6 Ways to Choose a Tarot Card:

Fall Away Method:

Hold the deck in your left hand and tilt to one side. Part of the deck will fall away, revealing a gap. Choose the top card.

 

Cut Method:

Simply cut the deck using your left hand.

 

Intuitive Shuffle:

Shuffle the cards until you feel it’s time to stop. Choose the top card.

 

Card Hand Method:

Fan the cards out like if you’re playing mean game of poker, except that that the cards should be facing out so you can’t see them.

 

Fan Out Method:

Fan cards out on a table, magician style. Either choose the card your eye is most drawn to, or float your hand over the cards and stop when you feel tingles in your palm.

 

Pop Up Method:

Shuffle cards horizontally until one pops up. Choose that card.

Tarot Relaxation and Grounding Exercise:

Step One:

Sit upright on an ordinary chair, with spine straight, feet flat on the floor, and shoes off. Place your hands on your legs, palms down.

 

Step Two:

Take deep breaths. Pull the air first into the bottom of your lungs and slowly fill them to the top. Your stomach should expand. Hold for three counts. Exhale by pushing the air from the top of your lungs, expelling until the bottom is completely empty and your stomach pulled in. Hold for a count of three before inhaling again.

 

Step Three:

Continue to breathe in the same slow and careful way. On every exhalation, visualize all your cares and tensions leaving through the soles of your feet. On every inhalation, draw up revitalized energy through the soles of your feet. Picture yourself as a tree drawing up life and nourishment from mother earth and releasing the waste matter of your life. Continue to do this until you have established a regular, even rhythm to your breathing. Try to maintain this even breath for the rest of the exercise.

 

Step Four:

Next, as you inhale, visualize brining the vital energy or sap from mother earth all the way up through your body and out through the crown of your head, releasing it into the atmosphere around you as sparkling golden dust. Feel the sensation of well-being and health that this energy brings.

 

Step Five:

On your next inhalation, connect with a point of light about 18 inches above your head and draw down a ray of gold into your heart. When you exhale, this ray of gold radiates out from your heart in all directions.

Tarot Tips 30-44

Tarot Tip 30:

Be aware of the astrological correspondences of tarot cards. They can tell you when something will happen or who is being referred to in a reading. For example, the moon symbolizes Pisces, late February/early March and possibly Cancer (because its ruling planet is the moon) or a woman who is a water sign. It’s not an exact science but if you get stuck on a card and can’t see how it fits, astrology can help you.

 

Tarot Tip 31:

A reversed card doesn’t equal a reversed meaning. The four of pentacles means almost the same thing upright or reversed (possessiveness and materialism). The Hanged man is tied up no matter which way he falls and The Tower will burn regardless of the direction of the flame. Major Arcana cards tend to be poetic.

 

Tarot Tip 32:

You can rely on certain cards to be a “sure thing” while giving a reading. These are cards that are always accurate and always predict the same thing (relevant to the question asked). My “sure thing” cards related to relationships are:

Empress = Pregnancy

Three of Cups Reversed = Cheating

Ten of Cups = Marriage

Ten of Cup Reversed = Divorce

What are your “sure thing” cards?

 

Tarot Tip 33:

The Lovers is one of the most iconic cards in the tarot deck. Many readers find it to be a good prediction of love. I’ve never found it to be. For me, The Lovers is more of a Romeo and Juliet type of situation: immature, infatuation or instant attraction rather than a deep commitment based on understanding.

Why am I mentioning this?

Because it’s important to know the traditional meaning of cards but it’s also important to know how the cards present themselves to you. This can only be understood through practice.

 

Tarot Tip 34:

Bad energy equals bad readings. Think about how you treat your tarot deck and how that affects its energy. An old, peeling or faded deck doesn’t have the best energy. Time to retire it. Having a collection of 27 different tarot decks that you never use is equally bad. Use every deck you have. Otherwise, your tarot readings will be stale and ineffective.

 

Tarot Tip 35:

Don’t waste your tarot reading on the following questions:

1. Am I pregnant?
2. Will he/she come back to me?
3. When/ how will I die?
4. When will I get married?

 

P.S. The short answer to those questions are: Take a test. Depends on them. When/ How it happens. Depends on you.

 

Tarot Tip 36:

It’s completely possible to learn tarot for free:

Find two decks of playing cards (probably around your house somewhere) or find cardboard and cut out 78 cards. They can even be mini cards if you do not have enough cardboard. Write the name of each tarot card on your homemade/repurposed cards in marker or pen. Shuffle and draw. Use websites like biddytarot.com or learntarot.com to figure out the meanings.

 

Tarot Tip 37:

You might find that the clearer your mind is, the clearer your readings become. A clear/clean mind is often the result of better eating habits. Experiment with giving up sugar and caffeine or junk food and see how it affects your readings. Try green smoothies. Try chai tea. Try red wine. Try drinking three lattes before you read your cards. See what happens when you eat ice-cream vs. when you eat kale. There’s no right or wrong. Just notice how what you ingest affects your reading.

 

Tarot Tip 38:

If a reading feels wrong to you, if something feels off walk away. Set your cards aside and come back to them later. Your clients would rather have a good reading instead of a quick reading. This is especially true if you’ve had a busy day at work and are trying to catch up on your readings at night. Sleep on it and try again in the morning when you’re fresh and rested.

 

Tarot Tip 39:

Meditation is an important part of your tarot practice. It’s as simple as setting your timer on your phone for 5 minutes, closing your eyes and noticing what thoughts are happening in your mind. You don’t have to sit in a lotus pose. You don’t have to stop thinking. You don’t have to say a mantra. Just close your eyes, pay attention to your thoughts and maybe take a few deep breaths.

 

Tarot Tip 40:

When you lay out a reading, pay attention to the way in which the human figures on each card interact with each other. Are they facing toward each other or are they facing away? Do they look harmonious? Or do they look tense? Does it look like they have a relationship: father-daughter, mother-son, lovers, friends, enemies?

You might find that the nine of pentacles and the knight of swords gaze lovingly into each other’s eyes. Or that the figures on the six of swords are escaping from the fight happening on the five of wands. Or that the queen of cups is rolling her eyes at the hierophant.  Tarot cards have images on them for a reason. Noticing how the figures on the cards interact will give you extra information.

 

Tarot Tip 41:

Tarot readings are spiritual and practical. Cleanse your cards and meditate but don’t forget mundane chores like sweeping, dusting and eating breakfast. Take care of yourself and your space and you’ll give a more accurate reading.

 

Tarot Tip 42:

Intricate tarot spreads and layouts are great but you don’t need them. They’re like jewelry and fancy shoes – beautiful but unnecessary.

 

Tarot Tip 43:

Do you really need another tarot deck? New agers tend to be collectors- crystals, incense, essential oils, silver jewelry- we love it all. Before you buy something new ask yourself: Am I a collector or a practitioner? Especially if you own more stuff than you can possibly use on a regular basis.

 

Tarot Tip 44:

Deal with inappropriate questions before they are asked. Email clients a pre-reading form that includes a disclaimer and a list of questions you deem inappropriate. These might include questions like:

Am I pregnant?

When will I die?

Has my ex boyfriends new girlfriend put a curse on me?

Tarot Reading Parties and Events

Would you like a unique and creative way to entertain your guests? Imagine what it would be like to have your friends talking about your party for weeks after the event? You and your friends will receive a face to face tarot reading. I will give you advice using my tarot cards or Pendulum.

Ask the Tarot cards or Pendulum your questions and you will get your answers!

This service is available for birthdays, bridal and wedding showers, corporate events, Halloween parties, weddings, New Year’s Eve parties and any other celebratory event — whenever you want to add something really special to the festivities. You can have a Tarot Party as part of a birthday celebration, a bridal shower or anytime you would like to give a unique and inspiring gift to your friends.

The cost for a professional Tarot reader at your event ranges from $200 and up depending on location, how many persons at the event and what you would like to have. The host will receive a free reading.

Will Travel To: All five Boroughs (Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Staten Island), Long Island, Yonkers, Westchester Area, New Jersey

For more information log on to:http://readingsbycherie.webs.com/tarot-reading-parties

The Four Modes to Tarot

Court Cards:

Court cards answer the question “who?” They show what personality aspect is involved in the situation. They can also signify the style of action or social role being played. Based on rank you can determine if the person is acting youthfully and naively or being mature and in charge. Court cards can have additional meanings such as messages or journeys or the end of something.

 

Minor Arcana Numbers (2-10):

The number cards answer the question “what?” They describe the situation and events that the “who” is in. They tell you what is going on and “what” the “who” is dealing with. They may also describe phenomena and effects.

 

Major Arcana:

The Major Arcana answers the question “why?” They describe the lesson you need to learn in this situation and the archetypal energies being expressed. They tell you “why” the “who” is in the “what”. The Major Arcana represents principles, laws, archetypes, and psycho spiritual needs. They’re also known as celestial causes.

 

Aces:

Aces fill their own particular functions. Aces answer the question “where?” Aces show the element, realm, or sphere where the situation has the most potential, especially for producing something new.

 

Great Topics to ask the Tarot with just 3 Cards

The shadow side of a situation.

Advice from a mythical being.

What would a mythical being say?

 

Changes in thoughts.

What do I need to understand?

What’s unexpected?

What do I fear?

 

Limitations in my life.

What is being ignored?

What am I not trying to face?

What am I not seeing?

What needs to be recognized?

What are they doing right now?

What am I denying?

What’s being rejected?

What am I seeing that’s an illusion?

What am I seeing that’s a lie?

What do I need to try and get away from?

What do I have to defend?

What’s being withheld from me?

 

News that’s blowing in, shifts in the wind.

What’s the new direction?

What have I forgotten?

What’s my mistake?

 

A distraction, disturbances. A sign dealing with an issue.

What is being confused?

 

The message that’s trying to convey. An insight.

What’s the past trying to tell the present?

What’s the future trying to tell the present?

What needs to be taken charge of?

 

Someone’s response.

How will the trip go?

What has been lost in the issue?

What are they getting away with?

What’s being exposed?

What’s forcing the issue?

What’s the source of the problem?

 

Repression

Deception behind an issue

A temptation

 

Tarot Tips 15-29

Tarot Tip 15:

The predictions of a tarot reading are not set in stone. Every decision you make each day affects your life.

It’s better to ask questions about how your actions will affect a situation than what the outcome of a situation will be.

Instead of “will I get the job?” or “does she like me?” ask “how do I make a good impression in this interview?” or “what do I need to do to attract the best possible match?”

 

Tarot Tip 16:

A 3 card reading can be just as versatile as a larger reading and is much faster and easier to understand, making the reading ultimately clearer.

Possible card position meanings in a 3 card reading:

• Past, Present, Future
• Now, Later, Finally
• Head, Heart, Spirit
• You, Them, Us
• This Month, Next Month, Third Month
• Winter, Spring, Summer
• Maiden, Mother, Crone
• New Moon, Full Moon, Dark Moon

 

Tarot Tip 17:

When reading your own cards take notes and make sure you write down the date, time and moon phase. Keep a tarot journal. Snap a photo of the cards with your phone.

Documenting your readings is the only way to know if your predictions are accurate and how a reading has affected your actions.

 

Tarot Tip 18:

Clarity can be helpful but they should be limited to one or two per reading. Don’t make the mistake of drawing card after card until you get the one that tells you what you want to hear. A bad reading doesn’t help you and it doesn’t change the outcome.

 

Tarot Tip 19:

It can be difficult to explain tarot to people who have preconceived notions about it. First of all, it doesn’t matter what people think. Second, just tell them it’s a tool, like meditation or church or that psychology class they took in college. They’re all tools to know yourself and your place in the universe.

 

Tarot Tip 20: Major Arcana

Fool: New Beginning

Magician: Manifestation

High Priestess: Inner Knowing

Empress: Creativity

Emperor: Stability

Hierophant: Learning

Lovers: Love

Chariot: Moving Forward

Strength: Character

Hermit: Meditation

Wheel of Fortune:  Cycles of Luck

 

Tarot Tip 21: Major Arcana

Justice: Reward and Punishment

Hanged Man: Suspension

Death: Transformation

Temperance: Moderation

Devil: Bad Habits

Tower: Disaster

Star: Inspiration

Moon: Illusions

Sun: Success

Judgement: Inner Knowing

World: Completion

 

Tarot Tip 22:

Feel like your tarot learning has reached a plateau? Pick up a different deck of cards. Try different decks such as Oracle or Lenormand decks. Lenormand is very literal while tarot is symbolic. Oracle cards bring different sets of deities, symbols and archetypes into your awareness. If you can read a deck of playing cards you’ve mastered your understanding of the suits and numbers.

 

Tarot Tip 23:

If you have trouble with the court cards, think of them as Disney or fairytale characters. For example, I like to think of the upright Queen of Cups as Ariel or Ursula.

 

Tarot Tip 24:

When court cards don’t seem to refer to people, interpret them like this:

Pages: Messages

Knights: Travel, Movement

Queens: Creation

Kings: Focus, Management

 

Tarot Tip 25:

Think you’re ready to make money? If you live in the local city you can read at your local park. Check to make sure its legal first. You can charge a $1 per card or you can charge $10 for a 3 card reading. You can also talk to your local coffee shop about reading cards for their customers. They might set you up with a table or help you plan a special event.

 

Tarot Tip 26:

Get comfortable with giving people bad news. Be respectful of their hardship and mental state, but always be honest. The future is changeable. Better to be warned of misfortune and try to avoid it, than to be blindsided and suffer. Also be aware that life is a game with no winners. None of us get out alive. That’s what makes it fun. Embrace your humanity. Our actions and decisions are just experiments. Don’t take it too seriously.

 

Tarot Tip 27:

The Devil can be a tricky card. It’s less frightening than it appears. Usually, it has to do with bad habits, substance abuse and knowingly making poor decisions. The key to the Devil card is that whatever is holding you back, whatever limitations you perceive, you did it to yourself and only you can fix it. We’re all addicted to something but we can all break free if we decide to.

 

Tarot Tip 28:

Try different methods of drawing cards. Fan them out and pick each card individually. Cut the deck in half. Place the top half on the bottom. Draw your cards. Drop the deck on your table. Whatever lands face up s your reading. This is cartomancy.  Pick out a specific card to represent your question (The lovers for relationships, The Empress for creative projects, etc.). Use it as your signifier and put it in the middle of your reading. Draw the other cards randomly as usual.

 

Tarot Tip 29:

Pay attention to the story your cards are telling. The Lovers + The Devil might mean and abusive relationship or a sex addiction, depending on the surrounding cards. It’s best to read cards chronologically (left to right) (Past to Future) and rank them in importance (Major Arcana are big, universal forces and Minor Arcana are what you can do about it).

Also, remember if the cards are touching, they influence each other. This goes side by side but also diagonally and above/below. Kind of like X’s and O’s.

Tarot Tips 1-14

Tarot Tip 1:

The Major Arcana tells you which universal force is surrounding you. The Minor Arcana tells you what you can do about it.

 

Tarot Tip 2:

There are two different types of tarot readings, both are equally valid. For an objective reading, seek out a reader you’ve never met before and avoid wearing any conspicuous clothing/jewelry.  Answer the bare minimum of questions.

For a sympathetic reading, find a reader who is a friend or family member, someone who knows you well. Be yourself. Answer all their questions.

 

Tarot Tip 3:

To learn tarot quickly, draw one card each morning and use it as guidance throughout the day. Keep a journal and write all the cards down. You’ll see your understanding deepen over time.

 

Tarot Tip 4:

When giving a reading always do “Tarot math”. Pay attention to the numbers on the cards and look for sequences. Every number has a meaning and sequences indicate the overall energy of a situation.

 

Tarot Tip 5:

Symbols are important. The pictures on tarot cards tell stories. They are full of allegory and often allude to myths, fairytales and archetypes. Knowing the meaning and history of each card’s symbols gives you a deeper layer of knowledge to use in your readings.

 

Tarot Tip 6:

Two tarot decks are better than one.

Use one solely for readings.

Use the second deck for meditation, visualization, spellwork, mood boards, decorations, and rituals. Tape them to mirrors and put them in your wallet. Don’t be precious with them.

 

Tarot Tip 7:

Want a clear reading?

The best times of the year for a clear and precise tarot reading are Samhain/Halloween (the night of   October 31^st and November 1^st) an it’s exact opposite on the Wheel of the year, Beltane/May Day (the night of April 30^th and May 1^st).

 

Tarot Tip 8:

The Tarot deck is full of twin cards.

The lovers and the two of hearts, for example. When these cards both appear in a reading, their energy is doubled. Almost every Major Arcana card has a twin in the Minor Arcana. See if you can figure them out.

 

Tarot Tip 9:

Reinforcing cards are cards with similar or harmonious meanings that serve the purpose of building upon the energy or meaning of any previous card or cards.

For example, if the first card drawn is the Hierophant and the second card is the 3 of pentacles, you know that other people (friends, co-workers, classmates etc.) are important factors in this reading because both cards mean teamwork, groups and planning.

 

Tarot Tip 10:

Opposing cards are cards with opposite or conflicting meanings that diminish the energy and meaning of any one card.

 

Tarot Tip 11:

If your cards are acting weirdly or your readings are feeling off, your deck probably needs to be cleansed. Pass the cards through incense smoke, leave them out in the moon light or place them in a bag with some citrine crystals.

If that doesn’t work, try switching up your reading style. Try reading reversals or picking up your deck at a different time of day. This should fix the stagnant energy and get your cards working again.

 

Tarot Tip 12:

When shuffling the deck, pay attention to any cards that pop out or drop on to the floor. Sometimes those cards have a special meaning or message for you.

Always take a second and look at the card at the bottom of the deck. Often the same card will appear over and over again. This card usually has a message for you.

 

Tarot Tip 13:

“Bad” cards aren’t always bad and “Good” cards aren’t always good.

The two of hearts next to the Devil isn’t indicative of a healthy relationship. The Death card is ultimately positive but the experience of change and rebirth is rarely easy.

 

Tarot Tip 14:

The court cards often correspond to people in your life.

Page: children, younger people in your life

Knight: youths, sometimes new suitors

Queen: an adult woman (you, if you identify as a woman)

King: an adult male (you, if you identify as a male)

*Note: the gender of the person indicated is not always in line with the gender depicted on the card. For example, the Queen of Hearts represents a kind, caring, loving person who could just as easily be male as female.

Recharging your Tarot Cards

Moon Energy Bath:

Place the deck on your window sill where it can catch the Moonlight. The energies of the moon can recharge the cards really well. The full moon and new moon are great times for this. Moon energy is Feminine, Intuitive, and Creative Energy.

 

Sun Energy Bath:

In this method, the cards are placed directly in the sunlight. Usually a couple of hours of being bathed in the warm sunlight does the trick for charging the cards. In comparison to the moon, the sun represents Masculine, logical, clarity-filled energy. With the sun, there are no phases to consider. You can charge your cards in a couple of hours and are pretty much good to go.

 

Breath Of Life:

In this method you hold your cards and envision a bright white light cocooning over your cards. Envision any impurities and negative energies leaving and only power and light passing through the deck. Breathe into your deck by placing your deck to your mouth and asking the deck for guidance, love, light and truth. Finally hold the deck to your heart for five heartbeats.

 

Crystal Charging:

In this method you place a crystal that calls out to you on top of the tarot deck. I prefer Amethyst, Rose Quartz and Clear Quartz but any crystal will do. A quartz crystal is a wonderful absorber of energies and it is not a bad thing to keep one with your tarot whenever you store it away.

6 Mistakes to Reading Tarot for Yourself and How to Avoid Them

Here are six common mistakes that are made when reading tarot for yourself, and how you can avoid them.

 

1. You do a Tarot Reading When you’re highly emotional: You want to be able to remain objective, calm and focused.

 

2. You keep drawing extra tarot cards as “clarifiers”: Commit to drawing clarifying cards only when necessary and never draw more than two extra cards.

 

3. You do multiple tarot readings on the same topic: Wait at least a month before reading on the same topic, or at least until you see a significant change.

 

4. You research multiple tarot card meanings for the one you want: Don’t get stuck on trying to find the perfect, most convenient meaning. Instead, go with your instinct.

 

5. You use a complicated tarot spread: Many questions simply need only a few tarot cards to find your answer.

 

6. You interpret your tarot reading the way you want: You can interpret your own cards, but you may want to also seek the opinion of an objective third party.

 

Reading Tarot for yourself can be incredibly powerful and insightful if you do it correctly. By avoiding these six mistakes you will be well on your way to creating accurate tarot readings for yourself.