The Easiest Way to Learn Tarot -Ever!

[irisa]

Personally I switch off at any book that bolds, underlines and stresses the importance of it's "recommended decks". It seems to me if freedom and encouragement to find your own meaning in the cards and what you see is the goal then the deck should be irrelevant to the author (as it is with Greer's 21 Ways). Books that pimp the RWS are unfortunately two a penny but then I loathe the RWS and learnt with Thoth. I do believe anyone can learn with any deck.

irisa

[love.actually]

I just looked this book on Amazon and it definitely looks helpful! I'll be ordering it soon

[bjmeacham]

He also says you could use the Hanson-Roberts, Morgan-Greer, or Halloween Tarot. I found this link where you can see other decks and how close they are to the Rider-Waite cards. I think it is pretty interesting.
http://www.autumnalwind.com/joan/tarotrwsclone.htm

[Healing Spirit]

Originally Posted by irisa

Personally I switch off at any book that bolds, underlines and stresses the importance of it's "recommended decks". It seems to me if freedom and encouragement to find your own meaning in the cards and what you see is the goal then the deck should be irrelevant to the author (as it is with Greer's 21 Ways). Books that pimp the RWS are unfortunately two a penny but then I loathe the RWS and learnt with Thoth. I do believe anyone can learn with any deck.

irisa

If you read further, or visit the website, Dusty makes it clear that his "recommendation" of the RWS is purely to allow students to be able to write from a common starting point.

Ironically, Duty White loathes the RWS too!

[Rosanne]

Originally Posted by irisa

but then I loathe the RWS ...... I do believe anyone can learn with any deck.

This is Pamela speaking through Rosanne's avatar.....
"Whatcha mean LOATHE my deck?"
" Just because I am dead does not mean you can hurt me to the quick like that!"
"It is said 4 million of my deck has been sold- that's one hell of a lot of loathing!"

"Then again I do agree with you that you can learn with any deck- except that woman Freida's deck, seriously she is.......Fast and a hussy to boot! Rosanne is using a new deck with the book.......so she is a hussy too!"
"I believe it is the publishers that require RWS to make any book sale-able, they did it to me with ol Arthur- made me make a RWS too!"
~Pixie

[Pen]

Maybe the very best way to learn and have the meanings programmed indelibly into your brain is to create your own tarot deck as you work along with the course? Just an (old) idea, but one that really works.

Pen

[Rosanne]

Unfortunately from what I have read of this book you need to use a RWS in some sense to do the exercises. For me. I am doing this to compare with Mary Greer's 21 Ways....which I find excellent to use with new decks to experience them before I read with them. This book of this thread is a whole other fish- but it does what it sets out to do. It is harder than I thought when I have been reading for years- I am trying to approach with new eyes and conversation.

Your idea is a good one Pen! I have done this and I found I have a different idea than what most cards are generally supposed to mean. I think this comes from my appreciation of the cards original concept of a game.

I got the book sent from England and it was not cheap for me here in NZ.
I will plod on.......
~Rosanne

[Healing Spirit]

Hi Rosanne

I'm goin through the exercises with an Alchemical deck, nothing like an RWS, and getting great benefit from them. Dusty does say at the beginning of the book that any deck you choose to use is fine. The only problem comes when doing some of the 2 people exercises, where RWS is probably a lowest common denominator!

Light and Love,

Nic

[MrAndrewJ]

Originally Posted by bjmeacham

He also says you could use the Hanson-Roberts, Morgan-Greer, or Halloween Tarot. I found this link where you can see other decks and how close they are to the Rider-Waite cards. I think it is pretty interesting.
http://www.autumnalwind.com/joan/tarotrwsclone.htm

Being able to use the Halloween might make this of interest to me. Thank you for sharing that much.

[irisa]

Originally Posted by Healing Spirit

If you read further, or visit the website, Dusty makes it clear that his "recommendation" of the RWS is purely to allow students to be able to write from a common starting point.

Ironically, Duty White loathes the RWS too!

I did visit the website and preview pages of the book and saw the bold and underline for myself hence my comments. As I said too many authors pimp the RWS to the detriment imo of newcomers to tarot. There is no magic formula to understanding the cards unless you want canned meanings which are like canned vegetables

Whats important again imo are the meanings relevant to - understood by and discovered by each of us as individuals that does not ever require conforming to any specific deck. I'm a rebel individuality is good, conformity is bad

irisa