morticia monroe

For those of you who have been reading for some time, I'd like to ask about Majors-only decks.
When do you reach for them in lieu of a 78 card, "full" deck? As one who is still a novice, the "bigger is better" theory seems reasonable as a larger deck would be able to break things down and pinpoint a reading a bit better.
I have found a few decks online that I absolutely love, only to be disappointed when I find that they are majors-only. What am I missing?

Grizabella

You can take the Minors out of any 78-card deck and use it for a Majors-only reading. I never do Majors-only readings, though.

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bodhran

I use majors only decks for a one card daily draw, or as a one card summary in tandem with another 78 card deck reading (in this case, I use it more as an oracle).

Bodhran

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moderndayruth

I read with majors only in the beggining (the RWS), i couldn't remember the meanings of the minors at first, it was like too much info at once... Than, all the readings seemed sooo important

Papageno

bigger is not always better but you might want to try pulling the Majors and Court cards to work with as an exercise just to get the feel.....leave out the pips

morticia monroe

Thank you for the replies, everyone. And I can see where it would be sufficient to use for a daily draw. But since most of you DO say that you prefer NOT to read with majors only, what is it that makes you purchase a majors-only deck since, as Solitaire stated, you CAN simply remove the Minor Arcana from a deck if you so choose?

jmd

Using a deck for readings is not (by far) the only uses to which tarot can be placed. For one, tarot allows a fair degree of reflection and study. In that light, it can also be considered that the Majors (or Atouts) are the 'only' richly woven symbolic cards, the others being, in essence, four suits each having a similar structure of an increase in implement (or suit 'tools') from 1-10 and four specific courts.

Having said that, I do not in the least wish to diminish the importance of those four suits (Batons, Cups, Coins and Swords) - they are, in my view, intrinsic to what makes tarot tarot and not something else. There is a sense, however, that one may be able to reflect on these more 'easily' even without the deck at hand.

A case in point is the Noblet - the Atouts were restored by J-C. Flornoy some years back, and the pips and courts restored restored more recently and released only this year. For many of us, and though we would have even in the first place preferred the full 78 deck, to have only the Atouts was indeed a blessing! Also, to produce the full 78 according to a hand-crafted technique is something that is likely to render the deck beyond the financial means of many amongst us. Atouts only decks then, have something about them (not always, of course) that makes them at times particularly appealing.

...and of course, there are many, especially, it seems to me, on the Continent of Europe, who also exclusively use the Atouts for readings. For many amongst us, that is not the reason to obtain an Atouts-only deck.

Papageno

whether I read with a Majors only vs. 78 card deck depends on my mood and the type of reading I'm looking for at a particular point in time.
by no means do I limit my Majors reading to a daily single-card draw.

Many Majors-only editions were-are published as artistic decks, which doesn't preclude them from being read with but they're primarily of interest to collectors since many (not most) readers do prefer to purchase 78 card decks.

Sadly there are fewer and fewer Majors-only editions being published as they are not as lucrative as 78 card titles.

lunakasha

An excellent question....I am glad you started this thread.

I know that there are many collectors and others who enjoy the Majors-only decks for purposes other than reading with them, which I can appreciate.

I own very few Majors-only decks because, while I can appreciate their beauty and usefulness for study, comparison, etc., it frustrates me that I am not comfortable reading with them. I have no idea why this is so challenging for me, as I know there are many people who actually prefer reading only with the Majors. For me, it feels like I am leaving out a large chunk of potential information by excluding the minor cards.

Anyway....I am anxious to hear more from people who do read with Majors, and hopefully find my own comfort zone in this respect. I do enjoy the few Majors decks that I own, and have tried reading with them, but it just doesn't feel right somehow.

Luna