Mulitple decks....diverse/confuse, strengthen/weaken?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 27 Feb 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Celtic_Dragon	27 Feb 2003
Intentionaly I would like some advice but anyone can just state their opinion as well. I have the Faerie Wicca Deck and I love it. I've done a few readings although I still don't feel like I'm getting that, ah-ha! connection. It could be that it's just that I haven't spent enough time getting to know it and understanding it but I've also realized that it's my second deck and I can communicate with it a whole lot better than with my first deck (which I'll admit to being a hasty buy). I'm wondering if the connection I have with my second deck is because I've gained some experience since buying the first one and that maybe in this case "third time's a charm" or could it be that I chose a deck that actually relates to my soul (or higher self, whatever your spiritual prefrence) better and maybe a little more eye pleasing. I'm wondering if there is anyone else out there that found their reading improved with each new deck from experience and knowing yourself better or is it just from my studies and I should stick with it untill I've got it and THEN buy a third deck.

dolphingirl	27 Feb 2003
Hi I have a tendency to pick up new decks when ever I can and I personally find that with each new deck I learn something different. Each deck is created by a person and there for is an extention of an individual. Some decks I learn more from and some decks I can identify with more but each one has something to give you. So when you feel the urge to buy a new deck I would say "go for it" :) DolphinGirl

jmd	27 Feb 2003
There is undoubtedly a sense that the more one 'gets into' Tarot, then the more meaningful and in some ways easier each card gets (in other ways, the journey gets more and more difficult, as the gaps are sharper). I would suggest getting a third deck whenever it seems either possible or in any way desirable - it may prove easier to read, or, if the deck is vastly different, actually somewhat more difficult. For myself, my main reading deck is different to my favourite study decks - yet is enriched by these.

temperlyne	27 Feb 2003
I stumbled upon my first tarot deck in an old book store. It was the Haindl and I just loved it. I never knew that it was not a beginners deck. But after a year or so I started to really get a personal look on tarot and tarot cards. The Haindl had always surved my purpose but I just needed something different. Each deck that I start using usually posesses some quality that the older didn't have. That really tought me to look at tarot from different angles. I guess my readings improved because I learned more with each deck and each reading. The more decks I browse however, the more I realise that the only perfect deck for me is the one inside my head. But untill I can put that into reality the roots of asia comes close enough. This deck feels like an old friend and I can always depend on its answers. When you feel like getting a third deck, get it. Even if it might not turn out to be your final, perfect deck, it will give you a different view on the cards which will help you improve your readings.

Emily	27 Feb 2003
I also seem to have a study deck and a reading deck, the Universal Waite has become my study deck and the one I go to when I'm not sure of something but the Rohrig is the deck that I get the 'Aha' readings from. I was drawn to the Rohrig by just seeing a few scans online, I knew it was for me - I've had similiar feelings with the Spiral and Crow's Magick decks but nothing as strong as the feelings I get with the Rohrig - Every deck is different and they all have something to teach, especially when you feel drawn to a particular deck. The Rohrig was everything I said I hated in a deck, its large, very modern, has keywords on the cards and is thoth based - I've loved this deck from the moment I saw it lol :)

truthsayer	27 Feb 2003
i like having multiple decks and am publicly in support of tarot-holism. this is a condition that requires you to buy all decks you want regardless of the consequences. every deck is like entering a new world. the decks i read best with are ones that i feel a "meeting of the minds" with its creator early after i get the deck. then there are my study decks and my art decks. study is what it implies. art decks are the ones that don't read well but are simply too gorgeous not to keep.

Sulis	27 Feb 2003
Quote: Originally posted by truthsayer i like having multiple decks and am publicly in support of tarot-holism. this is a condition that requires you to buy all decks you want regardless of the consequences. every deck is like entering a new world. the decks i read best with are ones that i feel a "meeting of the minds" with its creator early after i get the deck. then there are my study decks and my art decks. study is what it implies. art decks are the ones that don't read well but are simply too gorgeous not to keep. Truthsayer you`ve expressed perfectly what I was just about to type, so I`ll just add `here, here`. Love and light Crsytalmynx xx

magpie9	27 Feb 2003
I always have a favorite deck, but am unfaithful to it with lots of other decks. It never occured to me that I should be doing just one deck at a time, until I met other people who did it that way. Well, at that point I was addicted to Many Decks and didn't even considar the alternative. :D Seriously, though, I think its made me a better, more thinking reader. If I had to do it over, I'd do it again. Now and then I get a deck that I Just Can't Read and it drives me nuts for a while. But even if that's the lesson, there are lessons for me from every deck I meet. So my advice is, get all the decks that call you, and see where they take you !

Celtic_Dragon	27 Feb 2003
I want to say thank you to everyone. I've always been told that you should make sure that you've got the basics before going on to more advanced or more complicated stuff. But I find that I can't learn linear like most people. (step 1,2,3) Now I feel much better now, b/c I didn't want to just put aside my deck for another for getting board with the images. That was what happened with my first deck, I'm not going to get rid of it mainly b/c it was my first deck and there are sentimental values attached to it. But I really haven't looked at it since I opened it. (around 4 or 5 years ago) And I think I've got the fever that everyone has. I believe it's the gallery of images for all the decks posted. Again, thanks.

truthsayer	27 Feb 2003
i'm not a linear thinker either. if the only choice i had in learning was linear, i'd probably still be in first grade! i tend to be more a visual/spatial learner. images have great power over me and can be stronger than words. that's why you must have more than one deck if you want to truly understand tarot. keep your first deck for sentimental reasons. one day you may want to go back to it for the sake of nostalgia. i think as a group ppl into tarot are exceptionally creative, compassionate, intelligent and quite possibly right brain thinkers like you and i. ;) })

The Mulitple decks....diverse/confuse, strengthen/weaken? thread was originally posted on 27 Feb 2003 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.