The Tarot Ways

Divination is the art of recognizing a pattern in the events as they are and following that stream forward to predict where the outcome will lie if things continue as they are. This can be used to show us where we've been and where we are going. But more than that, it shows us where we are. It helps us to recognize what we may have ignored or not even given a thought to. Divination shows us the situation we're in, where we stand, and where the path will lead us if the course continues.

One of the most common forms of divination is the Tarot deck, a set of cards based in symbology to convey through their depictions that which is in the subconscious mind. With thousands of decks to choose from, a potential reader will find that the deck that works best for them is the deck that seems to "call" to them. They will find that not only is that deck more closely in tune with them psychicaly, but also that it will have the symbology in it that will easiest communicate to them. This is important when choosing a deck because while, at first, they will probably find themselves giving a "book" reading, after getting accustom to reading Tarot they will find that the cards will start to "speak" to them, leaving you to judge a card's meaning based on their intuition. This will generally lead to a great improvement in the quality and depth of their readings.

Now, how do the cards communicate with us?

As it was once explained to me, all knowledge is kept within a collective unconsciousness, which we may tap into to learn of a specific question we have. Subconsciously, we know the answer to both the question and the position of every card in the deck. When we shuffle, the subconscious more or less stacks the deck so the cards are in place to answer the question. Because the reader knows, subconsciously, why each card is in the position it is, seeing that card come up will translate that knowledge from their subconscious mind to their conscious mind, using the card's symbology as a medium through which the knowledge can travel. This is why it is commonly said that the reader should try to not focus on shuffling, let the subconscious take over for that, and to shuffle until they feel the deck is ready.