learning tarot from a teacher vs learning from books

Learning from a teacher vs. learning from a book

Hi! I've been working with tarot for a while now, but I never stop learning something new! I have gone both routes, and I think I am just one of those people who retains information better when I see it in person as opposed to reading it in a book. I also find youtube and podcasts to be helpful. Seems like I just get more out of the spoken word. I do have a suggestion - if you have a new age store nearby, sometimes they offer once a month classes. This is what I am doing now, and it's fabulous! So many opinions, interpretations, learning going on. I wish there was an informal tarot discussion group nearby, but so far, I haven't found one. Good luck with your tarot learning!

Le Fanu said:

For me (and one of the reasons I love learning tarot so much) is that it is the only thing in the world which is not learnt by the traditional teacher-pupil telling me what to think approach. In my mind there is no school of tarot. It isn't geography. There are too few facts. I had enough of being told what facts to inwardly digest at school. University and higher education less so of course, but I think that learning something (tarot) without another person telling me is my delicious little act of rebellion.

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This. There are so many people who know their way is the "correct way" - and some of them do teach. Contrary to popular belief, I don't actually think "anything goes" - but I do think there are many ways to read, and many meanings for each card and that context is critical.

There are even some reading sites that REQUIRE you to use THEIR meanings - you have to pass tests and show that that's what you do. Can't be done, really - as each reading will have different parameters; it's inevitable.

When it comes to Tarot I admit that I'm very much a traditionalist: Golden Dawn, astrology, Qabalah, the whole shebang. I think any teacher worth their salt would teach these things since they form the basis of all modern Tarot. In fact, if a teacher were to ignore those things I think they would be doing their students a disservice.

That being said, I think that the ideal teacher is one who passes on the basic traditions while encouraging the student to flourish on their own with the tools they give them. That's what those systems are for, after all.

I'm not one for that relationship, though. When I learned it was through books and experience and time. Lots and lots of time. This forum also helped me a lot and made me change my main focus of Tarot study from mostly intuitive to a more structured, esoteric approach.

I followed a structured esoteric approach for most of my life, in personal and private study and practice. But reading for others is a different matter; the average sitter would look at me like I have two heads if I begin talking about the relationship between the number 7, Venus in Scorpio, and Netzach, never mind trying to reconcile the title "Debauch" with all of that when interpreting the Thoth 7 of Cups. Coming to AT has inspired me to loosen up and become more fluid in my reading, while sharpening and economizing my descriptive language for more general consumption. I like to say that I still learn something new every time I do a face-to-face reading because it's a mutual voyage of discovery, in which the intersection of my observations and the querent's responses creates something unique. I still read books to reinforce my knowledge, but I'm nowhere near as persistent now. The esoteric stuff remains a solid rock in my understanding, but it mostly stays submnerged unless I have the right audience.

So I guess I'm suggesting a third way to learn: through actively engaging with my sitters and processing their direct feedback as input to my always-growing knowledge base.

Le Fanu said:

For me (and one of the reasons I love learning tarot so much) is that it is the only thing in the world which is not learnt by the traditional teacher-pupil telling me what to think approach. In my mind there is no school of tarot. It isn't geography. There are too few facts. I had enough of being told what facts to inwardly digest at school. University and higher education less so of course, but I think that learning something (tarot) without another person telling me is my delicious little act of rebellion.

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I agree. I'm learning Tarot by my own. Being the community like AT is really helpful 'cause we all are exchanging experiences. I don't need to take everything like in the class, I can use this what I need or I see useful for the sake of my own practice. I've never imagined work with Tarot in a different way. I'd like to go to school of Tarot only if it's about Thoth and I know I'll learn more about the occult side. But still, the knowledge is spilled in the books so I won't go to such place in the near future (but who knows?).

Read and sift. Use your critical and intuitive faculties. We should celebrate that tarot hasn't been monopolised YET by those out to make an industry of it but god know people persistently try!

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Well, in some places it looks like this a bit. In Poland, for example. People here love to have teachers/masters. In "the industry of divination" you can find names which are considered by some as very advanced readers and you can't discuss with that. Some people in the online community are even telling that you'll never learn Tarot without a master. It always makes me angry. It's taking some much power from the people who maybe would like genuinly learn reading cards. I know that many can get discouraged. I just don't give a single *ekhem*. It's ridiculous and I believe it happenes everywhere but happily, I spend most of my time here where you can be a Tarot free-thinker

cosmiclight said:

is it wise to learn tarot from books or pursue a tarot course??

thanks

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Know your teacher first. It makes dramatic difference.

Choose whichever you feel comfortable with, nothing is set in stone.
For myself l bought a tarot deck studied the images and read the lwb. l pulled three cards a day and learned to make sense of them. A little later l bought a few books on tarot and of course several other decks! l feel you can learn quite well on your own, its all down to practice and getting family and friends as guinea pigs.
If you learn on your own you will find your own intuition kicks in earlier. Better than a teacher or even a book telling you that you should do this, that or the other.
At the end of the day its all practice and more practice. So do what feels right for you.

There are different learning styles. Personally I like learning from a variety of modalities as I gain something different from each one.

I feel that I can teach students more in a course or extended workshop than it took me seven years to learn on my own - but that's assuming the students are doing some studying and practice on their own in addition to my classes.

I find I often "get it" when observing how an experienced person does what they do best. I've had fabulous teachers - having taken hundreds of classes from other Tarot teachers.

Additionally I've learned some of my best lessons from teachers I disagree with, since I ponder the issue and experiment and then end up writing about what I discovered through my process.

cosmiclight said:

is it wise to learn tarot from books or pursue a tarot course??

thanks

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When I started reading, (I picked up my first deck in the 1970s) there simply were no courses around, and precious few books.

I had *one* book - Alfred Douglas' volume "The Tarot" - and a RW deck. I learnt by using. Shuffling and *looking* at my cards, over and over.

I look at the volume of courses around these days, both in-person classes and internet classes, I look at the teaching blogs, and I still think nothing beats individual, solitary hands-on learning driven by a keen mind and your own motivation.

But as a resource to ask questions and get a variety of answers from readers with different styles and decades of experience each, come right here. You might get one answer from me, another answer from someone who's read for ten years, another answer from someone who's read for twenty-five years, someone else who's read for forty-five years, and we'll all give you the best answers we can from our experience. You then get to look at the variety of answers and decide which one gels for you.

That is a *huge* and invaluable teaching-resource.

Le Fanu said:

but I think that learning something (tarot) without another person telling me is my delicious little act of rebellion.

Read and sift. Use your critical and intuitive faculties.

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Yes! Absolutely this!