Do you keep your Tarot doing a secret?

Barleywine

If my boyfriend's family spends the night I keep my boxes hidden, and I asked him not to discuss my interest in Tarot with his friends.

When my wife's devoutly Catholic sisters and husbands spend the night, one couple has to sleep in the spare bedroom that also doubles as my occult library. There is simply too much to hide, and tarot decks are the least radical thing they will find there (I don't think they've noticed my grimoires yet :)) We try to put the least rabid "Cathoholics" in there, and so far they haven't made any derogatory comments. Maybe, as my local sister-in-law says, they're just "praying for me."
 

Lain_82

When my wife's devoutly Catholic sisters and husbands spend the night, one couple has to sleep in the spare bedroom that also doubles as my occult library. There is simply too much to hide, and tarot decks are the least radical thing they will find there (I don't think they've noticed my grimoires yet :)) We try to put the least rabid "Cathoholics" in there, and so far they haven't made any derogatory comments. Maybe, as my local sister-in-law says, they're just "praying for me."

Lucky for me, his family is not very religious. I guess my reluctance to leave my things lying around is that I don't want them to be an object of discussion? I don't want this to be something I have to justify or defend, I want tarot to be this... safe harbor that belongs to me and where I can be myself. I sometimes catch myself telling things to my boyfriend about the therapeutic value Tarot has to me as opposed to more.. woo woo approaches, when he wasn't even asking! and it definitely comes from a place of insecurity. I'm working on it though, mostly by checking in and really understanding what is it about tarot reading and collecting that speaks to me, and what exactly I hope to gain from the practice.
 

andromedastarseed

When my wife's devoutly Catholic sisters and husbands spend the night, one couple has to sleep in the spare bedroom that also doubles as my occult library. There is simply too much to hide, and tarot decks are the least radical thing they will find there (I don't think they've noticed my grimoires yet :)) We try to put the least rabid "Cathoholics" in there, and so far they haven't made any derogatory comments. Maybe, as my local sister-in-law says, they're just "praying for me."



Tarot was invented by Catholics. Come on you have a card called "The Pope". Ace of Cups is a communion wafer and a chalice. There is so much Catholic iconography in the Tarot. Plus, it was a game like Bridge. Which can get me on the topic of Christian holidays and rituals associated with that.


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andromedastarseed

I'm pretty open about it - to a certain degree. As art historian specialized on Middle Ages and Renaissance, I have a perfectly understandable interest in the history of emblems, symbols and the development of hand-painted vs printed cards. When I teach basic things like Evangelists' symbols, I always mention the World card, and when I show Breughel and Vermeer, I compare them with Temperance. So my students at least know that I know the cards.



My family is super-rational and probably think I'm nuts but I've always been the purple sheep so I don't really mind. They know I love Patience cards, playing cards, Tarot cards, and that I'm really interested in the topic. They don't know how much, and I didn't tell them that I work and earn money with tarot. My mother would think it's degrading and I should rather put my energies into my (non-existing) academic career. So I don't tell her.



My idea of becoming more professional, giving courses and advertising my services openly doesn't get off the ground because I know my mother would be mortified if she knew it's beyond an academic interest. For her and my whole family, that's all bullshit, charlatanerie, the worst kind of exploiting peoples' willingness to believe.



My husband's family is much more open, they're really interested and look at my decks and ask questions. My children of course know and for them, it's simply a part of who and what their mother is. My eldest son asked me to show my Thoth to his girlfriend because that's "Mama's cards" for him, and reminds him of me. I also read for her and she really liked it. And they're both very rational people, so is my husband, but they all understand cards are not anti-rational but trans-rational, if I may coin a new word :)



I'm glad I didn't meet religious bigots - I don't know how I would react, probably badly.


The good thing about being an adult is you can choose for yourself.

What's your mom going to do? Take your birthday away? You have the support from your husband and children, I say you want to be more professional with it, go for it! Life is too short to not do what we truly want.



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Barleywine

Tarot was invented by Catholics. Come on you have a card called "The Pope". Ace of Cups is a communion wafer and a chalice. There is so much Catholic iconography in the Tarot. Plus, it was a game like Bridge. Which can get me on the topic of Christian holidays and rituals associated with that.


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Well, let's call them (my in-laws, that is) "degraded Catholics" then.
 

Barleywine

I'm a recovering Catholic, so I just shake my head.


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If you don't use Waite's deck, you aren't exposed to as much of the Christian iconography. I tend to ignore it anyway, and see the images more in secular - and sometimes Jungian - terms. I have no use for religion of any stripe, I think it's one of the biggest mind-control scams ever foisted on humanity. I try to keep my tarot interests and practice as far away from it as possible; the above is one case where I can't.
 

Nemia

The good thing about being an adult is you can choose for yourself.

What's your mom going to do? Take your birthday away? You have the support from your husband and children, I say you want to be more professional with it, go for it! Life is too short to not do what we truly want.



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Oh, I did so many things in life against my mother's wishes. She's a bit fragile now and I don't feel comfortable in staging another rebellion... but I guess I'll do it nevertheless. :)
 

Cocobird55

I'm pretty open about it.

My friends who don't get it listen to me, say nothing, and then change the subject. Haven't lost any of them.
 

Tanga

Why?

Are there certain people you can talk to about, but some you can't?

No. Now I'm lucky - my family's always been pretty flexible in their thinking, and my husband over the years got used to it. I live in a diverse city where wild and whacky is acceptable (London) and the majority of my friends are open to Tarot. Even the ones who are not are happy that I'm happy.

But - when I first left home, abandoned University (the 1st time. I returned later) and on my year out discovered Wicca - my mother got worried that I was into
something unsavoury and tried to sweet talk me out of the new book I was reading on it.
After that for a long while - I never mentioned my interests AT ALL TO ANYBODY. :)

And - once when I was looking at one of my Goddesss Oracle decks, my husband got really upset by the way that Sheila Na'Gig had been depicted (Like an old woman, instead of a young nubile temptress - appparently) and threatened to burn them in a fit of temper.
After that - I hid those cards for a long time and never read them again infront of him.
But I would just gently and repeatedly underline or hint, here and there, that I was interested in such things and was never likely to change my mind about them. Books I would read infant of him.
He's evolved since then - lol. (Quite painfully too I might add). And - he doesn't remember and can't believe that he actually reacted like that. More lol.


I do. If my parents knew they would take away my cards. My dad said they aren't allowed in his house.
i am worried because i have several tarot books coming in the mail. i hope he doesn't ask what the package is or what book it is.

Oh no! I'm sorry to hear this.
What have you prepared to say if he does open your mail and ask you?
...a book is not exactly a deck...
In future is there someone else you could have your Tarot stuff delivered to? - a friend perhaps?


I have an interesting story that I think I've told here before. Where I worked we had an Engineering summer work program for college students. We had one young guy come into the program who immediately put up on his office walls a few 18" x 24" (I'm guessing) reproductions of some of the Thoth Major Arcana cards that he had obviously drawn and colored himself. I walked in and said "Oh, Aleister Crowley!" He looked startled and the next time I came around they were all gone. Either he was embarrassed at being found out, or one of the other bosses got to him. I never found out.

D'you think things might have been different if you'd say "Aha! - the artwork of Lady Frieda Harris, a wonderful painter during the 2nd world war... colourfully re-interpreted by yourself?". ? :)


Tarot was invented by Catholics. Come on you have a card called "The Pope". Ace of Cups is a communion wafer and a chalice. There is so much Catholic iconography in the Tarot. Plus, it was a game like Bridge. Which can get me on the topic of Christian holidays and rituals associated with that.

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Programming can be so difficult to see through.


I'm pretty open about it.

My friends who don't get it listen to me, say nothing, and then change the subject. Haven't lost any of them.

:) Good.