Seasoning, Storage and Clearing/Cleansing?

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 14 Jun 2005, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Jelly	14 Jun 2005
Hi All - I'm a newie and looking for some advice. I got my deck about 6 weeks ago and have been studying on and off, and am really starting to get a feel for my cards. I have felt for a while though that I really feel the need to create a bit of ritual around them. I don't have a bag yet as I've been looking for a black one with a black lining, with no pattern on (none of the symbols I have seen on bags on the internet had any resonance with me). They're wrapped in beautiful handmade paper at the moment, but for some reason I feel uncomfortable just thinking about that and need to get them a good home soon - has anyone seen a similar bag anywhere? Most black bags have a brightly coloured lining, which just doesn't seem "right" for my cards. I also need a way of seasoning or clearing the cards. Last night I did some study and a couple of spreads and nearly got to the point where I felt I'd done "too much". Thought I would try putting them under my pillow overnight, boy was that a mistake. I woke up after about an hour with some really vivid dreams about the Queens of Pentacles and Swords and had to move the cards away from me! There's a lovely spot in my bedroom on the windowsill - we keep the window open so there's usually a cool breeze, would that be OK as an alternative? I was thinking about keeping a tumbled crystal in the bag with them - has anyone done this, and could you advise on what would be a good one? Something really earthy would be good to keep both me and the cards grounded (I'm an air sign). Or should I just visit my crystal shop and see what draws me? Or I was thinking maybe a polished fossil fern, which would be something earthy and very personal to me - not sure what the effect of fossils is though. Or some pressed herbs from my little organic garden (I've heard sage is cleansing) but maybe they would just end up in bits in the bag... Any advice welcome please. I guess part of it is that I'm not sure of myself enough yet to go with my instincts and would like some reassurance! Would also really love to hear about your little rituals to see if there's anything that chimes with me. Thanks, Jelly x

earth en lady	14 Jun 2005
Hi jelly I am going to try make a bag myself ,that way it's my energy going in ,not sure how yet ! but shouldn't be too complicated :) i keep crystals in with my cards and just choose the one that feels right .With regards to cleansing the cards ,if they feel sticky with energy I lay them out one by one into a row of six,then I repeat the row of six below and then one more row ,then I start at the top and put one card on each pile ,this normally works well for me :) I've also heard of wafting incence or smudge sticks over the cards to cleanse But just do what you feel is right :) blessings earth en lady

Jelly	14 Jun 2005
Thanks for your reply Earth En Lady. I emailed someone on eBay this morning and she is making me a plain black velvet bag with black ribbon. I also found a beautiful piece of tumbled fossil fern in my local crystal shop (I studied the biology of ferns for may years and have fern jewellry etc.) so will keep that with my cards. Also I waved the cards through the sage plant in my garden and they smell lovely now (thought it would be nice to use the live plant) and remind me of sitting on the decking in the sunshine with a glass of wine :-) You are right to tell me to go with my instincts - not sure of the value of anything I've done but feel like I am "personalising" the cards which is important I think. J x

SphinYote	14 Jun 2005
that sounds good, that someone is making one. I'd be careful about leaving the cards near the window if it's open. If it rains, that might pose a problem, esp. if it gets windy (I'd be afraid of getting wet tarot cards blown all over my room...)

Greywoolfe	14 Jun 2005
I seem to have a thing for traditional Indian crafts- my deck is kept in a carved Indian-made wooden box, with Amber, Jade and Amethyst crystals. I have an incense burner nearby, which I usually use to light up either a Lavender or Nag Champa incense stick whenever I'm using the deck. I'm going to add Snowflake Obsidian, Rose Quartz and Sodalite to the box as soon as my order arrives. I'm also hoping to obtain a nice piece of natural fabric to wrap the deck in, and use as a spread cloth. When using bags and wrapping cloths, do any of you here keep your cards in their original box, or do you put them in loose?

wizzle	14 Jun 2005
Here's a thread about which stones folks keep with their cards http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=30857

autumn star	14 Jun 2005
I keep my cards wrapped up in silk floral piece of material (maybe a scarf or small table cloth) - not too sure what it is actually - from Japan - it was a gift, and now it has come to be the home of my tarot cards. I keep them loose and wrapped up in the material. If I think that I will not be using them for a while, I keep them in an angel decorated box. When I am using mine I keep them on my desk - which is quite close to my window too.

full deck	15 Jun 2005
Have you tried searching for "cleanse" in the forum archive? There have been so many threads about this sort of thing before, with many different answers.

Jelly	17 Jun 2005
Thanks for your help everyone. My bag has arrived from the eBay lady and is beautiful. Feeling much more comfortable about how my cards are stored now. Will follow your advice and search the archive too! x

Alta	17 Jun 2005
Glad to hear it! I would never sleep with my cards, for one thing they might argue with my I Ching book which never leaves my bedside. :)

HedgeWych	18 Jun 2005
I'd immagine that a night in full view of the full moon would do well to cleanse, and give a little uumph. I've used amethyst to cleanse. I'm going to try and get wood boxes for my cards. Bags just arent sturdy enough!!! lol I also want to wrap in silk. When I can afford silk... Bags are cheap and easy to make! If anyone wants or needs, i could put some directions up.....

The Seasoning, Storage and Clearing/Cleansing? thread was originally posted on 14 Jun 2005 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.