Tarot for babies and toddlers

Tarot cards and Tarot reading are different.

tarotmama said:

I was referring to tarock or tarocchi. The game for which the cards were invented to play.

I was not implying that your spiritual system is a game.

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Bingo! I concur with Tarotmama. I think Tarot decks and the spiritual interpretations of the cards as distinct phenomena so the very young having access to the decks shouldn't really be problematic.

I thought about this before replying.

I don't think it is either suitable or unsuitable, but would prefer the child be of an age to decide for itself if it wants to be involved in tarot. Therefore I would not involve a child in any tarot work until they ask to. It may end up as just idle curiosity that goes no further, or it may be they do follow through and take up their own studies etc. Either way, it would their own choice on their own terms at their own time of choosing.

Would I do a reading on a baby or toddler? Difficult one. I cannot think of a scenario I would, but that could be because I have no kids of my own so cannot think of a scenario that applies. Certainly I would not do any health type reading.

This is an interesting question, and I can fully understand there will be numerous viewpoints.

I sort of relate it to a kindle fire question recently. A grandmother lets her 2 year old grandchild watch videos on it. Then complained they had notched up a bill of $100 downloading them from amazon. I could not believe anyone would see that as a suitable toy for a 2 year old. Heck, even plastic fisher price toys often come with a warning of not suitable for under 3 year olds. Yet friends who have children turned on me straight away saying 'what's your problem, my ......... uses my mobile phone and ipad no problem'

I think that summed it up, and maybe being childless my opinion should carry less weight. Who knows eh

I dunno, but I keep picturing 'Baby's First Tarot Deck' and shaking my head ....

caridwen said:

It's already been explained to me through this thread and now I understand why I had this reaction to the thought of it.

Some people don't take Tarot as seriously nor have as much respect for it as others. Some people use Tarot as a 'game' and not a spiritual tool.

I see Tarot very differently and also view children and spirituality very differently. I am also agnostic and really don't like the idea of imposing my spiritual beliefs on anyone. Everyone is free to believe whatever they want as far as I'm concerned and I respect that but also expect respect for my beliefs in return.

I would choose not to bring my child up within a spiritual system, however they are free to choose one for themselves if they wish and I would respect that. That does not mean that I would not bring them up with values and responsibility.

I don't see Tarot cards as a game, as flashcards or checkers or anything else. They are important to me and my spiritual development which is why I had that gut reaction

eta I've just read over some replies and want to remind people that this thread is about babies and toddlers. A toddler is a child just beginning to walk as far as I'm aware. 5,6,7,8 year olds aren't toddlers as far as I know

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This is a great thread. If I may, I would like to add another thought. Maybe it depends on how you came to know tarot. If you discovered the Tarot as part of a spiritual journey, one of questioning already established beliefs, or wrestling with what other people in your sphere of influence felt about them, then there might be more deliberation about whether or not it was appropriate for an infant or toddler.

For me, I don't see it as a game, and I approach it with a guarded respect just as some do when using a pendulum for example.

Maybe it has to do with where you feel the answers come from. If you believe the answers derive from within you then it becomes a less cautionary process. If however you do not believe in coincidences, and feel that the cards reveal things based on the influence of energies we cannot control, then well....

IMO noone knows how any of this works. Noone. We cannot with certainty say that the information is 100% from anything or anyone. Based on that premise, I would not ever feel comfortable sharing it with a toddler or any child who does not yet have the capacity to understand that maybe, just maybe it is a rather powerful tool. Until they have reached a place of understanding about protecting themselves, and being aware of the "power" of the knowledge it can yield, then my feeling is it should not be handled flippantly.

An infant or toddler would likely just play with the cards, enjoy the pictures, and maybe make up stories from them. This may be a horrible analogy, but they would probably do something similar with a ouija board, or an unloaded gun. So the question becomes more about how powerful or potentially harmful do you think it can be if misused or grossly misunderstood?

I feel like human beings always fall hardest when we approach anything without at least leaving room for caution. We as adults don't know how any of this stuff really works....much less our precious children.

Just my humble opinion. Thanks for starting the thread. Healthy respectful debate is always enlightening.

I think it might depend on your attitude in general. I'm pretty irreverent. I approach spirituality kind of like how I approach doing dishes: just a small part of my everyday life, but if I neglect it for too long, I get all kinds of funky smells in my kitchen.

That's not to say it's unimportant, just that I can't take seriously anything that elevates itself as separate from the mundane. For me, glimpses of the greater scheme of things only come in fleeting, spontaneous moments when I am cleaning or running or enjoying a cool winter walk. I recognize that everyone has different needs though, when it comes to this area.

Anyway, I figured I've give an update since this thread has been bumped and it was my question that spawned it. Cardlady22 very kindly sent us some of her kid's Neopets trading cards and I put them in a little drawstring bag for him. He loves them, hasn't bothered my cards since.