Getting to Know Your Deck
By Grace Mary Katthrynn Perez So now, you have your deck and the books to go with it. The next step is to transform the toy you bought at Borders or the Renne Faire into your Tarot deck. This is a process of purifying, blessing and dedicating the deck. There are many ways to do this. I will briefly review of few of them.
“Sleep is not only necessary; it’s nice.” My mother told me, and she was right. Sleep can allow the subconscious mind to weave through your deck and get to know it on a deeper, almost instinctive level. Simply put you deck under your pillow and go to sleep. I like to do this from new moon to full moon. Over the three nights of the dark of the moon is also a good time. But if you cannot wait for the correct moon cycle, simply sleep on them as many nights in a row as you can. I find seven to be a good number. It is a good idea to invoke your particular deity/deities and ask for the blessings of insight and wisdom while you sleep.
When you are short on time, and really need your cards blessed RIGHT NOW. Spread them on your altar (or wherever), call on your particular deities and hold your hands over your cards and say, “By the powers of ____________, I bless my cards. Help me to find wisdom and insight whenever I use them. This is my will – Blessed be.” Or words to that effect.
My favorite way to attune and purify my cards is simply by handling them. Shuffle them repeatedly and then put them back in order. Sort them by suits and majors, lay them out on the table and study them individually or lay out all of a suit and let your eyes wander over them. What do they all share? What symbols or patterns appear in nearly every card? Or lay them out by number and do the same thing. Add the corresponding Major Arcana number and see how that changes the relationships.
As you are reviewing your deck the first thing you will notice is how the deck is set up. As I mentioned in my previous article Beginning Tarot the Tarot is divided into 5 sections. 22 Major Arcana and 54 Minor Arcana which are in turn divided into 4 suits – Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles. Some decks have given the suits different names such as Rods for Wands or Stones for Pentacles, but the meanings are the same.
The Minor Arcana is the ancestor of the modern playing deck with a few differences. The modern Jack is a combination of two cards – the Knight and the Page. The face cards or “court” cards in the Minor Arcana are the King, Queen, Knight and Page. They often represent people. Either people we know or facets of our own Self. The numbered cards, as in the modern deck, run Ace through ten. Each Minor card has a unique meaning, which is why it is best to choose a deck that illustrates each meaning rather than a deck that just depicts ten cups or six swords.
The Major Arcana are the most complex, powerful, profound cards in the deck. The Majors represent archetypes, forces of nature, stages of life, and sometimes all three at once. Each card has a title like “The Wheel of Fortune,” “Emperor”, or “Temperance.” The title gives a hint of the meaning of the card, but there is always a deeper meaning which involves a great deal of searching to understand. You will understand part of each Major card immediately and yet you will still be surprised when you discover a new deeper facet of the card after years of study.
Finally, you must use your cards. Don’t think that you have to read all the books cover to cover before you begin. The Tarot evolved in a time when few people could read. All of the answers are there in the cards. You only have to study them. Do the books help? Absolutely! Especially when you first start, but in the end, it all comes back to the cards. Use them. Do the exercises, read for yourself and your friends. Play with them, study them, admire the artwork, study the relationships and above all, have fun with them.
Blessed Be!
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