The Tarot Your Guide to Tarot Mastery

Transcription

1 The Tarot Your Guide to Tarot Mastery This edition s theme is based on the card called Death. If you realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to. If you are not afraid of dying, there is nothing you cannot achieve. - Lao Tzu Is this the Tarot card that you fear the most? Do you dread having it turn up when you are doing a reading for a client or friend? For most people this is a card that is difficult to interpret, especially if you want to give an uplifting reading. I went to the Tarot Guild s International Tarot Conference in August, and the Death card featured in many of the discussions. Tarot author Rachel Pollack had a fair bit to say about this card, and she provided some enlightening thoughts, which I ll share later in this newsletter. Some of the info in this newsletter is going to be based on information discovered and shared at that conference. It was a great opportunity to hear from some of the world s most respected Tarot teachers, and it was very enjoyable to be able to talk about Tarot to everyone and anyone at any hour of the day! It wasn t the first Tarot Conference to be held in Australia, and it definitely won t be the last, and I strongly recommend attending no matter whether you re a beginner, or an expert. You ll be thoroughly entertained and you ll gain more Tarot knowledge in one weekend than you ll find in a year of do-it-yourself tuition. Tarot Blessings, Page 1 - Editorial Page 2 - Verification Cards Page 3 - International Tarot Conference Page 4 - Interpretations for Death Page 5 - Spiritual Lesson of the Death Card Page 6 - Workshop Options Page 7 - Rachel Pollack Tarot Talk Page 8 - The Light Switch

2 Verification Cards Back in 1997 I went to my first International Tarot Conference and I met someone who changed the way I used Tarot. His name was James Wanless the creator of the Voyager Tarot. He was one of the guest speakers at the conference and his approach to Tarot transformed the way that I did my readings. At that conference I experienced the energies of the Death card. Through him I left many of my concepts of Tarot behind and I awoke to a world of new possibilities. James had a unique method of using Tarot. To him, Tarot was not fatalistic; he stressed again and again that he used Tarot in a pro-active manner. It was from James that I learned about the use of action cards. Action cards are ones that are chosen during a reading when you want to discover how to overcome a situation. If you don t like an outcome, you choose an action card which tells you what you can do to change your future. This concept opened my mind to a whole new way of looking at Tarot, and it has been the basis of every reading that I have done since then. And now I would like to share with you an extension of this unique approach. In a reading that I did recently, a lady (Miss M) was having difficulties with her sister-in-law. During the reading it had become clear that the obstacle hindering the relationship was the sister-in-law s need to be overly protective of the rest of the family. She was always interfering, even though in her mind she believed she was being helpful. An action card was chosen to work out how to deal with the sister-in-law. The card was the Page of Cups. It suggested that Miss M offer a nurturing attitude and when this idea was brought up, Miss M had the realisation that the sister-in-law was acting as a continual caregiver because of her own need for love and acceptance. To test whether this interpretation was correct, a verification card was drawn. We asked the following question: If Miss M is more loving and nurturing to her sister-in-law, what will be the result? The card that was drawn from the rest of the pack was the Ten of Cups. Did we get it right? Definitely. The situation had been verified! The next step is verification cards. When you do a reading and you see an outcome, or an obstacle that you want to change, you can choose an action card and work out an interpretation for it, but how do you know if your interpretation is correct? How do you know if the action you choose to undertake is going to give the result you expect? The answer is to choose a verification card. After giving your interpretation for the action card, ask yourself the following question: If I take this action, what will be the result? Choose a card from the remaining ones in the deck. If you have interpreted the action card correctly, you will see a positive outcome in the verification card. It will indicate a successful conclusion to the situation. A skull? A trailer full of junk? A work of art? This was seen in Burra, South Australia, July 2013

3 When you take 100 Tarot enthusiasts and put them together with some of the world s most famous Tarot authors and teachers, you end up with a weekend of new ideas, lively discussions, and a refreshed sense of awe about this amazingly adaptable system of divination. In August I was at the Tarot Guild s International Tarot Conference. It was held in Melbourne and people from all over Australia (and some from China) took part in this brilliant event. Our special guests were Rachel Pollack (New York), Mary K. Greer (California), Caitlin Matthews (England), Amber Jayanti (New Zealand), Linda Marson (Australia) and Brian Clark (Australia). A few other local experts were also chosen to present workshops at this event. At the opening ceremony, Australian singer/songwriter Wendy Rule gave a stunning performance in which she invoked Tarot s four elements and created a sacred space for our workshops. Brian Clark s talk called Soul and the Tarot provided a great concept...he said, Look through the cards and the one you like least of all is your soul card. Caitlin Matthew did a whole workshop devoted to noticing the way that the character in the card is facing in a spread. Clarification cards can then be placed in front of the characters to see what they are looking at. It s an intriguing concept that I m going to make use of from now on. And Rachel Pollack s talks were enlightening as always! One of the key concepts discussed was how we need to acknowledge the energy of difficult cards such as Death. She said, It s too easy to call it simply death of the old self, or transformation. The idea of something dying, of loss, of pain, needs to be addressed. Anne Shotter (the original president of the Tarot Guild) then gave a presentation describing how the Tarot Guild came about, and we heard about the first conference that they put together in The slideshow of images from that event brought back some great memories. The workshops over the next 3 days were varied in their approach and subject matter, but all were entertaining and rich in substance. Some of the highlights were... Linda Marson (from Global Spiritual Studies) presented a seminar called Reading for Yourself. It provided a couple of great spreads which I ll share in future workshops that I ll be running next year. Mary K. Greer gave a wonderful presentation that explained the history and uses of the latest Tarot fad, which is called The Lenormand. We learnt however, that the Lenormand cards are not Tarot as such, but many card readers like to use them because there are many similarities between the two forms of divination. More info will appear on the Mister Tarot website about these cards in the near future. Mary K. Greer also gave another informative talk called, The Secret Tradition and the Symbolism of Waite s High Priestess Card. For lovers of symbolism (like myself) this was a great experience. Rachel Pollack, Evelynne Joffe, Linda Marson, Caitlin Matthews, Mary Greer The closing ceremony was also performed by Wendy Rule and it turned into an energetic conga line which joyfully ended a fantastic long weekend. Now I m off to the UK Tarot Conference, and I ll have much more to report after that experience! New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings. - Lao Tzu

4 Learn how to combine Tarot and Palmistry in an innovative, five week course, held once a week at Hahndorf, S. A. Only $190 Trev: witchabilia@hotmail.com UK Tarot Conference 10th - 12th October 2013 This Tarot gathering is celebrating its 10 th anniversary in London! Presenters include Caitlin Matthews and the talented deck creator Ciro Marchetti. Free Tarot Readings Some of the students from my Tarot Workshops would like to do free readings in exchange for feedback. If you d like to be added to the list as a reader, or if you would like a free Tarot reading from someone who is hoping to gain confidence through experience, send me an and I ll put you in touch. MisterTarot@yahoo.com.au Tarot Quiz Q: Which card mirrors the pose of Death, in the Death card?

5 The Spiritual Lesson of the Death Card On the physical level, the lesson of this card is to recognise death as a natural part of the cycle of existence. When you can accept this reality, you will have taken another step towards the release of the ego. When you let go of your fear of death, you can taste life with greater gusto! A Buddhist teaching states, So the world is afflicted by death and decay, therefore the wise do not grieve, knowing the terms of the world. If you look at this process with fear, then you could easily decide life is without meaning. But when you accept endings as an essential aspect of existence, you learn to treasure every moment of daily life. You make your life meaningful by choosing to live it in spiritual fulfilment. Confronting yourself regarding any fears about your physical death can free you from a lifetime of insecurity. Accepting your mortality enables you to live with an open heart and an unburdened mind. By facing your physical death, you can truly live. And by shedding the facade of your old self, your spirit can be free. Review of Real Tarot by Mary Don McLeod, or Mister Tarot, has spent the last 25 years making the Tarot accessible to all by cutting through the myths that surround the 78 pieces of cardboard that constitute a deck. Real Tarot is his latest contribution in this ongoing struggle. The first part of Real Tarot is all about getting the big picture and realizing that one already has the tools necessary to read the cards. After all, daily, we all deal with symbols of one kind or another. Just imagine navigating our modern world if every instruction had to be spelled out! In a chatty, fireside tone, and many judicious examples from the classical Rider-Waite Tarot deck, Don demonstrates how easy it is to make meaning from the illustrations found on these cards. He then takes the time to explain that the future is not engraved in stone and that one of the uses of Tarot is to see trends, to play the game of What if? As he states, the use for Tarot is limited only by the imagination of the user. Real Tarot is available from When one consults the Tarot, the most difficult part is actually formulating a question that will yield the most accurate result and Don painstakingly shows the reader how this can be done. The second part of Real Tarot is all about mastering the details that were outlined in the previous section. Through many questions and exercises based on the theory presented, the reader feels immersed in a one-on-one workshop. What this book makes the reader realize, is that the Tarot is all about tapping into the universal symbols that humanity has always understood. But what really impressed me was the amount of research and passion that went into the very readable chapter: The History of Tarot and the charts in the Summary section. Well done, Don!

6 Tarot Simplified a workshop with Don McLeod Sunday 10 th November 2013 from 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Held at Cosmic Pages Bookshop King William Street, Adelaide How Tarot Works Demystifying Tarot Insightful Tarot Spreads Learn Easy Interpretations Practical & Spiritual Uses By the end of this workshop you will feel comfortable using Tarot cards and you will have a better understanding of their meanings. hours training for only $65 Requirements: Rider-Waite Tarot Deck Bookings essential: Phone Elite Tarot Coaching One o one sessions are available for personalised, professional Tarot coaching with Don McLeod. Each elite coaching session goes for two hours and provides tips and techniques to give you confidence in doing readings and making interpretations. MisterTarot yahoo.com.au The coaching fee is $99 Personalised Classes Want to learn Tarot with your friends? Get a group together and I ll come to you! MisterTarot@yahoo.com.au Don McLeod s Tarot Workshops 2014 Want to get serious about learning Tarot? Next year I am running a series of workshops to help you become a more confident and proficient Tarot reader. All will be held in the workshop rooms of Cosmic Pages Bookshop from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. All of these workshops are only $75 each. If you ve already been to one of my Tarot Simplified classes, or if you have a good understanding of the basics of Tarot, then you re welcome at these workshops. January 19 The Major Arcana Gain an understanding of the role of the Major Arcana in Tarot readings. Discover the meanings of the Major Arcana Realise the significance of the Major Arcana as a model for spiritual growth and personal enlightenment. Do spreads using only the Major Arcana. April 13 The Court Cards June 15 The Minor Arcana August 24 Tarot Spreads October 19 Tarot Spirituality December 7 Tarot Readings Bookings are already open... Phone to reserve your place.

7 Rachel Pollack Tarot Talk Here are some more notes from a talk given by Tarot author Rachel Pollack in Adelaide, This segment was at the start of her talk, where she explained the origins of her Shining Tribe Tarot Deck. Rachel said, The Shining Tribe Deck is a deck that I made. I drew all the pictures. It was first called Shining Woman, then I changed it to Shining Tribe. Part of the idea of it is I created a myth of the Tarot s origin which is that there were spirit beings, which were the constellations and the planets, and they were the Shining Tribe, the tribe of spiritual beings. To communicate their understanding and to connect to human beings, they created the Tarot cards and gave them to human diviners. The human diviners were also the Shining Tribe. Anybody that does divination is a member of the Shining Tribe Diviners, and whatever cards you use, or dice, or runes or any other technique you use you are connecting to the spirits who gave divination to humanity. The recording of Rachel s talk is 45 minutes in length and it s full of interesting information about Tarot, given by one of the world s most famous Tarot authors. It s available for $9.99 Click here and you can get an immediate download. You ll be able to listen to it through your computer, or have it on your ipod while jogging, or learn about Tarot while you are driving your car! Mister Tarot is on Facebook! Visit here and click Like to get all the latest Tarot news. Free Book of Tarot Spreads Have you downloaded your free e-book of Tarot spreads yet? It s fully illustrated and lots of example readings are given. Many of the spreads are originals that have never been published before. And all of the spreads are designed with simplicity and usefulness in mind. To download a free copy of this book of Tarot Spreads, follow these simple steps 1) If you have a Facebook account, sign in! 2) Find Mister Tarot s Facebook page (here s the link) 3) Click Like 4) Return to this newsletter and click here to download. I touch you knowing we weren t born tomorrow, and somehow, each of us will help the other live, and somewhere, each of us must help the other die. - Adrienne Rich, Twenty One Love Poems Feedback: Thanks so much for the book on Tarot Spreads. To date I have only had time to employ the Soul Card Spread on myself and two close family members, but have been blown away by the uncanny resonance in each case. - Kay Dickin

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