Purpose of Tarot

[Snaut]

Strolling around this forum I realized that many people use the tarot totally different from me. Most are concerned with predicting the future somehow, getting a prediction on their career or love life. That is totally not my cup of tea and I find it funny to imagine Crowley doing a spread on whether some girl loves him.

Personally, I use the tarot to get insights about aspects of myself, to become more aware of alternative ways of action and alternative ways to frame situations.
Furthermore it is a kind of kabbalistic encyclopedia. Flashcards of all the correspondences, like an abbreviated Liber 777.

Tarot can also come in handy when doing street magic as a mentalist effect. I have not yet done this, but could imagine doing so with a separate deck. I think the problem with doing street magic with a tarot deck are the different expectations of the audience. They could be disappointed, when you "just" do some card tricks, when they have expected a reading. This is something that has held me back.

Another obscure usage of tarot I know of is to pick up girls. Somehow girls love palm reading and horoscopes and all this stuff. This is also something I could very well imagine Crowley doing

For what purpose do you use tarot cards?

 

[Farzon]

You could say for a mix between prediction and meditation. I do weekly spreads to set a potential for myself, to get insight into my strengths and weaknesses for the week.

And then I do daily draws whenever I can. I use different questions for these - from a simple prediction through the day to "instructions" on how to end the day in a good way

 

[Tanga]

Strolling around this forum I realized that many people use the tarot totally different from me. Most are concerned with predicting the future somehow, getting a prediction on their career or love life. That is totally not my cup of tea and I find it funny to imagine Crowley doing a spread on whether some girl loves him.

LOL.

...Another obscure usage of tarot I know of is to pick up girls. Somehow girls love palm reading and horoscopes and all this stuff. This is also something I could very well imagine Crowley doing

Well the 1st bit would be unprofessional - and for the Crowley bit -
YUP.

For what purpose do you use tarot cards?

As you do:
1)"To get insights about aspects of myself, to become more aware of alternative ways of action and alternative ways to frame situations" - and the same when reading for others. Prediction is not my cup-of-tea either. I may do it - with great caution, and will offer a re-phrase of the question if the whole world seems to be asking me for that.
2) As aids for contemplation/meditation.
3) Visual aids in ritual spellwork (I'm Wiccan).
4) As Talismans for different situations (like working on a positive affirmation, or carrying a
crystal for a specific purpose in ones pocket).
5) As a key to receive messages/ideas from my higher self/guides/ancestors etc.
6) Just for the joy of looking at great or amusing artwork. And this can be educational
if I end up looking into the origins of particular art.
7) A wonderful way to meet other like-minded people, and learn from them about all sorts of things.

 

[yannie]

I find it funny to imagine Crowley doing a spread on whether some girl loves him.

xD

For what purpose do you use tarot cards?

Communication with spirit guides, inspiration, moving forward...

I could achieve all that through the other means, but looking at pretty pictures is just more entertaining...

 

[Sar]

Strolling around this forum I realized that many people use the tarot totally different from me. Most are concerned with predicting the future somehow, getting a prediction on their career or love life. That is totally not my cup of tea and I find it funny to imagine Crowley doing a spread on whether some girl loves him.

Perhaps not in love with him, but I bet he did prediction whether he could or could not talk her into bed with him.

 

[spookyboo22]

I use the tarot to answer questions whatever they may be x

 

[ravenest]

Strolling around this forum I realized that many people use the tarot totally different from me. Most are concerned with predicting the future somehow, getting a prediction on their career or love life. That is totally not my cup of tea and I find it funny to imagine Crowley doing a spread on whether some girl loves him.

Hey Snaut . Seems like we have similar ideas. ... I also doubt he did a reading for his cat

Personally, I use the tarot to get insights about aspects of myself, to become more aware of alternative ways of action and alternative ways to frame situations.
Furthermore it is a kind of kabbalistic encyclopedia. Flashcards of all the correspondences, like an abbreviated Liber 777.

Yep, thats part of my usage.

Tarot can also come in handy when doing street magic as a mentalist effect. I have not yet done this, but could imagine doing so with a separate deck. I think the problem with doing street magic with a tarot deck are the different expectations of the audience. They could be disappointed, when you "just" do some card tricks, when they have expected a reading. This is something that has held me back.

.... diverging here .

Another obscure usage of tarot I know of is to pick up girls. Somehow girls love palm reading and horoscopes and all this stuff. This is also something I could very well imagine Crowley doing

Ha ! Once, a young girl offered to read my palm, she held my hand and looked into my palm and said a load of rubbish. I asked her what she was on about and she said "I dont know, but it was nice holding your hand ." ... now, who taught her that joke ?

Some girls ( and women and boys and men ) are fascinated by the dark and mysterious, dont need no cards or palms ... just 'that look' in the yes . They say Crowley had 'that look' .... but really, it takes 2 to tango '

For what purpose do you use tarot cards?[/QUOTE]

I see it as a visual book of clues containing 78 nodes of experience or situations - these can be occurrences that manifest in a variety of ways, physical or psychological challenges, states of consciousness, interplay of forces, etc. All card have a message/s or situation, and a positive and negative. a problem and a remedy, a situation and a way to deal with it, inbuilt into the gnosis of the card. The clues ( of symbol and symbolism on the cards ) can unlock (help to be remembered) all the knowledge related.

OF course, this cant just be done with any deck, it has to be a deck that is set up like that ... not just a someones interpretation visually of a RW and change the pics to cats ... or dragons or whatever., in my Tarot, I need an hermetic compendium of an holistic system. Then a tarot deck can become a great book.

For me, the Book of Thoth has this . But it isnt something one just picks up with the deck, it takes time and a lot of supplementary study and expereince.

 

[JackofWands]

Strolling around this forum I realized that many people use the tarot totally different from me. Most are concerned with predicting the future somehow, getting a prediction on their career or love life. That is totally not my cup of tea and I find it funny to imagine Crowley doing a spread on whether some girl loves him.

That's because Crowley was already deeply convinced that everyone was in love with him.

Another obscure usage of tarot I know of is to pick up girls. Somehow girls love palm reading and horoscopes and all this stuff. This is also something I could very well imagine Crowley doing

Very Crowley. That is to say, very ick.

For what purpose do you use tarot cards?

Mostly for reflection and introspection. I work with Kabbalistic and astrological symbolism in the cards as well, but the end goal for me is always to turn my thoughts inward. I like Ravenest's description of Tarot as "a visual book of clues containing 78 nodes of experience or situations".

 

[Snaut]

I also doubt he did a reading for his cat

Funny you mention it, I first thought of writing about single mothers doing spreads about their cats but then decided it would rub some people the wrong way and instead wrote about love.

I see it as a visual book of clues containing 78 nodes of experience or situations - these can be occurrences that manifest in a variety of ways, physical or psychological challenges, states of consciousness, interplay of forces, etc. All card have a message/s or situation, and a positive and negative. a problem and a remedy, a situation and a way to deal with it, inbuilt into the gnosis of the card. The clues ( of symbol and symbolism on the cards ) can unlock (help to be remembered) all the knowledge related.

I completely agree. Very nice description.

 

[ATerribleOwl]

I notice it says you are in Germany. Is your outlook similar to the Tarot Culture, whatever that may be, in that part of the world?