Today I welcome guest blogger Christine Hirlehey to Tarot Notes. A tarot reader with many years of experience, Christine is co-owner of the spirituality website _Numerology Sign_.  Read on to learn about a number of tarot myths that are ripe for debunking!

Tarot Myths Debunked!

by Christine Hirlehey

While knowledge and understanding of Tarot is increasingly moving into mainstream culture, many myths about Tarot are also taking root. In the early 19^th century Tarot took on many esoteric characteristics, which have left the practice clouded in mystery. This is part of what makes Tarot interesting and draws people to it, but it can also be a barrier to engagement and understanding.

Let’s have a look at some of the most common, and most damaging, myths about Tarot.

Tarot reads the future

Tarot is often associated with the work of psychics, and Tarot cards are one of the tools that a clairvoyant may choose to use in order to help focus their psychic abilities, but this is not the main purpose of the Tarot deck, and you do not need to have particular psychic or clairvoyant skills to read Tarot.

Tarot is about better understanding what is happening in the here and how, both in the world around us and in our heads and hearts, by accessing our intuition. While it is certainly not the case that anyone can pick up a Tarot deck and pull out something meaningful on their first attempt, reading the Tarot is something anyone can do with practice and dedication. Everyone has intuition and the ability to access that intuition. Tarot is a tool to help focus that ability.

Your deck must be a gift

Many people believe that at least your first Tarot deck, if not all your decks, must be a gift. This reflects the idea that in some way the universe must invite you to read the Tarot. This myth is exactly that! If you have a strong feeling that Tarot is for you, or your gut tells you that you are drawn to Tarot, what other kind of invitation does the universe need to send?

Many of the occult aspects associated with Tarot were developed by the esoteric group known as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn that was active in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. They may have said that your deck needed to be a gift in order to reinforce the idea that you needed to join the order, and pay the costs that were surely involved, in order to read Tarot. In other words, a recruitment drive!

In fact, picking your own Tarot deck can be an important part of starting a Tarot practice. There are many different decks out there, designed to appeal to the sensibilities and intuitions of many different people. If you purchase your own deck you have the luxury of exploring the different possibilities and finding the right fit for you.

You need to memorise all the cards before you use them

A standard tarot deck has 78 cards, each with multiple layers of meaning, which can transform depending on whether it is drawn with positive or negative (otherwise known as upright or reversed) connotations. Memorising the meanings for all the cards that are written in the guide book that comes with them is a daunting task! A great place to learn all the Tarot card meanings is Numerology Sign: https://numerologysign.com/tarot/card-meanings/

But it is not true that you need to know the meaning of all the cards off the top of your head before you start using them. While stopping to consult your book while doing a reading for a paying client might seem unprofessional, there is nothing stopping you from doing this when you are doing a reading for yourself or a friend.

Moreover, just memorising the information about the cards that comes in your guide isn’t enough to be a truly good Tarot reader.

The information in the guide that comes with your cards has been carefully put together by experienced Tarot readers based on collective experience gathered over a long period of time. It is useful information and should be respected. But, reading the Tarot is about accessing your intuition, and understanding what the card is telling you personally.

When starting out it is recommended to spend time with the cards individually. Draw one from the deck, read its meaning in the book, but then spend time looking at the card, see what it makes you think and feel. See which meanings in the guide book come through strongest for you and think about anything else the card tells you that isn’t in the book. These are the most important aspects of the cards for you and will probably come to mind most easily when you see the card again.

Beware the card of Death

The Death card in the Tarot deck has a bad reputation, mostly thanks to modern pop culture. However, the Death card is hardly ever an omen of physical death. The Death card is an indicator of change, often a change that a person needs and will leave them better off, but change rarely comes without some pain, and the Death card acknowledges that. As a symbol of transformation and renewal, the Death card can be highly reassuring.

Similarly, The Lovers card is not usually a sign of romantic love. The Lovers card is more attuned to ideas of finding balance, and practicing self-love, being complete within yourself without the need for another person.

The scariest card in the Tarot deck is the more subtly named Tower card. The appearance of the Tower in a reading usually means that we need to expect the unexpected, and that chaos, upheaval and destruction are on the horizon. This can be a symbol of death, divorce or financial ruin. It often heralds something that will shake you to your core, impacting on you mentally, physically and spiritually.

Tarot readers give a positive spin to keep their clients happy

While it is true that if you visit a professional Tarot reader, they will probably focus on the positive aspects of your reading, they aren’t doing this just to keep you happy and coming back.

Experienced Tarot readers have learned that just like with most things in life, mindset matters. For example, if you go into a job interview believing that you are unqualified and that the interviewers will see that and not give you the job, that is probably what will happen. However, what if you go into that job interview believing that you have what it takes to do the job well, even if you don’t have every piece of experience they asked for. What if you think that if you are the right fit for the job you will get it, and if not, you won’t get the job but will probably be better off and find something more suitable later. Whether you get the job or not, in a month or so, you are more likely to be in a good place than if you went in with the first mindset.

Tarot readers bring this same mindset to a reading. This is why when speaking to you they will suggest that you don’t ask questions like, will this new business venture succeed or fail, but rather questions like, what should I be doing at the moment to bring success into my life. In this way the reader focuses on helping you find ways to grow and reach your goals.