recommandation on tarot cards deck?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 10 Oct 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

iluvEC	10 Oct 2004
hi...i'm new here and i have a big interest in tarot cards....but i'm not really sure what tarot card deck is good and where to buy them....can someone please help...thx

Mesara	10 Oct 2004
Most would recommend the Universal Rider Waite deck for beginners, because it is among the most popular of decks and has served as a *prototype* of many other subsequent decks. Most beginner tarot books are written with this deck in mind, and once you get used to the imagery you will recognize it in many other types of tarot decks too. However, there is no law that says you have to learn from this deck, so ultimately the choice is up to you. There are also Rider-waite clones that are artistically different than the Universal RW yet keep to the RW traditional symbols and depictions.

Peredur	11 Oct 2004
I agree that the Rider-Waite tarot deck is a good place to begin. In Canada it can be purchased in most Coles and Chapters bookstores.

lunalafey	11 Oct 2004
I can't recommend a specific deck for you- that's such a personal thing, especially a first deck. I choose my first two decks by those things I already had an interest in. If you are into animals, there are many good decks out there that use animals as the theme. If it's little fairy folk, there is alot to choose from there. Just about any topic, subject or history real or not, can be found in tarot.

iluvEC	11 Oct 2004
thank everyone for giving me so much advise...^.^

Peredur	14 Oct 2004
If you have no other preferences and just want to get started, why not pick up a Rider-Waite tarot deck, usually found in most Coles and Chapter bookstores in Canada (at least in the Toronto area). Look for the yellow box. Bob

September Pixie	14 Oct 2004
Most people are discouraged by the Rider-Waite decks because of the color.. try looking at the Radiant Rider-Waite, Robin Wood, or check the Study Group forums to find decks there that you can study with. Check out Tarot Garden to see examples of cards and choose one you like (that speaks to you). The Tarot Garden

HudsonGray	14 Oct 2004
A good deal of the books written about using tarot decks are based on the Rider Waite decks, so any version of that type would be easier to learn than, say, starting with a Marseille deck or a theme deck. You can always get one of those later. Or buy one you really like, right now, but also get the RW deck & learn on that one first, then apply what you learned from that to the deck you like the most. There should be an overlap, but with theme decks there's also a learning curve since they're done with different slants and meanings quite often.

MeeWah	14 Oct 2004
iluvEC: A belated welcome to the Aeclectic Tarot Forums! Since I am not sure my PM of 10 Oct was received as there has been no response, I am resorting to this post. Please note this is an international community with a large membership whose primary language is *not English*. In the interest of facilitating appropriate communications & understanding & based on general courtesy, the use of text messaging or other modified speech is not promoted nor practiced by Aeclectic Tarot. Please refer to the forum guidelines here: http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?threadid=11575 We therefore respectfully request that all future postings be in plain English in consideration of the above points or be subject to removal. Your understanding & cooperation are appreciated as is your interest in the board. ~MeeWah Senior Moderator

Ace	14 Oct 2004
I mostly agree with the others, but if you really don't want a Rider-Waite, check out the Robin Wood. It is a good beginner deck (better than RWS IMHO!) www.robinwood.com

IDN	14 Oct 2004
I am learning also, and love my Morgan Greer deck. Very similar to the RWS, but no borders, big bold images, simple but effective. Regards, Ian

Myrrha	14 Oct 2004
Another good deck to start with is the Sharman-Caselli deck. It comes with a book called beginner's guide to the tarot by Juliet Sharman-Burke. http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/sharman-caselli/ It follows the Rider-Waite pattern for the most part, so what you learn will be useful for many other decks. The images contain more of the symbolism than decks like Morgan Greer or Hanson Roberts (although those decks have their good points as well) and some of the cards are really beautiful. The downside is that sometimes the deck feels a bit *too* much like it is making an effort to present the meaning in an easy-to-get way. Not dumbed-down at all, but a bit obvious. Also, the cards are flimsy and the backs are a solid magenta color, but the book/deck set is quite inexpensive. Have fun picking a deck! --Myrrha

SteveGlick	14 Oct 2004
I personaly started with the Universal Waite deck and I dont think I could have made a better choice about a starter deck. http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/universal-waite/ Whenever a friend of mine gets into tarot I always tell them to start with a RWS deck simply because so many books and other decks are based off of it. For example, the Morgan Greer deck which was mensioned here (which is a favorite of mine that I read with often) is not as good for people who are trying to LEARN the tarot I belive because there is so much more symbolism in a typical RWS deck. Once you understand what a card means to you, and you understand the symbolism behind it, coming from a RWS deck, you could then go to any other deck. If you did start with a deck like the Morgan Greer you miss out on all thouse extra symbols. So even though this deck isnt the pretiest, I think its the best learning tool. I do a have a couple gripes with the Universal Waite though... They changed a couple very stuble things here and there that I dont enjoy, but since I have seen them I remember to look for them when I am reading with this deck or any other. (Like how on the Knight of Swords, the horse is looking forward, but in the original he is looking at the night. Also how in the 7 of Penticals, all the leaves are green, whereas in the original, half a brown and the other half are green... etc..) Anyway, I would say go with the RWS, once you get a good knowledge of it, go get a new deck that is more appealing to the eye.

Ace	16 Oct 2004
Quote: Originally posted by SteveGlick I do a have a couple gripes with the Universal Waite though... They changed a couple very stuble things here and there that I dont enjoy, but since I have seen them I remember to look for them when I am reading with this deck or any other. (Like how on the Knight of Swords, the horse is looking forward, but in the original he is looking at the night. Also how in the 7 of Penticals, all the leaves are green, whereas in the original, half a brown and the other half are green... etc..) Once you use a deck, you keep "using"it, even with a new deck on hand. I usually used the Robin WOod, but I did try the Ancestral path for a while, once in a while, a card in the Robin WOod would bring to mind the same card in the AP deck, and I would talk about what THAT card meant, not the Robin Wood. I knew that Astra was almost ready with the WorldTree Deck since I was "using" it in my head for about a month before it came out! I would pull the Robin Wood tower, and see the WorldTree Tower and talk about rebuilding... or the Strenth Card and talk about carrying all the load (as I see the WorldTree Strenth) and so on.

The recommandation on tarot cards deck? thread was originally posted on 10 Oct 2004 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.