WHY Rider-Waite-Smith is TOO HARD ?

ChristianReader

Try Thoth...or .. Let the deck speak to you.
Even if its a RW copycat.
I myself bought robin wood's deck. It was beyond frustrating so just make sure you feel out the decks and pick then go from there on your journey
 

Richard

I'm wondering if it is best to consult the supernatural about issues which can be solved by more mundane methods.

I am thinking of Goethe's story, The Sorcerer's Apprentice. The apprentice had chores to do while the sorcerer was gone, but he used a magic spell to get a broom to do them for him. One thing led to another, until all hell broke loose before the sorcerer returned to set things aright.

If you leave out the appeal to the supernatural, the issue is obvious. You do not relate well to the Rider-Waite. Okay, toss it aside and try another tarot deck or even a different method of divination. You don't need to go into a trance and consult a spirit guide for such a simple issue. Sometimes there is no shortcut method for finding the answers to problems. The very process of working through an issue may have an intrinsic value which a shortcut method would miss.
 

TarotTess

I learned with RW and I didnt find it difficult. What i did find sifficult was tring to learn via a book. Once I got rid of the book and trusted my instincts, it became easier. But saying that, each deck will be different with different people. You have to choose whats right for you.
 

conversus

Reading cards is just as hard as playing cards--you have a learning curve. You have to learn the rules of the particular game you are trying to play and you have to become quite familiar with the cards themselves so that you can be nimble in the moves you make. It takes practice.

Reading cards is also a lot like learning a new but obscure language. Again you have to learn a bunch of stuff no one really understands : conjugations and declensions ; verb-subject agreement ; plural nouns --not to mention the actual vocabulary and the spelling/pronunciation issues. It takes most people 6 or 7 years to speak in complete sentences in their first language and you need to have hit puberty before you can really even begin to understand all the fuss behind Romeo and Juliette ... And if you did not happen to grow up in a dysfunctional family you will never get Hamlet.

So give yourself a break when you are trying to read cards. If you have a penchant for one of the RWS clones why don't you just spend several weeks daydreaming with the images. Each one is capable of telling several stories--helping you to tell stories. Which one will the 4 of wands tell today? <Mary Greer has an excellent workbook ... >

It might be just as tedious as learning:

ich : bin
du : bist
er/sie/est : ist

but it will pay off in the long run. Of course you only get out what you put in.

Happy Thanksgiving:

CED
 

DeToX

I would personally question why you feel the need to make decisions about your life and your lifestyle choices based on advice from 'others', whether they are physical others, literal astral beings or from representations of your ego or unconscious inside your own mind. Why not try to have the confidence to just do what you feel is right or that you want to do and take responsibility yourself? I find this is a common mistake people make when they rely excessively on psychics and divination personally.

Regarding the RWS being difficult, it has illustrated pips so for many it is quite easy to learn. Perhaps you purchased a poor book for learning, there are numerous excellent books available for the RWS, as it is so popular or common. It was the first major release of a fully illustrated 78 card deck for the mass market. Most decks that have followed have copied it in some form. It is popular for these reasons. There are many different tarot decks and types of cartomancy cards. If you want to pursue this, why not take some time out to look at what is available, without feeling that you have to like or adopt any one and at some point you will probably find something that resonates more with you - when you are listening more to your senses and inner desires.
 

Teheuti

Everyone has different effective learning styles. Plus different works speak to us at different periods of our lives (or never at all). Personally, I find the instruction to "just look at the cards" to be pretty meaningless. I explored a variety of step-by-step processes until I found ones that worked for me and for a majority of my clients and students. I included many of these techniques in _21 Ways to Read a Card_ and in my earlier books. Similar techniques are taught by others. However, as techniques (rather than 'learning' or memorization), they have to be practiced if they are to make sense and be helpful. Some people learn best directly from a teacher - through live classes rather than the written word.

Also, Tarot is not for everyone.
 

danieljuk

Everyone eventually finds their perfect deck! No one deck is for each person, we are all different people, with different tastes and influences and styles. If we are in an art gallery, we'd all have a different fave picture or style or artist.

I know someone who tried to learn from the RWS as a beginner and they just hate it! They love Marseilles style so much more, they feel it in someway. As for me I really love the RWS! No matter what decks I buy or see, no other deck connects with me in the same way. The symbols just seem perfect but I always keep an open mind on finding one I link with even better :)
 

magpie9

Perhaps you should cruise the DECKS section of this site and see if one of them "speaks" to you in some way. By that I mean attracts you, gives you a sense of possibility, pleases your eye or mind, fascinates you, or just seems interesting in a way that could lead to engaging your imagination. Any of the Above or all of the above.
Get the deck.
Go to a bookstore or on line and cruise tarot books, same process, with an emphasis on making sense to you. Some books are workbooks...look at these, too...they may be best for you. 21 was to read a tarot card is a favorite of mine, but you might (or not) connect with it. Get one book only.
Spend time with the deck, just fooling around. spend time with the book, concentrating, taking your time. Move slowly. Be gentle with yourself. Write your readings down. Use small spreads--3 to 5 cards. Go back and rate your old readings for accuracy. Learn from the process.
Take the pressure off yourself and let yourself grow into Tarot.
 

Teheuti

And Tarot may just not be something that ever speaks to you. That's not necessarily a bad thing.