A Complete Guide to the Tarot- Eden Gray

qwaychou

My father-in-law gave me this book a long with a deck years ago. I have only looked at it recently. Would it be appropriate for beginners? It seems very set in stone meanings and not flowing, intuitive.
I don't doubt I would learn from it, I was just curious if it's a good FIRST book for a newbie?
Its the only book I have so far on Tarot.
Thank you in advance for your help!
 

rwcarter

That book was written back in the 70s (late 60s?) long before "intuitive" became associated with tarot reading.

Personally, I think it's a great book to start with because it gives you some ideas of what the cards should mean. Your intuition may tell you something else in a particular reading, but I think it's always good to have other options available to you. And as I say all the time around here, just because it's in a book (or on a website) doesn't mean that it's written in stone. So keep what resonates and discard what doesn't. Interpretations that you don't jibe with at this point in your journey you may find relevant at some future point in time.

Rodney
 

Barleywine

I prefer her earlier book, The Tarot Revealed (1960) and a later one, Mastering the Tarot (1971) - subtitled "Basic Lessons in an Ancient, Mystic Art" - to A Complete Guide. In the latter she brought in an astrologer friend who had her own ideas about astrology and tarot, and she also tackled the esoteric side of tarot with decidedly uneven (and to my mind, unconvincing) results. Gray's other two books I still use occasionally for reference. In truth, though, they are mainly simplifications of Waite's more erudite Pictorial Key to the Tarot.
 

qwaychou

That book was written back in the 70s (late 60s?) long before "intuitive" became associated with tarot reading.

Personally, I think it's a great book to start with because it gives you some ideas of what the cards should mean. Your intuition may tell you something else in a particular reading, but I think it's always good to have other options available to you. And as I say all the time around here, just because it's in a book (or on a website) doesn't mean that it's written in stone. So keep what resonates and discard what doesn't. Interpretations that you don't jibe with at this point in your journey you may find relevant at some future point in time.

Rodney

Thank you for your help! I have many books that I have read (and kept) that did not resonate with me, about any subject. Just because it doesnt resonate" doesn't mean I can't learn from it right? I will read this and try my best.
 

qwaychou

I prefer her earlier book, The Tarot Revealed (1960) and a later one, Mastering the Tarot (1971) - subtitled "Basic Lessons in an Ancient, Mystic Art" - to A Complete Guide. In the latter she brought in an astrologer friend who had her own ideas about astrology and tarot, and she also tackled the esoteric side of tarot with decidedly uneven (and to my mind, unconvincing) results. Gray's other two books I still use occasionally for reference. In truth, though, they are mainly simplifications of Waite's more erudite Pictorial Key to the Tarot.

Thank you for your insights, I may look up those other books of hers. This one is a difficult read for me, but doable. Thank you again, I will try my best
 

3ill.yazi

It was my first tarot book. I can't keep her books straight now -- she kind of rewrote the same book twice-- but they are a fine start. Just skip the chapter on tarot history, which has been discredited.
 

Chrystella

It was my first book on tarot and I still have it - yellowed, beat up, with loose pages, and a torn cover. I have a soft spot for it. I think it's a fine little book for beginners.
 

Teheuti

I started with Eden Gray's books and read them to pieces. When teenagers ask me what book to use just to start reading the cards, I recommend Gray's Mastering the Tarot. The paperback is a good size for carrying around. It is a little more in-depth than Tarot Revealed and it doesn't get into all the extras like The Complete Book does (but not nearly as well as other works). Gray doesn't really understand the Golden Dawn system and so she mangles the astrology and Qabalah correspondences.