What do you do?

What do you have/do?

What's around your tarot reading table?
Do you have a crystal ball with a stand?
Do you have a chalice or runes?
Do you have any kind of dice?
Do you have any diagrams?
Do you have an hours glass?
Do you have a specific table size?
Do you have any plants around like bamboo?
Do you have a god or goddess statue?
Do you have a home made or special made altar cloth?
Do you have candles & what colors do you think are the best?
Do you have a crystal pendulum?
Do you have a incense bottle burner?
Do you burn any kind of kind of herb burning ritual?
Do you have a box or matching bag to the (altar cloth) for storing?
What put's your table apart from others & brings in the perfect atmosphere for all tarot readings?
What is you steps of treating you cards in readings & storing?

I'm a nomadic sort of tarot reader, so I don't have any of the above, except for a knitted drawstring tarot card pouch. I'm making a butter yellow one for my Shadowscapes. My RWS has a deep red one. I haven't experimented very much with patterns or textures, so it's not as if the pouches have special symbols on them, though I would love to figure out how to cable-knit a celtic knot.

A reading cloth sounds useful! Wouldn't want to ever bring around anything too bulky, though. What are those usually made of? What size are they?


I do have a reading ritual:

triple_entendre said:

After getting the cards out, going through them to turn them right side up (I only put them in order if I'm very bored,) my opener, borrowed from some Wiccan spell, goes:

"Oracle of lunar light, grant me now second sight"

Then I riffle-shuffle the deck, and fan the cards out on the surface (table, bed, what have you) in a rainbow shape, face down.

I imagine a light rippling over the cards, like an aurora, and then let go of the control in imagining it. I look for "spikes" in the aurora in response to my (questioning) state of mind, and then I draw the card that's beneath the highest spike. Sometimes I urge the light to sharpen and point down at the right card. Whether I set the chosen cards down face up, or face down until the spread is completely laid out, depends on my mood. Even the color of the imagined aurora changes-- I used to be very comfortable with gold, but now I like to imagine that it's purple.

My closing, no matter what time of the day it really is, goes:

"Eye of day, the rising sun, return my sight, night's spell is done."

-- That one, I made up myself.

Click to expand...

I don't have a special reading table nor any rituals. I know some people may gasp for air when reading this but sometimes I read sitting Indian style on the floor. I shuffle my cards on a piece of card board that arrived as part of the packaging with one of my decks. I do, however, keep my readings/cards contained. No mortal (other than one of my sisters) know that I read tarot. I've known people to have tarot tables with crystals and fruits for spirits, etc. I don't have anything against those things but I save my incense and special treatment for my prayers to Jehovah and Jesus.

I would be interested in knowing the reason for the tables and rituals while reading tarot.

i have none of those except for a cheap reading cloth i sometimes carry around if i'm reading on any particularly questionable surface. I dont feel the need to make a ritual out of reading. i'll read wherever: in my bed, on the floor, on my desk, on my lap on a bus, in a cafe, in someone else's bed, whatever. I used to make more of an effort, light some candles, whatever, but its been years. That was back when I read kind of once in a while. These days, when I have the time I pull cards daily, and have definitely not had any less of a reading quality for not being arsed with all the rest of everything.

Not saying a pretty reading space isn't nice to have. I just...so don't have the energy to be bothered at this point in my life.

What's around your tarot reading table? - Clutter, usually.
Do you have a crystal ball with a stand? - Too expensive for my small, holey pockets.
Do you have a chalice or runes? - I have some runes, tucked away in the bottom drawer of my desk... with more clutter.
Do you have any kind of dice? - Again, somewhere here in the clutter.
Do you have any diagrams? - I don't think.
Do you have an hours glass? - I don't believe so... unless one came into the clutter here in the desk while I was unaware.
Do you have a specific table size? - The desk is a good size. I've probably got a good 2' x 2' space clear of clutter to read on.
Do you have any plants around like bamboo? - I have a dying hibiscus plant in the kitchen.
Do you have a god or goddess statue? - I used to have a little Bhudda statue here somewhere... not sure what happened to it. LOL
Do you have a home made or special made altar cloth? - Nope. Nor an altar.
Do you have candles & what colors do you think are the best? - Yes, but not for the purposes of tarot reading. I like anything that isn't vanilla or buttercream or coconut or -well most of the white candles that have got a creamy or a coffee smell. I like bursts of color with scents that carry an impact. LOL
Do you have a crystal pendulum? - A friend from England sent me a pendulum... can't remember at the moment what it's made of.
Do you have a incense bottle burner? - Nope.
Do you burn any kind of kind of herb burning ritual? - Nope.
Do you have a box or matching bag to the (altar cloth) for storing? - Nope.
What put's your table apart from others & brings in the perfect atmosphere for all tarot readings? - I know what I'm doing and have my own (somewhat spartan amidst the clutter) style. That sets me apart as much as anyone else, I think.
What is your steps of treating you cards in readings & storing? - Ritualized shuffle, do the reading, put back in the box, put back in the shelf. That's about it. I do keep my tarot stuff neater than the rest of the things on my desk. Kids know better now not to touch anything in that area. LOL

I have never used a table...probably wouldn't know what to do with one if I had it. I generally do readings on my bed or on the floor. For the longest time I used a tie-dyed pink handkerchief for a reading cloth that fits very neatly in my tarot bags for traveling, but recently since I have only been reading at home, I have been using a piece of black very soft felt type material that one of these days I will make into an "official" reading cloth. I often burn sage/cedar/incense of some sort before a reading, but this is more for me than for the cards...I do periodically 'cleanse' my cards with same though. And a few decks I have travel with certain gemstones in their bags for cleansing and energy balancing.

At one point I made little bags for each of my decks, although I am thinking of making new ones just cause they are getting old. I store all my decks out of direct light, but a few decks I have cleansed by moonlight periodically.

I used to be much more "rigid" in my cleansing processes and also addressing any spirits that might be "lurking" to speak through the cards (good or bad), but as I get older I don't feel the need so much to do all this. Now, I mostly just focus my intent on the question and remind "anyone" listening that I am only addressing positive spirits/ascended masters/etc. for answers and no others need apply.

Yeah, I mostly read on the bed. (My house is more or less messy but I make the bed every morning.) I've done some reading on the lid of my scanner lately, because I like attaching scans to my reading exchanges, but my desk is Mess Central, so I really prefer the bed!

My only ritual involves scattering my cards after a reading session... I do a very gentle sort of 78-pickup, letting them fall gently from my hands and sort of swirling them about, several times. Then I stack em all together and separate into four stacks--face up, face up Rx, face down, face down Rx. I shuffle those four stacks together and then put them away in their box.

No silk scarves or incense or stuff like that.

Most of my readings are done on the floor or my bed (which is also directly on the floor), which is where I do most of everything I can get away with doing there anyway. But any surface will do for me. I've tried before to have a special place for reading...but then it made me feel confined. I suppose I feel most at home the closer I am to the ground, regardless of where that's at. XD

I've kept other decks or runes around to sort of "watch" a reading before. Like say a certain deck is really good for a specific type of reading, and I want to bring some of that mood to the current reading, even though the reading itself isn't really focused on that. I don't know if that really explains what I mean. Sort of like playing music to set a mood when writing, I suppose.

My decks are usually stored in handmade bags, and a few in boxes. I've used pendulum's for readings before. I have a pretty amethyst one I keep in a box of feathers I find and pressed flowers. I've brought out that whole box before as a sort of prop in readings in the past. I know I have a crystal ball around somewhere. It may have been relocated to that box too.

No candles for me. For some reason, burning anything makes me feel distracted, hence me not using incense anymore. So that'd be a no to the herb burning too.

Definitely no god/goddess statues around. The only statues around me are of animals, mostly cats.

I think what helps me focus most during my readings is more mental than physical. I have to be comfortable, my mind has to be clear. I may do some ritualized shuffling before starting as a sort of brief meditation.

triple_entendre said:

I haven't experimented very much with patterns or textures, so it's not as if the pouches have special symbols on them, though I would love to figure out how to cable-knit a celtic knot.

Click to expand...

You can find a great celtic cable pattern here: http://lisakayknits.blogspot.com/2008/02/cph-viking-version-cable-instructions.html (chart B)! Don't be afraid, it's by far not as scary as it looks. But be warned - cable knitting is highly addictive

As for rituals or special furniture: I don't have or do anything special for readings. I usually do my readings on the floor because my desk is similar to annabel's Mess Central ... The only thing I always do is staying focused while doing a reading. No TV, no radio, no mobile phone which could start ringing. I noticed that when my attention is not 100% on the tarot, I am often not happy with the results because I seem to be somewhat "blocked".

Absolutely nothing and no rituals of any kind. Except that after a near miss, I do NOT have a drink around - the time my sleeve caught the handle of my coffee mug was heartstopping for a moment.

I will read anywhere. No special preparation necessary. I have even read with the TV on.... Cards on the couch, floor, coffee table, nearest tray....