Mystical Angels

Where can I get a good deck of tarot cards?

Im an amateur so i would need a deck that has well drawn symbolic cards in which all the symbols are explained(so i could interpret the card without looking at a reference book)and a reference book that will also explain the deeper meanings and positioning of the card clearly and easily(and also different patterns to place and read the cards)...I'm having trouble finding anything like this at any book store,most are just too simple and not elaborate enough or have horribly drawn cards(i love the artistic part of the tarot)please help?

Public Comments

1. There are hundreds of tarot decks available out there and most can be found online. Most "guidebooks" (I'm guessing you mean the little whitebook that comeswith the deck) are pretty vague. The LWBs that come with cards produced by the Los Scarabeo company are especially vague while the LWBs that come with cards produced by US Game Systems are often slightly more descriptive, but are not that much better. Youre best bet is to find a good deck that you like and then by yourself a general guidebook on tarot. Most such general books are based on the Rider-Waite system (which is patterned after the Rider-Waite-Smith deck) but applies to all decks that use that system. A lot of beautiful decks carry the same general ideas as those of the RWS deck, some more closely then others... the Hanson-Roberts deck, Morgan Greer deck, the Fenestra deck and the official Los Scarabeo deck are all good decks that are very close to the Rider Waite in their images. Any deck will do though… find one whose images appeal to you and that “speak” to you. To choose a good deck for yourself you’ll want a deck that first of all you find appealing… something that will motivate you to use the cards. More importantly, however, you’ll want a deck that “speaks” to you. Find a sample image of one (or several) of the cards. Ask a somewhat random sample question and then look at the image… how would you answer your question if you pulled that card? If the answer comes fairly easily, then it might be a good deck. If it’s a struggle, then it might not be a good deck for you, even if you find it really beautiful. One effective method of learning tarot is to journal. Go card-by-card through your deck in order and spend some time with each card. Study the image on the card and record your impressions. Break down the symbolism (out loud if you have to) and record what you think it means. Then get out your books… the guidebook that comes with the deck and any other book you have with tarot meanings (at least having one other book can be helpful. I recommend either “Tarot: Your Everyday Guide” bu Jenina Renee or “The Tarot Workbook” by Nevill Drury) and read through the entries while examining the picture on the card. Record whatever information seems important or relevant. When you are through with the deck, go back through your notes and study them… compile a short statement about the card, maybe a couple of sentences describing what you think it means… then see if you can break this down further into a keyword or two that describes the card… this will help the meanings you see by studying the cards stick in your head a little. The next thing you might try is comparing the numbers. Take out all the aces and compare what they mean… the things they have in common will refer to the essential meaning of “ace” and the things that are different about them will refer to the essential meanings of each suit. Go on and do this with the twos, threes etc until you’ve gone through all the minor arcana. I found this to be extremely helpful, myself. Next find a reference for the “Journey of the Fool” and the story about the major arcana and why they are in that particular order and what they symbolize in our greater life’s journey. Journal about the Journey and how you feel about the major arcana… these things were all very helpful to me in my training. To do a reading, leave the books alone. Don’t even keep any of your guidebooks with your deck as you don’t want to be tempted to reference it during the reading, keep it out of reach. Read from the images, even if you have no experience with the cards. Look at the people on the cards and figure out what they are doing, how they are feeling and what the various symbols might indicate, then try to apply the behaviors and symbols on the card to the situation at hand. Use your intuition to focus on what seems to be the most important and relevant aspect of the image or symbolism. If you’ve never read before, you might be better off leaving more complex spreads alone. Leave the complex 10-card “Celtic Cross” spread for when you are more experienced with the cards and stick with simple spreads like a one-card spread or 3 to 4 card spreads where the positions are fairly easy to figure out. Once you’ve got a better handle on the cards themselves and the positions of your spreads, you can experiment with more complex spreads and trying to read the relationships between the cards. -Scarlet
2. I have a deck that I really like that came with a 227 page reference book called "The Mythic Tarot". It's out of print now but they are coming out with a "New Mythic Tarot" later this year which is similar.
3. I recently bought the Osho Zen Tarot Deck from Amazon. I find it easy to interpret without even looking at the instruction book. http://www.amazon.com/Osho-Zen-Tarot-Set-Ozt99/dp/0880797541/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1304535696&sr=8-6
4. Have you checked out the Aeclectic website? It has a huge listing of tarot decks complete with sample pictures of all the cards. It will give you a good idea of what each deck is like which should hopefully help you pick out the one you want.
5. I saw some at Barnes and Nobel