Your First Tarot Deck – FAQ

spooksayer:

Where do I begin to look? The best answer would be anywhere that sells tarot decks that you could possibly look through in person, such as a new age shop with sample decks or even a bookstore! However, since now a lot of us do not have these kinds of stores close by, the internet is your best bet!

How can I look at a deck if its online? Aeclectic Tarot is a great online resource that lets you browse deck by themes, styles, publishers etc and it also has a forum! You can see a few cards from each deck and read reviews. Also included are links to where you can buy the decks.

When in doubt, you can also google image search just about any deck you are curios about.

Should I be looking for beginner decks? That is completely up to you! There are lots of decks designed to be used strictly for beginners that include very traditional imagery and usually keywords. If you feel like you’d rather dive right in to a deck that connects with you that was not designed for beginners, that’s okay too!

Are all tarot cards the same? Tarot decks typically tend to follow one of three formats, Rider-Waite, Marseilles, or
Thoth. They will almost always follow a 78 card guideline with
22 major arcana and 56 minor arcana with four suits representing the
four elements and four court cards per suit. Some decks may have extra
cards or change the titles around to suit a theme, but the meanings tend
to stay universal.

What is the difference between oracle and tarot cards? Tarot cards, as stated, tend to almost always follow the same 78 card guideline. Oracle decks are also a deck of cards used for divination, but they follow their own guideline and may have any number of cards or themes. They can use any type of symbolism they want and are completely dependent on the artist of the deck.

Is it okay to buy an oracle deck over a tarot deck? Absolutely! If that is what works better for you, then go ahead!

So, where do I start? Start by looking at themes that you connect with. If you like medieval art, there are decks for that, if you like horror, there are decks for that too! Ocean, fae, animals, religion etc! The skies the limit!

Advise that was given to me that I think helps is: look through the deck and see if you can get an idea of what the cards mean without having to go into the guide book for answers. That’s a very good sign that you’re going to connect with that deck.

When I bought my first tarot deck, I had an undeniable THIS IS IT feeling in my chest. It felt like it was made for me, I knew it was my first deck without any doubts at all.

Is it okay to buy or read with a used tarot deck? I absolutely think this is okay, and here is my originally post explaining why I think that is okay and why it is cost efficient to do so. Many other readers might disagree with me, especially for a first deck, but the choice is up to you!

Is it bad luck to buy my first tarot deck myself? This is overall the number one question I always get asked and I will stand from the rooftop and scream from the top of my lungs NO! Again, many readers might disagree with me but I really truly just think it’s just a myth.

If anything, the only problem with buying your own tarot deck is you might not be able to stop and soon be up to your eyeballs in decks =P

Now that I have a deck, how do I learn how to use it? Practice every chance you get! Read for yourself, read for your friends, draw a card a day to focus on etc. Keeping a journal to record your readings can help and is a lot of fun! There are also tons of books out there for learning tarot. I am personally a big fan of Around the Tarot in 78 Days, but there are tons of others! A lot of decks even have books designed to accompany them personally.

The more you read the more you will discover your own personal style and what works best for you.

Good luck and happy reading!!