Tarot for Beginners

Welcome to the Tarot for Beginners free PDF Guide by Divina-

tion & Fortune-Telling. My name is Lisa Boswell, and I am going
to be your Tarot teacher!Â

I have been reading Tarot for 20+ years since I was a young 7-
year old child. I am a Romany Gypsy, and my family is fortune-
tellers (think crystal balls and dream interpretations). Although
my family is diviners, they cannot read or write, so I pretty much
taught myself how to read Tarot.

For the first decade, all I had to assist me on my Tarot journey was a Tarot deck and one
small guidebook which came with my cards. Everything else I learned, I did so through trial
and error. 

Learning how to read Tarot was one of the best things that I had ever done. I can always
rely on Tarot to give me answers and directions. By reading Tarot, you can:

• Read Tarot for yourself or others. 

• Predict whether or not something is going to work out.

• Get advice on how to proceed with your dilemmas.

• Make better choices.

• Get guidance and make predictions in your love life, career, business, health, spirituality,
finances, family, pets, friendships, home, pretty much any subject you can think of!

I feel that, when you’re learning the basics, less is always more. Too many Tarot books and
beginner resources confuse the budding Tarot reader and overwhelm them with informa-
tion. Today, I am not going to do that to you. After today, I am going to teach you just
enough to make sure that you know the basics of Tarot reading so that you can learn what
you need to know to be able to read Tarot and leave the rest.

After you read this guide, you will be a Tarot reader! Good luck on your Tarot journey, and
happy divining, Lisa xx

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 T he Basics

I am super excited to get started with teaching you how to read Tarot cards, so let’s get to
it!

I am pretty sure that, as a budding Tarot reader, you’re going to have lots of questions
around how Tarot works, what Tarot is, and how you can get started reading Tarot cards.
Therefore, for this section of this guide, I am going to give you the very basics of Tarot.

From my experience as a full-time Tarot teacher, I know that there are several questions
which potential Tarot readers have when they’re learning Tarot. Therefore, this section is
going to be formatted in a Q and A style, and it will answer all of the questions I know
you’re just dying to ask.

“Can Anyone Read Tarot?”

YES! Anyone can read Tarot, especially if you have a strong interest in developing your
Tarot skills. However, I will say that not everyone wants to learn how to read Tarot. You
have to have some level of commitment and desire to read Tarot. However, if you feel as
though you are committed and ache to learn Tarot, you’re good to go!

“Do you Need to be Psychic to Read Tarot?”

I believe that everyone is psychic, and anyone can develop their psychic abilities. To read
Tarot, you do not have to consider yourself to be psychic but, just like all humans, you al-
ready are a little bit psychic!

That being said, you do not have to have super strong psychic abilities to be able to read
Tarot. Believe it or not, Tarot will actually improve your psychic abilities! So, you don’t have
to worry too much about the strength of your psychic skills.

“Is Tarot Dangerous or Evil?”

No, Tarot is not dangerous or evil. I’ve never been possessed yet! If you have any ques-
tions or issues around whether or not Tarot is evil, feel free to check out my post Is Tarot
Dangerous or Evil? Here:

https://divinationandfortunetelling.com/articles/2018/1/30/is-tarot-card-divination-dangero
us-or-evil

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“Do I Need Any Special Equipment to be Able to Read Tarot Cards?”

Nope! To be able to read Tarot, all that you need is a Tarot deck.

“Is it True that you Cannot Buy your Own Tarot Deck?”

No! This is another urban myth of Tarot. It is not true that you should not buy your own
Tarot deck. In fact, the opposite is true.

It is better if you do buy your own Tarot card deck. If you purchase your own deck, you will
instantly begin to form a bond with your deck and get used to its energy. It is much more
desirable if you go out of your way to hunt down your own deck than waiting on someone
else doing it for you!

“Which Deck Should I Buy?”

There are many different types of decks that you can use for divination. There are Tarot
decks, Lenormand decks, Oracle decks, Kipper decks, the list goes on. Therefore, it can
sometimes be easy to purchase the wrong type of deck accidentally.

For ease, I recommend that you purchase a Rider-Waite-Smith (sometimes called Rider-
Waite) Tarot deck. This is a classic Tarot deck, which will get you familiar with the structure
of Tarot, get you used to the symbolism of Tarot, and it is just a good all-round beginner’s
deck. Then in the future, when you get more confident, you can expand your collection.

The reason why I recommend the Rider Waite-Smith deck to begin with, is because there
are some deck creators which have renamed certain elements of their decks. For example,
instead of naming the Knights as Knights, they have named them as Princes. Or, instead
of calling The Hierophant by its name, they have called this card The Teacher. Obviously,
this can be confusing, so if you’re just starting out, you should stick to The Rider Waite
Smith deck until you’re more confident with reading Tarot. You can buy a deck from Ama-
zon or any reputable mind, body spirit shop.

“How Should I Care for my Deck?”

There are no hard and fast rules for how you should care for your Tarot deck. There are no
‘best’ ways, but I can give you a little bit of direction!

it is best if you put your Tarot deck in its own special Tarot bag so that it doesn’t get dam-
aged. You can keep your deck in the box, or you can decide to take it out.

A lot of older readers feel that your deck should be wrapped in pure silk, or you should try
to obtain a silk Tarot bag. You do not have to use silk, but this can add to the ‘special’ feel-
ing of your cards.

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Some readers opt to keep their deck in special wooden Tarot boxes with crystals or ‘pow-
erful’ herbs. If you’re into crystals, magic and/or witchcraft may want to have a think about
what types of things you would like to store with your Tarot cards. However, it is not essen-
tial (I currently do not store anything with my cards).

Another thing, a lot of people like to ‘cleanse’ their decks after readings. Usually, deck
cleaning consists of passing your Tarot deck through some incense smoke or leaving them
out to ‘charge’ under the full moon. Cleaning decks are not essential (I prefer to let the en-
ergy in my decks build up), but it is a practice that a lot of Tarot readers like to do.

“Well, Which Deck Practices do you Recommend”?

One Tarot deck practice, which I strongly recommend is to form a relationship with your
deck. I feel it is very important to have a personal relationship with your deck, carry them
with you, sleep close by them, handle them often, and do not let other people play with or
read with your deck. Your deck should feel like yours and nobody else’s. Having a bond
with your deck will make your readings more accurate.

“Should the Other Person Shuffle?”

You may just be starting out with reading Tarot, but you probably have plans to one day ex-
pand into reading other people. One question I see time and time again with my students,
is who shuffles. Is it you (the reader) or the person you’re reading for (the seeker).

Who shuffles is a personal preference. Personally, I do not like other people touching my
cards, so I always shuffle the cards for the person I am reading. However, I know some
very good readers who like the seeker to ask their question, shuffle the cards, and then
hand the cards over to the reader; the reader then lays them out and interprets them. As I
said, it is a personal preference, but I do not like other people touching my cards.

“What are Reversals and Should I Use Reversals”?

Reversals are the name given to Tarot cards which appear

upside down. Readers who read with reversals shuffle half
of the cards with them upright, and the other half with them
reversed. They assign different meanings to the cards which
appear upside down, usually, these meanings are negative
(but not always).

It is not essential that you use reversals. In fact, I recom-

mend that you do not as they can become confusing, and
you do not really need them. That is just my opinion, but your readings will probably be bet-
ter (and less confusing) without them.

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 Tarot Structure

Tarot has a very specific structure. Tarot’s structure is what separates true Tarot cards from
other methods of Cartomancy, such as Oracle cards or Lenormand cards.

There are 78 cards in a Tarot deck. Any less, and you are not working with a Tarot deck.
However, some deck creators choose to create extra card/cards and include them in their
deck, but these extra cards are usually not used in Tarot readings. Tarot readers either col-
lect extra cards or use them as bookmarks.

Tarot decks consist of two different types of cards. These card types are known as the Ma-
jor Arcana and the Minor Arcana. In Tarot, there are twenty-two
Major Arcana cards and fifty-six Minor Arcana cards.

The Major Arcana (pictured left) reflect major life events. The Ma-
jor Arcana speaks of - or predicts - events which are hard to con-
trol because they are the result of destiny or fate. Although the
situations of the Major Arcana can sometimes be avoided, it is
more challenging to do so when compared to the Minor Arcana.
However, don’t worry as this can also mean that destiny is on
your side ;)

The Minor Arcana are more likely to reflect day-to-day events. Situations that are predicted
with the Minor Arcana are somewhat easier to control. That is not to say that you can al-
ways avoid what will be revealed with the Minor Arcana, but it is more to do so than it is
with the Major Arcana. Although you will have more control with the Minor Arcana cards,
fate may not be working for you as hard as it is if you have lots of Majors.

The Minor Arcana is further split into four suits, which are called Wands, Cups, Swords,
and Pentacles (sometimes called Coins). There are fourteen cards in each suit; the num-
bered cards, which are numbered from Ace to Ten, and the Court cards, which are the
Page, Knight, Queen, and King of the suit. The numbered cards represent events, and the
Court cards represent people.

All of the cards can predict events, feelings, or situations in love, career, business, health,
and more. However, the meanings of the suits can generally be interpreted as follows:

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 T he Wands
The Wands suit symbolizes energy, drive, and will-power. There
are some readers who interpret Wands to represent work, but I
leave this interpretation for the Pentacles suit. I feel that
Wands symbolize life outside of your work, such as your friend-
ships, hobbies, and interests. The Wands Court cards predict
people in your life who have lots of energy and ambition.

T he Cups
The Cups suit symbolizes love, relationships, emotions, and
things that you care about. It is rather common for Cups to pre-
dict things related to family, such as babies, childbirth, fertility,
marriage, and conception. The Cups Court cards can symbolize
people who care about you, family members, or potential lovers.

T he Swords
The Swords symbolize drama, conflict, arguments, strife, and
mental anguish. Some Tarot readers interpret the Swords a little
more positively so that they represent logic and intelligence,
but when you go through the card meanings, you will see that
they are all mainly negative. The Swords Courts are people who
cause problems in the seeker’s life.

T he Pentacles
The Pentacles suit symbolizes the material world. Pentacles
cards predict anything related to money, finances, career, busi-
ness, resources, property, and education. Sometimes, it is the
suit of tradition. The Pentacles Court cards represent people in
the seeker’s life who are either established financially or in their
careers; sometimes they may offer the seeker help.

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 Tarot Meanings

In Tarot decks, it is traditional for the cards to be numbered in Roman numerals, even in
more modern decks. Do not worry as this is something which you will get used to as you
become more familiar with Tarot.

Also, in some Tarot decks, Justice is numbered VIII (eight), and Strength is numbered XI
(eleven). This doesn’t really make any difference to the Tarot meanings, so do not stress.

Finally, I recommend you learn the orders of the cards as some decks rename certain
cards. For example, The Hierophant may be ‘Teacher.’ This is another reason why I recom-
mend the Rider-Waite-Smith deck; using a traditional deck, to begin with, will get you famil-
iar with Tarot, its structure, and all of the cards in the deck.

Major Arcana Tarot Card Meanings

0 The Fool: New Beginnings, Risks, Spontaneous Behavior.

I The Magician: Will Power, Action, Confidence.

II The High Priestess: Secrets, Intuition, Unknown.

III The Empress: Pregnancy, Motherhood, Abundance.

IV The Emperor: Ambition, Assistance, CEO.

V The Hierophant: Marriage, Tradition, Religion.

VI The Lovers: Love, Passion, Choice.

VII The Chariot: Movement, Determination, Fame.

VIII Strength: Strength, Care, Responsibility.

IX The Hermit: Loneliness, Solitude, Concealment.

X The Wheel of Fortune: Destiny, Fate, Good Luck.

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XI Justice: Court, Commitments, Law & Order.

XII The Hanged Man: Prophecy, Sacrifice, Waiting.

XIII Death: Endings, Death, Rebirth.

XIV Temperance: Home, Management, Balance.

XV The Devil: Manipulation, Bonds, Temptation.

XVI The Tower: Catastrophe, Destruction, Disruption.

XVII The Star: Hope, Dreams Fulfilled, Wishes.

XVIII The Moon: Deception, Self-Delusion, Danger.

XIX The Sun: Achievement, Success, Positivity.

XX Judgement: Calling, Life-Changing, Transformation.

XXI The World: Completion, End of Cycle, Travel.

Minor Arcana - Wands

Ace: Energy, Beginnings, Creativity.

Two: Partners, Hallow Success.

Three: Luck, Opportunities, Teams.

Four: Home, House, Belonging.

Five: Challenges, Obstacles, Fights.

Six: Victory, Glory, Success.

Seven: Defiance, Negotiation, Defense.

Eight: Letters, Email, Social Media.

Nine: Delays, Injury, Sickness.

Ten: Stress, Burdens, Hard Work.

Page: An Enthusiastic Youngster.

Knight: A Hasty Adult.

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Queen: An Ambitious Woman.

King: A Confident Man.

Minor Arcana - Cups

Ace: Birth, Beginnings, Creativity.

Two: Love, Soulmates, Friendship.

Three: Weddings, Birthdays, Baptisms.

Four: Boredom, Discontent, Huffy.

Five: Sadness, Tears, Loss.

Six: The Past, Previous, Childhood.

Seven: Choices, Ideas, Inspiration.

Eight: Walking Away, Abandonment.

Nine: Wishes, Satisfaction, Fulfilling.

Ten: Family, Fairytale, Completion.

Page: A Sensitive Youngster.

Knight: A Knight in Shining Armor.

Queen: A Loving Woman.

King: An Intuitive Man.

Minor Arcana - Swords

Ace: Force, Conflict, Start of Something Negative.

Two: Walking on Eggshells, Stalemate, Equal.

Three: Heartache, Infidelity, Pain.

Four: Rest, Pause, Tiredness.

Five: Defeat, Losing, Being Beaten.

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Six: Travel, Movement, Retreat.

Seven: Slyness, Cheating, Unfair.

Eight: Restriction, Controlled, Unable to Move.

Nine: Anxiety, Sleepless Nights, Stressful Environment.

Ten: Ruin, Bankruptcy, Divorce.

Page: A Youngster who Spies.

Knight: An Aggressive Adult.

Queen: A Negative Woman.

King: A Difficult Man.

Minor Arcana - Pentacles

Ace: Happiness, Foundation, Beginning of Job or Business.

Two: Difficulty, Balancing Resources, Money In, Money Out.

Three: Skill, Learning, Apprenticeships.

Four: Hoarding, Possessions, Inheritance.

Five: Poverty, Lack, In it Together.

Six: Presents, Sharing, Support.

Seven: Planning, Persistence, Long-Term.

Eight: Mastery, Employment, Work.

Nine: Security, Home, Purchases.

Ten: Wealth, Tradition, Generational.

Page: A Young Student.

Knight A Hard Working Adult.

Queen: A Luxurious Woman.

King: An Established Man.

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 Reading Tarot

Tarot cards are read in what is known as ‘spreads.’ Tarot spreads are layouts in which you
place your cards. The cards are then interpreted based on the traditional card meaning
and the spread position.

Spreads can be as small as two cards or as large as using the full Tarot deck. Some
spreads cover multiple life areas (love, career, health, etc.), but other spreads might only
be designed for one life area. You can buy books and e-books which contain spreads, or
you can design your own Tarot spreads.

Spreads that read life areas and your future in general are known as ‘general’ spreads. Al-
though general spreads are rather popular, the most common Tarot spreads are spreads,
which are designed for a specific question or a specific life area.

Before you lay out your spread, you should set your intention. For example, in your head
or out loud, ask, “What is going to happen with regards to X”? You should write down your
question before you perform your reading to help you cement your question and so that
you do not second guess what your question was about!

I recommend before your readings that you ask your ancestral spirits for assistance. Ask
them to reveal to you all that you should know and to help you get the best results possi-
ble. Again, this can be out loud or in your head.

You can have a pre-reading ritual or just jump into your readings. However, I will say that
having some type of ritual can make your readings more special, important, and powerful,
so you eventually should develop one. I always burn sandalwood incense or oils. I like san-
dalwood because it is a sacred wood. I recommend that you develop a ritual of your own.
Setting your own Tarot ritual is something I go over in The Tarot Course. Once you have
gone through your ritual, you can perform your reading.

While shuffling your cards, you should think of the question which you want to know more
about. Keep the question firm in your mind as you shuffle and lay out your cards.

Once you have performed your reading, it is a good idea to record the results of your read-
ing. I like to photograph my readings on my phone. Most other readers keep a Tarot jour-
nal. In your journal, you should record your goal for the reading, the spread, the date,
where you performed the reading, and any astrological information if you’re into Astrology.

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 T he Past, Present, Future Spread
So, now you know how to record your readings, let’s jump into a basic Tarot spread! The
Past, Present, Future Spread is the most basic Tarot spread. This spread predicts (you
guessed it) the past, present, and future of your life, or of a life area which you would like
to know more about (such as your love life).

To perform this spread, you would perform your reading as previously instructed and then
lay your cards out from left to right. Here is an example:

1 2 3

Now, we are going to perform this spread on a pretend seeker. Let’s say our seeker, Me-
lyssa wishes to know the past, present, and future of her life. Here are her cards:

In the past, Melyssa has had a very hard time, especially when it comes to money. Histori-
cally, she has not had a lot of resources. Financial lack was a major theme of her past.

At present, Melyssa’s luck is beginning to turn. She is starting to see a change in her for-
tune and (because her past was not very rosy) the changes she is experiencing are for the
better.

Finally, in the future, things are looking good for Melyssa. It looks like she is going to be fi-
nancially stable. She will pass items from one generation to the next.

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 Tarot Dictionary

While I have given you all you need to know to begin reading Tarot cards, there will be
some words that will creep up on you during your Tarot journey. Therefore, as an added bo-
nus, I am going to give you my ‘Tarot Dictionary’ below which you can refer to if one of
these words pop up.

Before you read through this dictionary, I should point out that it is not essential to know
these things if you want to read Tarot. However, I am going to cover them here so that, if
they do pop up, you’ll be prepared!

Aleister Crowley: Aleister Crowley is an occultist who was active during the turn of the
20th century until his death in 1947. Crowley founded the religion Thelema and created
The Book of Thoth Tarot deck.

Ancestral Work: For your Tarot readings, you can work with your ancestors just as you
would with spirit guides. I recommend ancestral work over other forms of spirit work.

Arthur Waite: Arthur Waite (known as A.E. Waite) was an early member of The Golden
Dawn and the creator behind the Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot Deck.

Cartomancy: Cartomancy is the name given to divination using cards. Playing card divina-
tion, Tarot, Lenormand, Oracle, and Kipper decks are all forms of Cartomancy.

Celtic Cross: The Celtic Cross is a famous Tarot spread, which is often used by Tarot read-
ers. A Celtic Cross spread has either ten or eleven positions, depending on the reader.

Charging (Deck): Some Tarot readers believe that leaving your deck under the full moon
or in a box with crystals charges the deck and makes it more powerful.

Coins: Coins is another name for the Pentacles suit.

Correspondences: Some Tarot readers believe that Tarot corresponds to aspects of As-
trology, the Kabbalah, even crystal healing. For example, The Emperor card is associated
with the zodiac sign Aries and The Devil corresponds with Capricorn.

Crystals: Crystals are believed to attract certain things into your life. For example, Rose
Quartz is believed to attract love, and Lapis Lazuli is believed to increase psychic develop-
ment. Some Tarot readers keep crystals nearby so that they can strengthen their readings.

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Diviner: Diviner is the name for a person who practices divination, fortune-telling and/or
seeks the advice and assistance of spirits during readings. Diviner is another name for a
reader or fortune teller.

Etteilla Tarot: Etteilla is an old-fashioned method of reading Tarot with an Etteilla deck and
Etteilla meanings. While this is technically a Tarot deck (it has Wands, Cups, Swords, and
Coins suits), several of the Major cards are different, and many of the card meanings are
the same. If you’re new to Tarot don’t worry about accidentally purchasing an Etteilla deck
and not a ‘normal’ Tarot deck; you have to be looking for an Etteilla deck to find one.

General Reading: A general reading is a Tarot reading which is performed without a ques-
tion. General readings look at the seeker’s life in general.

Golden Dawn: The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was an occultic organization
which was devoted to the study of divination, magic, and the paranormal. They were most
active during the end of the 19th to the early 20th century. Their teachings heavily influ-
enced Western Esotericism and, ultimately, Tarot.

Grade: In Tarot, a grade is similar to a suit, but it reflects the levels of the Minor cards.
Aces, Twos, Threes, Fours, Fives, Sixes, Sevens, Eights, Nines, Tens, Pages, Knights,
Queens, and Kings are all of the different Tarot grades.

Illustrated: Illustrated, is another word for a scenic deck. Illustrated decks depict a scene
on the Minor Arcana cards.

Interpretation: In Tarot the term interpretation is used interchangeably with the term mean-
ing, but they are different. A card meaning is what the card symbolizes on its own, but
technically an interpretation is what a card means when the meaning is combined with the
spread position. However, do not stress too much about this as everyone uses the word
interpretation to mean a meaning, and it still makes sense!

Journaling: A Tarot journal is like a Witches Book of Shadows but for Tarot. In your Tarot
journal, you can record your readings. When recording your readings, you can include the
date of the reading, the spread used, where the reading was performed, the time of the
day, what you question was, which incense you burned, candles used, spirit petitioned,
your interpretation, the deck you used, any important astrological information, pretty much
anything you think makes a difference to the accuracy of your readings.

Kabbalah: The Kabbalah is an ancient Jewish magical religion. Many Tarot readers believe
that the Majors in a Tarot deck were based on the Kabbalistic Tree of Life.

Kipper: Kipper is a German method of Cartomancy. A Kipper deck includes thirty-six

cards and depicts matters of life; there are Marriage and Illness cards, for example. Kipper

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is a different system from Tarot, and it is not essential to read Kipper to read Tarot, but it is
good to know that they are different and not the same thing.

Layout: A layout is another name for a spread, but spread is more common.

Lenormand: Lenormand is another method of Cartomancy. Lenormand uses thirty-six

cards and depicts symbols with special meanings such as Clover, Snake, and Ring. It is be-
lieved by historians that Lenormand evolved from tea leaf divination. Although there are
some cards with similar names (Tower, Stars, Moon, Sun), they are not the same thing, and
you do not need to know Lenormand to read Tarot.

Majors: It is typical of Tarot readers to short-

hand the name ‘Major Arcana’ to just ‘Majors.’

Minors: It is typical of Tarot readers to short-

hand the name ‘Minor Arcana’ to just ‘Minors.’

Negatives: When Tarot readers say that a read-

ing looks negative, they mean that the out-
come doesn’t look good and that the spread in
general includes lots of cards that are not all
sunshine and rainbows. Some spreads have
positions which symbolize the negatives in a
situation.

Non-Scenic Deck: When readers talk about a

non-scenic deck, they are referring to decks
that do not depict a scene on the Minor Ar-
cana. So, instead of the Five of Wands show-
ing people fighting, on non-scenic decks, it would only depict five wands with no other im-
age giving clues to the card’s meaning.

Numerology: Some people assign magical meanings to numbers. For example, the num-
ber one represents beginnings, and the number ten symbolizes completions. This practice
is known as numerology. Most numerologists assign special significance to cards based
on their understanding of numerology.

Oracle Cards: Oracle cards are cards that give holistic or self-help advice. No two Oracle
decks are the same. Oracle cards are not the same as Tarot cards but are just as popular
in terms of the number of people who use them.

Outcome: In Tarot spreads, the ‘outcome’ position is generally another word for the future.

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Pamela Colman Smith: Pamela Colman Smith was the artist who was commissioned by
Waite to create the Rider-Waite-Smith deck under his instruction.

Pip: Traditionally, the ‘pip’ cards are the Minor Arcana cards, which are numbered from
Ace to Ten. The Court cards are not pip cards. However, sometimes ‘pip decks’ is another
name for non-scenic Tarot decks. In modern times, the term pip isn’t usually used to de-
scribe non-scenic decks or cards as the term has fallen out of fashion.

Positives: When Tarot readers say that a reading looks positive, they mean that the out-
come looks good and that the spread in general includes lots of cards that are favorable.
Some spreads have positions which symbolize the positives in a situation.

Prince/Princess: Some modern decks have replaced the Knights with the Princes and the
Pages with the Princesses. This is not the industry standard, but it is becoming more com-
mon. I recommend you use a Rider-Waite deck as this renaming can be confusing.

Querent: The querent is another word for seeker. The querent or seeker is the person who
is getting the reading. If you’re reading your own fortune using your Tarot cards, you are
both the reader/diviner and the seeker/querent.

Reversal: A reversal is a Tarot card that lands upside down; these cards have special
meanings, which are usually more negative than when cards appear upright. Tarot readers
who use and read reversals intentionally reverse half of the Tarot deck. Just over 20% of
Tarot readers use reversals, but they are not essential, and I recommend that you do not
use them.

Rider-Waite-Smith: The Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot deck is a scenic deck which was de-
signed in the early 20th century by Arthur Waite and painted by Pamela Colman Smith.
The Rider-Waite-Smith deck is the most widely used Tarot deck, and many modern decks
are based on the scenes depicted in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck.

Rods: Rods is another name for the Wands suit.

Scenic Deck: A Tarot deck is considered scenic when the Minor Arcana cards depict a
scene, not just two Pentacles or five Swords or ten Cups. The scenes displayed on scenic
decks match the card’s interpretation. For example, the Two of Cups depict two lovers be-
cause the card predicts good relationships.

Seeker: The seeker is the person who is getting the reading from the reader. If you’re read-
ing cards for yourself, you will be both seeker and reader.

Self-Published Tarot Deck: A Tarot deck is self-published when the creator publishes
them themselves without a contract from a major deck creator. Often, these decks are
crowd-funded through Kick Starter or Indigogo, but not always.

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Significator: In Tarot, the significator card is a card (usually a Court card), which is pulled
out of a Tarot deck before the reading and placed on the table. This card does not come
up randomly; the reader must go through the deck, find the card they are looking for and
remove it from the deck. This card represents the seeker and is usually selected based on
their looks, question, or astrology (different readers have different systems of selecting sig-
nificators). You do not have to use significators and the use of which has fallen out of fash-
ion. The vast majority of Tarot readers do not use them, and many readers do not even
know what significators are.

Signifier: A signifier is another name for a significator.

Smudging: Smudging is the process or cleaning and clearing an area before or after a
reading with the use of smoke. Not all people who smudge are Tarot readers, and not all
Tarot readers smudge, but many do as part of their pre or post-reading rituals.

Spirit Guides: Spirit guides are guides that the reader feels helps them with their readings.
Spirit guides can be ancestors, people who once lived on earth, Gods, Goddesses, mythi-
cal beings, animal spirits, or any spirit which is supernatural in nature.

Spread: A spread is a design for the way in which you lay out Tarot cards. Each spread
has ‘positions’ which affect the meanings of the cards.

Suit: The Minor Arcana of Tarot is separated into four sections, which are called the suits.
In Tarot there are four suits, which are the Cups, Wands, Swords, and Pentacles.

Tarot De Marseilles: Sometimes called the Tarot of Marseilles, the Tarot De Marseilles is a
non-scenic Tarot deck that has been in circulation since the 1400s. Although there were
other Tarot decks around at the time, the structure of the modern Tarot has been taken
from the Tarot of Marseilles.

Tarot Ethics: Most Tarot readers develop their own code of ethics for their Tarot readings.
For example, some readers will not read people who are not present, but some will. Some
readers will not read pregnant women, but some will. What your ethics are depend on your
personal preferences and what you value as a reader.

Thoth Tarot: The Thoth Tarot is a deck that was created by the occultist Aleister Crowley.
The Thoth Tarot reflects aspects of Crowley’s religion, Thelma.

Trumps: Trumps are another name for the Major Arcana cards of the Tarot.

Unillustrated: Unillustrated is another name for a non-scenic Tarot deck.

Visconti-Sforza Tarot: Most commonly called the Visconti Tarot deck, the Visconti-Sforza
Tarot deck is the oldest surviving Tarot deck. It is an unillustrated Tarot card deck.

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