Why have more than one deck?

HearthCricket said:

I don't think there is anything wrong with having more than one deck, or having lots of them, for that matter. To me tarot is like owning a library of art. I love seeing the ways different artists portray the same card and shed new light on the traditional meanings. It is a constant learning procedure. Various systems, various symbolism, not to mention an extremely fun way to dip into various cultures and belief systems. Having this at my fingertips is quite exciting, imo. I do not like reading the same book over and over again, nor watching the same movie over and over again. I like to grow, and using various decks allows for this. I like wonderous variety.

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HC, that expresses EXACTLY how i feel as well!-Thanks! Very eloquent!

{{{Hugs}}},
MoonGypsyxxxooo

nisaba said:

Decks are like works of art - hey, they *are* works of art.

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Exactly. 78 of them!!!!!! For next to nothing!!!!!!!! (well, cough)

For me to want and keep a deck it has to one or more of the following:

1. Be beautiful.
2. Read well.
3. Be of historical importance in some way.
4. Complete a set - I have all of Brian Williams's decks for example.
5. Be 'clever' - the pattern within the structure of some decks appeals to my mathematical side.

Aerin x

Lol...and all I want is my 'comfy old slippers'!

I've found my bestest pair in my Anna K, Victorian Romantic and Vieville.

Not forgetting my (all but retired) RWS that kept me comfortable for years.

Lleminawc said:

Part of it is that you keep looking for the "one" deck that will speak to you, until you realise you're chasing a rainbow and you just have to put in the work with the decks you have. Bit like human relationships I suppose ...

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I don't have this. I don't believe in "the one". Ive stopped feeling guilty about voraciously buying decks too. I buy them, love them, and sometimes don't use them for months. Then that sudden delicious feeling of waking up one day and discovering that fabulous deck which was in your collection all along, waiting for you to give it the kiss of life...

I don't overspend as I only buy tarot after Ive paid for all the dull and sensible things in life.

And there are decks which are wonderful but just aren't very readable. Who cares? I don't feel guilty about it. I get them out, look at them, then put them away again. I am occasionally struck by the worry that there are actually a lot of decks Id quite like to read with, but there just isn't enough time. And still I buy more.

My list of favourite reading decks (forget the ones languishing on the bookshelves) has grown from 5 to about 25 in the space of one year!

So why have more than one deck? Because I can...

I have to go with the "works of art"

Where else can you get 22 or 78 pieces of art for such a reasonable price? Even the Art decks are less than buying a quality original painting by a known artist ($5000+)

I can read any deck (unless it's way out there in lala land) so readability isn't an issue - I want breathtaking, jaw-dropping exceptional artwork

I used to have a lot of decks but most just were collecting dust so I traded them to good homes. I only kept the ones that fit the above criteria. I might not always read with them, but I spend so much time enjoying the artwork they don't have a chance to collect any dust.

Le Fanu said:

I don't have this. I don't believe in "the one".

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I don't have this either. Closest was the Greenwood, but probably only because it took me so long to get it and it's now one of 'the four' I mainly read with. I didn't know that people did search for 'the one' until I came here.

[/QUOTE]I don't overspend as I only buy tarot after Ive paid for all the dull and sensible things in life.[/QUOTE]

Same here, except a lot of them I've only been paying for 7 months so I don't find them dull yet

I agree with all the wisdom here, on having more than one, but let me add to it and say this:

I want to see, feel, and learn from them ALL. Every deck has a different voice, I want to hear what it has to say to me! I want to see the pictures, the backs, the subtle nuances. I want to experience the widest range I possibly can, of the Tarot experience.

For me, the other main reason, like others have mentioned, is the art aspect. I love pretty things. I love art. I love unique and interesting pieces. I can't afford actual huge works, but with all my decks, I have thousands of interesting, unique beautiful pieces of meaningful symbolic artwork that I can hold in my hand and pore over any time I want. I want to support artists, too. I only have so many walls, for prints and paintings! Art books, I've got, but they're so one sided. I'd rather collect things by artists, not things by authors talking about artists!

I agree with Le Fanu, too, about re-discovering a fabulous deck. I buy them when I can afford them (maybe 2-3 decks a month), and even though I can't keep up with them all, I cherish them, care for them, and from time to time, forgotten babies just leap out of the Tarot chest, and I fall in love all over again.

This is such a difficult question to answer. My hubs-to-be asks me this every time I get a new one. "Do you really need another one?" "Aren't they all the same?"

If I had to I could live with only one deck. I have no idea which one I would want that to be though.

I like having different decks. I use them for different things.

The closest thing I have to an answer is this: "Sometimes I feel like a nut and sometimes I don't." Same concept.

I began with Thoth and when I started reading i went to RWS. I learned to read with that deck and then started branching to other similar decks. I am drawn to art - a certain kind of art - and a deck that really speaks to my higher self is a reading deck. I have some decks I love to look at and study but don't read with (Druidcraft for example) and I have my go to decks (Gilded and recently Sweet Twilight - the best deck I've gotten in a while). A lot of what guides me in what deck to use is the needs of the sitter. So far I have had at least an acquaintance with all my clients so I'm able to grok which deck would speak to them more. I'm doing a reading in just a few minutes with the Executive Assistant for the CFO. Should be loads of fun.

alec...

I ''need'' more than one deck because otherwise I would get bored very quickly.
The decks I bought are decks I intended on using. Ofcourse after acquiring a deck, I had found it wasn't a deck for me to use, and those are the ones I've traded or gifted to someone else.
I love different decks especially for the artwork ofcourse.
But I like being able to pick a deck which fits my mood for that moment.
Sometimes I want a fluffy deck, other times I want a 'kick in the @ss' deck.
Ofcourse the message comes across no matter which one I'd use, but in a different way.
I'm also crazy about oracles, I have more oracles than Tarot decks.

I was dating a guy once, he saw my cards (because most of them are on my shelf, I don't hide them for anybody), he said ''why on earth do you have so many decks? It's a waste of money, you only need one''.
Needless to say, I dumped him soon after that. Not just because of that, but from that remark I already knew...''this ain't my kinda guy''!