Tarot: The Mystery and the Mystique

By Greg Strandberg

Discover how to apply the Tarot to better capture your inner wisdom and achieve deeper meaning in your life. Featuring illustrations from the Rider-Waite deck, this bedazzling book will explain the symbolism and personal meaning that the cards hold just for you.

This book offers an accessible and easy approach for beginners and experienced readers. Those new to Tarot can discover the meanings of the cards and how to conduct eloquent readings today. Experienced readers will find new insights into Tarot’s history as well as the quintessence of the cards.

Harness your physic powers and release your cosmic energy today with Tarot: The Mystery and the Mystique!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Greg Strandberg
• Release date: May 4, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301111794

Greg Strandberg

Greg Strandberg was born and raised in Helena, Montana. He graduated from the University of Montana in 2008 with a BA in History.When the American economy began to collapse Greg quickly moved to China, where he became a slave for the English language industry. After five years of that nonsense he returned to Montana in June, 2013.When not writing his blogs, novels, or web content for others, Greg enjoys reading, hiking, biking, and spending time with his wife and young son.

Book preview

The fool is setting out on a journey, which is shown by the sun at his back. He’s looking up toward the sky, which is indicative of the Spirit. His direction is toward the unknown, represented by the north-west. Before him, however, lies a great precipice. He could stumble over it in his innocence and haste. And the dog could represent the real world trying to pull him back.

File:RWS Tarot 00 Fool.jpg

But you haven’t stumbled off the cliff yet. And you’re more carefree and liberated than you’ve been in a long time. Perhaps it’s time to take that leap of faith and see what happens. You may be acting foolishly to some, and it’s true you haven’t really thought out your next step. But you did have the foresight to pack a small bag of treasures and although you might not know where the next step will lead, you will get there.

Reversed: You’re very afraid of the unknown and can’t even take a step toward it. You think too much about potential situations and never act. Your caution is causing you to make missteps, and remember: you can’t go half-way over a cliff. You either plunge ahead on your own or plummet due to your hesitation.

Tarot

The Mystery and the Mystique

Greg Strandberg

Big Sky Words, Missoula

Copyright © 2013 by Big Sky Words

D2D Edition, 2015

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Connect with Greg Strandberg

www.bigskywords.com

Also by

Ten Minute Tarot

Table of Contents

Introduction

History of Tarot

The Meanings of the Cards

Major Arcana

Minor Arcana

How to Do a Reading

Shuffling Your Tarot Cards

Caring for Your Tarot Deck

Tarot: Your Past and Future

Tarot and Dreams

Your Inner Psychic

About the Author

Ten Minute Tarot Preview

Introduction

Welcome to the fascinating world of Tarot! This book is meant to introduce you to Tarot in an easy and fun way. A complete history of Tarot will be introduced, starting with the origin of the cards in Europe in the late 14th century until the introduction of the Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot deck in 1909.

All 22 of the Major Arcana cards will be discussed in detail. What’s more, several of the Minor Arcana cards will also be explained.

One of the most difficult Tarot spreads will be revealed, The Celtic Cross. This is the most widely-used of all the Tarot spreads, but by no means the only one you can use for a reading. Two more Three Card spreads will be highlighted, each of which can give you a complete reading.

Most Tarot books do a great job discussing the history of the cards and then the cards themselves, but very few talk about how to care for your cards, how to shuffle your cards, and ways you can make your cards more effective. Those things will all be highlighted in the coming chapters.

And of course Tarot and past lives will be discussed. Lots of people are interested in this, and for good reason; it’s quite interesting, fun, and informative. We’ll also take a look at how you can amplify you own inner psychic to increase your own Tarot deck’s power.

This book won’t give you a complete description of each card or a whole lot of Tarot spreads. If you’re interested in that, look into my book Ten Minute Tarot. There you’ll find more than 40 Tarot Spreads and each of the 78 Tarot cards explained in complete detail.

For now, however, enjoy learning about Tarot’s past, ways you can make Tarot more effective in your life, and how the powers of the universe can be harnessed to give you insight into the future.

History of Tarot

Tarot cards have been around for a long time. The cards that most of us know today weren’t known until about 100 years ago. Before that there were many different Tarot decks, and there were also many different uses for them. For instance, using Tarot cards to see what your future will be like is a new thing. That’s only been going on for about 150 years. Long before that Tarot cards were used much as playing cards are today. People would pull them out, shuffle them up, and play a game.

Today we still pull out our cards and shuffle them up, but most people don’t play games with them. Instead you have a reading. A reading will allow you to hold and handle the cards, putting your special energies into them. When this is done the cards will hold a bit of you within them. All you have to do after that is lay some of them down, flip them over, and figure out what they mean.

And what do they mean? Well, that’s not the easiest thing, but it’s also not the most difficult either. The more Tarot readings you see, and do for yourself, the better you’ll be at understanding the meaning of the Tarot. So get ready, we’re about to go on a whirlwind history of the ages, and learn how Tarot cards came to be what they are today!

Where Did Tarot Start?

The origins of Tarot cards are unknown, but many think they migrated up from Egypt, where they were believed to be in use at the time. Speculation also centered upon a Chinese origin for a time, perhaps originating in 1120, mainly because of different inscriptions that were mistaken by Court de Gébelin, one of the early French occultists that did so much to make Tarot popular in the late-19th century.

India was suspected as the originator after that, but the suits used for the cards just didn’t make much sense in that regard. The cards may have been used for centuries before they were introduced in Europe, but there is no record of this. It wasn’t until the late-14th century that they first crop up in Europe. In 1392 the purchase of three Tarot decks was recorded by the Treasurer to the French king at the time, Charles VI, also called the Beloved and the Mad. It wasn’t until 1415, however, that the Tarot deck that most resembles those used today came into being.

Remember, Tarot’s original use was much different from what we know today. Tarot was a game, played for fun, and wasn’t used for divination until centuries after first being introduced. The negative connotations often given to Tarot today just didn’t exist during their first European appearance.

The First Decks

In 1415 we have a record of a hand-painted Tarot deck for the Duke of Milan. The oldest of the cards painted during that time that are