We’ve all been there. Sitting anxiously, you clutch your deck of tarot cards with a burning question in mind. You are desperate for an answer, a sign, some reassurance that there is a way forward. The fear of the looming decision you must make feels all-encompassing. Perhaps the cards will bring you clarity. You’ve always been an open-minded, spiritual person. Perhaps the Universe will finally give you the answer you need to get out of the pit of fear you find yourself in.
You take a deep breath. Trembling, you turn over the first card …
It’s the Eight of Swords!!! This can’t be good!
So many of the tarot books that you’ve read warn you about how awful this card is. Stagnation, fear, destruction, calamity, illness, the ruination of all your plans; the worst images of suffering cycle through your mind. You feel let down. This reading was supposed to make you feel good, to give you clarity. Instead you are more confused and even more desperate for reassurance. The Eight of Swords?! Are you kidding me?!
This just can’t be. How could the answer be so hopeless? You think to yourself, “Perhaps I wasn’t clear when focusing on my question.” Aha! That’s it! You just need to focus more—think positive thoughts! Law of Attraction, right?! If you think more positively, you can override your anxiety, and the next card will surely give you more uplifting news. Breathing deeply, you let go of the scary imagery of the first card. You begin to shuffle again. You focus on thinking happy thoughts. “Please be the Sun card … please be the Sun … be positive … happy thoughts … Ten of Cups would be good …” Your mind flashes the fear of the first card you drew. You still don’t know if the Eight of Swords was a fluke or a real sign of problems to come. Whatever! Time for card number two …
The Devil reversed!!!
This is terrible!!!
This reading is a disaster! A sinking feeling of hopelessness prevails. Is the moon void of course? Maybe you just can’t do a good reading because it’s during a Mercury retrograde … maybe you are just a bad reader and don’t know tarot as well as you thought you did … maybe you are a great reader, but your life feels like a complete mess with no hope, no way forward. How can the Eight of Swords and the Devil reversed be anything but horrible? Everybody seems to say so. All the books you’ve read, all the mini booklets that come with the cards—it’s just more bad news. Even the sketchy fortune-teller you got that reading from on South 9th Street told you that the Eight of Swords and Devil reversed mean you must have a curse on you from a hidden enemy (and for nine hundred dollars she can focus all her magical prayers into removing it for you).
Let’s face it: the tarot’s symbolism can be downright scary when you are navigating alone in the dark with the fears you’ve brought with you. Some of the tarot’s imagery, particularly in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, can appear absolutely frightening! So many decks have evolved from this deck’s iconic symbolism, and yet so many past interpretations of its “darker” cards leave little sense that life will improve—especially if you receive the Eight, Nine, or Ten of Swords to symbolize your outcome in a reading. Many of the interpretations available for the cards seem to pour kerosene on the flames of what we fear most. It’s no wonder that there is an amorphous anxiety among the general public when discussing tarot card reading. For many, the cards seem linked to omens of bad news.
In popular culture, tarot is presented as “scary.” We all remember the movies and soap operas in which the old woman with the raspy voice turns over the Death card, a sure portent for impending doom. Tarot is also presented as a scam. “Call me now for your free tarot reading!” Miss Cleo trumpets with her faux Jamaican accent. Unfortunately, tarot has been used by unscrupulous villains in the past to scare people with the tarot’s imagery. After all, people who are afraid are easy to control.
The actual cards and their imagery are not the problem. The problem occurs when we look at those symbols through a lens of fear. In actuality, the tarot’s symbols can uproot and highlight where our problems are originating from. If utilized to their full potential, tarot cards can be an extremely healing and transformative tool. Many of the problems in interpreting tarot can be found in our perspective. Not only in our thoughts while shuffling the cards, but in our immediate go-to definitions for what the cards mean. Tarot is subjective. It tells different stories to different people. Symbolism can be jarring, but it is symbolism. It is rarely meant to be taken literally. Even the most unsettling image has an important story to tell and a deeper place within your experience to illuminate. I have found that the cards we are most uncomfortable with are where we often find the biggest breakthrough and the greatest healing. After all, it’s during our most challenging moments (not our easiest times) when we come into direct contact with what is best within us.
As a professional tarot reader for well over two decades, I used to hesitate when people asked me, “So what do you do for a living?” I always paused for a moment. What assumptions did this person have about what I do?
When I tell strangers that I read tarot, I get a range of reactions: Shock. Disbelief. Does not compute. Say what?! Many times, I’ve heard people say, “I would never do that; it’s just too scary.” I also get tons of skepticism. Then there is the reaction of smiling and nodding … basically as one does to humor a crazy person. I’ve even experienced some people who display anger and hostility toward tarot readings and readers. This is often a mask for their fears, too.
Why are people so afraid of tarot? I have come to find that they are afraid of what they don’t understand. For my entire professional life, clients have come to me with their fears. They are looking for answers and for a way forward. In my experience, reciting the hopeless definitions of “bad cards” doesn’t help people. I’ve seen many readers scare clients with “bad cards” to inflate their own weakened egos. Readers who receive a power trip by frightening people are not only inappropriate but unethical. It makes my stomach sink to see this sort of nasty manipulation.
I believe in using tarot for empowerment. I never use the tarot to exacerbate a client’s anxieties. I prefer to help clients pinpoint what needs healing (especially with their inner perception of the situation) and reacquaint them with what is best within them. When interpreted in a manner that encourages people, the tarot’s potent symbolism can illuminate a path to reclaim strength and restore personal power. This cannot be done if the individual is stuck in a fearful spiral, interpreting the tarot’s symbolism with dark hopelessness. When people are reacquainted with their inner courage, they usually know just what to do.
transcending shadows with tarot
The purpose of this book is to provide an empowering perspective as you journey through the imagery of the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot. Cards that appear frightening are symbolic wake-up calls. They are not meant to make you feel powerless or hopeless about the future. It can be argued that each card presents challenges. However, if you know where to look in the picture, the keys to overcoming the challenges can be found right in front of you.
This book will
• help you deliver empowering readings for yourself and others;
• aid you in transcending your shadows when interpreting your own cards;
• amplify what your inner wisdom has been whispering to you all along;
• increase your fluency with applying the details of tarot imagery to everyday life;
• challenge excessively negative interpretations of “darker” card imagery and view them in a new light; and
• reveal how to interpret reversed cards constructively.
Tarot is a powerful tool for inner transformation because symbols were our first written language. Images transcend words. We all know the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Tarot cards contain rich, archetypal imagery. People have been using symbols and archetypes to dialogue with their Inner Selves since the dawn of humanity. Originally, we were drawing these same primordial archetypes on cave walls. Tarot resonates because it speaks directly to the archetypes that collectively reside within us all. The symbolic figures depicted in the tarot are a powerful group. They encompass the full range of the human experience. The archetypes in the tarot are a mirror for the archetypes that are busily chatting away in the background of our consciousness.
This book will guide you through many hidden symbols within each card. In the case of darker cards, a hidden image in the card will be highlighted to reveal the way to overcome the challenge presented. Once you know where to look on the card, the solution to your present impasse can be quite simple.
Pamela Colman Smith’s artistry is a testament to her genius. For over a century, tarot students have been reexamining these magical images. Like all great works of art, they speak to different individuals in diverse ways. The tarot interpretations on the following pages are my own observations, and I do not claim to recapture the original intentions of Pamela Colman Smith or Edward Waite. There are many wonderful books that can give you a historical perspective of the card’s imagery, such as Secrets of the Waite-Smith Tarot by Marcus Katz and Tali Goodwin. This book delves into the history of the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot and extensively researches some of the original sources of inspiration for Pamela Colman Smith’s artwork. As for the original card definitions of the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot, you could study A Pictorial Key to the Tarot by Sir Arthur Edward Waite. There are thousands of different perspectives on this iconic deck. Everyone who engages with these images ends up perceiving and applying them uniquely. I encourage you to let your own instincts and impressions inform your own unique interpretations of these amazing images.
An uplifting tarot reading can help you overcome external challenges by calling attention to their root causes within as well as the resources to overcome them. Everything you need to transcend your difficulties can be found reflected in these remarkable images. The tarot is an effective tool for illuminating pathways inward, through ancient archetypes and symbols, uncovering the place where your solutions were hidden. Tarot presents your situation in the context of the symbolic. This gives you the ability to reexamine your worries and fears with distance and perspective, thereby empowering you to act. Although tarot can be used as a predictive tool to reveal insights into a likely future, its revelations are not set in stone. You are empowered to change anything about your life you don’t like. The future does not just happen to you, but rather is formed by every choice you make in the present. Your thoughts are the magic spells that manifest the reality you will experience. Tarot can help you focus those thoughts on what is best and brightest within you.
how to use this book
This book can be a positive reference guide when providing readings to yourself and others. It is also intended to offer a constructive perspective when engaging with challenging tarot imagery. Many readers find that they are quite adept at offering uplifting consultations to others but find it difficult to retain their positive perspective when interpreting their own cards. For example, if the Tower appears in a client’s reading, you probably wouldn’t panic. You might see that the ground is metaphorically shaking, but there is still hope after the storm passes. However, if you are anxiously consulting your own cards and the Tower appears, you might feel defeated because it seems to contradict an outcome that you are attached to. Sometimes we are just too close to our situation to see it with a clear perspective. Other times, we may be so attached to the desired outcome that we are blind to the solution staring us in the face.
Card of the Day
Originally the descriptions for each card were written as Card of the Day blog posts on my website. They were intended to reveal areas of opportunity and to provide daily positive advice to my readers for empowerment. Many tarot readers pull a card every morning to center themselves and to see where their focus might best be applied for the day ahead.
To use the Card of the Day method for yourself, take a few moments in the morning to center and relax. Inhale slowly through your nose for eight seconds. Hold in your breath for another eight seconds. Slowly exhale through your lips over eight seconds, making a pphhhhh sound. Repeat this process two more times. Begin shuffling your tarot deck. Clear your mind and ask, “What opportunity is the Universe presenting me with today to grow and succeed?” With the cards facedown, allow your fingers to intuitively select the card that encapsulates the present message meant for you. You can’t pick the “wrong” card. Try not to dismiss the card just because you don’t like how it looks or because it wasn’t what you expected. If you do feel resistant to a card’s imagery, that should be a big red flag that the message is definitely for you. Human beings habitually avoid what isn’t comfortable. However, the uncomfortable thing is usually what will get you to the next level if you can accept it.
The card you select may not be the card you expect, but there will be an important symbol found within it to provide you with new insight into yourself.
The Rider-Waite-Smith tarot is rich in symbolism. Some pictures appear uplifting, and some others appear rather jarring. For example, if you pull the Ten of Swords as your card for the day, that does not mean you are doomed to have a terrible day. You are, however, being shown something important that needs your attention. In the case of the Ten of Swords, it might indicate that you are not facing something that is causing you to feel anxious. By facing the issue, you will feel stronger and will no longer feel like you are being chased or victimized by fear. Selecting a card with dark imagery does not guarantee bad news for you. In fact, the darker cards have the greatest propensity for catapulting you toward a huge breakthrough. As you will read in the following pages, there are various ways to apply even the harshest tarot symbolism in a positive and empowering manner.
regarding reversals
One area of disagreement among readers is whether to interpret cards that appear reversed. There is no right or wrong way to interpret the tarot. There are many successful readers who don’t care for interpreting reversals. This is totally fine. Tarot is not a fundamentalist pursuit. Its meanings are ever changing depending on who is engaging with the symbolism. I prefer to use reversals when providing readings, but in moderation. Usually I begin with all cards facing in the same direction before a consultation. While all the cards are facedown, I randomly select three to ten cards to turn in the reversed position. That way, if a reversed card appears in a reading, I know it is important.
Reversed cards have been mistakenly viewed by some as bad. Generally, I haven’t found this to be the case in my interpretation. Also, a reversed card does not completely negate the imagery of its upright counterpart. I interpret reversals as still embodying the symbolic subject of its upright version, but with a twist.
Reversed cards can indicate
• that there is a challenge to be overcome by applying the card’s strengths to your situation;
• that there is a blockage around the area of your life that the card describes;
• that the situation you are asking about needs to be viewed from an alternate perspective;
• that, in the case of challenging cards, you may find conditions are improving and you are finally freeing yourself from a personal struggle that is depicted in the imagery; and
• that balance needs to be reestablished in the sphere of life that the image is concerned with.