HISTORY AND PRACTICE OF TAROT

Tarot appeared in northern Italy in the 15th century. Like all games of that era, it is thought to have been inspired by Oriental card games. The Tarot of Marseille, the most famous of all, has a total of 78 cards, including 22 major cards and 56 minor cards.

Nowadays, many variations of the tarot exist, such as the Egyptian tarot, the Gypsy tarot, the tarot, the Oracle of Gé, the Belline Oracle and the Lenormand tarot.

Every tarot reader has their own favourite deck and spread; there is no real rule in this field, apart from the general meaning of the cards.

We are now going to look at the meaning of the most enigmatic card in the Tarot of Marseille: the DEVIL!

DO YOUR FREE TAROT READING

THE DEVIL CARD IN THE TAROT OF MARSEILLE

This arcanum symbolises the forces that disturb, cloud and confuse consciousness; it shows the side opposed to light and clarity, in opposition to God, the living source of eternal light. It is the underground world, beneath our feet, as well as the opposite of the light of heaven.

The clearest definition of this card is “dependence” on someone or something, a weak will and acts committed against your own beliefs. This tarot card identifies you as having your hands and feet bound by your fears, your beliefs or a harmful situation. We are connected to someone. A lack of freedom. A negative relationship, that is, a bond that everyone wants to break. Commitments made to do something.

The Devil tells us that it is time to reconsider the perspective of our beliefs and goals. Are they your own, or are they imposed from the outside and drowning you?

Moreover, the Devil tarot card can symbolise material, purely physical need and the desire to dominate others.

As regards marriage, the card indicates that the marriage is threatened with collapse. If you are wondering whether you are truly in love, it means you cannot escape it.

Attraction to someone or something, desire or money: there is a tendency to confuse sexual attraction with love.

In the position of obstacles, the Devil indicates that, in the situation, a lie is being experienced, or that one is present.

In the position of the future, you must fight against the temptation of self-delusion and of greed for money and power. Make sure you have not become a person you are seeking to control, taking care not to reach a dead end.

LEARNING TAROT READING

I am often asked what one should do to start reading tarot cards.
There is obviously no universal recipe, but in this post I have listed the 3 things I consider fundamental.

Before buying a tarot book, buy a complete deck of 78 cards (major and minor arcana). I recommend the unrivalled Tarot of Marseille!
Then unwrap your deck and immerse yourself in it: feel it, look at the cards attentively and decipher them. Have fun and explore.

Some say that tarot cards can only be read on the basis of intuition and inspiration, but I believe that dusting off the theory is necessary.
Buying a manual or book thus becomes the second ingredient for getting off to a good start in tarot reading.

It is important that the book you choose refers to your deck of cards: for example, if you buy a Tarot of Marseille deck, also buy a guide on the Tarot of Marseille.
Many books are available to you; take a stroll through an esoteric bookshop, or on Amazon, and you will surely find what you are looking for.

A TRUE STORY ABOUT A TAROT READING

Tarot cards can be used to analyse relationships of all kinds: those between boyfriends and girlfriends, lovers, mother and son, boss and employee, brother and sister and, of course, married couples.

I would like to tell you about a very special reading I did for two friends, who moved me with their courage to question themselves.

It was a warm summer evening, one of those evenings when you want to relax while sipping a nice cool mojito in good company. I had organised a tarot-reading evening in a charming little square of a small provincial village, on a sleepless night lit by the moon, and I had waited for people to come closer.

At a certain point, a group of young girls arrived, wrapped in a soft cloud of perfume that smelled of first loves, vanilla, coconut and caramel. Two of them sat down in front of me, while the others looked at each other through their mobile phones and counted one another’s freckles.

The brunette began: she wanted to question the tarot cards about friendship. I asked her if she had a particular person in mind, and she said yes, without adding any details.

As soon as I saw the cards she had drawn, I asked her if she was sure she wanted to call herself this person’s “friend“. The girl told me, without any hesitation, that this was her best friend. Ah…

The cards spoke of a very unbalanced relationship, in which she (the Chariot) did both good and harm and dragged the other (the HIGH PRIESTESS) into a thousand adventures, without much concern for her point of view.

The friend wavered between moments when blind admiration made her do anything to please her idol, and moments when she felt almost a victim of this relationship, unable to express herself as she would have wished.

At the same time, the High Priestess was an indispensable navigator for the adventures of the Chariot: her sensitivity and wisdom limited the damage of her friend’s vehemence, and her timid advice was in fact very precious.

The Devil card, however, said that one person’s need for an audience and the spotlight, combined with the other’s need to please mixed with her discomfort, would soon lead to explosive conflicts and unpleasant quarrels.

This reading did not recommend ending the relationship, but rather seeking a fair balance: a call for moderation and mutual respect, represented by the angel of TEMPERANCE.

While I was explaining the message of the cards, the beautiful brunette had remained impassive and had barely blinked. She told me I was right about everything, took a photo of the cards and did not want to add anything else.

Then it was the blonde‘s turn. I asked her if she too wanted to question the arcana to find out how she was getting on with her best friend, but she replied that it was not necessary: I had just done it. She was the High Priestess!

She wiped away a tear, black as the mascara framing her lashes, and told me that hearing my words gave her chills: it was all true, and she wanted to do it again.

I was seized by a sudden urge to hug them both, the blonde and the brunette and their bubble-bath scent: they had been very brave and had questioned themselves without fearing to listen to the analysis of the cards and to open themselves to the constructive criticism that the tarot cards had brought to light.

They stood up and treated themselves to a moment of indulgence before the feast, with the Temperance card in their hands and a smile that did not shine because of the strawberry lip gloss.

Well, this is one of the thousand examples where Tarot has helped to clarify a relationship; and if two people put the cards to the question, the result is guaranteed.