About this "tarotholic" and "tarot collector" thing

No one ever says "You own over twelve books?!! Wow! You must be a collector/addict!!"

so what is the difference? Why is it that fifteen tarot decks is a "collection" or a sign of addiction but a well-stocked bookshelf is not?

Part of it might be that to people who don't use tarot, it looks like fifteen or twenty or however many, of the same thing.

But non-tarot users might have several different recordings of the same opera, or several different translations of the same book without being considered collectors.

To me, decks are not like toys or pretty decorative objects, they are more like books, the same chapters and characters written by different authors over the years with different ways of thinking about the story and very different ways of telling it.

So, if someone says "You have how many decks?!! Just ask them how many books they own
--Myrrha

do you know something, you have just make me feel sooooo much better, and far less guilty!




No more justifying myself

Does that apply to my chocolate bar collection too??

Davina

Me too...I blow a lot of money on decks and books..but I don't think of myseld as a collector..I'm more of an enthusiast .

I guess if I was out there seeking really old, rare, vintage decks amd willing to drop big money on them I would consider that as being a collector...which I would be doing in I had the money.

Myrrha said:

so what is the difference? Why is it that fifteen tarot decks is a "collection" or a sign of addiction but a well-stocked bookshelf is not?

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Books can contain many different stories whereas Tarot's basic essence is the same no matter what deck you use. A reading is a reading... For me thats the whole underlying motivation.

I don't agree with it perse since the usage can differ per deck, as I've witnessed up front but still...

Myrrha said:

But non-tarot users might have several different recordings of the same opera, or several different translations of the same book without being considered collectors.

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Actually, I think most non-opera people would consider someone with multiple recordings of Tosca a collector, and also probably a little weird. (I say this as an opera fan myself - it's not a mainstream interest.) Books are a little different because people assume you've read (i.e. used) them, or will in the future. For the most part I only keep books I plan to read, reread, loan to others, or use as a reference, so the books I own are a personal library of sorts, which is different from a collection for display.

My impression is that most tarot collectors own far more decks than they actually read with. And if you owned fifty hammers, but only actually used three, then what else would you call the other 47 but a collection of hammers?

Bridget said:

My impression is that most tarot collectors own far more decks than they actually read with. And if you owned fifty hammers, but only actually used three, then what else would you call the other 47 but a collection of hammers?

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Like your way of thinking, Briget. Makes total sense.

I find the whole 'tarotholic' thing a little silly, to be honest. The way it is used, often, is if the person 'suffering' [I use that word lightly] can not stop themselves from buying another deck. I do not suffer from this but have chopped and changed the decks I own many times, and what I think I really am suffering from, is a lack of patience.

I have no problem with collections. Or a handful for different purposes, but consistant ordering of decks as soon as they come out in the hope that it will give a clearer and brighter message, is not really 'the answer'. Perseverance with what one has, most of the time, works wonders. I just made myself use the Tarot of the Ages for quite a while and in the end, I got some great reads.

LB

All valid points, well made except for:

Myrrha said:

But non-tarot users might have several different recordings of the same opera, or several different translations of the same book without being considered collectors.

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I'd say that someone with several translations of a single book just might be considered a collector. Ditto to the collector of Operas. We might even call them operaholics- but all in good fun (to a point). Collecting, taken to extremes, can get in the way of leading a fulfiling life. No really- it can. If you have 4,000 decks, and all your friends have long since grown tired of all your talk about variations of the Heirophant card..... well, this is a problem. On the other hand, if you have 5,000 decks, and plenty of friends, and no financial issues- no problem. See? It's all context.

So what's with the whole thing? I think you hit the nail on the head- to non tarot people, it seems like you have several of the same thing.... But lets face it- *anyone* who collects things has the same problem. That guy with all the Star Wars action figures? The woman with the porcelan cats? The kid with all the sea shells? All collectors. To their groups of other seashell collectors, they are understood. But to some they are freaks (yeah- I'm talking about you Obi Wan).

-tb

No, having several translations of the same book isn't collecting. I have several translations of various texts because literature translates so differently - sometimes its like reading a different text altogether. If you don't read the original language fluently, sometimes you need the different translations to shed light on the text. If I collected OTHER-language editions that I can't read, then THAT would be collecting. Or another edition of the very same translation (because it had a nice cover or something).

I thought the opera analogy was a good one too, another thing I don't consider a 'collection' - you listen and compare. Every singer, every orchestra, indeed every performance is unique.

I sort of don't mind it being called a bit of an addiction, as I figure we all need some vices, and if a litle sense of guilty pleasure gives us a thrill, why not?

Its when other people see it as a negative (read: Significant Others who might think we spend too much) that its an issue. I think perhaps its worthwhile to take stock and consider Tarot expenditure in relation to other activities and so on, to make sure its within acceptable bounds. But if you can afford to buy decks regularly, why not?

LittleBuddha said:

I have no problem with collections. Or a handful for different purposes, but consistant ordering of decks as soon as they come out in the hope that it will give a clearer and brighter message, is not really 'the answer'. Perseverance with what one has, most of the time, works wonders.

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Some people buy and collect those decks because it's a hobby and because they like them, you know... not because they think they will give a ''clearer message'' (whatever that might mean)!

LittleBuddha said:

what I think I really am suffering from, is a lack of patience.

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Yeah, you and about 85% of the people I know. Our whole world is hurling us toward shorter and shorter attention spans and I'm afraid patience has fallen by the wayside. I see it in myself, and I especially see it when I compare myself to myself even five years ago.