Why is Tarot so misunderstood?

The first time I saw a tarot card I was just 8 years old. It was in the James Bond Film, Live and Let Die. It was the Lovers card and I thought it was mysterious and probably slightly untoward"

Many years later I had experienced many a reading. I enjoyed the whole experience of the reading and always the readers themselves. Countless times a reader would ask, do you read yourself? because you could and should. I was drawn to the creative standpoint because I just loved the illustrations. I thought they were beautiful and curious.

So why then is the perception so skewed?

I would wager most of Tarot's rep comes from the links made from TV and Film. Often both present tarot as dangerous, deceptive, and are performed by Charlatans! When in fact for me it is quite the opposite.

The Artworks themselves can at times look frightening. They are very simplistic but hold a multiple of symbolic information. As a reader I think the backgrounds are as important as the characters that are at the forefront of the image.

The main culprits within the deck that provoke a negative and somewhat fearful reaction are probably the Devil card and the Death card. They conjure up a darker context that sells films, attracts viewers, and instils the mystery of the unknown. They are powerful, and they can be mysterious, that I would agree on, but dark and dangerous they are NOT!!

On the most part they are clever, insightful, and quirky.

The Death card and the card of Scorpio, tells us a story of transformation, it predicts an ending and a new beginning. Whereas the Devil card on the other hand, card of Capricorn, highlights addictive behaviours or toxicity in a person's life. So, you can start to see that these colourful, canny little cards are really looking to guide us, maybe give us a kick up you know where from time to time. Prompting us to be a little bit more self-aware!! They are narratives that seek to navigate an individual on their journey. They can be helpful, motivational, and refreshingly honest dependent on who is telling the story.

My favourite card in the deck is the Sun card, card of Leo, it depicts vitality, life, and childlike wonder. It promises love and happiness and lets us know it is always within our grasp!! The Tarot can be fun, unpredictable, and hugely exciting if you are open to it. That said, it doesn’t pussy foot around and will get to the heart of the matter but only ever in the quest for truth.

'You can’t handle the truth' (Sorry couldn't resist)

So, I hope that today’s trip along tarot enlightenment hasn't been the dark and occult journey you predicted at a first glance, instead I hope my depiction has endeared and promoted the art. Being a prolific spiritual geek has its bonus points for sure. In the most part it has equipped me to discern the cheerleader from the frenemy and treat genuinely hardworking colleagues with respect.

Most importantly being a reader, and person whose drive is to be better, I use the tarot to furnish myself with self-knowledge, whilst knowing fully that no one, but me decides my fate. a key concept for any warrior of life.

So, I leave today's topic on this note; Tarot's most well-known deck, The Rider Waite, was first published more than a 100 years ago and is estimated to have over 100 million decks in circulation across the world.

That said, I think it’s safe to say whether you love or hate it, it’s not going anywhere soon.

TAROT ROCKS!!!