Opinion on "Universal Rider Waite Tarot" vs "Universal Tarots"
Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 15 Sep 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.
| BronzeWolf |
15 Sep 2002 |
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Hello i wonder if anyone could help me.
I want to start to learn tarot properly and im undecided as to whether i should buy the "Universal Rider Waite Tarot" OR the "Universal Tarots" I have read one review of the universal tarots but trying to get a bigger picture. Its important for me to get as close as possible symbolism to the Rider Waite if im going to study with a book.... I have at home the "Cosmic Tarot" but im struggling with differering intepretations.
Im not that clever so i have been looking for something like the Rider Waite or Universal Tarots and an easy book like the idiots guide to tarot and fortune telling or 78 degrees to start with, these seem to be recommended by the book forum....
Anyway can anyone give me some insight plz
Thank you
*BronzeWolf*
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| Marion |
15 Sep 2002 |
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The Universal tarot looks like a tough deck for a beginner to me. You might want to start with the Universal Rider Waite. It is a deck that a lot of the basic tarot books use as the reference deck.
It would also make it easier to just get started with the meanings and reading. After that, go where you will!
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| Trogon |
15 Sep 2002 |
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Well... I would say first off, that since many of the books on the Tarot use the Rider-Waite-Smith (RWS) style cards in their texts, it might be a good idea to go with a deck which uses, essentially, the same symbolism, if not the same pictures. When I first began with the Tarot, I tried to learn using a book which focused on the RWS decks, but I was trying to use a Tarot of Marseilles deck. This combination did not work for me. My next deck was the Rider-Waite and it has been working very well for me ever since.
The Universal Waite Tarot is, as far as I have been able to tell, essentially the same as the other RWS decks. Having looked briefly through a Universal Tarot deck, it is similar in it's layout, but different enough that it might cause confusion to a beginner. So, my personal opinion is that if you're going to be using a book which teaches the RWS cards, you will want to get such a deck. The Universal Waite Tarot looks like a very good example of this set.
As far as books go, I haven't looked closely at "The Idiot's Guide to the Tarot" or "Tarot for Dummies", though I have glanced through them at bookstores. I have a couple of the "Dummies" books and like them very much. Having said that, the two books which I do have are "A Complete Guide to the Tarot" by Eden Gray and the "Seventyeight Degrees of Wisdom" which you mentioned. They're both very good books and both of them use the RWS type decks.
Hoping my opinions were of some assistance...
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| wavebreaker |
15 Sep 2002 |
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Joan Bunning's Learning the Tarot is also a good one to start with (it's also available online). This one also uses the RWS.
I have 78 Degrees of Wisdom and I think it's a great book, but personally I don't think it's a good one to start with.
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| BronzeWolf |
15 Sep 2002 |
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Hi again
I just thought i would clarify that the "Universal Tarots" I am mentioning is not the one by Maxwell Miller here shown in aeclectic but the deck designed by Roberto De Angelis in accordance to Arthur Edward Waite.
"The most famous deck of all times, the most complete, the one whose iconography has become the universal symbol of Tarot re-proposed in the modern version by Roberto De Angelis, who followed the instructions left by the great occultist Arthur E. Waite."
sorry for my confusion.... its sunday and i havent had my 3 cups of coffee yet :)
*BronzeWolf*
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| Marion |
15 Sep 2002 |
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My comment was based on the one shown here on Aeclectic.
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| marmalade |
15 Sep 2002 |
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i would suggest going with the deck you like or feel most connected to... true most of the tarot books are based on the rider-waite, but you'll probably be more willing to study the cards if you actually like looking at them. personally, i don't like the look of the rider-waite deck, and when i was choosing my first deck it was a choice between that deck, and the art nouveau by myers. even though the rider waite was cheaper (a big plus for a broke university student!), i just didn't *like* the cards, and so went for the art nouveau. that certainly wasn't the easiest deck to learn from, but since i really love the artwork of the cards, i really wanted to take the time to understand them. it's going to take time to learn the cards whatever deck you get, so you may as well get a deck you really like, not just because it's 'easier' to learn from.
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| Liliana |
15 Sep 2002 |
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My honest opinion is Universal Waite of Universal Tarots. Rider Waite does have some color symbolism, and Universal Waite for the most part retains it wheras Universal Tarots does not (example, Fools white rose, Universal Tarots makes it red) That and Universal Waite is the exact same pictures with the exact same symbolism as Rider Waite, Universal Tarots has some slightly different symbolism, or sometimes symbolism that is just missing compared to Universal Waite. After you've worked with Universal Waite awhile Universal Tarots would be great as a second deck, to get a slightly different point of view, so like the taroholic says, buy em both eventually :)
:THP
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| BronzeWolf |
16 Sep 2002 |
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WOW !!! Thank you guys, you have ALL been fantastic in responding to my question i certainly will chew on all the info i have been given.
Thank you once again for your valid contribution
L & L
*BronzeWolf*
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The Opinion on "Universal Rider Waite Tarot" vs "Universal Tarots" thread was originally posted on 15 Sep 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.
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