Did you learn tarot with the Rider Waite?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 12 Mar 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Emily	12 Mar 2002
I've just been sitting here browsing the threads, seeing just how many different decks are used here so I thought I would ask the question:- How many of you started learning tarot with the Rider Waite deck?, not one of the clones the Original Rider Waite deck. The Original Rider Waite, the one in the blue box, was the first tarot deck I purchased and although I've moved onto the Spiral tarot as my reading deck when I come across something I'm not sure of its always the Rider Waite deck I turn to. Also if it wasn't the original Rider Waite did you learn with one of the re-coloured decks - Universal, Albano (I can't remember the others lol)

slinky_jo	12 Mar 2002
Hey Emily - I bought my Rider-Waite cards alomst tens years ago, and I too find that this is the deck that allows me to read better. I have other decks, but as far as I'm concerned, they are just pretty pictures! I find that I almost go "trance-like" when I read my R/W, and that I get a more accurate reading from them. I guess maybe it's cos I bought them when I was 18, and now they are a part of me?

Mermaid	12 Mar 2002
I've been reading tarot for about 3 years, and the RW is still the only deck I have. Mind you, that's got as much to do with my budget as anything else - I'd love to have a play with some others some time! Bright Blessings Mermaid

Thirteen	13 Mar 2002
As good as. I used the Aquarius deck which is very much a Rider clone. Stylized, yes, but not different enough to be considered a completely different deck, at least to my mind.

Major Tom	13 Mar 2002
Yep, the Rider-Waite was my first deck. Mind you, it was the only deck that was readily available when I first started learning tarot...

aeonx	13 Mar 2002
The RW was also my first deck. This I was given, but managed to lose it, so I had to buy a new one. Now I have 14 decks, waiting for more. I've discovered that the RW is the best study-deck I have. I connect very well with the symbolizm and cards in general in the RW. However, I use other decks for reading, it depends. :)

Kiama	13 Mar 2002
:eek: Oh dear.... I actually properly learned to read Tarot cards with the Shakespearian Tarot by Dolores Ashcroft Nowicki when I was very young.... Up until then I had been using really rubbish cheap ones, whch really didn't help me at all! The first Tarot deck I ever had (Get this!) was a set of the Major Arcana, free with a magazine! :eek: I didn't get a Rider Waite deck until sometime last year, and I think it was my 30th deck! I remember kinda learning from it though, cuz one of my friends' mums had a RW deck which she would give us readings with, and I will always remember my awe at the pictures, and how she could understand them so well... The RW images even today are very familiar to me, even though I've never used the deck myself to do readings.... Kiama PS- It seemed I tried to run before I could walk! You see, I continued with the Shakespearian Tarot until I was about 15/16, when I got Tarot of a Moon Garden, then the Witches Tarot (Ellen Cannon Reed version), then Celtic Dragon, Sacred Circle, Shapeshifter.... All really difficult decks, if you ask me!

Liliana	13 Mar 2002
I studied for a long time with NO decks (internet is amazing lol) But when Istarted to learn Iwentwith Spiral because I HATED Rider Waite, now I have the World Spirit which I like, but theUniversal Waite is calling me, so just call me bass ackwards hehe

Emily	13 Mar 2002
Hi Liliana, I've also ordered and am waiting for the Universal Waite - I've seen the online scans of it and the colouring looks really nice, more colourful than the original Rider Waite lol A friend gave me the Diamond tarot, the colouring of the Rider Waite cards are nice in that one but they're very small, and just lately I'm finding I like colourful decks like the Spiral and Hanson Roberts so I'm going to switch to the Universal as my study deck :) (When I eventually get it) :)

silvereye	13 Mar 2002
it's not surprising to learn with no deck! Actually I started out without a deck too. I've been interested in Tarot for a long time but then there are no or very few tarot decks in Hong Kong at that time and the price is like Triple of the US Price. SO I had to wait till I find the one that I reaaaally like In the mean time I just kept reading articles and things like that. My first deck is Russian Tarot of St Petersberg

Butterfly	13 Mar 2002
The Rider Waite was probably my 8th or 9th deck. I bought it out of curiosity and feeling like I should. I knew the images and was completely familiar to me. I'm really pleased that I did get it. It's a constantly unfolding puzzle, that teaches me more and more about tarot and symbology. I'm in awe of the tradition and archetypes it represents. It's not the prettiest (I like flowers, faeries, colour!), certainly not by my standards, but every time I study the pictures I feel there is a deep, wise part of me that it nourishes and that acknowledges it's history.

truthsayer	13 Mar 2002
my first deck was a rider waite clone called the hoi polloi that i bought around 1976. i wasn't really aware of the rws and thoth when i first started reading. i did buy both decks about 10 years after i started w/ the HP. i've only known about the deck intrigues and controversies since i started using the internet 3 years ago. i don't know what deck i would have chosen if i had had a choice but probably the rws b/c that's the one i always go back to when i have doubts about a reading. it's just tried and true.

Jewel	15 Mar 2002
I started with the RWS deck. I had trouble with it because we just did not connect. I quickly moved onto the Robin Wood deck which I used (still do) for years. I now have over 60 decks, and my deck of choice for the last few months has been the Cosmic Tribe which is Thoth based. I have purchased and given the RWS deck away twice! I now own the Universal Waite and we seem to get along just fine, and I do use it as a study deck or for comparitive purposes as I did learn what I know based on the RWS.

amyel	15 Mar 2002
I started with the Mythic Tarot, which is still my primary deck. I have also used the Renaisaance Tarot & the Celtoc Tarot. But I have never used RW or Universal Waite. The images just don't speak to me.

Original Destiny	15 Mar 2002
The Rider Waite deck was the deck that i really got on with .I had a couple of decks befor, but really couldn't get on with them. I now use the Sacred Rose and the Medieval Scapini as well as the R/W

Kaz	16 Mar 2002
Smith/Waite deck was my first deck and I don't like it because of the horrible artwork. But I can read with it without problems, it's just not nice looking at. I use Robin Wood and Osho Zen for readings, these are beautiful cards. Kaz

Marion	16 Mar 2002
The RW was my first deck, and I also had Waite's "Pictorial key to the Tarot" to read and two of those wretched books by Eden grey, which were all you could get in those days. Didn't even know about other decks. When I did buy another deck, only in the past year because of joning this Forum, I bought Robin Woods and fell in love with it immediately. Then Osho Zen. I have a couple of others, including Shapeshifter, which I use for certain situations. So, started with RW and still consider it a touchstone for symbols and meaning and learning. Read with Robin Woods and Osho Zen because they connect with me the best.

Jeanette	16 Mar 2002
I started with the Universal Waite, and use it the most. I've 3 or 4 others, but really don't connect with them so much.

nexyjo	16 Mar 2002
the first deck i studied was the renaissance tarot, but that was just because the box was prettier and the book was much easier to read than the one that came with the rider waite. i ended up focusing on the rider waite, because there's so much information available. these two decks were 2 of 3 i bought right at the start. but for the most part, i learned the tarot from using the rider waite. perhaps 6 months after that, i switched to the robin wood, and have been with that deck ever since. luv and light, nexy

bengalwood	16 Mar 2002
I love collecting Tarot cards and use different ones depending on the person I am reading for and if they want to want to know about something specific. Each deck brings its own special energy into a reading, but if I ever lay down cards I am having a hard time interpreting I lay a few Rider cards on them and it always helps to clarify. I guess you could say other decks sing the harmony but the Rider deck carries the main tune. I always recommend it to someone just learning to read. Bengalwood

faunabay	16 Mar 2002
The one I was first able to actually learn with was Robin Wood. I had bought a couple of decks before but never could grasp the meanings until Robin Wood found me. LOL But I have since bought the Universal Waite to actually study with now. That's included in my collection of 40 or so decks I have now. LOL

Zhritza	02 Apr 2002
I have never owned a Rider Waite. My first deck, and my only deck for at least five years, was the Medieval Scapini, which was a gift. I still have it but do not use it, because it is warped (I used to be a Bad Shuffler), and because despite the deck being breathtaking and evocative, the Christian symbolism now bothers me more than it used to. I do have the Robin Wood and the Aquarian, both beautifully easy to use. I don't plan to buy the RW.

Umbrae	02 Apr 2002
RW was my first deck. Had my first deck for almost thirty years. Only recently (due to necessity) did I ever get another deck.

Talisman	02 Apr 2002
Like Thirteen, My first deck some 20 years ago was the Aquarian. Followed by Robin Wood. And, most recenly, the World Spirit. So, guess, in terms of tarot tradition, I'm a Smith-Waite guy. Talisman :TSUN :TWHEE :TMAGE

MeeWah	03 Apr 2002
The original Rider-Smith-Waite is the deck I used to learn Tarot. At the time, it was the only deck available & it did not occur to me to look for books. I relied on what I knew of regular playing cards meanings, using numerology for the Majors. Some years later, I stumbled across an Eden Grey book, which did not help; then Waite's Pictorial Key to the Tarot, which was so dry I abandoned it. I finally took a class in "Beginning Tarot." That opened up doors.

Lion-O	04 Apr 2002
The other way around for me. I started out with the Mage deck (Mage the Ascention) but I finally got myself a Rider Waite deck as well. Although I did quite well with my mage deck alone I must admit getting better and 'deeper' results now that I got in touch with the Rider deck. My mage deck will remain to be my favorite; they were right with the explenation in the booklet when they stated that you'd appreciate and understand it much better when you compared / used it with a Rider Waite deck. I strongly agree with that remark; it keeps getting better.

mags@Treadwells	04 Jun 2003
sorry, sorry, sorry - I have posted twice BY MISTAKE - meant to "edit" - pressed post reply. Really sorry guys.... :-(

mags@Treadwells	04 Jun 2003
Other way round for me too here, Em. Was given the Oswald Wirth (YEURCH!!) in 1984, when I was 13, started learning alone then. Have been studying and reading since, did my first "official" tarot course of study with the RiderWaite/Universal. Now on Druid Animal Oracle, a home-made set, The Buckland Romani and read w almost any pack - but still do not like the very old/gold&primary-coloured ones to do a personal reading with. Some C20 nice to collect, others not so stunning, but read well. Hope useful! Maggie, Treadwell's

genna	04 Jun 2003
The Hanson-Roberts.

Blue Override	04 Jun 2003
I've never owned a Rider-Waite. I started on the Thoth deck, and have expanded to the Rohrig and Victoria Regina. They use R/W meanings, I suppose. I'm just not moved by the old-fashioned scenes in the minors. As I always say, if it happened after Constantine or before Blake, I sort of lose interest.

Baby Owl	04 Jun 2003
I came to Rider Waite belatedly and still do not use it much yet. I started with The Russian Tarot of St. Petersburg. Baby Owl

little	04 Jun 2003
My first deck was the Mythic, and for me it was a great deck to learn with. The connections to stories I was already familiar with helped me understand the meanings of the cards, and the book was clear and took a practical, simple approach that was psychological rather than spiritual. I found it very approachable. I did get a Universal Waite once I knew more, and I would probably still recommend Waite to someone who asked for advice about getting started. I don't actually use the Mythic that much any more. I have other decks whose artwork I think is much better, and I use the Waite a lot more often than the Mythic, though I don't really have one 'primary deck,' because I tend to read with whatever I've gotten most recently, unless something on the shelf strikes my fancy.

zorya	04 Jun 2003
i started with the 1jj swiss. there weren't very many decks to choose from back then.

Riversea	04 Jun 2003
My first deck was the Vertigo. A few years later, I was gifted with the Lord of the Rings tarot. But I didn't start learning the tarot until I got my Universal Waite about a year and half ago. I am very much a Waite girl. While I have many decks (just added three more on Monday!) that I enjoy reading with, the UW is still my favorite general reading deck. I can almost always count on it to give a good, clear reading. While the art isn't the most beautiful among my decks, I like the re-coloring well enough, and certainly cannot quibble with the clarity of the the readings! :)

tarotpharot	04 Jun 2003
Hi Emily. RW was my first deck. Believe it or don't, my Mom purchased it for me when I was 14 (w/out giving away my age, let's just say that it hasn't been quite 3 decades ago). I orignally wanted it for my Dungeons and Dragons campaign. Funny thing is, I never got around to using it it in ANY way until about 10 years later when I found the deck (still sealed mind you) amongst some of my old things Mom was going to throw out and wanted me to go through first. Thanks Mom! Brad

azuremariposa	04 Jun 2003
my very first deck was the Rider-Waite...don't know if the newer ones still have it, but it has the little (c) 1971 on the side...don't know if there's a "newer" version...but i digress... my only deck was that same Rider-Waite for 15 yrs...this year, i finally took the plunge and bought a few different ones... i still turn to my Rider-Waite for deeper readings...i've found that i interact differently with each of my decks, and the readings aren't always the same... my VRT is usually quite feminine, and gentler... my Fey is more playful and light... my Rider-Waite...well, if people want real advice, heavy duty stuff, stripped to the bones kinda readings, that's the deck i normally turn to... but that's just me... many blessings, ~azure pssst...tarotpharot...my mom gave me mine at 16 yrs old...:P

WolfSpirit	05 Jun 2003
I started with the rider-waite, because it was the only deck available in the only bookshop in town that sells decks - sorry, a deck. I have seen they have moved to selling the toth now btw and I think I once saw a LOTR tarot there, they must have been in a wild mood *LOL* - but I digress. I never use it now, I use the swedish witch, spirit, glastonbury or robin wood. I don't get any emoitions, any connection from the rws. I think I particularly have problems with the christian references - I have nothing against christianity but I don't want it in a tarot deck.

Sobeknofret	05 Jun 2003
RWS was one of the the only decks widely available, besides of some of the Marseilles style decks, when I was given mine (also by my mother :) What is it with mothers and tarot decks? :P). I started with the Swiss 1JJ also, couldn't get into it, and then was given an RWS which worked so much better for me. I switched to the Legend Arthurian deck a few years ago, went back to the RWS, and then earlier this year went to the Universal Waite and added the Thoth as a reading deck. --Sobe

mac	05 Jun 2003
my first deck was a tarot de marseille which i mislaid (found it again a couple of years ago and have since mislaid it again!), then a thoth to which i was attracted but found it too multilayered as a beginner, it wasn't until i got RWS that i felt i started to live in a tarot world! I stick with it because it must resonate at some level with me although i don't find it particularly attractive. i keep trying other decks for readings as some people find rws too negative/caucasian etc but i haven't really found another one that i feel as clear with. mac

oceanpoetry	05 Jun 2003
I have had a Voyager Deck for a long time, but I purchased the RW when I wanted to seriously study tarot. It is my learning deck! I have added two more decks to my collection since URW, but URW remains the "no-nonsense" deck that gives me straight-forward answers. I like the colors on the Universal Rider Waiter much better than on the original RW. I think it is easier to see the details in the picture. I look forward to getting "Tarot of the New Vision" which has the RW pictures from a different perspective, that is going to be intriguing and fun to work with! :D

Ruby Red Slippers	05 Jun 2003
I bought the RW deck at least 15 years ago. But did not read much. Took a class, in which the teacher encouraged us to use any deck we felt good about. She used the RW for all the symbolism, but also explained everyone in the clases deck also. It was a great class! Now like the Universal Waite deck better and is still good for study, but like many other decks also. I like to let people pick the deck they want to read with. Ruby Red Slippers

aqua9air	05 Jun 2003
RW is my...... hmm.... the 9th or the 10th deck i owned. I'm mostly using chinese tarot to read. However, i study the RW to understand some basic symbolism. :)

bec	05 Jun 2003
yup, got my first RW 12 years ago, that was my teacher. Got shapie about 2 years ago. Those are the 2 decks I use for everyday reads.

Trogon	06 Jun 2003
Maggie, thanks for finding and resurecting this thread. I'd missed it all before. Well... my very first deck was the Tarot of Marseilles, but it didn't seem to work very well for me. This was probably 8 to 10 years ago (I think - I'm not as good at remembering that sort of thing as some of you ;) ). After struggling with this for a few months, I picked up a Rider-Waite-Smith deck and have been using it ever since. It wasn't until last year (I can remember that far back, anyway...) that I finally picked up a second deck. This was after joining Aeclectic Tarot and being exposed to the highly contagious disease which is Tarotholism... :eek: My actual third deck, when I really think about it was the Unicorn Tarot, but I've since traded that away. I really consider my Röhrig Tarot to be my third deck simply because of how well I've connected with it.

jog1118	06 Jun 2003
learned tarot with the tarot nova miniature (coz it was a gift); i believe its symbolisms are also RW based

isthmus nekoi	08 Jun 2003
I learned on Vertigo and that wee little Rachel Pollack book. Then I got Rider Waite to read on others w/ (Didn't want anyone bending fragile V!). Quote: Originally posted by azuremariposa i still turn to my Rider-Waite for deeper readings...i've found that i interact differently with each of my decks, and the readings aren't always the same... my VRT is usually quite feminine, and gentler... my Fey is more playful and light... my Rider-Waite...well, if people want real advice, heavy duty stuff, stripped to the bones kinda readings, that's the deck i normally turn to... Ah! I feel exactly the same way about using different decks. Rider-Waite's very proper and reasonable don't you find? I like the deck's straightforward and practical manner of communicating. Vertigo on the other hand - a softspoken intensity. Introverted and introspective. Communication is very meandering, and requires a patient listener which is another reason I don't want to use V for others - it's time consuming.

dadsnook2000	08 Jun 2003
Hi. I purchased my RWS in 1974, a full Saturn-return ago. Also, two books by Eden Grey (which I still see in the general book stores). I didn't buy another deck until last year, the Robin Wood tarot. Now, I also have the Witches Tarot and Troth. I'm not into collecting just yet, merely studying. For some time I didn't even know there were other Tarot designs or that the pips didn't have pictures. There were not many sources for Tarot decks and books at that time and in the New England area. Now I have a whole shelf of tarot books, a line of wood-carved tarot card figures across the fireplace mantle in my den, and book-boxes for each deck with a 3-D tarot figure. I've gone "tarot" crazy in some ways, I guess. Dave.

oceanpoetry	08 Jun 2003
Emily, have you seen the scans of the "Radiant Rider Waite" at http://www.tarotgarden.com/boutique/preorders.html ...it hasn't been released yet, but it looks like it is going to be a lovely version of the RW. I have the URW and enjoy working with it, but hope to add the Radiant RW to my collection as well.

WolfSpirit	09 Jun 2003
That Radiant rw looks pretty good - I think I had the cheapest rws print possible, the people had yellow faces and the back of the cards was white apart from a very small ankh-symbol, and no lamination. Maybe I should try a prettier version, give the deck another chance. If you scroll down the tarotgarden page, you will also find the Tarot of the New Vision: it has rws images but something added to it, more background, more details. I find the idea interesting. If I ever want to be rediscover the rws I think I will choose this deck.

Le_Corsair	09 Jun 2003
Like many of the respondents so far, I acquired another deck first, in my case the Aquarian, in the early 1970's, and bought a RWS soon thereafter so as to synch with the Eden Grey books that most people in that era bought to learn with. I was never happy with the artwork in the RWS, and the ugly blue crosshatched backs have always been a turnoff; moving to an Albano-Waite and the Universal Waite solved this problem, and some of the art problems, as well. Right now I have Albano-Waite, Universal Waite, and the pocket RWS which I use more than any other these days. One thing I've noticed in the posts so far is that people turn to RWS for simple, uncomplicated readings; probably because the symbolism is so established and the database of information on RWS is so deep. It might be interesting to speculate that RWS remains popular because 1. Longevity, 2. It is "G" rated, ok for all ages; 3. No evil associations, as with Thoth, and 4. Simplicity. Never underestimate the value of simple things. (Recall the Shaker hymn, "Simple Gifts.")

Emily	10 Jun 2003
I too have noticed the Radiant Rider Waite but I've only seen a few of the cards - they do look very fresh and colourful though. :) At the bottom of OceanPoetry's link is one called the Gothic Tarot of the Vampires, this has also caught my eye, it looks interesting - Would my Thoth ever forgive me for inviting such a deck to join us :D

Myrrha	10 Jun 2003
My first deck was the Aquarian Tarot, in the early seventies. I didn't get very far reading with it. Later, in my early twenties I bought the RWS and the two volumes of Rachel Pollacks book, this went better but now I wish I had not started with RWS because it is so difficult to get those pictures and meanings out of my head now that I am interested in the Tarot de Marseilles. The Thoth deck is more similar but I still find myself "translating" images to RWS. Myrrha

Emily	10 Jun 2003
This has happened to me too Myrrha, I studied with the Rider Waite and clone decks then back to the Universal Waite before I started using Thoth clones like the Rohrig and Crows Magick - Then I bought the Thoth and I was still seeing Rider Waite in the cards or aspects of the Waite so I've decided to study these decks side by side. Its turning into an interesting experiment, and these decks do compliment each other. I know the Thoth goes alot deeper into cabbalah and astrology than the Rider Waite but I hope to get into that later. :)

The Did you learn tarot with the Rider Waite? thread was originally posted on 12 Mar 2002 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.