Majors-only readings...does that work well?

MareSaturni

When i started learning tarot, about 8 years ago (pfft, nothing!), i used only the major arcana to read. I decided to learn the majors well, before moving to the minors.

After i learnt the minors, i've always read with the complete deck. Lately, however, i noticed an increasing number of majors-only decks in my collection...and the deck i created myself is also majors-only, and i love using it. Other decks, i love the majors and deslike the minors.

On the other hand, i fear that using only the majors might not...you know, make good readings. The minor arcana offers a lot of information, detailed sometimes, and i don't know if the majors could work the same way.

Does anyone here reads with the major arcana only? How is your experience? Are the readings equally good, what problems you find? I wisi i could enjoy more my majors-only decks without feeling my readings are 'lacking' something. :(

Thanks :heart:
 

Le Fanu

Interesting post! This was a subject I was going to post on a while back then didn´t have time or something....

When I first started learning tarot, I found using the whole deck too overwhelming, so I tended to just use the majors (plus it was Marseilles / 1JJ Swiss). If you look at my old decks, the majors are grubby and well-thumbed, the minors all pristine clean!

Then I began using the whole deck etc, but recently, I have come across decks with majors which I love and minors which I don´t feel I can work with. Like Tarot of the III Millennium for instance. But there are others. Plus I recently rediscoered my Ansata.

But I confess I don´t really know now how to read Majors only. I know we are all different when we read, but the Majors and Minors together flesh out each other (that´s just my way of seeing it), they complement each other, make up the totality. Id feel I was doing half a reading.

But there are so many beautiful Major only decks out there, and I so love the Majors of my Tarot of the III Millennium, that it´s a road I keep thinking of going down...

Id love to hear opinions on this subject...

ETA; there´s an interesting thread which has started over in Tarot Books and Media on this subject;

http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?p=1562701#post1562701
 

thorhammer

I don't read with my Majors-only decks all that often, but one reading I did ages ago with my Tarot for Cats springs to mind. It was very eloquent and meaningful - I used it for a reading circle, and rachelcat was my guinea pig :D If you read this, rachelcat, please feel free to disabuse me of this if necessary :D.

I think you can get meaningful readings with Majors-only decks, but you must be careful to keep it in context. Major Arcana cards, after all, are "archetypal" images, and show forces in our lives, rather than (necessarily) specific events. So keep that in mind, and use the Majors when you want to explore a deep and meaningful issue. I think they have value in and of themselves, but I personally do prefer to read with the whole 78 cards.

\m/ Kat
 

elvenstar

Well, for the last nine months or so the majority of readings I've done for others have been majors only with the same deck. It wasn't planned, it just happened. I find at the present time this works really well for me and people seem happy with the readings, so :D

I don't miss the minors, not sure why, but I find I get clear and to the point readings this way. Details will be revealed if they're important and relevant, so I wouldn't be concerned about that. I use less cards, usually around three, but they seem more than enough to answer any question.

So if you feel like reading only with the majors and the people you're reading for are pleased, then I wouldn't worry about it. Sometimes less is more. :p
 

Sinduction

I prefer doing majors only readings! I get lots more info and I am also able to predict. When I use the whole deck I am unable to make predictions but with only majors predictions scream out at me.

I actually find the minors lessen my readings but I still can't give them up. Now whether this is actually real or just in my imagination is completely debatable!

I never read without the full deck until the Vargo Gothic. The minors never fit the artwork for me so eventually I gave up and tossed them aside. It was a whole new tarot experience for me.
 

morticia monroe

I've read once or twice using majors only, but usually I'll use a majors only deck in conjunction with another full 78 card deck.

I draw one from the majors only deck to basically set a background for the reading done with the other deck. It works nicely.
 

ana luisa

I don't mind the minors but I definitely do not like dealing with the Courts... I may try reading without them ! :)
 

Joermit

I'd never read with only the majors until I purchased the Tarot Obscura... http://www.alchemywebsite.com/tarot/art_tarot10.html

Never really considered it and it did take a lil bit of getting used to... but it can be done and I think there were great readings, for myself and others...

I do enjoy working with minors though, cause of some of the nuances in how I read... so I read my majors decks with playing cards...

Just this past week I bought the Lebanese Tarot (awesome, awesome deck!)
http://www.alchemywebsite.com/tarot/art_tarot16.html
and it combines really beautifully with my Bicycle Vintage 1800 series from ellusionist.com
http://www.ellusionist.com/product/playing+cards/bicycle+vintage+1800/vintage+series+1800+deck.do#

The combo read exceptionally well for a close friend and suprised even me...

perhaps you may try this... reading with playing cards is incredibly versatile all on its own... but combined with the tarot, there's a lil bit of magic there... hope that helps... take care...

Joey

PS
In peeking over at ellusionist, I may have to order that Bicycle Shadow Masters deck... I think that would make a wonderful combo with my Tarot Obscura!
 

Alta

The first Majors-only deck that I ever really tried to use was Tarot for Cats and that went so well that I have continued, at intervals. A while back I set up a thread in Reading Exchange and used quite a few of my Majors decks to offer readings. It is a good way to read and the volume of information in a Majors-only reading is quite staggering sometimes.

Alta
 

Sphinxmoth

Joermit said:
I'd never read with only the majors until I purchased the Tarot Obscura... http://www.alchemywebsite.com/tarot/art_tarot10.html

Never really considered it and it did take a lil bit of getting used to... but it can be done and I think there were great readings, for myself and others...

I do enjoy working with minors though, cause of some of the nuances in how I read... so I read my majors decks with playing cards...

Just this past week I bought the Lebanese Tarot (awesome, awesome deck!)
http://www.alchemywebsite.com/tarot/art_tarot16.html
and it combines really beautifully with my Bicycle Vintage 1800 series from ellusionist.com
http://www.ellusionist.com/product/playing+cards/bicycle+vintage+1800/vintage+series+1800+deck.do#

The combo read exceptionally well for a close friend and suprised even me...

perhaps you may try this... reading with playing cards is incredibly versatile all on its own... but combined with the tarot, there's a lil bit of magic there... hope that helps... take care...

Joey

PS
In peeking over at ellusionist, I may have to order that Bicycle Shadow Masters deck... I think that would make a wonderful combo with my Tarot Obscura!
Click to expand...

Those are inspired and awesome deck combinations you have made. Just thought I'd say that.
 
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