This series of articles was inspired by an interesting conversation I had with Krissy over here. Thanks Krissy! 🙂 Here is the first article in the series: ‘Connecting With Your Tarot Cards’.

Connecting with your Tarot card deck can often seem like a very difficult task, especially if it is your very first Tarot card deck. But this can even happen to experienced Tarot card readers who are trying to connect with a new Tarot card deck.

In this post, I am going to talk about the method that I like the best: Journaling.

Before we go ahead, let me tell you though that Journaling with your Tarot cards isn’t a quick and easy solution. It is something that takes time and effort. But, I will assure you of one thing: by the time you are done with this process, you will have not only have connected deeper with your cards, but you will have also discovered a whole wealth of meanings and interesting things about each of the cards in the deck. Although it may look like hard work, it is super-duper rewarding in the end.

In fact, I can also personally attest to the fact that this process helped me to connect with several other decks that I have in my possession.

So, without any further ado, lets begin.

What You Will Need

[singlepic id=33 w=320 h=240 float=left]Before you begin the journaling process, you will, first and foremost need a journal. You can go the traditional route and get yourself a nice journal from any office stationery store.

Here’s another idea though: you could get yourself a nice, thick three-ring binder, and some (ok, a lot of) loose papers that fit into that binder. This way, you will be able to add more papers in the middle if you run out.

Lets Get Started…

To begin, you assign a page (or two, or three) to each card. Then take the first card from your deck and really look at the picture.

A little warning here: if your deck came with a book, don’t look into it just yet. You’ll get to do that a little later, promise!

Now, after you’ve looked at the picture, write down the following things in your journal page:

• Your first impressions about the picture: talk about the colors and stuff that is going on in there.
• The symbols on the card that caught your attention: write a word or two about each symbol and what you think it might mean in relation to the picture on the card.
• Your feelings about the picture overall.
• The overall meaning of the card.

After you’ve done this exercise for the upright aspect of the card, repeat the same process for the reversed aspect of the card as well.

If your deck came with a book or a booklet (the LWB, as it is often lovingly referred to), now’s the time to open it.

• Look at the meanings and other stuff that has been given in the book for the card that you’re studying.
• Write down the stuff that catches your attention.
• If any of the meanings that you wrote are also mentioned in the book, then highlight it in your journal.
• Compare your notes and observations with what’s given in the book.

Repeat the process for the reversed aspect of the card as well.

Advantages of Journaling to Connect with your Tarot Cards

There are several advantages of using this process for getting closer to your cards.

• You’ll have a whole bunch of meanings that you can relate to (the stuff you wrote), and a bunch of stuff that you probably didn’t know about that card (the stuff from the book).
• Plus after spending this much time with the card, you’ll have familiarized yourself with several different aspects of that card,

Once you’ve done this process with each of the cards in your deck, you’ll have forged a very deep bond, a very intimate connection with your cards. This way, you’ll have a personal connect with the deck that will only serve to enhance your reading when you use that deck.

More Advantages of Journaling

[singlepic id=32 w=320 h=240 float=left]Apart from all these obvious advantages mentioned above, there are also some other bonuses that you’ll get from Journaling.

• This process will get you to first open your mind and look at the pictures from a very ‘clean slate’ point of view and then you just ‘add more meaning’ to your set of meanings from the book.
• Plus as you go along, your journal starts becoming a spot for you to record additional stuff that comes up. Over a period of time, you’ll actually have a book of your own in your hands.
• You can even add photos and other pictures into this journal – and make a Tarot-scrapbook out of it.
• You’ll really get creative! J

Show and Tell

How About An Example, Eh?

[singlepic id=31 w=150 h=150 float=left]Alright, I know I’ve described the process and outlined the advantages. But like all good Tarot readers, I’m going to show you what I mean…

The weird geek that I am, I keep my journal on my computer. What I am going to do is copy a page from that journal and show it to you as an example. Sounds interesting, right?

Here’s the page I made for the 2 of Cups from the Universal Waite deck.

2 of Cups (Universal Waite)

[singlepic id=29 w= h= float=center]

First Impressions:

Upright:

• • Boy meets Girl and Girl meets Boy
  • How Romantic!
  • What’s with the lion-head?
  • Is he trying to grab her cup, or is he giving her a cup?
  • Why isn’t she smiling?
  • Hmm.. there’s a house in the distance.. wonder what that means?
  • The stuff on their heads, and their costumes – this looks like some ceremony?
  • Nice good weather in the background too…

From the Pictorial Key to the Tarot (the book I got with the deck)

• • Youth and maiden pledging one another (like an engagement ceremony?)
  • Love, passion, friendship, interrelation of sexes

Reversed:

• • Boy and Girl go away from each other
  • No romance left between them

Additional Meanings: (these came in over time)

Upright:

• • Genuine friendship – may not always mean a romance
  • Came up today to mean friendship between two girls – could the boy and the girl over here talk about the inner aspects of these two girls that connect with each other? Hmmm…
  • Long term planning in a relationship
  • Came up today to talk about a business partnership that built up between two friends. Neat!

Reversed:

• • Emotional distance between boy and girl
  • Physical Distance between boy and girl
  • Fighting, bickering
  • A Break Up
  • Came up today to show a delay in getting together with the partner with whom this girl is having a long distance relationship.

Additional Notes: (this came up during some general research I was doing)

Read about the Hand-Fasting ritual today. Nice… Check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handfasting

Despite all this digital-geekery though, I must mention that one of the best Tarot Journals that I have seen so far was made by my student / friend Laura Gilmartin! She got the miniature version of the Universal Waite Cards and stuck them onto the first page for each card and then wrote all her notes and stuff. Believe me, I was so stunned – her Journal was so very beautiful!

This Process Was Inspired By…

Oh, and the book has a whole bunch of ideas and exercises and some really cool tips!

Your Turn…

What did you think of this method? Did you try it out for a few cards? What was your experience? Have you already Journaled before? Did I miss out on some points? Do you have any more pointers for me? Lets talk about it in the comments section below.