Kim Huggens - Tarot 101: Mastering the Art of Reading the Cards

About the Author

Kim Huggens has been studying Tarot since the age of nine, and is the co-author of SolInvictus: The God Tarot (Schiffer Publications, 2007) and the in-progress companion deck Pistis Sophia: The Goddess Tarot. She lives in Cardiff, Wales, where she works as a veterinary receptionist part-time to fund her university studies in Ancient History. She moved to Cardiff in 2002 for her undergraduate degree in Philosophy, and also graduated with an MA in Religion in Late Antiquity from Cardiff University in 2007. Kim has given numerous talks and workshops on the subject of Tarot, divination, Paganism, and mythology in the UK, and regularly runs Tarot courses. She is a practicing Vodouisante and Thelemite, and a member of the OTO. She lives with her partner and cat, and in her spare time plays Call of Cthulu and Dungeons and Dragons, writes short fiction, goes for walks in graveyards and wishes she could translate Sumerian.

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MASTERING THE ART OF READING THE CARDS

K I M H U G G E N S

This work is dedicated to every willing Tarot student and to the constant journey toward understanding and wisdom.

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My deepest thanks go to my friends Harrison, Simon, and Jon, without whom life would be so much duller and red wine would not taste so good. I love you all truly. In particular I give my gratitude to Harrison for his support, advice, guidance, and tea.

My heartfelt thanks go to my brothers and sisters in the Thelemic and Vodou communities-without you all I would be lost.

Thanks also to Dan Pelletier for the blunt pencil trick!

This Tarot course is designed to enable you, the reader, to study the system of Tarot in a personal and meaningful manner. It is suitable for readers of all levels of experience, as it leads the reader from the very basic skills through to the more advanced topics concerning Tarot. Where possible, the reader is encouraged to progress through the course in order so as not to miss useful information; however, the lessons are designed so that they also have value as stand-alone studies.

The pace at which you study this course is entirely up to you and should be dictated by your other commitments, your level of interest in Tarot, and your own learning style. However, students in the past have found that two to four weeks between lessons has given them plenty of time to complete the optional homework, complete the exercises from the lessons, and explore the themes from each lesson on a personal, deeper level. Ideally, you should only move on to a new lesson when you are happy with your understanding of the previous lesson.

Unlike many Tarot books and courses, I have not given the lessons on the Major Arcana cards in chronological order (from 0, the Fool, to 21, the World). I found that this order, while useful for readings and interpretation, was an unhelpful way of learning the cards themselves, and thus the lessons on the Major Arcana are organized into themes. A set of three (and in one case, four) cards is examined for each theme, serving to highlight this theme as it appears in the cards, show the similarities and differences between the cards, and to offer a means for the reader to explore these abstract concepts. Alongside each set of cards are sections on techniques, skills, symbolism, spreads, and useful tools that fit the theme. Readers may have already noticed that the Major Arcana lessons are interrupted periodically with lessons concerning other topics-reading skills and creating spreads, for instance. This is to allow each reader a chance to not only learn about the cards but to begin from as early a stage as possible to practice the methods of reading. The optional homework and exercises found throughout the lessons will offer a means for the reader to practice these skills.

The optional homework, activities, and exercises are an integral part of this Tarot course. As suggested by their names, the homework[s] are not necessary, but they are the most effective way for the reader to integrate their newfound knowledge from the lessons into their lives, their individual Tarot practice, and their understanding. The same is true of the activities exercises, which are designed specifically to introduce the concepts or skills in the lessons in a way that aids in the reader's learning of them and eventual understanding of them. This course is not designed to just be read through, and instead puts the power in the hands of the reader to develop a personal relationship with the cards and the system of Tarot. Primarily, this is because I do not want the students of this course to simply parrot words that have been put into their mouths by the lessons. I want the students of this course to make discoveries for themselves, find out new things about their particular Tarot deck, highlight aspects of their own lives and personalities, and begin to create their own understanding and relationship with the cards. When this method of learning is employed, it ceases to be an intellectual chore, and becomes a wonderful, engaging, and encouraging path of discovery and self-development.

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