Well, then…how has Tarot inspired you to grow?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 04 Jan 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

firemaiden	04 Jan 2003
Okay, as the Great Umbrae concludes, we read Tarot in order to grow…And suddenly, I am now dying to know – how has being involved with tarot (reading or whatever else you do with it) actually inspired your growth? bye the way...My three card Spiral reading (Magician, P of P, Judgment) for today said…important life-changing comunication may manifest…via [/b] And this may spell the dawning of psychic ability and will transform my life…whoaaaaaaaaaaaah.

Trish	04 Jan 2003
Well ... it has certainly inspired me to think about why I do what I do, and what motivates me and my mind. I haven't been doing Tarot all that long, so there's still room for a lot more growth though. But then again, I suppose there's always room for more growth, no matter how long you've been doing Tarot! hehe!

rota	04 Jan 2003
Well, it's also made me go delving around in books about hermeticism, Gnosticism, the Renaissance, alchemy and suchlike. Got a big stack of them on my desk, feathered with stickynotes. Anybody else experienced this 'problem'?

Pollux	05 Jan 2003
MY Visconti deck, then my Gill helped me realise I was a Pagan/Wiccan... and finally give a name to the stuff I believed in and did. And of course the push that these boards gave were paramount as well. Is this enough? ;) *LOL* And a recent spread with the World Spirit slapped me around and kicked my butt, urging me not to be a meanie and read more more more for other people in other occasions cos I can make it, I am good at it and I don't need to fear it... *LOL* })

allibee	05 Jan 2003
So when do I get my reading then Pollux ;) LOL. I don't want to sound crass, but yes tarot has helped me to grow, but do you know what has brought me on in leaps and bounds? what has opened my eyes to so many other ideas? what has REALLY helped me grow????? Aeclectic! allibee

wavebreaker	05 Jan 2003
Tarot has given me a lot of insight about myself and, more importantly, helped me change. It helped me change the way I see myself (I'm much more confident about myself) and how I see my life (I'm not that easily upset anymore when things don't go the way I planned them; when something unexpected happens, I now consider it a new chance). And friends have told me how much have changed, so it's not just something that I'm experiencing. Tarot has also taught me about my beliefs and, through Aeclectic, about other belief systems.

lupo138	05 Jan 2003
tarot has given proof to me that there are things that you cannot explain from a natural scientist´s point of view but work anyway. Having realised and admitted that (after quite some years) I searched for more and became a pagan, what is now going to change my entire life.

warabi	05 Jan 2003
Tarot helped me grow by making me realize how much I had been lying to myself about my own feelings. Now one of the most important things for me is to be completly honest with myself ^_^.

firemaiden	05 Jan 2003
...do/did you find yourself gradually experiencing/developing ... more psychic insights? more sychronicity? more incredible dreams? more sense of connection to the universe? more awareness (of self/others, and/or what does awareness mean for you)? more sense of "aha, I create my own reality"? more sense of magic? [font=garamond] [size=6] ***transformation***?? [/font][/size] how? why? have any cool examples? care to share them?

firemaiden	05 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by allibee So when do I get my reading then Pollux ;) LOL. ...um...........can I be after alibee?:P :D

WolfSpirit	05 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by firemaiden ...do/did you find yourself gradually experiencing/developing ... [list] [*] more sense of magic? When I started with tarot, I saw it much as a psychological thing: you draw cards and connect them yourself until you get a story, the cards trigger your own imagination/intuition. Now that I've done daily spreads for some time and a bigger spread weekly I see the same cards returning over and over again hitting me on the head "when are you going to take care of this". So I finally had to believe there were powers outside myself helping me to understand myself through tarot - so I figured, then these powers can also help me through magick to make changes in my life. Sorry I have no cool stories (yet) I'm new to magick and learning but I've already learnt so much in the last year it's amazing.

firemaiden	05 Jan 2003
WolfSpirit, that is quite intriguing :cool:, what were the cards that kept recurring? And what did you have to do?

TaRoT_bAbE13	05 Jan 2003
this has inspired me to think about what i do. i know if i need advice or if im seeking the truth i turn to my tarot cards. ;)

Cerulean	05 Jan 2003
Tarot can help express the creative and thinking side without having to turn on an electronic gadget. It also has broadened my view of roles and personalities. As a point of reflection or conversation, for example, I find it is easier to see the positive and negative of an Empress archetype and share this view. I like this modern use of tarot cards. I think that is a personal improvement point for me. There's art and poetry links to me with tarot cards. I think I understand metaphors and allegories better. For me, historical tarot and tarots with art themes inspire me to explore. I sometimes may even feel a connection to the cultures that originated the art. All this seems to me to be a kind of magical improvement in the arts of storytelling and imagination. I seem to feel happier learning along these lines even if I am learning only a little at a time. Since many people in the discussion areas of tarot seem to enjoy conversing on aspects of the above, I'm also cheerfully getting a 'creative tarot fix' by browsing the forums.

magipixie	06 Jan 2003
I'm glad I stumbled upon this thread because this has been on my mind the past couple of days. I've only just started reading tarot, but one thing that really helps me is the knowledge it gives me that, yes indeed I am connected to the universe and I'm not just randomly floating through without any path, which in my heart of hearts I know.....but it's always nice to see proof. I have also noticed, since I've been doing alot of readings for my friends and family that it is a great way to have really open conversations. I did a two hour reading for a girlfriend of mine who just found out she is about to be a single mom, and I feel closer to her through that than I ever have before. I definantly feel that anything that helps my relationships grow, helps me grow also :) Blessed Be, Pixie

cjtarot	06 Jan 2003
Hi all, I started studing Tarot in ernest about 2 yrs ago. For me, it was, time to start the mind working again, put down the novels and start studing something interesting. WHAT I HAVE DISCOVED.... Thru Tarot, I have learned to trust myself, that I can do anything I put my mind too (because basically it was VERY hard to learn the basics for me). and that there is so much more to the world than just my imediate surrondings..what you can see and not see. I now understand that my growth spiritually is a lifetime mission, Tarot makes you question and questioning is the only way to get answers. And as a side note. Tarot has led me back to my crafts and creative imagination - Tarot bags, bath salts that do more than smell nice, and now earings (still not sure where they fit in..but I am trying to use only natural stones). Blessings, Cj www.geocities.com/magickcottage

Pollux	06 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by allibee So when do I get my reading then Pollux ;) LOL Quote: Originally posted by firemaiden ...um...........can I be after alibee?:P :D I could read for both of you RIGHT NOW, AT ONCE. But I will not untill you reveal the mysterious reason why you want a reading specifically from ME - especially you Allibee! *LOL* })

firemaiden	06 Jan 2003
I want a reading from you because you are a TAROT-HOLIC WITCH DOCTOR and Napolitano (isn't that what you said?) to boot! :D :D :D :P Plus I always love what you write in your posts!

WolfSpirit	06 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by firemaiden WolfSpirit, that is quite intriguing :cool:, what were the cards that kept recurring? And what did you have to do? *flips through her tarot journal* Well when I had a job I did not feel happy in at all I got a lot of 5 wands, 7 wands, 8 cups... When I quit that job the empress started appearing in my spreads regularly, and until then I never even had the empress, I considered it one of the cards I just never had. Recently I did two times a spread (with 10 days apart) with the animal wise deck, first spread had 10 of wands and world in outcome positions, secind time 10 of wands and 2 of wands. In another deck the similarity would not be so apparent, but in the animal wise all three cards are represented by some kind of turtle or tortoise, and apart from the classical meaning they also mean: there will be change, but if you want to succeed you will need perseverance and patience. Results will not come quickly. Another example: I tried to do a relationship spread about me and a man I know but who lives far away at the moment, I just wanted to know if there was something in store but I got answers like the 9 of pentacles - can't find back right now what else it was but it seemed not to answer anything about a possible relationship but told me repeatedly: learn to rely on yourself first, become independent and then think about relationships. Now I look back regularly on my daily spreads to see if there are patterns in it - if the same card keeps coming back I may be overlooking something. My decks know by now I'm a stubborn person and they just have to scream a bit louder sometimes to make themselves understood :D

firemaiden	06 Jan 2003
That's amazing WolfSpirit, thank you. In retrospect, do you think you would have left the job without the cards?

WolfSpirit	07 Jan 2003
Yes I would, I really knew I had to try other things although the job was "safe". I am wondering now how much the cards determine my actions; if I really want something and the cards would tell me otherwise, I think I would still do it but maybe at a later time and with more caution. I think the cards helped me to quit with a stronger conviction that I was doing the right thing.

napaea	07 Jan 2003
well, i haven't read any of the responses here yet, and i've seen the thread, but didn't think i had any input for it... until today!! i've been dealing with some past life/current life issues since the summer. and i'm really trying to get beyond this issue, and learn my thing and go forward. well, usually i've been picking cards for the day, using a 5 card spread that tarotphelia shared with us all (love you 'phelia!) which i have really enjoyed. yesterday i decided to change the position meanings to be more specific to my needs, to what i want to work on and deal with right now. and i'm using a goddess oracle pack (Juni Parkhurst-love it!) wow! half the time i do my dailies, and i'm like "oh, yeah, ok" and then i forget the rest of the day what i learned. today these "lessons" or "hints" have been coming at me all day! i see the cards in my head (well, not IN my head) and i keep remembering what i was to work on. it's been really amazing and encouraging. i feel very supported today, and feel very "forward moving" (if i knew how to highlight in color, i wouldn't use " " these so much) anyway, tarot is definately helping me work through my personal issue right now, in a very specific, directed way. yay tarot!!!

Eviemay	08 Jan 2003
Tarot has brought my along a wonderful and fasinating path. When I started studying the cards everyone was telling me to meditate on the cards. I had no idea how to meditate, so went along to a course at a local women's center. Now i try to meditate daily. The lady that taught the meditation course is also a Reiki Master, so I went to her intro to Reiki course.... I'm now Reiki level two, and loving it all. All thanks to my tarot cards! :D BB Evie

Jewel	09 Jan 2003
I figured I better post a reply before reading everyone elses, so if I am being repetitive please forgive me. The tarot has led me to grow in the sense that it has led me to really explore my inner self in a way I do not think I would have with having found it. It has heightened my awareness of my unconscious mind and tought me how to sometimes even listen to it. Spiritually it has filled a void that I could not seem to fill with any other spiritual type activity. It has also led me to learn about sooooo many different subjects (astrology, qabalah, numerology, etc) that otherwise I would never have read and learned about. The tarot also aids me in looking at myself from a point of view I would not have come up with on my own. This has helped keep me honest with myself and lead me to explore my full potential as a human being. ------ Just read everyones posts ------ Hey Pollux! the tarot also led me to Wicca ... it was the Robin Wood deck. First I got the deck, then wanted to learn about the symbols, then found her web site ... the next thing I knew I had read all kinds of books on Wicca and Paganism and knew it was the path for me. What deck were you using at the time of your discovery?

brennamor	09 Jan 2003
Hmm, well I suppose the first thing Tarot helped me to do was become more introspective and learn to listen to and trust my inner voice more. I have always been somewhat skeptical about any kind of psychic/intuitive process. But after having readings for others reveal messages that are applicable to me, having cards show things I would never have expected and giving others readings that completely blew them out of the water - I have accepted that Tarot does bring messages from the Divine. Interestingly enough I came to Tarot through my studies in Paganism ;D. So many of the Pagan/Wiccan books I came across made mention of Tarot that I became intrigued. I started off with the Waite Smith deck, moved on to some Celtic & Arthurian decks and thus a Tarotholic was born. But yes, Tarot has transformed me. I am much more open to seeing messages in unexpected places and to trusting my intuition and realizing that if I can listen to my inner voice it will guide me down the right path.

firemaiden	10 Jan 2003
Wow Debbie (brennamor), that was beautiful. Thank you.

Diana	10 Jan 2003
Well, it seemed that I always knew that the answers I was seeking were locked up somewhere in my mind. I had different methods to get some of the answers - through my spiritual quest - but something was missing. The map. Tarot is my map. Also, Umbrae once said that Tarot is the key. Tarot is the key to open the locked doors. But do you know what I have discovered recently? Sometimes it works the other way round. We already have the keys, and it is the door that we cannot find. And so sometimes Tarot is the Key, and sometimes Tarot is the Door and sometimes Tarot is the Map. Either way, they help me grow in order to understand the role I have accepted to play on the stage of the world, and to help me play my part even better. Perhaps when I die, I'll be able to say to myself, "well, you probably could have done better, old girl, but thanks to Tarot, you didn't manage so badly after all."

firemaiden	10 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by napaea ...today these "lessons" or "hints" have been coming at me all day!i see the cards in my head (well, not IN my head) and i keep remembering what i was to work on. it's been really amazing and encouraging. i feel very supported today, and feel very "forward moving" .. Wow Napea, that's really amazing! All of a sudden, whew! p.s. I found the secret to highlighting in color explained underneath here under "Forum Rules": click on the link vb code and you will see everything explained. The only thing not explained is the names of the colors. You have to experiment a little. The colors I put here are "lime" and "cyan"

firemaiden	10 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Diana .. Sometimes it works the other way round. We already have the keys, and it is the door that we cannot find. And so sometimes Tarot is the Key, and sometimes Tarot is the Door and sometimes Tarot is the Map. Diana Thank you! What a powerful and poetic insight! That resonates profoundly in me.

firemaiden	10 Jan 2003
Quote: Originally posted by Jewel The tarot [...] has heightened my awareness of my unconscious mind and taught me how to sometimes even listen to it. ... I am just amazed Jewel, to learn from your response and from others like this what a powerful tool indeed is the tarot. I would never have imagined. I wonder how long it took you using and learning the tarot to start feeling this heightened awareness, and to learn to listen. I suppose it would be hard to say because it would be so gradual, although Napea seems to have gone "pop".

Shadow Wolf	10 Jan 2003
Whenever I do a reading the truth usually hits me right where it hurts and I can't help but pay attention. But that's why we read Tarot in the first place, isn't it ????? I'm in the midst of a "tower moment" myself. A few weeks ago I recieved the tower and the future card in a quickie spread. And now I'm up to my neck in it. My house was a total wreck, which I totally refused to see. This has been a major sticking point between hubby and myself, and now I totally see his point. So I'm turning the house upside down, cleaning out, straightening up etc. all the while wondering how I could have been so blind. The cards tell us the truth, and just by seeing them in spread, their meanings are penetrating into our innermost selves. I also believe that a specific belief in Tarot is not necessary because just the fact that we are reading or want a reading sends a message out into the Universe that we will be open to whatever the cards say !!!!!!!! Thanks for this post, it's a great question.

firemaiden	10 Jan 2003
That's amazing Shadow Wolf, you are literally turning the house upside down. I hope it doesn't lift off and fly away like in the Fey Tarot....hahahah.

The Well, then…how has Tarot inspired you to grow? thread was originally posted on 04 Jan 2003 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.