mentors

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 11 Oct 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

acolyte	11 Oct 2004
Hey people.I am just settling into tarot and i would like to know how many of you had mentors when you were/are learning and how have they helped you in your quest for knowledge?

maria42airam	11 Oct 2004
Hey Acolyte, I am very much a beginner in Tarot myself. I do not have a mentor. :( I wish there was someone in my community that I could talk to about Tarot, but right not the only people I've met that use the Tarot are heavily religious, and that approach is very different from mine. My mentors, whether they know it or not, are the folks I interact with here on the AT forums, and some people I've "met" at the Tarot for Beginners class. This forum is an excellent place to gather knowledge, to compare views and approaches, and to discuss differences of opinion with other like-minded and unlike-minded (is that a word?) folks. It has helped me immensely.

Astraea	11 Oct 2004
The woman who introduced me to tarot was a great mentor, but even so it took me years to figure out what would have become clear after just one evening of searches at Aeclectic (if it had existed). That was in the late '80s and 90's, before the Internet and this forum came into my life. For a long time, some issues about the cards were so confusing to me that I couldn't even formulate questions about them. I agree with Maria, our fellow Aeclecticians are wonderful mentors and teachers.

Alissa	11 Oct 2004
I second Astraea... AT was my mentor. I had my sister to read for me for years, but she insisted each person's education of Tarot is their own. She never "taught" me anything about the cards... except how to really read them. ;) When I discovered AT, I had done almost no formal book learning, and felt I was a Tarot novice even after reading on my own for about 6 years or so previously. AT taught me a library's worth of information on Tarot, and all of it was whenever I felt like sitting down to read it! :D

Imagemaker	11 Oct 2004
I chime in to say that AT is the most convenient, always there, multi-faceted, wise tarot mentor I can imagine. No one human could provide all that we find here!

closrapexa	11 Oct 2004
True, I looked for years for some one to share my Tarot thoughts with until I found this forum. And I've never looked back since... However, a few people have approached me to teach them Tarot. I know that after giving them the very basics, I'll refer them here. There is really something for everyone here.

Alta	11 Oct 2004
One person has mentored me quite extensively. And in general, the range and depth of learning here never ceases to amaze me and continues to open my mind.

acolyte	12 Oct 2004
Good to hear that I am not alone.I am sans mentor but i would really love to have one but at the end of the day tarot is a personal walk one has to do on theie own.ps:can hardly remember how i found this forum :)

yve	12 Oct 2004
A wonderful lady that was a spiritual mentor, and a mentor in that her support towards me was with the use of the tarot cards, and which lead me to discover using tarot for myself, was a psychic advisor on Keen.com....she was very kind, generous, and a giving person who was truly interested in helping those who needed it....

smokey	13 Oct 2004
I had a mentor one time, & while I Know I gleaned more of Tarot all the way around, it was still re: Her thoughts & opinions with use of her deck, ways, & means. Here at AT, there are SO Many Different & wonderful, 'fun'der-full people with their own, unique form, you have a chance to "feel around", thereby discovering your own personal & unique blend!

Fulgour	13 Oct 2004
Mentor was the tutor of Telemachus in the Odyssey of Homer. Today the word indicates "a close, trusted, and experienced counsellor or guide." Like a teacher, but really more of a coach. As one of many volunteers for the American Tarot Association's Free Tarot and Free Reading Networks, I am also privileged to serve as a mentor assisting readers new to those organizations. Mentorship there mainly consists of helping the readers learn the system, assisting them during their orientation to the workings of the request process, basic procedures for sending out replies. But it's just a word, mentor, just as readers learning the ropes are called mentees or students. It isn't really like that, since we share a common interest and work together toward their independence. Experience can't be taught, but I am able to help smooth the way. There are so many nuts-and-bolts-type details to become familiar with ~ the basic mailbox, formatting replies, handling problems. But if any of my mentees should read this, or even my mentor, I want to go on record as saying, it is really I who have benefited most from the experience. It has been my honour and privilege to work with and get to know such dedicated and caring people.

The mentors thread was originally posted on 11 Oct 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.