Using one tarot deck only

[Thoughtful]

l have friends who are professional readers and have been for a number of years. They have used their skills Internationally and on TV. What interests me is that they each have their favourite deck and never use any others. One friend has the Gilded Tarot which she purchased when it first came out, the cards have grown very thin and floppy and because of numerous shuffling over the years you can hardly see the pictures anymore, she won't even buy a new one. Another friend has the 1JJ Swiss which over the years has faired very much better. Another has a deck l can't remember the name, they are so worn and well loved, her dog has chewed at one of the cards leaving about 3/4 's of it but she still shuffles away with it.

l know here at AT lots of us have many decks. But my friends just will not ever part with or use any other deck.
It would save me a lot of money if l used one deck!
Do you use only one deck ever, or know someone who does?

 

[Chiriku]

I have encountered many tarotists who use only one deck. Most have been at fairs, festivals or community groups in the U.S. These people have certain commonalities:

1. They are all Anglophone/from Anglophone countries.
2. They use the cards exclusively for "reading"--often in a divinatory sense
3. They have been reading for a long time, at least 20+ years
4. They are deep into several other "movements" and communities besides tarot-- some are members of the "New Age" movement of the past few decades, some in the "hippie" movement/communal living, some in the "psychic" community, some in the crystals/gemstones community, etc. In other words, Tarot is not their only "alternative" lifestyle.
5. They do not tend to do a lot of esoteric study with their deck. So, for those with the Rider Waite as their lifelong companion, most did not have a familiarity with the Golden Dawn or AE Waite's philosophies and symbologies; they are well-versed in the deck's meanings for fortune-telling but not in its esoterica.

There was some discussion about such people in my thread 'What makes a tarot enthusiast?' (or something similar; just search for 'tarot enthusiast' in the thread titles).

.

 

[greatdane]

For my own readings...

I just use the PCS Commemorative. Only one I've used almost since I got it. But I enjoy reading for others with other decks. For me, I just feel much more of a bond with the PCS Commemorative for my own readings because they're the clearest and I've gotten really amazing readings, so that's what I use. It's like if it isn't broken.... I still enjoy my other decks, I'll shuffle them, read for others with them, but for my own readings, it's the Pamela .

 

[Thoughtful]

Now that l have got my Universal Waite l will see if l can manage to be faithful! l would have to curb that feeling of trying out new decks because they sound so good, only to find that quite a few are reclining unused in my tarot desk.
l do admire my friends for being so faithful and loving their one and only decks.

 

[GryffinSong]

Nope, I like the variety. But I use tarot in a completely different way than the profile posted above. I use it almost exclusively for my own personal insight. I find that a new deck often triggers an intuitive leap that I very rarely experience with a well known deck. I suppose it sort of startles it out of me. If I let a deck sit for awhile, I can achieve the same result, because the images are sort of starting over, at least as to the details. I also would get very bored with only one deck. But I was once described by a friend thusly ... "the only constant with Gryff is change."

 

[Zephyros]

I don't know if I fit into the categories outlined, but I certainly use one deck almost exclusively, the Thoth. I can't really say why this is, but in a way I've "found" my deck in the Thoth and then stopped looking. It is so full and complete that any other deck seems almost empty and staid compared to it. Of course, it complements my esoteric studies like no other deck can.

I have always been monogamous with decks, preferring to build relationships and really get to know them. I read mainly for myself in divinatory/meditative capacities.

I do occasionally use other decks, but rarely. Like I said, looked at the Thoth and stopped searching; I had found The One. I occasionally do buy/receive new decks and love them (received the Azathoth most recently) but nothing can replace the ol' ball and chain.

 

[Carla]

I have encountered many tarotists who use only one deck. Most have been at fairs, festivals or community groups in the U.S. These people have certain commonalities:

1. They are all Anglophone/from Anglophone countries.
2. They use the cards exclusively for "reading"--often in a divinatory sense
3. They have been reading for a long time, at least 20+ years
5. They do not tend to do a lot of esoteric study with their deck. So, for those with the Rider Waite as their lifelong companion, most did not have a familiarity with the Golden Dawn or AE Waite's philosophies and symbologies; they are well-versed in the deck's meanings for fortune-telling but not in its esoterica.

I agree with these points, from my limited experience with single-deck devotees, this does seem to be a bit of a pattern. (Of course there are exceptions -- of course!! But I do think these in general tend to be true of people who will use only one deck and will not even use a new copy of the same deck).

 

[Chiriku]

I thought of another one--most people I've met who use only one deck for many years (not even a back-up or the concept of a backup, as Carla suggested) have expressed certain beliefs ---some might call them superstitions, though I don't mean it pejoratively--about this being "their" deck, their lucky deck, THE deck for them. Using another deck was unthinkable to them in a way that suggested they did not hold to the "the cards are merely paper and ink tools in the hands of the reader" belief that many people on this forum express.

 

[diane drizzy]

i love the concept of only owning one deck. right now all i have is tarot of the pagan cats and my faeries oracle.
i started learning with the aquarian tarot when it first came out (how scary is that!), so i'm comfortable with rw type cards.
for many years i only used the tarot nova which i received as a gift, however friends do go separate ways at times in life. i could no longer use them without the baggage so i passed them on.
as i said my cats are enough for me to be rw recognizable and they make me smile. i'm old enough to do that now-but my faeries make me laugh.

 

[GoldenWolf]

I guess there's some merit to using and really knowing one and only one deck. I don't think it's for me though. I like variety too much for that. I also enjoy studying the esoteric aspects so I don't really fit the "type".

I do have some old decks that show some wear (like my first RWS-University Books ed.), but nothing like the ones Thoughtful mentioned. I can understand if they kept these as their own personal decks if they are really attached to them, but I would be kind of shocked if I were a paying client and they pulled out a faded deck or one a pet had been gnawing on. I'd be tempted to pull out one of my own decks and offer to let them read with it lol.