Skeptical Friend

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 02 Jul 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

AmbitiousMind	02 Jul 2004
I was having a discussion about Tarot with a lawyer friend of mine and he was a bit skeptical. He was more interested in the subject when I explained that I read tarot as a way for self improvement rather than fortune telling and he became more interested. His girlfriend, on the other-hand, commented to him that it was the work of the devil. Could it be? I didn't think the devil was capable of such things as self-fulfilment and growth. Anyway, I pulled out a very non-threatening deck - TAROT: The Complete Kit by Dennis Fairchild. I did a very simple three card self-knowledge reading and he was very receptive. It was clear that my reading was meant to stimulate thought. Thoughts prior to the reading that maybe he did not consider. And now he does. It ended with me offering a reading for him on any pending issue. He gladly accepted and posed a very tough question he was dealing with: "Should I choose to persue Government Law or Private Law?" I told him that my reading will not choose the career path but will help you see things in different ways that you may have not considered yet. Ultimately, it'll be your choice. He was excited about the results and I spent the evening doing the reading for him before I went to bed. (I didn't have time to do it for him in person. Now on to his girlfriend... I know what she things, I know she respects me, and I respect her... but I found it offensive yet extremely humorous at the same time. Her religious background is what drove her to this conclusion. I'm not going to butt heads with someone over religious beliefs as I too came from the same religious background. I can only say you can make tarot whatever medium you want. If you believe its the work of the devil, then it will be. But why not make the process a work of something more? Something spiritual? If you take that path, your fear of the devil will surely take a step back.

WolfSpirit	03 Jul 2004
I think it is great you can make a skeptical friend see what a lovely tool tarot is, and I think you did it just right: not have tarot make decisions for him, but make him see that tarot can help him come to his OWN decision. If his girlfriend respects him and you, it will probably make her consider again and maybe think about tarot more favourably. Maybe the response she gave was just a standard response that she has heard through years of religious upbringing, maybe she never really thought about it herself. Maybe one day she will be ready to be more open minded about it, if she values the opinion of her boyfriend.

Sulis	03 Jul 2004
It sounds as though you handled it really well. It also sounds as though your friend is intelligent enough to make his own mind up and it seems that he has done :) Well done you :) Love Sulis xx

AmbitiousMind	05 Jul 2004
After doing a reading for my friend, his girlfriend now wants me to do one for her. I feel a sense of skepticism on her part, almost a 'challenge'... how do I approach this?

WolfSpirit	05 Jul 2004
Hm, I think your friend was skeptical at first too and you handled that well. Just concentrate on the self-improvement, and tell her the cards show you a possible answer but that the decision is still the querent's own, people are not controlled by a deck of cards. However, since you have to put the time and energy in and she was abusive before, calling tarot the work of the devil, I think you should point out that she approaches it with an open mind and not with a negative attitude. If she thinks no good can come of it, she has no right to waste your time like this. I don't know her, if you think she is really just going to be negative you could of course decline, it is not your duty to read for her. However, it could be she is getting genuinely interested (or curious) after the reading you did for her boyfriend.

deranged_walrus	05 Jul 2004
I posted a similar thread ("this sort of revenge I like"), relating the woes I had with a devout Christian friend scoffing at my interest in, as well as the cards themselves. Maybe I should've done what WolfSpirit advised, and tell him it was wasting my time to read for such a skeptical person with the negative attitude. But he all but challenged me to "prove that they work." Being a Leo, I accepted (of course). And made him eat his words. I don't even think it goes as deep as respect. I think people should have the common DECENCY to jsut keep their mouths shut instead of insulting others' interests. What a world we live in, no?

crystal cove	05 Jul 2004
Quote: Originally posted by deranged_walrus I don't even think it goes as deep as respect. I think people should have the common DECENCY to jsut keep their mouths shut instead of insulting others' interests. What a world we live in, no? I couldn't agree more, deranged walrus. Sometimes I think people need to remember that they were given 2 ears and only one mouth for a reason. ;)

TheLovers2	06 Jul 2004
I don't know. I kind of think that the "girlfriend" is just as entitled to her opinion as anyone else. I've been on both sides of this issue, being a Christian myself, having once believed the same thing, due to not investigating Tarot for myself. I simply went with what I heard, which is not my usual way. I guess there will always be those things that slip through the cracks. To me it is simply a challenge that she felt differently. I think people cannot be afraid of or even always offended by challenges to their beliefs, ideas, etc. She (the girlfriend) has probably been challenged many times about her beliefs as a Christian and that is something she would, hopefully, handle well and with grace and wisdom. Same for us, who enjoy Tarot. While I don't want to argue about Tarot with people who are "against" it, neither do I want to avoid them, either. I don't have to justify anything to anyone, but, as with anything I feel strongly about, I don't mind sharing the reasons why I like this or that. What I find is that it challenges or sharpens my convictions to "rub up against these stones" and I may help someone to open their hearts and minds. You might, too. So, I think it can be good when this happens. Anyway, she's now asking for a reading. Hmmm. Interesting, huh? I'd like to know what happens after her reading. TL2

The Skeptical Friend thread was originally posted on 02 Jul 2004 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.