Help!!

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 20 Apr 2005, and now archived in the Forum Library.

DarkAngel_Claudia	20 Apr 2005
Ok, I'm a quick learner! But I've got the most difficult deck a learner can get! The Marseilles deck doesnt have pictures so I'm having thouble remembering the Major arcana! I started a journal, but i have so many things to do at the time, plus im a lazybum? How did u guyz start off learning? Any suggestions?

Pipistrelle	20 Apr 2005
Hi DarkAngel_Claudia, The best advice I can give you is don't panic! ;) It can be very frustrating in the beginning when your knowledge of Tarot can't possibly match up to your enthusiasm for it...you want to know it all, straight away, to understand and be able to make use of it but you can't because every time you look at the cards you get a complete mental block (at least that's how it was for me!) First things first...you have all the time in the world. Learning tarot is a lifelong process - this does not mean that you won't be able to read tarot until you turn eighty. Rather that through life your knowledge of tarot will deepen and widen and heighten and grow all the time. If you can accept that Tarot isn't something you either "know" or you "don't know" but rather something you take time over, like a good meal or a relationship, then you should be able to embrace the learning process for what it is. I hope I don't sound preachy but I've been learning tarot now for over a year and I still consider myself a newbie...HOWEVER, my learning and growth since I started has been incredible - not just in tarot but in myself, spiritually and relating to the world and that's because of tarot. So you see it's worth taking the time over... :) Get a pad, or a piece of paper and a pen. Shuffle your deck and pull a card...then write down what you see. Concentrate on that single card only. Don't try to work out any "meaning". Just describe what you see. If you try to look for meanings in the cards then you might be overlooking what they are actually showing you. Did you choose to get a Marseille deck or is it just circumstances that that's the deck you're learning with? There's nothing wrong with Marseille decks and many many people here love them to pieces but if you're finding it difficult to learn with that deck it might be worth considering another...take a look at the decks section on this site and just browse through. You'll know if you find something you like - it will jump off the page at you :) Otherwise, if you love the deck you have, stick with it...try not to think of it as a book you should be able to just pick up and read, but rather as a person that you are going to spend the next few years getting to know :) And now I'll stop rambling! Welcome to AT :) Pip

Fudugazi	20 Apr 2005
DarkAngel_Claudia wrote: Ok, I'm a quick learner! But I've got the most difficult deck a learner can get! The Marseilles deck doesnt have pictures so I'm having thouble remembering the Major arcana! I started a journal, but i have so many things to do at the time, plus im a lazybum? How did u guyz start off learning? Any suggestions? What do you mean it doesn't have pictures? It has pictures on every card, and fine ones too ;) You mean it doesn't have people on every card? And why is reading people more easy than not? The Major Arcana does have people - so I guess you mean the Minor Arcana. There is lots and lots of advice on this forum on how to read those. Have a look at the Marseille forum - including the whole "how to read" series, which is very good. There are several methods to learn the Marseille: one that is very popular, and not difficult to learn, is to link the number of the Suit with the number of the corresponding Major Arcana (e.g. V is linked with V-Le Pape and V-Le Diable) and then applying the meaning of the suit: so V de Coupes is about moving forward, a bridge outside of our zone of comfort, learning a lesson - in a Cups way, that is - in emotions, in spirituality. V d'Epées is learning something new mentally, or facing a new challenge. You can also use the foliage as springboard for your imagination - it is lovely and very evocative. Good luck - and enjoy, it is the King of all decks - yet has been around as the working-man's Tarot for centuries :) Journalling is great with any deck - keep going. As Pipistrelle said, Tarot is the study of a lifetime - there's no rush. BTW, I don't believe you have the most difficult deck for a learner. Most people around where I live start with a Marseille, and most don't ever touch another Tarot.

DarkAngel_Claudia	20 Apr 2005
Thanks Ill have to spare some time and have a look at the past posts! Thank you again, people! You are all so nice I guarantee - in 2 months ill be an expert at tarot as well as the most popular member with you around!

Fudugazi	20 Apr 2005
Claudia - there are some very helpful indexes in all fora, including the Marseilles. They can help you navigate.

ThePlayerOfGames	20 Apr 2005
Welcome! I am also a very fast learner but fairly new to the tarot and be wary of the moment when you first think you understand it as that is when you understand it the least! I have been studying very hard for two months and I garauntee you will realise the depth of what you are getting into by then if you begin to study different decks and approaches to the cards :). Enjoy the journey!!!

cybercat	20 Apr 2005
BTW one never stops learning the Tarot. Even after 20 years you still learn something new. Even if it is just a new way to look at card. Ofcourse once you start collecting decks you really never stop being a beginner. Each deck makes you one till you understand it.

DarkAngel_Claudia	21 Apr 2005
ThePlayerOfGames wrote: Welcome! I am also a very fast learner but fairly new to the tarot and be wary of the moment when you first think you understand it as that is when you understand it the least! I have been studying very hard for two months and I garauntee you will realise the depth of what you are getting into by then if you begin to study different decks and approaches to the cards :). Enjoy the journey!!! I also started out not long ago and this is just so facsinating! I've heard that some people are afraid of tarot- i dont understand why?!

jmd	21 Apr 2005
Just a few brief notes to add to those suggestions already given. With the minors, I suggest placing them in order from Ace through to the King, row by row, thus (where 'V' is 'Valet', 'C' is Cavalier, the first 'R' is 'Reyne', and the next is 'Roi'):[indent]Batons: A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, V, C, R, R; Coupes: A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, V, C, R, R; Denier: A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, V, C, R, R; Epees : A, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, V, C, R, R.[/indent] Observe the similaritire and, importantly, the differences between the arrangement of, for example, the six implements in the Coupes and Deniers suits; the direction of gaze in the courts or how they hold or behold their implement; the floral arrangements on the nines; etc. With the Atouts (the Major Arcana), I suggest the following arrangement: Quote: Quote: [font=papyrus] Mat/Fou [indent] I - II - III - IIII - V - VI - VII - VIII - VIIII [/indent] [right] X XX [/right] [indent] XI-XII-XIII-XIIII-XV-XVI-XVII-XVIII-XVIIII [/indent] XXI [/font] Here, observe the rapport each has with its 'paired' card I & XI, II & XII, etc There are many other relations that can be made, but these tend to give a very good grounding and way into the deck.

DarkAngel_Claudia	21 Apr 2005
WOW! Now thats something!!! Thank you so much!!!!!!!!!!!

Sulis	21 Apr 2005
DarkAngel_Claudia wrote: I guarantee - in 2 months ill be an expert at tarot as well as the most popular member with you around! I know you're joking but remember that you don't have to rush to learn tarot. You are at the start of a wonderful, magical journey. You are in a unique place - never again will your mind be a blank canvas where card meanings are concerned. Take it slow - you'll enjoy the journey more :) Love Sulis xx

The Help!! thread was originally posted on 20 Apr 2005 in the Using Tarot Cards board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Using Tarot Cards, or read more archived threads.