List of tarot myths

[Anam Cara]

Oh, this has probably already been mentioned a thousand times, but the old myth that Tarot is the work of the devil, and therefore we are all demons... *tries to hide the horns...* darn, they found us out...

Right. My ex-husband (emphasis on "EX"!) threatened to burn all my tarot cards in a bonfire in the driveway...because my cards were, his words, "The Devil's Picture Book."

Cara

 

[shelikes2read]

Also that your deck is haunted. I love this myth.

Well, there WAS that one "haunted" deck on eBay a few years ago. But as its photo included the seller in a black Spandex outfit, we pretty much concluded that the deck was NOT haunted. It was only traumatized.

I think the "nobody else touches the deck" rule came into play after the first reader observed a sitter having difficulty handling a deck of 78 oversized cards. One bent card or a bunch of cards all over the floor later, the "AAAAIGH, it's bad luck for anyone else to touch the deck!" myth was born.

 

[Sever]

I think the "nobody else touches the deck" rule came into play after the first reader observed a sitter having difficulty handling a deck of 78 oversized cards. One bent card or a bunch of cards all over the floor later, the "AAAAIGH, it's bad luck for anyone else to touch the deck!" myth was born.

That's definitely true in my case After seeing my dad lick his fingers before reaching for the cards, my mom tap violently on them with her long fingernails and some of my friends bend/drop the cards a lot, the "no one touches the deck!" rule was born! Well, unless they ask very very nicely...

 

[SphinYote]

That's definitely true in my case After seeing my dad lick his fingers before reaching for the cards, my mom tap violently on them with her long fingernails and some of my friends bend/drop the cards a lot, the "no one touches the deck!" rule was born! Well, unless they ask very very nicely...

Aw, but that's how they imbue it with their energy so it will provide a more accurate reading for them.

 

[Asbestos Mango]

I have another reason for not liking the sitter to touch the cards, or at least shuffle them.
I don't do reversals. When I've done readings for others, when giving them the deck to shuffle, I would tell them, "be very careful not to reverse any of the cards". I would show them where I had marked the deck at one end, so they could keep the ends all pointed the same way.

Invariably, I would end up with a spread with half the cards reversed.

OK, it's a minor annoyance to have to sit there and turn the cards upright, then go through the deck after the reading and get all my cards pointed the same way, but people who can't follow very simple instructions accompanied by visual aids really get on my nerves. And that seems to be about 99% of the population of Earth.

If I get back into doing readings for others, I'd be inclined to fan them out and let the sitter pick the cards for the reading.

So I figure I'm best off shuffling the cards myself to save the aggravation.

 

[Libra8ca]

My father once saw an invoice from Astroamerica (where I had purchased a tarot deck) lying around and I guess he read the word "Astrology" (and this would also apply to tarot in his mind) and commented: "Don't you make your own decisions?" so in his mind it means giving up power. Little does he know that I just want to make *better* decisions!

 

[SphinYote]

How about if you read for yerself all the time you will go blind,.......wait.

whoops. Got my myths of different subjects mixed up


Baroli

Depends on the purpose of the reading and the theme of the particular deck...

 

[Jaqueline]

Well, there WAS that one "haunted" deck on eBay a few years ago. But as its photo included the seller in a black Spandex outfit, we pretty much concluded that the deck was NOT haunted. It was only traumatized.

still laughing . . .

 

[nisaba]

Has anyone yet mentioned the old furfy that decks will somehow not work if they're not kept wrapped in black silk, and spreads are not laid on a protective black cloth?

I have *stacks* of Tarot wraps. I know one is grey, but on principle I *won't* have a black on in the house purely because of that superstition.

 

[Asbestos Mango]

nisaba- I've heard the silk thing, but according to "Easy Tarot", you can use manmade fabrics, but the cloth you do your readings on should be plain black because any pattern on the cloth will distract you from the images on the cards.

Funny, I've been using a very attractive scarf with a paisley print pattern, and haven't had this problem. Maybe the author has ADHD.