Is this book accurate? A Magical Coursein Tarot by Michele Morgan

[betille]

Have you read A Magical Course in Tarot by Michele Morgan? I found it very useful as a tarot newbie . . . until I started doing readings. It seems that the meanings in the LWB for my Paulina deck (which is supposedly based on RW) do not at all match up with the meanings in the dictionary section of Morgan's book.

Am I wrong? Is this a decent resource or should I return it to the library ASAP?

 

[Greg Stanton]

Nobody pays attention to the LWB — at least not to most of them. Some are well-written (like that for the Golden Tarot, or any deck by Brian Williams), but most are quickly-produced with very little thought.

The cards mean what YOU decide they mean. There is no one book that is more accurate than the others. The meanings of the cards can change from deck to deck depending on your reading style.

That said, The Mystical Origins of the Tarot by Paul Huson is a valuable reference because it lists the historical meanings from various sources. This will give you a good grounding in what the cards represent traditionally. From this you will ultimately develop your own interpretation of the cards.

If you are less-interested in history, Tarot Wisdom by Rachel Pollock quotes Huson's card meanings extensively, and it's a nice, though less-scholarly alternative.

 

[HearthCricket]

Have you read A Magical Course in Tarot by Michele Morgan? I found it very useful as a tarot newbie . . . until I started doing readings. It seems that the meanings in the LWB for my Paulina deck (which is supposedly based on RW) do not at all match up with the meanings in the dictionary section of Morgan's book.

Am I wrong? Is this a decent resource or should I return it to the library ASAP?

I've never read that book, so cannot answer this well, but you will find each artists may waver a bit with the RW meanings as you yourself will as your own readings become more intuitive. The same goes for the recent Rabbit Tarot, which I love. It is up to you how you want to approach this. Learning traditional meanings from highly recommended books is a great starting point, but also pay attention to what each artist brings to the table and your own thoughts and feelings of how a card, or grouping of cards, tells a story. The meanings begin to take on layers. This is when it becomes useful to do studies on a specific deck or compare them with other decks and start keeping a tarot journal.

 

[Silver Crow]

Take what you learn from each book, big or little, and every reading you get and give, and then make your own sense out of it. There's not really a wrong or right, but a wonderful melting pot of meanings that will eventually turn into it's own thing the longer you read.

 

[Astraea]

I don't pay much attention to card meanings given in books - full-size or LWB - but Morgan's overall approach to reading really helped me to loosen up and have fun with the cards. To this day, A Magical Course in Tarot is one of my favorites.

 

[rwcarter]

Welcome to Aeclectic!

The meanings written in any tarot book are valid to the author who wrote them. They may not be valid to you at this point in your tarot journey. (Although they could become relevant at some other point.) Just because it's in print, doesn't make it tarot gospel.

As I've said before and I'll say again, "keep what resonates and discard what doesn't."

Rodney

 

[betille]

Thanks for your thoughts, everyone! I appreciate your opinions.

Take what you learn from each book, big or little, and every reading you get and give, and then make your own sense out of it. There's not really a wrong or right, but a wonderful melting pot of meanings that will eventually turn into it's own thing the longer you read.

I really struggle with the idea of "anything goes" (or close to it). How can there NOT be some form of absolute in everything? It makes no sense to me. :/

 

[Silver Crow]

I think that's one of the amazing things about tarot. What is today, may not be tomorrow. I know it's a hard concept to grasp.

I firmly believe in reading what you can in the beginning, but NOT taking it as gospel. Understanding "standard" meanings is important, but letting the card tell you what it needs to mean when you are doing a reading is more important.

Once you get beyond the point of learning the book part, your intuition will start to take over.

There are those that will say to never read books and read by intuition alone. I think that does a disservice to the history of tarot and often can make a new reader frustrated to the point of giving up.

 

[Silver Crow]

Here's an example.

The Two of Cups - RWS

Some standard keywords - partnership, relationship, sexual attraction, moving forward.

In a reading a few weeks ago I felt that the winged lion was standing out to me, as if he were shoving the caduceus between them. I told my client that there could be something physical going on and she should have a check up. She called me a week later telling me she had a STD her fiancée gave to her.

This is what I mean when I say that something that normally wouldn't be part of the rote meaning stands out and gives you something else to see and interpret that you norjmally wouldn't.

 

[gregory]

Have you read A Magical Course in Tarot by Michele Morgan? I found it very useful as a tarot newbie . . . until I started doing readings. It seems that the meanings in the LWB for my Paulina deck (which is supposedly based on RW) do not at all match up with the meanings in the dictionary section of Morgan's book.

Am I wrong? Is this a decent resource or should I return it to the library ASAP?

I like the book. I like anything that sheds light in any direction. But - what is "accurate" ? If we could just look up the meanings - why would anyone need a reader - a would-be sitter could just "turn to page 47" and see what the cards mean. A reading comes from within you, not from in a book. Not from in ANY book.