Arcane Senses

Tarot Predicts the Future: Myth Busting No. 4

Featured Deck: Playing Marseille by Ryan Edward

Author’s Note: This Myth Busting post will differ from the others in a sense that it’s not busting a wild concept surrounding the tarot. I, myself, do use the cards for divination or in a “fortune-telling” manner and have seen the benefits of this long-standing tradition. For the sake of transparency, I wanted to make it clear that I am not condemning using the cards in this way nor to impose the use of it on you. Take what resonates, and leave the rest behind.

Fortune-telling and tarot cards have been synonymous in the public’s consciousness for decades. If you ask a random person off of the streets what they thought of the tarot they would associate it with predicting the future. Is this myth legit or not? Let’s have a discussion about the history of this practice, the dilemmas it can pose, and a reframing of the concept itself.

How did the tarot became a fortune-telling tool?

Tarot Readings Should Be Free: Myth Busting No. 3

Featured Deck: Pagan Otherworlds Tarot by UUSI Design Studio

The tarot always had a colourful history behind it. From its supposed Egyptian origins to its use by mystical fortune-tellers in vibrant caravans. An integral part of its history is the valuable exchange between the querent and the reader. We can assume that reading the cards have become a source of livelihood for many people in many cultures. This is why I firmly believe that providing tarot readings should have an equal exchange of some sort, whether be it monetary or otherwise.

Let’s face it, we live in a capitalistic world and we have to make a living in order to survive. A lot of people read cards as their main bread and butter, which is a beautiful thing. However, there had been a recent discussion (a rather heated one if I say so myself) within a small group in the tarot community regarding how tarot readings should always be free of charge. The debate riled up a lot of people because there were statements that devalued the importance of paid readings and tarot businesses in general.

Tarot Should Be Gifted: Myth Busting No. 2

Deck Featured: Fifth Spirit Tarot by Charlie Claire Burgess

The tarot is such an arcane object that it has garnered a lot of superstitions, which to do this day still have weight in the thoughts and imaginations of the masses. The idea of receiving a tarot deck as a gift is one of these common beliefs that need to be debunked. It not only promotes unnecessary dependency on external factors, but it also gives away a person’s autonomy due to the false narrative that “the magic in the cards will be lost if it is not gifted to you.”