The 78 major and minor arcana cards might be seen as mere a divination tool. It can help you see your future and your past, which is great for planning out magical workings and figuring out where you're going and how to get there. It can also be an incredible aid for self-development, interpersonal skills and emotional support, helping you learn about yourself and what makes you tick, which is awesome for helping you balance your inner light with the darkness of the world around us.
Here is a closer look at the plethora of skills tarot reading might help you develop and polish:
Helps with Personal Growth Tarot is often categorized as a divination medium, and a wonderful one at it! This multi-faceted tool also happens to be an insightful tool for self-discovery and assisting in ones inner work. By elaborating questions dedicated to introspection, you may uncover parts of you that have been hiding in the shadows. But be mindful of how listening to the truth can get rough and uncomfortable, that is a very human response, yet allowing yourself to listen and reflect on the answers your cards have given may enlighten you. The Tarot can also help you learn more about yourself by helping you uncover what's holding you back from achieving your goals and desires. They can help you gain insight into your personality and how you interact with the world around you, see where your strengths and weaknesses lie, what your goals are and how best to achieve them. You can also use them as a way to explore different aspects of your personality and learn more about yourself in general. With knowledge comes empowerment, thus the more you learn about yourself, the more you can redirect your energy towards becoming your ideal self, consequently improving where you feel there is a lack.
Brings Clarity and Perspective Seeking our wants can be a treacherous path to navigate, with confirmation bias creeping in alongside wishful thinking. There is no course of action better than sitting with your cards, filled with witty imagery riddled with meaning, to find that little piece of anything that gives us the thumbs up. However, a somewhat harsh reminder is that the cards never fail to give us the message we need to hear. NEED to hear, not want to hear. This is the reason why coming to the cards with a neutral emotional state is imperative. Allowing yourself to listen without bias can create space for clarity, perspective, and important insights for big life decisions. Many times, someone on the outside, including a deck of cards, can see clearer than us who are living it. Use that knowledge to your advantage.
Teaches us how to become a good listener If you think that because tarot cards are the recipients of all of our questions, wondering and doubts, are good listeners… you’re absolutely right! They are! But you might forget that tarot reading is a two way street, where you also have to be an active listener. Tarot reading is not a monologue, its an active and engaging, slow paced conversation. If you’re anything like me, ADHD or suffering from anxiety, you know way too well how your brain struggles with answering questions before they’re even asked. In tarot, we learn to calm the mind, to reflect, think what we will ask, and sit in thought with the answer. If you practice intuitive reading, giving yourself that moment of introspection during interpreting the cards gives you extra space to let the message come through and resonate. Taking that skill into real-world interactions can really benefit with refining your communication skills, helping you navigate through difficult situations and relationships with compassion and empathy.
Sharpens Your Intuition As important as having a deep literary understanding of all of the information depicted on each card — numerology, astrology, symbology and so forth - intuitive reading is highly encouraged not only for you to connect with your deck, but to also develop your intuitive voice. Letting your subconscious shine through opening the doors to self-discovery, giving you valuable insight on what your intuition is guiding you towards. I often compare it to a Rorschach test, once you quiet your mind, set aside your ego, and are in a neutral state, you will be amazed by the answers your “gut” may reveal. Sometimes, the cards just give us a nudge to bringing out the answers that have been inside us all along!
Provides Confidence A tale as old as time: it takes practice to become good at something. As much as we all want to be a prodigy, pick up a deck and instantly know everything, it takes time to develop the skill of tarot reading and the storytelling skill that comes with the craft. As you begin to learn spreads by heart, recognize patterns, and see your results manifesting in reality, your trust in both the cards and your magick will bring out the confidence in your inner voice. Tarot can be a confirmation tool for your intuition, and it can teach you to separate wishful thinking from gut feeling. By continuously practicing following that voice, you will notice that it becomes second nature, bringing about confidence in yourself and your decisions.
Promotes Self-care Making space for the cards or reading spreads is absolutely self-care. Any minute you take in the day to listen to your body and soul is a step towards self-love as well. You may choose to meditate before or after you read, you may choose to take that read as an opportunity to journal, or even do a one card pull at the top of your day to set the tone or receive a message. All of these little moments you take and create in order to build a relationship with yourself are important, and necessary. If you’re not good yet at creating space for self-care, use tarot as an excuse to create a routine.
Connecting with people This might not be related to tarot specifically, but what it can attract. As old as the tarot reading practice is, the cards are still a novelty in many social circles. Pulling out a deck at a gathering or party can spark much attention, curiosity and be a conversation starter. Try offering a reading for new and old friends, and use that as an opportunity to get to know them better!
Accepting and Embracing Change Changes can be overwhelming and incredibly challenging (I know you’re nodding your heads Tauruses!). Life is filled with twists and turns, and while some ride those waves with ease, others may have difficulty not having much control over unexpected situations. Tarot can assist with working through acceptance, stubbornness and one's resistance to go with the flow. Taking a step back to move forward is sometimes necessary to see the big picture. That said, spreads that contemplate the past and give you an overview of the present may be of great help when there is a strugle coping with complex emotions. As you move forward, let the cards bring you comfort and open your path and mind to change.
Keeps Your Ego in Check The ego has its purpose, but keeping it in check can be transformational. Ego can create tunnel vision, putting you in a position of self-righteousness while forgetting that an outside perspective can bring you much wisdom. When you catch yourself stuck in that mindset, turning to a trusted voice such as your tarot deck, can help ground you. If you see yourself feeling intense jealousy, a need to always be right in arguments, having an unhealthy level of competitiveness, and unwillingness to receive criticism or input, you can be certain that your Ego has taken the wheel. Take this as a sign to pull out your deck.
Working with tarot is a partnership, a relationship that you develop by learning from each other, building trust, and better understand the nuances in your deck's voice and wisdom. All while tapping into the self-knowledge that is within but might not yet have been unlocked in those new to the journey of self-discovery. If you’ve worked with more than one tarot deck you might have experienced the difference in personalities each print has. I do enjoy starting my day with a softer voice when pulling my "card of the day", but for the heavy stuff, I tend to lean towards the ones that give me a no BS, “tough love” approach. This same deck is the one that seems to find pleasure in snapping me out of “ego vision”. If you also own our Golden Universal Tarot, you know this well. Use those different personalities mindfully, selecting the one that suits the aspect of personal development you seek. The voice of your cards are as important as the message they deliver. Working with cards is in no way a replacement for professional mental health support, but it is a helpful tool for those seeking to connect with oneself.
Do you know of any other ways that tarot can contribute with self-improvement? Share with us in the comment section below!
Happy Reading!