Rider Waite

I just started exploring tarot and I bought the standard rider waite. I was wondering what is the tarot community's take on this deck. it seems to be very standard and common but I cannot find any comments on it on how the deck is looked upon.

Just Curious,
D

Greetings,

The Rider-Waite-Smith deck is maybe the most popular Tarot deck ever. It is suggested for beginners because all of the cards contain illustrations instead of just suit symbols such as cups, wands etc... I myself perfer a version of this deck called 'Albaino-Waite', but there are different coloured decks to suit the taste of all.

You should have no trouble finding tons of information and images of this deck.


Good luck with your journey,

Freddie

It was my starter deck, I think it's a great deck for learning and using, You master this deck, your good to go on most decks. But if it doesn't appeal to you find something that does. There is many to choose from

duhhhhhderek said:

it seems to be very standard and common but I cannot find any comments on it on how the deck is looked upon.

Just Curious,
D

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The RWS is looked upon as very standard and common so people don't have much to say about it though there are some tarot authors such as Mary Greer that have a lot to say about it.

Also, it was created when tarot was generally reserved for secret societies so the authors didn't publish much of their own insights regarding the deck, and what was published was somewhat obtuse.

The general consensus is that the author A.E. Waite was a condescending bore who authored a long-winded, worthless book for the deck, The Pictorial Key of Tarot, and the artist Pamela "Pixie" Colman Smith was a talented artist who didn't get the acclaim she deserved for the deck's creation, having had at least some hand in the symbolic content of the deck.

It's an absolutely wonderful deck filled with symbolism and things to actually 'read'. Everything in those cards has a meaning, even the numbers and the colours.
Lots of people say they don't like the artwork but I love it. To me it looks like a tarot deck should. I prefer the Albano-Waite myself or the Hoi-Polloi which uses the RWS artwork but with funkier colours (I think I just like decks from the 1960s and 70s).
I don't like it when I see it described as a 'beginner deck' because that suggests it's only good for using when you're first starting out; it's not, it's the deck that most modern decks are based on and it's stood the test of time because it's such an excellent deck.
There are loads and loads of books that use it as a teaching model too so if you like to learn using books I think it's the deck to go for. As has been said before in this thread, once you learn the RWS system you're good to go and can read almost anything.

The Rider Waite is an awesome deck, and I don't use the term lightly. As Sulis says, it's often referred to as a 'beginners deck' which can sound quite derogatory. What makes it so special for me is that it's the ultimate beginner's and advanced deck all in one. It's incredibly accessible if you're starting from scratch but the more you learn, the more you uncover within the amazingly detailed images. Every detail of each card counts and thirty years on from buying my first copy I'm still uncovering things I haven't seen before and appreciating the images on increasingly deeper levels. Furthermore, my ex partner who's an artist/illustrator of some repute has always considered PCS's artwork to be one of the finest examples of 20th century 'Arts and Crafts' period illustration in existence.

Think of the best children's literature - you read it and love it as a kid but you carry on going back to it as an adult. It's still as magical but you appreciate it from so many more different angles and it still holds water. The Rider Waite is for me the Tarot equivalent of this - and I still love the artwork too!

Chris. xxx

It's the one I always return to when I get tired of the fluff of other decks. It's like going home again.

Ditto

Hi Derek, I agree with Sulis & 78th Fool. There are many great decks around these days, but you can't beat the old faithful RWS for imagery. Wild West Barbie

Although I have collected many decks over the years, the RWS is still the one that I use 90 percent of the time. I would go so far as to call it the "perfect" tarot deck. Not only is it easy to read with, it is easy for someone who has never had a tarot reading done for them to understand. The deck practically reads itself. You couldn't have picked a better deck to start with and while you may eventually end up with lots of different decks, I suspect you will find that you return to the RWS again and again and again...

Gregorio said:

Although I have collected many decks over the years, the RWS is still the one that I use 90 percent of the time. I would go so far as to call it the "perfect" tarot deck. Not only is it easy to read with, it is easy for someone who has never had a tarot reading done for them to understand. The deck practically reads itself. You couldn't have picked a better deck to start with and while you may eventually end up with lots of different decks, I suspect you will find that you return to the RWS again and again and again...

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I agree with this
I also collected many decks,over a hundred. The only one, i use, with serious matters, still is, the RWS deck.

Light Lucifall