 18th century. They have also been applied to psychological research. Even Carl Jung thought of the playing cards as a tool to depict the “archetypes of mankind.”

The majority of 78-card tarot decks follow the Rider-Waite-Smith tradition and make use of related archetypes and iconography.

Additionally, there are tarot decks from various traditions, such as Marseilles tarot decks, as well as oracle cards, which can have any quantity of cards with their own particular imagery. But chances are, if you’re new to tarot, your deck is a Rider-Waite-Smith one.

Each of the 78 cards in these tarot decks has a distinct meaning. You don’t have to keep all of that in your head, even though it is a lot to know about them. The following are the key facts to be aware of:

1. The Minor Arcana and the Major Arcana are the two categories of Tarot cards.

Similar to a standard deck of playing cards, the 56 Minor Arcana cards are divided into four suits: Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles. The total journey of your life is covered by the 22 Major Arcana.

Can I study tarot by myself?

You can learn tarot on your phone for free, but if you want to perform readings more frequently or for other people, I strongly advise buying a physical deck so you can get acclimated to the feel of the cards and close-up views of the images.