8 Facts About Tarot Cards

Hobbies & Leisure — By 88DB Knowledge on August 1, 2012 3:15 pm

Tarot cards – everyone knows of them but yet, little is known about them. Here are eight facts about these mysterious cards.

The tarot card, aka “The Book of Divination of the Gypsies”, is the most practiced art of divination in the world. Over the years, it has apparently been used to find out hidden truths as well as to foresee the future of the person.
Tarot cards are sometimes used by psychologists to identify how a patient views himself by asking the patient to select a card that he or she identifies with.
The origins of tarot cards are unclear. However, it is suggested that the tarot originated in 15^th century in Italy by adding to a normal 21 trump card, a fool and 4 queens of each suit which then evolved to the 78 cards that are being used today.
The traditional deck of 78 cards has various symbolic pictures on them. A standard pack is made up of 22 cards called the Major Arcana and Minor Arcana. The word Arcana means ‘mysteries’ or ‘secret’. The Major Arcana consists of the following:
- The Fool
- The Magician
- The High Priestess
- The Emperor
- The Hierophat
- The Lovers
- The Chariot
- Strength
- The Hermit
- Wheel of Fortune
- Justice
- The Hanged Man
- Death
- The Tower
- The Star
- The Moon
- The Sun
- Judgment
- The World
There are thousands of different decks available, catering to many diverse interests from baseball to voodoo. An influential deck in English speaking countries is the Rider-Waite deck. However many people will buy a set of cards with an art work and style which is compatible with their own tastes.
Different tarot card readers may interpret the cards differently. Readers of tarot lay the cards out in special combinations called spreads. A traditional ten card spread is called the Celtic Cross, where it is claimed that the reader can see details on the client’s situation – what has caused the situation and how it is most likely to affect the future.
No one knows how tarot truly works. One expert believes that when the cards are shuffled the reader gets a kind of ‘psychic photograph’ of the client’s situation. The reader can suggest various pathways which a client may choose to deal with the situation. If the client is aware of these potential pathways they can then select the one most appropriate to their circumstances. If the theory is correct the future is not set in stone and people are masters of their own destiny.
Some religious groups don’t agree with the use of tarot. In fact, in some societies divination is forbidden based on religious or traditional teachings.