help with info about a cheap deck

[hollyelizabeth]

Hi everyone!

I just bought a deck of ebay for around $4...(unfortunately shipping to aus was $7 but i kind of sort of fell in love with the artwork on it and had to have them)

http://i1036.photobucket.com/albums/a445/hollyelizabethx/Screenshot2012-03-10at11201PM.png

http://i1036.photobucket.com/albums/a445/hollyelizabethx/Screenshot2012-03-10at11218PM.png

my only problem is, the deck is obviously from a cheap $2 shop type of company and at the top of each card it has kind of the "meaning" of what each card means! i figure perhaps if i'm still learning it might be a good way for me to learn the meanings, but i'm also worried that the meanings are completely made up and have nothing to do with the traditional RWS meanings (as a beginner i really would like to learn the RWS meanings well and branch out from there).

so - a question is, do the meanings shown on these cards look accurate/align with the RWS meanings? has anyone else used these cards at all? how have you found them?


thanks in advance everyone ^.^

 

[gypsylady]

I wouldn't necessarily consider these accurate... If you love them that much though, there is no reason not to get them for yourself, but I wouldn't use them for readings

 

[DaughterOfDanu]

http://tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=168250

The thread above is all about that deck (Nicknamed the Dollar Tree Tarot) it can be found, as guessed, at a dollar tree for $1.

I have a few copies myself, I don't use them and I do believe that the meanings are not spot on with RWS standards.

But some people did work around ways to use it. So check out that thread.

 

[Zephyros]

I remember that thread, it looks like a really, really nice deck, made even nicer by its price

However, just a word about books and RWS meanings. Many, many books don't follow the "standard" RWS meanings, nor do they follow the Golden Dawn's Book T meanings. The RWS has become a kind of free for all, and I don't mean that in a bad way, only that many (most) authors make of it what they will, for better or worse. There is a certain basic and much simplified consensus, but much of what we consider "standard" about the RWS really isn't. In addition, there is even less of a consensus on what the "meanings mean" in a reading, or how the RWS is to be read at all. The typical RWS reader is an even grayer area, since most read either completely or mostly intuitively. Unless you're a stickler for Golden Dawn detail, or course.

But as to your question, I would say it doesn't matter either way

Of course, if you ask me, Tarot is something to be understood, and not learned by rote. The meanings are not arbitrary, and there are many reasons for why so many swords or coins equal this or that. If you really want a good primer on the meanings, plus what they mean, I would suggest Book T. It's not really simple, but not too hard, either, and it gives good and clear explanations. It can be downloaded for free.

 

[Abrac]

That is an interesting deck. I'm gonna have to find a Dollar Tree.

Waite didn't give divinatory meanings for the majors, so, as closrapexa said, people just use whatever they want. I can tell you that the meanings on those cards you posted aren't the same as what are in the booklet that comes with the deck. It only has meanings for upright and reversed.

If you can post a picture of a couple of the minors I can tell you if they're close to Waite's meanings in A Pictorial Key to the Tarot, but I doubt they are based on the others. It looks like an entirely different system.

EDIT: Oh wait, I saw the pictures of the minors in the other thread, no meanings at all on them, and unillustrated. My bad.

 

[hollyelizabeth]

reading that thread made me excited/nervous. i'm really sad all the pips arent there

anyone care to help me out deciphering some astrological meanings for the 8 pips that are there? ^.^

 

[Bhavana]

$4 is a good price for that deck - I have seen it for a lot higher...guess people are buying it up at the dollar store and then turning a nice profit on it.

 

[Morwenna]

reading that thread made me excited/nervous. i'm really sad all the pips arent there

anyone care to help me out deciphering some astrological meanings for the 8 pips that are there? ^.^

I put my thoughts about this into the other thread.