This section is dedicated to various Tarot related articles.

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Using the Tarot everyday
by Julie Lenkner, December 2007

"Archery,fencing, spear fighting, all martial arts, tea ceremony, flower arranging...in all of these, correct breathing, correct balance, and correct stillness help to remake the individual. The basic aim is always the same: by tirelessly practicing a given skill, the student finally sheds the ego with it's fears, worldly ambitions, and reliance on subjective scrutiny - sheds it so completely that he becomes the instrument of a deeper power, from which mastery falls instinctively, without further effort on his part,like a ripe fruit." - Karlfried Graf Durkheim

This morning I read this quote.  I had been thinking about how in our last discussion group we were talking about starting a journal where we pull 1 or 2 cards everyday, (I do mine in the morning with my coffee)  and I realized that learning the tarot falls in the same category as the tea ceremony or the zen flower arranger. 

We need to have that everyday familiarity with the cards that allows us to draw our deeper power from within.  The more familiar our minds and our hands are with the cards, the more we allow room for our own intuition to grasp onto the full experience of what the cards are trying to tell us.

I guess that just means keep it up with the journaling, handle your cards every day, and sit back, as the Fool, to let the
journey happen.

Picking your first Tarot deck 
by Julie Lenkner,  May 2006

Choosing your first Tarot deck can be a very exciting, yet somewhat nerve wracking experience.  Some people are given their first deck and others start the learning process before they even own one.  Almost any deck will do as long as the images in the deck appeal to your inner self.

   Looking for just the right deck? Here are a few points to keep in mind:

We find that when learning to read Tarot cards, it is important to learn with a deck that uses traditional Tarot Structure. 
             *78 cards in the deck.  22 major arcana and 56 minor arcana cards
             *4 suits - it's ok if the suit names change, just keep in mind that different decks  may use different names.
(Pentacles = coins, disks, pumpkins)
(Cups = chalices, bowls, cauldrons)
    (Swords = crystals, blades, bats)
  (Wands = rods, spears, imps)

It is a good idea to look for a deck that uses different imagery for every minor arcana card.  Some use only the picture of the element (such as a picture of two swords.)  Different pictures make it easier for the beginner to learn the meanings because the images are helpful in establishing an
 intuitive sense for each card.

   If you are given a deck and you feel you would learn better with another, it's perfectly alright to go buy a different one to learn from.  What usually happens is that once the basic symbology and archetypes are learned you may find yourself wanting to use both decks, depending on the type of reading.
 
  When searching for your new deck, take the time to look at some of the pictures on the cards (if possible)  Some bookstores and Metaphysical shops have either open decks or catalogs with multiple pictures from each deck.

A few local stores with open decks are 
Paradise Found in Santa Barbara
      Soul Centered in Ojai

The Aeclectic Tarot Forum has sample cards from over 400 decks they are at www.tarotforum.net

Good luck to you on this woderful path you are starting on.  May you gain knowledge that reaches deep inside your very soul!

***Please keep in mind that the opinions expressed in this article are just that...opinions.  One of the wonderful things about Tarot reading is that every reader is entitled to see and express things their own way.