Inaugural Intensive Deck Study (IDS) Support Thread

thorhammer

Hi, all :) Changes have been made, welcome to our newcomers. mosaica, yes, it's three months to start with, unless you, like cronesayer, would like to go longer. Any less is probably defeating the purpose.

Satori, thankyou for the encouragement :). It's nice to have visitors come in to cheer us on!

Skimo, I LOVELOVELOVE your "reward" for yourself!!! :D

I'd like to make my pledge, as well.

I'm Kat, aka thorhammer, and for the next three months (at least),

I will:

- Use only the Wheel of Change Tarot for everything Tarot related. No other decks, no Oracles. I will use the companion book and material related to the theme of the deck and method-based Tarot books.

- Check new arrivals for quality and completeness only, whereupon they will be packed away with the rest.

- Handle my deck every day. Carry it with me as often as possible.

- Journal with it regularly (every day if I can, but at least once a week).

I will not:

- spend idle time here on AT talking about Taroting instead of actually Taroting.

- touch, fondle, shuffle my other decks.

\m/ Kat
 

Sophie

thorhammer said:
Thankyou for setting us all straight on the minutiae of the Equinox. As noted in the first post, lots of people are already going or are starting later, which makes the 19th merely an arbitrary start date based on the Equinox. It's not a hard and fast start-gun, just a point for us all to work towards and from.
LOL, I'm Swiss, we invented time-keeping :D (although judging by my own, I am usually a poor representative of my nation).

Still wondering about my deck. And I might add a pledge or two, and a REWARD, haha!

But today I am a bit off-centre, so I'll leave anything serious for the next couple of days.
 

missycab

My pledge is simple...

I pledge to finally finish my Thoth journal and be able to read with it (the deck, I mean, not the journal... it'd be a bit difficult to shuffle!!).

Of course, I'll try to not use another deck at the same time. Touch, yes (my Vicky -VR- is going to arrive soon and I want to check it... I mean, to see if it's complete and look at the images). Read, NO.

THOTH, THOTH, THOTH, THOTH!!!!! Yipiiiiiee!!! (I think I should cut the coffee and sugar...)
 

Promise

Right-o, time to make it official.

I pledge that I will be monogamous and committed to the Bohemian Gothic from this very moment, 3: 07 PM, March 13th, 2008, until Samhain 2008.
Yes, that would be Halloween!

I will touch no other deck, except to check for completeness or quality of either incoming or outgoing decks.

I will order no other decks between now and Samhain, unless it's a deck I have wanted for at least six months AND one that will not be reasonably available after my IDS is complete.

I will journal with the deck every single day, whether it be card analysis, a reading, or a fictional narrative. Every day, something will go into my journal, even if it's a short blurb explaining why I have nothing to add for the day.

I will read with no other deck, either for myself or for others, during the course of this IDS.

I will support and encourage those who have chosen to follow the same path. By the same token, I will ask for support and encouragement when I need it.

I will reward myself with something appropriate at the completion of my IDS, if I have not cheated at any point along the way.
 

Star-Willow

thorhammer said:
Star* . . . hi, honey :). So good to see you here. I'm almost jealous of you with your Thoth (still waiting for my *borrowed* one to arrive, almost given up), as I'd love to get into that deck. It will happen one day. Now, it sounds like you've got lots of reading material, but I also possess Snuffin's Thoth Companion which I'd gladly lend to you if you want it. So let me know if you decide you want another reference point.

:eek: I am really excited about starting, I have been touching/viewing my Thoth everyday since you started the first thread and even though it looks a bit daunting, it doesn't...... I'm trying to view it with a child-like innocense, being it's all new, know nothing about it..... a new journey :) I know that may raise eyebrows but hey, this is my journey with my deck and I'm keen to get going :D

Gods, I wish I didn't have to work. I would love to sit here all day and journal with my Wheel of Change, but it's just not happening. You know, I think that the structures of my life (what I associate strongly with the Emperor), unpleasant though they are, are what keep me interested for long periods of time in one thing. So "work" in this case, might be an important factor in driving me along this path with the one deck. As in, I'll be at work, lusting after my deck and therefore spend more time with it in my spare time. Anyway, rambling again . . .

I do understand, my girls keep me very busy, as you know, but this too will keep me lusting after my deck and wanting to really spend the time creatively and earnestly.....

I love pretty journals, but I start them and then don't use them properly. So I've gone utilitarian. I have two large lever-arch files, and lots of loose-leaf A4 paper. One file is for Deck Studies, the other for Readings (which I write out longhand, almost every one now). The Readings one is much more full than the Deck Studies one, but that will even out now that I'll be working with this deck every day. I have lots of thoughts to put down about the cards already, but they're still forming and I must try to pin the suckers down and make some sense of them. There's no study group for this deck :( so I'll have to do it all on my lonesome

I had no luck in finding the journal that I had in mind but after reading a few other posts on the different types of journals used (and why) I've got a better picture now of what I would like to use and will be able to pick up from the newsagent, today! (write it on the list star*)

Should we have an dedicated IDS daily draws thread? Or is everyone happy enough to work with their decks separately, and use the existing threads where they want to post their draws? \m/ Kat

I think that it would be great to have a dedicated thread for the daily draws, I think it will help the group in many ways..... it would help keep the energy and enthusiasim flowing. We can come here, (to this thread), for the support and what-not but use the D/Draw thread for, "this is what I drew today, ......"

I never made a proper pledge so I will make it now.....

I Star-Willow, she of the child-like outlook :D, pledge that....

I will direct all my energies to studying my Thoth
I will not look, touch, or anything else for that matter, any other deck while I am doing my IDS
I will use my 2 books stated in Post #2
I will journal everyday, even if only a few words
I promise to be of support to a fellow IDSer whenever I can be of support
My start date will be the Autumn Equinox in my country (20th March 2008)
My end date will be the Winter Solstice in my country (21st June 2008) (I may extend this once I get to this date, depending on how far I have come)

I promise that I will enjoy every waking moment of this journey, cos it will be over before I know it!!


:heart:
star*
 

Sophie

The Sidhe

OK, I'm ready with my full pledge now.


I have chosen to work with a Majors-only deck, the first time I will have spent this long with only Majors.

My deck is the Tarot of the Sidhe, Majors edition (Adam McLean).

With it, and exclusively with it, I shall: read for myself and others, meditate, pathwalk, make magic, idly flick through, study, enjoy the art work, get annoyed, get entranced...

I'll journal the readings. Write them all down, no matter how spur-of-the moment - if I am short of time, I'll note down date, question and card positions, if possible with a short interp. I'll draw one card a day, and do a weekly 3-carder. I shall journal these (daily and weekly), by hand, on one page of A5 at least.

I'll journal any meditation/pathwalking/magical use. And any other encounter with the Sidhe will be duly acknowledged and noted. I'd be interested to find out if they travel to Spain...

I will write at least one A4 (typed) page for each of the cards - that's on top of the journal - about the card itself, trying to see it from as many angles as possible.

I'll not use any other tarot deck, though I might look through new arrivals.

I'll continue to use other oracles as the occasion presents itself, though only those I am super-familiar with, and my primary focus will be the Sidhe.


My reward? I think the Sidhe might decide on that one ;)
 

tarot4fun

While going through my tarot books to put away ~ I came across my Juliet Sharman-Burke books.
The Sharman-Caselli was my first deck. :)

In order to get back to basics, I have decided to change my deck choice~

The Sharman-Caselli is the Tarot deck I will use for the duration of the IDS.

:heart:
 

Knight of Wands

Ok; change and final version of my pledge:

I'm in :)

I pledge to only use one deck (The Druidcraft) until Summer Solstice.

I pledge not to buy, or trade any more decks until this time.

I pledge I will shuffle or look at my cards everyday.

I pledge I will use and take my cards everywhere, within reason.

I pledge to journal every reading I do with it.
 

Faolainn Storm

Tarot of Dreams - Intensive Deck Study
Study Rules:

1. Start Date: Autumn Equinox, March 19th 2008
2. Finish Date: Either Winter Solstice, June 21st 2008 (three months) or if I am still enjoying my study and want to continue, Spring Equinox, September 23rd 2008
3. Only this deck will be used for readings (including readings for others), study, journaling, idle flicking through, mindless shuffling, etc.
4. The only reading material I will use will be the guidebook and “21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card”, and I will limit my study to the deck, not to other esoteric systems, except where they are already applied to the deck.
5. I will handle the deck every day, even if I don’t read with it or actually study any of the cards. Physical comfort with the cards is important to knowing a deck.
6. I will journal with the deck at least once a week, if not more often. And I will use the IDS group threads at Aeclectic to help motivate and encourage me to delve further into the symbolism and meaning of the cards. But I will not spend all day on the internet.
7. I will not purchase any other decks during this period, unless I’ve wanted them for at least six months and have been able to see more than the obligatory 6 cards.
8. However, I will not let this IDS dominate my life. I will continue to have a life and go to Uni.

This I pledge: Faolainn Storm 14/03/08

I have also printed a copy of this pledge, signed it and put it into my journal as my front page, so I will see it each time I open my journal.
I have decided to use a binder as my journal, and have bought a lovely black binder with a clear pocket on the front, with lined and unlined loose leaf paper. Therefore I can take pages out, put pages in, reorganise, draw/sketch (hence the need for unlined paper), etc (is my OCD showing? :D). In the clear pocket on the front I have printed off a lovely cover using the letterheads on the ToD CD. I have also printed off a cover for a second folder which will contain the ToD guidebook. I’ll photograph my journals and post the pictures tomorrow.
I have also rearranged my desk to give me plenty of room to study and lay out the cards, etc. So I think I’m ready. Just waiting for the formal start date. Though in some ways I have already informally started.

I think that's all
Faolainn Storm
 

Nina*

Good.. right...

I've made up my mind now. I'll be using the Sidhe too - it IS the most beautiful deck out there and seems to have so many layers. I look forward to getting to know it really good.

I will also be using oracles though (my Etsy Lenormand.. probably no other).

So... let's get started!!! :D