Who does NOT combine astrology and tarot?

[Carla]

I really don't know anything about astrology and have no interest in it. There, I said it. Since I developed an interest in tarot, I've begun to feel that I ought to learn astrology and try to use the Golden Dawn correspondences in readings, but after two years I still haven't managed to even memorize the symbols for the 12 signs. I don't know how many times I've copied them out. This shows my distinct lack of motivation in learning astrology!

I feel that I read tarot just fine without astrology. I have embraced elemental correspondences and find them simple to grasp and use. But all this thinking I've been doing lately about Thoth and how it's supposedly so much deeper and better to get into all that other stuff -- kabbalah, astrology and so on-- that I've been feeling like I should give it another go. Even though I don't want to.

A google search led me to these old archived threads from AT: http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/learn/reading/astrology.shtml They're very interesting and several people pipe up in them to say that they don't use astrology.

So, my question is--who here doesn't use astrology in their readings?

I don't really need to be told in this thread why I ought to be using it, how much richer it will make my readings, or any tips on how I can learn it. I just want to know who here doesn't use astrology and why they decided not to.

Also, if you don't use astrology to complement your readings, do you use something else? Elemental dignities? A system you came up with for yourself?

 

[Keir Myrkvetr]

Nop, never used astrology in my readings. Because, well... it is so damn confusing for me. It doesn't help at all. I tried to have an interest in it (Hel ! I have two books about it on my shelves), I tried and I tried and tried... but... Damn. I don't even know which card is linked with which sign, which planet... I can't see to remember anything about it. It just doesn't speak to me. Period. And that's a bit of a problem because I wanted to try to understand the Thoth system, but I can't (and the Thoth read like a dream intuitively for me... so I keep using it like that ^^; )

So it is more of a "I don't use astrology because I can't make any sense of it" than a real, clear decision to not use astrology.

 

[NorthernTigress]

Other than being able to recite "I'm a Gemini and a Water Rat" and recognize that both of those have similar personality traits, I have zero knowledge of astrology.

Some of my decks do have zodiac and planetary symbols on them, but I don't really use those symbols when I read with those particular decks. I see no real "need" to use astrology when I am pulling cards. The cards themselves contain a great deal of information all on their own. Why add connections to Something Else?

 

[DaisyDragonfly]

I don't.

I've read a little about it (and The Book of Seshet that accompanies Rosetta Tarot did the best job of making it accessible) but I'm just not interested. Others on the forum have described it clearly, have demonstrated how it makes their reading deeper and I always find that interesting... but when I try to study it myself it all becomes a big mush. Dunno why.

Besides, when I try to utilize it in a reading I overload myself and can only spout gibberish. I become like the centipede who was doing just fine right up until the moment he had to explain how he walked.

Never say never, of course, but I just don't have the time and energy to dedicate to internalizing it. *shrugs*

 

[RunningWild]

Me.

I tried, really I did. And I thought I was beginning to make progress until I posted a reading in the Your Readings section and someone brought in those correspondences. And it was different than the way I was trying to learn. After that I tried again but I was befuddled the whole way so I gave up.

Maybe I'll attempt it again in the future but for now I just don't see any reason to.

I'm with NorthernTigress. It's enough to remember that I'm a Leo in one system and a Tiger in the other. And I'm not even certain what either of those mean nor does it seem important.

 

[Debra]

Me six.

I don't see any reason to believe that the stars and planets influence life at this level.

 

[MissJo]

Nope, never saw the point in it really.

 

[Little Hare]

I don't either, Always wanted to learn astrology on its on, but never wanted to mesh it with tarot. To me its a different type of art.

 

[Sulis]

Me.. I know almost nothing about astrology and don't have any inkling to learn.
To me tarot is tarot and astrology is astrology - 2 separate disciplines and not really anything to do with each other at all. As a user of magic I can see that there are correspondences everywhere and you can link many things but I think I'm just an earthy type of person and all that star stuff doesn't gel with me.

I've found that many people just assume that I'm into astrology because I'm into tarot - they tell me their star sign, rising sign and stuff like that and then are quite shocked when I say I know nothing about star signs..

 

[Debra]

When that happens, I try not to look blank and say something like "Ah. Hm."