when a deck seems 'off'

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 26 May 2003, and now archived in the Forum Library.

isthmus nekoi	26 May 2003
I've recently (past month) been having a little trouble w/my Vertigo deck. It's always been so helpful to me, but lately, it seems a little.... not w/me :( It's not that the readings don't make sense, I just feel like we're not on the same wavelength, like we're not communicating well.... Has anyone ever gone through periods where you lose your rapport w/a favourite deck, almost as if you feel you can't trust it, or trust yourself to read it anymore? If so, why do you think this happens, and did you find the situation improved later?

DeLani	26 May 2003
Oh, yes, I have had this happen. But I think it's really a problem with the reader, not the cards. It happened to me because I began second-guessing myself so much that eventually I couldn't read the cards for myself at all. I got through it by going back to Mary K. Greer's book, Tarot for Yourself. Each position is a question you must ask yourself, as opposed to a statement or category (what crosses you, etc.). It helped me to open up to myself all over again. Also, switching to a different deck - like really different - will help too. Say, if you are using a RWS clone, switch to Thoth or Tarot Nova or Osho Zen. If you use a very elaborate-looking deck, go for a very simple, direct, understated one. This can help jar you out of the rut you are in. But also, I think if you are having this problem, you should put the cards away for a period of time and spend some time alone camping or something, just to meditate and observe nature. You must remember always that the wisdom comes from you, from the Universe. The cards are just tools to help you see it. Blessings!

Sobeknofret	26 May 2003
Oh yeah! Happened to me with my Legend Arthurian deck last year. I stopped using it cold and went back to my RWS deck, which seemed to be the only deck working for me. Very recently though I picked up the Legend deck again and did a reading for a friend which was amazingly accurate and very insightful for him. I think I got it into my head somehow that the Legend deck is too "fluffy" for a serious reader, and I worried that I was relying too much on the scenes on the cards to give me insight than I was the cards themselves, therefore nothing in the deck made sense to me anymore. Of course that's a load of garbage, but I'm pretty sure that's what happened to me. And the guy I was reading for is an Arthurian literature scholar, so it made sense to use that deck for him and it worked VERY well. I like DeLani's suggestion of finding a totally different deck and working with it for awhile. Working with a very different deck you have to retrain your brain to think in different patterns, which can REALLY help get the old patterns loose and free again. Also, you might want to try doing a purification ritual on it to see if that helps "revibe" the cards again. Good luck! --Sobe

azuremariposa	26 May 2003
every so often, for no apparent reason, my (one and only for years and years) deck will give me a reading that just screams "NO!" to me...it will be off, and i can sense it in a heartbeat... earlier on, i would kind of muck through it...looking at the cards that *did* make sense and ignoring the ones that didn't...or i'd TRY to make sense of it and nearly cause a brain hemmorage (sp?) in the process... then, somewhere along the line, i got the idea to stop...take the cards down (disassemble the spread), put them all in their original order and start over "fresh"...some may recommend "clearing", "cleaning" or "smudging" the deck...this would probably work just as well...but this is what works for me...i usually give it 7-10 good shuffles afterward and then proceed as normal... it's rare that this happens, but when it does, i just put 'em back in order and go... i think if you spend some time thinking about it, you might find what works best for you...as others have mentioned, it might be helpful to switch to a different deck, or just take some time out and put the deck down for a bit... i don't know if you are doing readings for yourself, or if this is happening w/readings for others...sometimes a person's energies will "block" you reading for them...i make sure to keep a glass of water nearby when doing readings for others (in person) to help absorb whatever negativity they have going on w/them... and i *almost* never read for myself (which confuses my hubby, but anyway)...i don't know why, but it's rare...i get more insight from the perspective of others than from my own, i suppose... though i do go through periods where i do a "daily card" and things of that nature...but it's rare...so, if you are mainly doing readings for yourself, i'd say it might be helpful to cut back a bit...:) just a suggestion though, don't read anything into it! lol... anyway, hope you find this helpful, and here's to you "connecting" w/your fave deck again!! :D many blessings, ~azure

DarkElectric	26 May 2003
I feel that I have decks that go off too. When I read with one exclusively for a while, I seem to notice I receive less than coherent information using spreads which were formerly reliable. I change decks when this happens, and try to keep circulating them so it doesn't.

zorya	26 May 2003
if you have been going through any kind of changes in your life, you may find another deck speaks to you better on those issues. i find that i connect with different decks for different kinds of questions. when i find myself more concerned with spiritual issues, i tend to connect more with a deck with unillustrated minors, like the visconti or ancient italian. if i am more focussed on business, i tend to pick up the russian st. pete's. if family, then i might favor the world spirit, etc.. everything changes.... maybe this feeling you are having is for a reason. maybe using a new deck for awhile will open your eyes to new observations and interpretations. don't worry, i'm sure you will be able to return to your old deck.

isthmus nekoi	26 May 2003
Thanks for the replies everyone! I'll try taking a break from Vertigo, put it in order and give it a rest. I've been neglecting old Rider-Waite too, so this is a good time to start using that wonderful deck again, break out of an old routine. I had been reading for myself... I didn't increase the frequency of my readings, but I have been going through a taxing, draining time and that coupled w/the lousy dream recall (lowest its been in years) and writer's block sort of made V my 'main conduit' for some time... Perhaps I've short circuited poor V by making it channel too much energy? Hm.... I think I'll pick V up again when the writing/dreams improve. Hopefully this will give me the impetus I need to start writing again!!

truthsayer	26 May 2003
aaahhhhhh! you said magic words! writer's block. how well i know it. imho the same source that causes writing constipation is the same source for reading tarot. perhaps a change in your writing routine would help. if you have one of julia cameron's books try one of her suggestions for increasing your creativity like taking an artist date where you go out and do something different to break out of your rut. go to a museum or take a hike in the woods. going back to the tried and true deck is also a good idea. i love my vertigo but it's such an abstract deck that i have to be in the right place to get good readings from it. if you want to work on tarot and writing simultaneously, why not give ninalee braden's book, "writing for self-discovery" a whirl. lots of wonderful ideas to inspire your creativity and tarot-tivity. :) good luck!

Emily	27 May 2003
This happened with my Spiral, I'd clicked with this deck right from the start, the readings were so clear - I thought I'd found 'my' deck. I loved the artwork, and just the overall feeling of the deck, it was my comfort deck. Then the readings did seem off, they just didn't make sense, unitl I found I couldn't read with it at all. I too still think I had a sort of readers block so I put the deck away and went back to the Rider Waite, then the Universal and now the Thoth. I'm taking it a little easier with the Thoth and Universal Waite concentrating and studying both decks, comparing them so I'm not so focused on one deck. I still can't read with the Spiral like I could, but I still like the deck.

Trogon	27 May 2003
Hi Isthmus Nekoi, My personal experience is more along the lines of what DeLani mentioned. Usually, when this occurs for me, I feel it is more of a temporary "burnout" type thing within me. You and Truthsayer both commented about "writer's block" - a creative blockage is basically how I see this sort of "burnout". When it happens, I find that my best course of action is to take a break from that particular deck and concentrate on another, or several others for a while. I've also found that, for myself, this has only occured after I've done numerous self readings (my daily 3-card reading) over a long period, especially using the same deck. In fact, I am taking an extended break from my personal daily readings. I am still doing readings for other people, just not for myself right now. (Though, I think I'm about ready to start up my own readings again! Yaaaayyyy :D ) Hope this gave a little more insight...

isthmus nekoi	27 May 2003
Thanks for the replies... thinking about it more, yes the writer's block probably has much to do w/it, I don't know why it didn't occur to me before. I totally agree that tarot-ing and writing comes from the same source.... Although dreams and writing are my main pipelines down to the Source, so perhaps trying to divert everything over to Vertigo was just too much! Maybe I ought to max out my other pipelines too - drawing, music since these seem to be holding up okay..... ease the load off of tarot! Anyways, Emily, Trogon... good luck w/your readings too ^_^

Alex	27 May 2003
is always off. I wish I knew how to calibrate it. Alex.

isthmus nekoi	29 May 2003
Alex, Thoth is a trickstery god and a naughty deck. Sometimes he needs a good clean spanking/shuffling to set him straight ^_~

The when a deck seems 'off' thread was originally posted on 26 May 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.