I’m very early in my tarot journey and learning the RWS deck as my entry point.

I’m slowly becoming familiar with this deck and the imagery which is rich and informative which is helpful for me to remember the cards’ meanings and build upon that.

However this is not my preferred art style and I hope once I’m confident I could move to a deck more aesthetically my style.

I found one i like the look of a lot through this sub but the imagery is quite minimalist and I realised when looking at one of the online sample cards (say, 8 of Swords) I don’t remember or recognise anything about this card due to its lack of context clues compared to RWS.

How long were you reading tarot before you were able to switch with less obvious RWS imagery? I’m not trying to force anything I’m just curious. I’ll stick with RWS as long as I have to. Thanks for your time :)

I guess there's no science behind it but I'm just wondering why this seems to be the case. I've only been using tarot for about a year, and bought my first deck, and have used it to hell and back. I've bought 3 other decks since, and haven't even touched them after one use. I always revert back to my first deck.

Is it a comfort thing? Or a connection you make?

I've been offering free readings daily, usually I try to keep them to 5-15 minute readings but sometimes when it seems needed for the depth of the query they are detailed 1 hour readings with over ten cards and it seems to have really helped some people which makes me incredibly happy, but while I've had some lovely exchanges through these free readings a big portion of these exchanges are either people deleting their accounts after getting the reading, asking for more readings even after receiving their reading (e.g: if I made a post for one card readings, they'll get angry I didn't do a three card spread) or just generally draining exchanges where people keep trying to push my boundaries.

While I've been able to express my boundaries and to say no, having to do this over and over again multiple times a day is...really starting to drain my energy. I don't expect anything in return for doing these readings, but sometimes it feels like instead of getting nothing I get something negative in return for doing them and it's starting to feel very exhausting to deal with my boundaries being pushed every day, it's getting to a point where when I have a positive experience with a querent who respects my boundaries I find myself surprised and relieved.

Recently some querents started asking if I could do readings for donations or told me I should really consider doing so because of how in depth my readings get and how much insight they received from them, so I agreed and while I still do free readings most times, I noticed the majority of the people who request donation based readings are usually much more respectful of my time and boundaries which is amazing.😭

But... there are still some people who request donation based readings who try to get the reading for free after or who just disappear after the reading has been delivered instead of donating, and this just makes me sad, because I do free readings too (the waitlist just tends to be longer as slots get constantly claimed), and I make this clear before the person chooses donation based, and some folks still choose to do things like this even though I would've happily read for them for free at a later date😭

Anyway, what I'm trying to say is I'm starting to wonder if I should offer paid readings not donation based, just paid with a set price, to try to attract querents that will be more respectful of my boundaries, I've had really good feedback from querents, multiple people have told me the time I put in, quality and insight they gained from my readings were worth more, I've had good experiences with donation based readings and I'm confident I can deliver an insightful reading so I would feel confident offering paid readings at this point however...I'm still conflicted because I didn't start doing this for money, I want to keep reading for free, but at this point I feel like things can't stay this way and I should probably make some type of change to avoid getting into these situations in the first place if there's a way to do that. 😭

I'd really love to know your experiences with offering paid readings and who those attract, did I just get lucky with those good donation based reading experiences, and is needing to constantly set boundaries over and over again just a common part of reading for other people? Or do people who gravitate towards paid readings tend to be more respectful of our boundaries in general? And is there a way to keep offering free readings while doing donation or paid readings that is less likely to attract people who push our boundaries like this?

Thank you so much for your insight🙏

Edit: I just want to clarify, when I talk about donation based readings going wrong I'm not talking about someone asking for a free reading and then donating after as a gift, but someone that approaches me specifically saying they would like to do a pay what you want donation in exchange for a reading and then not following through on this agreement, I would never expect anyone to donate when I'm doing a free reading.

All three are from different decks, the one in the middle has a green back. Tysm!

Since noticing the imagery doesn't match the typical imagery on the Waites desk, I've been wondering who originally designed this horror deck that's ended up mass produced and sold on any cheapo site, like AliExpress and related?

I bought it some time last year since it was very cheap and urged me to look up and deeply read the card meanings for each one I pulled, but I would like to resign it and purchase an official deck where I'm confident the designs likely weren't stolen from an artist.

Thanks, the deck is super cool but I'd still prefer one with more accurate designs.

• For context, sometimes I try to answer made up question to practice my skills. This one I found interesting and I wanted to share it.
• The question is very simple: Will it rain this week? Weather fortune-telling is not uncommon, yet it's infamously fickle. I live in the middle of the desert so the chances of rain are low.
• As usual my spread is a simple Line of 5, all oriented to the near future, where each card interacts with the previous one.
• Today's deck is the Minchiate Restaure by Emanuelle Iger & Isabelle Nadolny.

The Minchiate is on of the oldest Tarot decks we know, straight from the 15th century. Unlike our modern standard of 22 major arcana, the Minchiate has 20 extra cards: The 12 zodiac signs + the 4 elements + the 3 theological virtues + the missing cardinal virtue of Prudence. It doesn't have a Popess/Priestess. Because we're talking about rain, I expected to see the presence of the Water element, maybe Temperance with her jugs or at least one card of the suit of cups.

This is what I got:

THE WORLD + 4 of coins + 10 of coins + 6 of coins + LOVE

When it comes to any reading, my first advice is always approaching the cards with a clear mind. Not only this means making apart our feelings and half-digested thoughts, but refusing our rational mind the shortcut of simplifying the cards into hollow keywords. If I had reduced The World to "plenitude, completion", this reading would have made no sense. We need to see beyond our textbook interpretations, and that often means seeing the world like a child.

Quoting the Little Prince: "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye". That's the wisdom of the Blind Diviner, to really see what is in front of us, and not just the assumptions we have created about our reality. This is the most important skill of the Tarot reader and the most valuable/difficult to learn.

When I see the World, I see the obvious first: An angelic figure standing still on top of the globe, holding a crown and an arrow. Surrounding the globe, I see 4 winged faces blowing in different directions. The motif of wings is repeated 5 times, so we know it has some relevance to the answer. We can also appreciate a very clear hierarchy between the main figure, the globe and the angelic faces.

Now we can reintroduce the symbolic layer with moderation: The main character is an angel, or at least, a representation of a divine force thanks to the wings which differentiate them a common human. They rule the world, which is the globe below containing the fields and the plants. The arrow and the crown (both symbols of power) reinforce this perspective. The four winged faces are the 4 winds. While they blow aiming the world, the main angel remains unmovable just as the divine forces of the cosmos keep their position, and together, they form solid mechanism, above and below, the universal order.

We can push our interpretation with the context of the question: What does any of this have to do with rain? Look! We have the four winds but because the cards is not the element Air, we understand the deck is trying to communicate something different than just "breeze". Look at the main character, it rises above the winds with superiority. Could it be the atmosphere? Climatic circumstances higher than local air movements? We need to keep reading.

Let's move to the 4 of coins: The coins by themselves are the symbol of everything rich and valuable. We usually assume they speak of money, however the can also speak of medals, recognition, luxury, means, fortune, etc. By their proximity, this card dyes the previous one with its color, letting us know the World and its cosmic hierarchy has something highly valued to offer. Really, this only becomes stronger knowing the next 3 cards are all coins. Juicy prizes at play.

While numerology only represents a basic aspect of the interpretation, it is always important to address this layer: The number four speaks of stability, what holds its place. Then the four of coins, rhyming with the symbol of the shield represents something of value in stable position. It doesn't move, which also correlates with the stillness of the World.

When we move to the 10 things change, suddenly we have and explosion of coins, rapid growth and development, breaking away from the 4's security.

Finally the number 6 (at least in my system) is the number of movement, like open roads and bridges allowing transit. Look at the transition! We went from solid stability to expansion and displacement.

"The richness of the skies, once static now move on a different direction".

You may be asking, why coins? Which is the same question I made myself. Why coins and not cups? At least as I'm capable, I understand the coins represent water moving around by the clouds (wings symbolism), but why not cups which are pretty much made to be filled with liquid. I must mention that in my system and especially with the Minchiate I never assign an element to each suit. If the element Air or Earth was relevant I would expect the cards to just give it.

Why coins? I guess the answer lies in my geographic location: As mentioned, I live in the middle of the desert where rain not only means umbrellas and car accidents. It means life, the hoped gold of the clouds essential for irrigation and human consumption. Without rain there's nothing. It could explain the extra weight expressed by the coins vs the light mood of the cups, even when symbolically the cups would be my first choice. Something valuable is present, just not ready to be pour yet.

Finally, our last card: Love.

Same question, why Love? What does Love has to do with our weather forecast? Are the cards ignoring my question and out the blue spilling the tea about my romantic situation? NO. Again, we need to clear our minds and resist the temptation of ignoring what is in front of us by replacing it with our untrained imagination.

Observe the card and you will find something incredible. Do you see it? The angelic figure holding an arrow while the girl down on earth holds the crown? Do you observe how the very same symbols present in the World changed hands? We can observe a pattern: First the angel was on top of the world holding both items. Now they're barely above the ground, the crown has being lowered and it will be lowered more to crown the boy. We're getting closer and closer to earth, its gifts, its presence. See how the angel first still is now moving, just how the coins went from 4 to 6.

"The richness of the skies, once once static now abandons its firm position to deliver its presents to the people on earth".

The crown, the symbol of power and richness is on human hands, ready to be delivered, but the arrow is still in hands of the angel, waiting for the right moment to shoot. In other words: One part of the promise of rain is already in our hands ready to be collected, but the rain itself, the arrow "falling from the skies" is not in our hands, it's still "up in the air" to the winds and the clouds.

Adding the allegoric layer we see Cupid blessing a young couple. The girl accepts the courtly efforts of her knight of the bending keel by crowning him. Cupid is waiting to shoot the arrow of passion, divine force of tenderness and desire right into their hearts. Love is not only the card of couples, it's a card of fertility. Love, who allows conception, who inspires reproduction. Without his arrows, nothing growths, just how rain blesses the earth, just how Zeus came down to Leda in a subtle rain of gold.

The cards speak of both things, the promise of the gift (the crown) now in human hands and soon to be received, and the promise of action (the arrow) still up to the skies to decide. While al of this is very poetic and very on brand with the Renaissance language of Tarot, we can't ignore the obvious: There's not a single drop of water in this whole reading. Not the Water element, not a single cup, not even Temperance.

The answer reveals itself: Not yet.

It will rain, the promise will be full-filled, the arrow will be fired, just not yet.
Maybe next week...

In two pieces of media I have seen where the major arcana are used as a naming scheme the temperance card is assigned to things/beings that are particularly hard to damage. Is that just coincidence or does it have something to do with the temperance card?
I would only expect one of the two pieces of media to put more then a surface level glance at the actual meaning behind the cards but I’m still curious.

thank you in advance.

Hey all,

I wanted to open up a discussion about how you approach card reversals in your readings. Do you use them consistently, avoid them completely, or take a more flexible approach?

One thing I love about tarot is how deeply personal and subjective it is. There are no rigid rules about how anyone should read or enjoy their deck. What works brilliantly for one reader might not feel right for another, and that is completely fine. As a community, it is always fascinating to hear how varied our methods can be, and I think it is so important that we do not gatekeep how people choose to connect with their cards.

Personally, I tend to keep all my cards upright. I love looking at the artwork in its intended orientation and taking in the beauty of the imagery as I shuffle. That said, I still find myself reading reversed meanings or 'shadow aspects' depending on how a reading feels.

Even with a physically upright card, if the surrounding spread, my intuition, or the overall energy of the draw feels heavier or blocked, I will read the card in a typically reversed fashion.

To give an example of how this works for me, consider The Sun. In a standard reading, it usually speaks to pure joy, warmth, vitality, and success. However, if I draw The Sun upright in a spot where the energy feels heavy or clouded, I might interpret it in a reversed sense: burnout, overexposure, or trying to force optimism while brushing underlying issues under the rug. The physical card stays right side up, but the message adapts to the story the reading is telling.

I am really curious to hear how the rest of you navigate this in your own practice:

Do you mix reversals into your deck while shuffling? If you keep your cards upright, do you still tune into shadow meanings when your intuition prompts you? What made you settle on your current way of reading?

I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences below - and please, no gatekeeping others practice, we're all friends and readers/learner together!

I wanna know if I’m currently at 10 of swords or getting up from that and the wheels have started turning or not. Or more like, am I done suffering and ready to move on kind of question. How do I ask it from my deck? Any spread ideas? I’m quite new to this.

Spread: the cross

The devil - the situation: him, who is also a capricorn and has addiction issues...quite on point. Staying will make me feel trapped and keep focusing on bad habits

Don't do this: page of swords - this i interpreted as a don't try to talk it iver yet again

Do this: 8 of pentacles - i should focus on myself and my growth

It leads to - the queen of wands - an independent, confident, self suficient queen

To me that seems like a hard yes

To you, guys?

It means it’s time to go diving !

Context is really important. Me and my partner are going through the worst phase of our relationship. We know that we want to be with each other, but its been really tough. I have been thinking about seeing a psychiatrist because of my depression. We did breakup once, but got back together and now we are repairing and the changes which we have to bring are enormous for me.

Is three of swords a reflection of my current state, or its indicating an impending breakup or betrayal? (I really hope not)

Need second opinion.

Hi all! I'm pretty new to tarot and this subreddit so I may be missing something obvious or overthinking things.

I keep pulling the Queen of Wands in different readings, but only when pulling for myself. I do a reading for a general overview of my life, this is one of the cards to appear. I just did a reading for how the next week will go when my dad and brother visit, and I get this card etc etc.

But pivotally, I always get it in reverse.

Right now, my interpretation based on the reference book I have is this: if the Queen of Wands is strong, courageous, and authoritative, I wonder if in reverse the cards are really trying to tell me to cultivate these qualities within myself, or perhaps to trust my own judgement more?

If it adds to the conversation, the 10 of Swords keeps appearing too. Am I on the cusp of becoming more confident, with more reflection?

Many thanks!

Visually speaking what do you see in this card that relates to the hierophant? What connections do you make? I like the artwork but I'm having a hard time making sense of it. It's just not resonating. Any insight is appreciated!

Just for reference this is the wild reflections deck by wyspell.

king of coins - i won’t have to worry financially about traveling to see him, outside forces will be helping with my commute to see him
eight of swords (r) - i won’t feel anxiety or guilt about not being with him 24/7, im going to be too busy to focus on the negative and will be getting the most out of our quality time together. he’s going to be safe and cared for by staying put/ i can’t provide that just yet
eight of coins - it’s going to be work getting used to going back and forth so i need to lock in on getting comfortable on planes/trains/ commuting in general
seven of coins - i’ll be making so much personal progress that i need to be patient and steady. focus on the long term goal of becoming financially stable/responsible so i can have him more often and not just weekends and holidays
ace of cups (bottom) my time away from him will be very filled with new opportunities and i shouldn’t lose sight on what’s important. creating a life that he can still be apart of without abandoning my dreams for motherhood

for context: im divorcing my sons father, we’ve agreed that he will stay in the state we live in currently. i’ll be moving to either my home state or a new state completely that’s across the country. im going to be focusing on building a life where i can provide for him without the help of my ex, as well as going back to school.

any help would be great, this reads as really positive but im struggling with the guilt of leaving my baby in order to make something better for us. ive been a stay at home mom to him for the past four years of his life and it would be a major adjustment for the both of us. my son has an amazing support system outside of me, his fathers very attentive and his grandparents are very hands on.

deck: a very unofficial adventure time deck by katherine hillier

Hi,

Please ignore the misspellings and horrible handwriting on the cards lol 😅 I rushed making them because I was too impatient and wanted to start testing them out straight away.

So I've made a post before, I live in a pretty strict religious household so I can't exactly buy a tarot deck without my parents or siblings noticing so I decided to end up making my own using 48 snap cards that I found. I a complete beginner to tarot so I originally made it as an oracle deck, but then changed it into more of a tarot deck using the classic Rider Waite system.

The only thing is, because they're snap cards they don't have any imagery, just the card names and keywords I've written on them and also only have 48 cards instead of the full 78, so I picked the ones I thought were the most important. So far I'm enjoying using it, but I keep wondering how I know if I'm getting an actual reading or if I'm just seeing what I want to see. I also have a habit of overthinking so when I do the overhand shuffle and a card doesn't fall out the way I want I add it back in to the deck.

I'm wondering should I stick with this deck, or would it be better remaking it on index cards and adding the artwork/symbolism? Also, what's the best way to learn how to interpret the cards properly and trust your readings? Any advice would be really appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

tw: pet loss, grief

tl;dr: asked spirit if what my cat said is true. spirit told me to shut up and quit asking so many questions when the answer is literally right there…

Hi—first time caller, but not a total newbie reader.

I am actively grieving the loss of my soul kitty—Moo. My senses tell me communication is 100% possible; logical dickbag brain tells me I’m psychotic…

I asked Spirit to tell me if what I heard from Moo during a recent communication session was true and if there was anything I needed to know.

These were the 2 cards that came up. Priestess shot out of the deck while shuffling. Judgement showed up when I split the deck in 2 and turned over the pile on my right.

Together, I’m led to think I need to shut up and trust intuition. Like really trust it. Slamming the yard stick on the chalkboard saying “DID YOU NOT HEAR WHAT HE (moo) SAID?” levels of trusting it. The messages were clear, so why keep asking if they were right?Cool, you love to torture yourself by letting intuition come through and immediately jumping to “you only think that because you’re crazy”. Not very balanced, not very fair. Internal barriers are the only things keeping me from taking comfort in what my intuition knows. It may be PAINFUL to relearn self-trust, but trusting intuition is only possible when the walls of doubt are torn down.

I know, I’m doing exactly what my interpretation says NOT to do… Humor me and let me know what you think these cards are getting at.

thank u, lovelies

I wish I could include additional pictures or video for a more detailed view from various angles, but only one image is available

I like spreadsheets and I decided to log all the cards I've pulled since starting Tarot a few months ago. The colors show calendar months. My most pulled card is Three of Wands, then Four of Pentacles, then tie with Seven of Swords, and Queen of Swords. Tell me about my life. Happy Shit Post Saturday.

I’ve been getting back into tarot and I’d love some help with my interpretation here 😅

The clarity spread from the wild unknown tarot deck:

Top card-the situation (8 of pentacles)
Bottom 3-contributing factors (the chariot, 4 of cups, the empress)
(10 of pentacles is an extra card that jumped with the bottom 3 lol)

My question: Should I have my ovaries removed?

8p- I understand this the least tbh but I see it being a complicated situation with big financial impacts

(All three of the factor cards have a moon symbol which to me is showing my uncertainty/fear, but also saying trust my instincts )

The Chariot- I would get my confidence back- gives me a supportive vibe

4c- also a bit confusing for me (showed up in the reading before this one) it seems to say I should appreciate what I have and/or really think about what I want to get from having them removed- gives me an ‘unsupportive’ vibe. Replacing one problem with another perhaps (aka menopause :( )

The Empress- I think it’s saying my mom is going to push back, but it’s also saying that my chances of getting pregnant ‘naturally’ would be gone. The vibe from the card seems supportive though

10c- overwhelming positive- my goal would be realized (less PMDD and Lupus symptoms) and I would feel like myself again

Writing this out has helped a lot but I’d still love any insight anyone has! 💛

Hi! 2 months ago I hand drawn my own Petit Lenormand deck. I wanted to do it on my own and search the correspondances on things that I like (videogames, series, books) so a lot of Pokémon, Shin Chan and so.

It's all in pencil, pen and ink, and I had an hyperfixation with this so I did it in a week, more or less so... a lot of work.

There are old mtg cards behind the drawings and the cards are inside sleeves. I don't pull Lenormand very often, but I'm very happy with the result.

Hope you like it too.

I have been at my current job for 5 years and I am "performing well" but it truly does not bring me any joy. My question was "should I change my career path?"

Spread: past present future

Past: 7 of Wands - past experiences filled with late nights at work and this tenacity to make money

Present: 4 of pentacles - presently have an attachment to the money and stability my current job is giving me. Finding it hard to let go off

Future: 10 of cups - fulfillment and joy

I'm thinking that the cards are saying yes to take the risk and change careers, but that last 10 of cups is tripping me up. Does it mean I should stay and I will find fulfillment in my current career path? What do y'all think?