mrpants
I don't really "trust" anyone's advice, but I consider all of it.
How much do you really trust Tarot?
Barleywine
It's like that old saying "There's nobody here I can trust except you and me, and I'm not so sure about you." With tarot it's not really a question of trust for me, since I neither give nor take advice from it that's intended to spark any kind of specific response. My intention is more to offer (or obtain for myself) insights of the "food for thought" variety that promote understanding. If that in tum leads to action, it's only after those insights are processed in association with other decision-making inputs. That way, querents can never do something because I told them to, only because they decided it was a good idea based on thier own heightened awareness of the situation (with all due caveats and diclaimers in place).
closerwalking
I love the idea of tarot and find it a lot of fun to play with. but as a genuine self help tool, I am finding it troublesome. The primary model of it is the hero's journey, which for me now does not fit my current understanding of how Life works. Once one knows ones true worth, one does not need to be a hero or heroine. most quests along those lines come from not feeling worthy, having to prove worthiness. Another issue I have with tarot, is realizing how easy it is to mislead myself and others with it. There are too many loopholes in it, different from my tried and true helper the I Ching. I think we are moving into new era, new paradigm, and have been doing this for a while. good 20 years. New paradigms require new archetypes and myths. None of my decks have the traditional imagery. so truly I think I am not doing tarot. tarot is still pretty much a parlor game for the most part. Entertaining and fun, but genuine help? I'm not sure about this. Due to the subjectivity of it. and the fact that it is founded on archaic symbology and beliefs. I ching is founded on Nature, not human centered. Nature is better model than humans.
Essence of Winter
When using Tarot for self help, it is essential to find the right approach. Using it as a traditional fortune-telling device won't help at all, which is probably one of the most common problems.
Where finding help with problems and challenges is concerned, the Tarot excels at giving insight and understanding if the right questions are asked, which also means using a suitable spread to interpret and convey the information. For example, if I have an issue that is troubling me, a problem I want to solve or any area of particular difficulty in my life, I ask a question phrased in terms of what I can do to help improve the scenario at hand in conjunction with the following spread I developed for that express purpose:
http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=230570
For more general personal development, the Tarot can be used meditatively, in conjunction with the Qabalah, in conjunction with Alchemy and Hermeticism, with path-workings &c. - all manner of techniques that have been developed over the years and those that one can develop to fit one's needs.
I wouldn't necessarily agree that the primary model of the Tarot is the Hero's journey; that is one interpretation and was not used at all by the Golden Dawn, for example.
Barleywine
I find the I Ching to be "older and wiser" by far, but more than a little inscrutable to the Western mind seeking to apply its wisdom to practical situations. Not everyone has the refined discernment, attunment to aphoristic language, and mental elasticity to make good sense of it (although those can certainly be developed). Regarding the tarot, the "Hero's Journey" belongs to the contemplative side of the practice; I don't find that it has much practical use in divination. For me the archetypes are universal in a more mundane developmental sense, but are used primarily as "prompts" to evoke creative associations in the mind of the interpreter. The whole of the wisdom isn't in the cards themselves, it lies in the ability of the reader to decipher the hints they give. That skill can be applied to a wide range of divinational practices, the tarot is just one of the more syncretic ones - a boon for the reflective mind but a bane to the more literal-minded. I'd venture to say there are people using tarot for divination that would be better off with a less byzantine symbolic language - reading palms, auras or auguries in the flight of birds come to mind.
Richard
Apparently the term "Hero's Journey" has been appropriated by some authors who don't understand what it is all about (which is not comic book heroism). I would suggest reading The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell. By the way, the Hero's Journey is indeed involved in the Golden Dawn initiatory system. However, this is not the time or place to get into that.
Lycanthropos
At this point I have not consulted the tarot for advice on a major decision. (I've been reading for less than 2 months) I have, however, done readings during major decision making time to check in with myself and see what influences are in play so I could ground myself. I doubt I would ask for advice on major decisions, but I have asked on minor ones a few times just to test my reading skills and I was pleasantly surprised.
Brown Eyed Mystic
Interesting takes here.
Here is another angle to it:
Let's say you're fearful of an outcome -- you have preconceived notions about it in your mind. You consult the tarot hoping to get an answer that will clear your doubts and remove any fears.
When you draw a spread, you're already subconsciously believing in the "fear-based outcome.
But you continue. And let's say the cards come out not so positive. Your fear is "proven" -- full steam ahead. In your head, a little nagging voice goes, "Told ya!"
Now you go about the decision from the same frame of mind, in turn making it a self-fulfilling prophecy. The Law of Attraction, anyone? Attracting the negative outcome by your own thoughts.
Could that happen?
BEM
Here is another angle to it:
Let's say you're fearful of an outcome -- you have preconceived notions about it in your mind. You consult the tarot hoping to get an answer that will clear your doubts and remove any fears.
When you draw a spread, you're already subconsciously believing in the "fear-based outcome.
But you continue. And let's say the cards come out not so positive. Your fear is "proven" -- full steam ahead. In your head, a little nagging voice goes, "Told ya!"
Now you go about the decision from the same frame of mind, in turn making it a self-fulfilling prophecy. The Law of Attraction, anyone? Attracting the negative outcome by your own thoughts.
Could that happen?
BEM
Padma
Absolutely. In the end - as someone else here wisely noted - the voice in tarot can be thought of as your higher mind, which knows everything. In short, you know all that the tarot knows, but the tarot are the keys you use to access your own knowledge. Things will play out however you view them, because you can control yourself.
You can't control the actions of others, though, but, you can try to make your thoughts and responses as positive as possible.
Anyways, if you believe in the law of attraction, you should be thinking positive thoughts all the way down to your core, not negative ones!
froufrou
Taking the advice of tarot
I treat my tarot readings the same way I would treat my intuition and wise counsel from a friend. When it comes to being afraid of what the tarot might say, I look at it form 1) What's the best possible message that I'm getting and 2) What's the message I most need to hear. The truth is in there.
I treat my tarot readings the same way I would treat my intuition and wise counsel from a friend. When it comes to being afraid of what the tarot might say, I look at it form 1) What's the best possible message that I'm getting and 2) What's the message I most need to hear. The truth is in there.
