The Tarot is a deck of 78 cards used by a psychic to discover
issues and answers, as well as to predict the future.
The origin of tarot cards is unknown but it is speculated that
they were
introduced
into Europe by Crusaders or by gypsies. We do know that they
were used in Italy in the early 1300s.
The deck consists of the minor arcana (56 suit cards) and the
major arcana, or trumps (22 pictorial symbol cards). The minor
arcana is very much like playing cards as we know them with
suits of wands (clubs), cups (hearts), swords (spades), and
pentacles (diamonds). Each suit also contains the familiar court
cards (kings, queens, knights, and pages). The major arcana
consists of highly symbolic picture cards
with
their complex meanings.
The earliest tarot decks were always hand-made, and some were
even designed by
notable
artists. One of the more famous decks was designed by Albrecht Dürer.
In psychic readings, either the full pack or the Major Arcana
alone is used. The actual cards drawn for each reading are
important, as is the relative position of the cards and the
relationship of one card to another. A number of different
configurations
are
used, including the three-card spread for brief readings, the
traditional Celtic Cross, English layout, and the astrological
spread, just to name a few.
The Tarot cards are read by an intuitive (psychic) person who is
able to interpret the ancient symbols and also use a special
sensitivity to tap into energies that surround the person and
the issue presented. |