Megan Atwood - Tarot

Megan Atwood is an author and creative writing professor in South New Jersey. She loves spending time reading peoples palms, calculating their numerology, understanding their astrology, and reading their tarot cards. When she is not writing or teaching, Megan is playing with her cats and dreaming up new ways to learn about the arts.

Rachel Tesch is a graphic designer from Waconia, Minnesota. She found a love for book design while exploring typography and found photos in art school. When she is not working, she is watching Hulu, researching unexplained phenomena, and crushing her friends at Nintendo games.

Have your parents or guardians check out these books for you!

1. Cynova, Melissa. Kitchen Table Tarot. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2017.
2. Dean, Liz. The Ultimate Guide to Tarot. Beverly, MA: FairWinds Press, 2015.
3. Esselmont, Brigit. Everyday Tarot. New York: Running Press, 2018.
4. Hayetz, Meg. Tarot for Beginners. Althea Press, 2018.
5. Main, Sami. How to Deal: Tarot for Everyday Life. New York: HarperCollins, 2018.

Youve seen the cards in movies. It starts like this: The camera stays on a woman, usually draped in scarves, wearing big hoop earrings. She has a crystal ball near her and shes turning over cards slowly from an extra-large, ancient-looking deck. But theyre not playing cardsthey have pictures on them. Frightening pictures of death, devils, and misfortune. The woman widens her eyes, and maybe a gust of wind breezes through the place, blowing out candles. The cards have spokenSOMETHING BAD.

While reading tarot cards can bring up some big feelings, rarely will it be that dramatic. The cards have been used to signify something mystical in all sorts of popular culturefor good reason. Tarot cards and the images on them tap into our inner voice or intuition. Using the cards to connect and reflect on ourselves and others, as well as our past, present, and future situations, has been a helpful tool for people for generations. This book is a great first step in discovering all that tarot has to offer.

FORTUNE-TELLING VS. INNER GUIDANCE

TAROT TELLS YOU YOUR FUTURE, RIGHT?

You might be reading this book because you want to know what your life has in store for you. And, yes, tarot can be used to get a feel for the future. But many believe that the tarot works best when you use the cards as a window into what energies you or the person whose cards youre reading are dealing with. Or, to use them as a way for you to speak with your higher self. Maybe you want to know how to feel stronger in your everyday life. Maybe you want to see what your reactions are when you draw a daily card and meditate on it through your whole day. Though you can use the tarot as a fortune-telling tool, it is also a fantastic way to get to know yourself better and to look for ways to deepen your experience in the world right now.

A tarot deck has 78 cards in all. Fifty-six of themthe Minor echo normal playing cards with their suits and their court (meaning, royalty) cards. The other cards are the Major Arcana, which consist of 22 numbered cards (starting at 0) that are of bigger significance in a reading. This book will just touch on the meanings of the Major Arcana and even more briefly on the Minor Arcana. Well discuss setting up a reading first, and then well talk about the meanings of the cards. Keep in mind that this book is just the tip of the iceberg for what is out there for tarot. Make sure to check out the additional resources in the back of the book!

To read tarot, of course you need a deck! The Rider-Waite Tarot deck is considered the standard deck in tarothowever, that doesnt mean its the only one to use! Many stores sell tarot decks. Ask if you can look at the deck, or check them out online to find the one that speaks to you. Bring your parent or guardian to the store, or have them check out the decks with you online to find one thats just right for you.

Italian nobles playing with tarot cards in the mid1400s

The Rider-Waite tarot deck has been around since 1909. Artist Pamela Colman Smith collaborated with A.E. Waite and William Rider to develop the deck that has become the standard in tarot. But tarot has been around for much, much longer than the 20th century.

Rider-Waite Deck (left); A.E. White 1909 booklet (right)

Some historians believe the cards originated in 14th century Europe, where a series of cards with four different suits was used to play games. In 15th century northern Italy, the game and cards became popular. Wealthy people commissioned more cards to be added, called triumph cards. These were shortened to trump cards and are now known as the Major Arcana. People used them to play a game called tarocchi appropriati. The duke of Milan, Franceso Visconti, was said to have commissioned a deck in 1415.

a couple playing a card game in the late 1400s

Though the tarot originally started as a game, different artists delved into the Major Arcana cards and added more symbolism and depth. The cards show a journey through life that is full of light and dark. Over time, people began to see deeper meanings in the cards. More and more, the decks Major Arcana cards were used for and insight.

It wasnt until the 18th century, though, that the tarot became more widely used in this way. French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte had invaded Egypt, and artifacts from Egyptian tombs and Egyptian systems began to spread to the West.

Napoleon Bonaparte looking at the mummy of a pharoah in Egypt

Spurring this popularity was Antoine Court de Gbelin in France, who merged Egyptian mysticism with the tarot. He positioned the tarot as a form of esoteric knowledge formerly only held by clergy and mystics. People loved the idea that they could use such a formerly exclusive system themselves, and the tarots popularity grew.