Kim Arnold - The Tarot Masters: Insights From the Worlds Leading Tarot Experts

First published and distributed in the United Kingdom by:
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Kim Arnold, 2013

The contributors reserve the right to be identified as the
copyright holders of their individual text contributions.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording; nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted or otherwise be copied for public or private use, other than for fair use as brief quotations embodied in articles and reviews, without prior written permission of the publisher. Neither the author nor the publisher can be held responsible for any material on third party websites.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978-1-78180-304-2 in print
ISBN 978-1-78180-321-9 in Kindle format
ISBN 978-1-78180-320-2 in ePub format

Tarot card artwork created by Kati Oppermann

First and foremost, thank you to everyone who has contributed to this book.

To Melanie Young, Diane Ebeck, Geraldine and Bali Beskin for their continued loyalty, support, encouragement and help with the UK Tarot Conference, without which this book would not exist.

To Lyn Howarth-Olds, whose Letters to the Past Tarot project inspired this one, thank you for the time spent, along with Leanne McGregor, editing these pages.

Heartfelt thanks to my family, who have supported and encouraged me in every way possible; especially my husband Martin who pushed me when I doubted myself Martin, your continued support keeps me sane.

I would also like to acknowledge Jonathan Dee and Hermann Haindl, both of whom were speakers at our 2010 Conference and have since sadly departed this world. Both were kind and special souls who contributed so much to Tarot.

O ver the last decade, there has been a huge shift in attitude towards Tarot, and thankfully it has been mostly for the better.

The 38 contributors to this book have all played a part in bringing Tarot out of the suburbs and into the mainstream, and I am thrilled that they have agreed to take part in this collaborative project.

Being curious as to what makes someone pick up a deck of Tarot cards for the first time, I asked the contributors the following questions: How did your Tarot journey begin and what inspired you? What is your interpretation of a Major Arcana card, and what is it about the card that you either love or loathe? Their responses can be read on the pages that follow.

My hope is that this collection of work will become a legacy and inspire future generations of Tarot enthusiasts. Just imagine if we had such a book with contributions from Waite, Colman Smith and the like!

A s a Tarot reader and teacher, I often associate people with the traits of the Major Arcana Tarot cards. Expanding on this idea, I have personally chosen 22 influential authors, artists and teachers of Tarot to represent each of the cards in the Major Arcana.

If you look closely at each card you will see the contributors initials, discreetly placed within the design of the card that has been assigned to them. In some cases, the connection between the person and the card will be obvious; in others, the connection may be a little more obscure.

I have my own reasons for each association maybe I will reveal all in the next book!

T he first card of Tarot: The Fool, numbered zero. A new journey is about to begin. Where will that journey take us? Are we about to abandon what we know to be safe and secure?

There is an element of risk-taking with this card, although the message reminds us that we have free will.

The Fool has great faith but tends to look only at the positive aspects of what lies ahead. Just make sure you weigh up the pros and cons before you leap into the unknown! Often, The Fool appears in a reading when the querent is ready for change.

For me, the main aspect of The Fool is that the road ahead is full of potential and invites change. However, the way we handle that change dictates whether the experience will be positive or negative.

From early childhood I always felt there was more to life than just existing and I had a fascination for all things magical.

I was 17 when I attended my first clairvoyant evening. I was sitting in the front row strange in itself as I was painfully shy and during the mediums address, she handed me her ring and announced to the audience that I was going to demonstrate psychometry! Mortified and embarrassed, I took the ring and closed my eyes. In my minds eye, I was in a house where scenes were being played out to me in great detail. I relayed what I saw. At the end of the evening, the medium told me everything I had said was true, and invited me to study at the Spiritualist Association of Great Britain. At the time I thought that if you conjured up spirits they would follow you home, so I graciously declined.

How about Tarot? she said. If you dont like it you can pop the cards back in the box and forget about them. Now she had my attention. A trip to Mysteries in Covent Garden to purchase the IJJ Swiss deck followed, and the rest as they say is history.

C ome with me on an inner journey. The road starts in darkness, so ignite the light of the Spirit and it will shine.

Follow me as I lead you into the sanctuary of the Temple of Life: a path that has been walked by generations of sages, leading you to eternal patterns of inner growth. I conjure up a magical wand. Take it and draw the symbol of eternity above your head.

Freeze in this position for a minute you will become the Hebrew letter aleph: realize that divinity breathes through you! But why then is The Magician connected with the Hebrew letter beth?

Follow me over the path of black and white tiles: the Path of Life takes you through darkness and light. Both are necessary for growth. Work with the opportunities life offers you. Transcend them on the altar standing amidst your Inner Temple.

Why do you need an altar? Shaped like the Cube of Space, it helps you to orientate yourself: thus you can work with the divine forces surrounding you.

More magical instruments start to appear. First, a wand. You have already used one to connect yourself to eternity. But this wand is special: it is the magical wand of Mercury, the caduceus. With it you travel between Heaven and Earth. It is the key to the development of your spirit. It fits exactly on the Tree of Life. Use this wand and develop magical powers.