Tarot poll

[Kuroneko]

it's Okay, so I've got to know, since I'm considering making a small tarot deck using plaincards.com. I will probably offer a deck with my own characters, but I could also realistically print out any deck using any pictures from caption pictures to pictures people had drawn of their MSF characters. So I'm gauging general interest. And really? I don't expect much interest beyond a few days of "Gee that would be cool." But hey, surprise me XD

[Mitera Nikkou]

As for the poll: I've had a reading, perhaps two. I'd have more if I had the opportunity, just for the heck of it. But I prefer other things of that nature over tarot reading. I'm just not capable of doing them. ;/

As for your post: Yeah, I've never considered owning my own deck, and probably never will. There are few possessions that I'm willing to get for myself, for one. And then I tend not to worry about something that I have access to that someone else owns. :O (For instance, if I remember correctly, both my sister and mother each have a tarot deck. I don't ask for readings because they give me no confidence in being able to read the cards.)

[Kuroneko]

Well you could learn by watching as long as you ask questions. Every reader reads differently, and each reading has it's own meaning even if you pull the exact same cards. The cards are "subtle" in that they can point to many things. The trick is looking at the cards and trying to figure out what they could mean in relation to what you are asking.

It's easy but not easy. Memorizing cards and layouts is easy. It's the actual reading that can be tough, depending.

[Mitera Nikkou]

If I ever decided to read someone's tarot I wouldn't learn anything. Having default meanings for each card, which tend to vary between various types of decks, as well needing to use certain spreads, seems like an indulgent redundancy. That's just me, though it is another method of subtlety. I approach tarot like I do dreams, especially since one of the traditions is to make sure that the deck is imbued with the energy of the person getting the reading. (In other words, their energy is going to translate over to them, not to you. At least that's what I think makes more sense.)

Oh, and it wouldn't be easy for everyone. I'm bad at memorizing that kind of an array of information like that, for instance. ;/

[Musashi]

I have a deck (Dragon-themed!), but I don't quite get it. I've tried, and sometimes it seems to work, but I feel unsure. :o So, yeah, I don't get to use it very often. But I think tarot is real nifty!

[Kuroneko]

If I ever decided to read someone's tarot I wouldn't learn anything. Having default meanings for each card,

Wrong actually. While some people do literally read tarot with just one meaning per card, experienced readers don't.

High priestess might show up in a spread indicating someone is keeping a secret for me.
Or maybe it will indicate that I am about to learn something in another.
The image looks like a woman guarding a door, so at times the card may appear if there is an obstable to knowledge.
On the other hand, because the woman looks somewhat arrogant in my deck and "turn awayish" I could have a let down of some sort coming in the future.

Each card has many different meanings to it, and they are all brought about by:
What is happening in the art
The suit (wands, cups)
The number.
What you think when you first see the card.
Elements and little details in the art.
And most importantly, what you as the reader think it means. If a happy card makes you feel uneasy, it's making you feel uneasy for a reason and the card may have nothing to do with happiness. The character on the card may remind you of something you're uneasy with.

Anything is possible ^_^

as well needing to use certain spreads,

You can use any spread or no pre-determined spread. For instance I started with a five card spread the other night, but happily added four cards to it to help bring out some meanings in the other cards I wasn't quite getting clearly. Many of the books I have read so far have specifically instructed the readers not to get caught up in just one definition for cards or obsessing over using "certain spreads." They encourage experimentation, there's not a lot of dogma in tarot, it's very esoteric.

That's just me, though it is another method of subtlety. I approach tarot like I do dreams, especially since one of the traditions is to make sure that the deck is imbued with the energy of the person getting the reading. (In other words, their energy is going to translate over to them, not to you. At least that's what I think makes more sense.)

Something like that. Everyone works it differently.

Oh, and it wouldn't be easy for everyone. I'm bad at memorizing that kind of an array of information like that, for instance. ;/

Well that does suck, but daily practice would get you over that hump in time.

Musakins... what don't you get?

[Stellar]

curious but have no experience.

It seems like an awesome concept, but I know what's going on in my life, and for any mysteries that may exsist I'll let them be or explore them myself.

Though, one of my old friends had a tarot deck and did one for me. She couldn't make sence out of any of the cards that was drawn, and she wasn't too wet behind the ears (she'd been doing it for a month or two before hand and had read a couple books on it).

[Musashi]

Musakins... what don't you get?

Just not sure if I'm doin' it right... maybe I just need to practice more. :o

[Mitera Nikkou]

Kuro:

You misread my meaning terribly. ^_^; Well, I guess I could have been more elaborate... Anyway, what you said was wrong was exactly what I had been saying in the first place, in much fewer words. You see, your average person is likely going to pick up a deck, read the book(let) that (may) come with it, and assume the same meaning each time it's drawn in a reading. Same with using the same spread for the same question. That's what I meant by not learning anything. The only learning involved, I think, is in knowing to just feel things out according to the circumstances. So a High Priestess, to me, would just be a High Priestess card until I draw it and have to see its relevance in when it comes up and for what question/detail.

But I don't read tarot so no one has to worry about a crazy rogue like me. ;p

[Kuroneko]

OH! Whoops =n_n=;;

Yeah it's all good.

Musa, read about all different ways to do it, then try them all until you find one you like ^_^

Readings? Just think of each card as a metaphor or a set of metaphors for something else.

Try what one of my book suggestions, a daily tarot card just as a metaphor for the entire day, the mood of your day. Keep a short journal on them, this will help you learn the cards, I'm in the middle of doing it and it's working out alright.

[Mistress Guendolen]

I've actually considered procuring a deck and trying to learn how to read/interpret them, at some point. I've had readings (though not for some time now) and know I'll have more- my older brother is a practiced Tarot reader. In fact, he has a reputation for accuracy. And not just for known people; I've seen him do readings for people he's just met, and they're agog at just how accurately it fits what they've experienced and continue to do. So it's sort of in the blood, I think.... So yes, I find the notion very intriguing. The personalization of it, I think, is what throws me. I don't know if I can dig deep enough to find the nuances in meaning for individuals. After all, having seen it like I have, I don't subscribe to the "one meaning per card" thing, either.

[Kuroneko]

Try throwing the elements of the meanings out like a story. Not following any particular cards, let say you have three cards and they make you think of...

1) passion, fire, will
2) union, good bonds, good relations
3) battle, conflict

Perhaps they're having a fight with their significant other?

Just try practice readings, heck do them for fictional characters XD

Spit out the meanings and try to connect what is there into something that makes some kind of sense.

[Raleigh]

Never had a reading before nor do I own the cards, but I've studied on the supposed meanings of each and the various ways of dealing the cards. Mysticism is my stock in trade on information amongst the people that know me, only exceeded by video game info, so its always interesting to me to learn about any form it may take.

[Anamnesis]

I've gotten multiple reading and the first card they always pull marks me as a dead man. I don't know why, but it seems fate wants me to die, soon D: