Travelling Tarot: Tips for Reading on the Road
April 26, 2010
I am writing this in Vienna’s tenth district, sitting inside a good friend’s combined studio/guestroom. A week ago I came to Austria from visiting family in Germany, and a week before that I was in Egypt touring ancient temples. Each place I’ve gone, I’ve arrived deck in hand, ready to read for whoever I might meet. This is how I’ve made so many friends so quickly during my time abroad.
I was shy at first. I was afraid of language preventing me from accurately reading, superstition and religion throwing brick walls against my offers to read for new friends, and cultural differences leaving me embarrassed and out of touch with the people I intended to help and become closer to.
Luckily, it really wasn’t that big a deal. In fact, all of the tips below are important at home or abroad, though I do believe its important to be more conscious of yourself when out of your element. While there is always more to learn, here is what I’ve figured out so far about reading Tarot while on the move…
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Free Tarot Talk March 4th at BPL
February 18, 2010
My first public talk ever will be at the Boulder Public Library on Thursday, March 4th. I’m very proud and hope it will be enjoyable to everyone, from experienced ‘taroists’ to those just passing through!
The talk will start with a brief introduction of how I approach learning and teaching tarot, how I believe it supports confidence and awareness. Then I’ll move onto some quick example readings, for members of the audience if anybody is interested. After that I will look at a few questions with specific tarot cards I think may be especially helpful to a younger audience. A couple questions I hope to examine are:
- Three of Swords: How can a person better manage heartbreak?
- Seven of Swords: Why do people gossip, and how can one deal with it?
Finally I will end with some questions and (maybe) answers. Dialog is welcome and encouraged throughout, and I look forward to maybe seeing you there!
The Wisdom Game: Coming of Age with the Cards
January 9, 2010
This article has been rewritten, thanks largely to the helpful comments which have helped me to better view and articulate my ideas. Some of the comments reflect the older versions of the article, so bear that in mind while reading. Enjoy!
I answer a lot of questions about how I know so much about Tarot, and how I reach many of the meanings and ideas I have during readings or lessons. The real answer is that while I have a lot of information about the cards like history and correspondences to other systems, I rely almost entirely on my intuition to guide me. I experience my response to a picture on the card, and then analyze my response – I ask myself questions; Why does the three of swords card make me feel sad? Is it the dreary weather, the allusion to heartbreak, the violence? What about that combination cultivates a sad response in me, and how might it be different for other people? What if I felt angry about this card, what might that mean for me? And so on, forever. This brings me to a personal connection with the image, and a degree of experience handling the card and its possible impacts upon people. A big part of this process is being honest with myself and uncritical of my automatic responses. Tarot is a visual system first, so being able to see and feel in response to what you see, is the only skillset one needs to use the cards.
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