Despite the study and divinatory use of Tarot becoming more and more widespread in our modern times, there are still a great many myths, misunderstandings, and downright lies associated with the Tarot. Here I intend to address a few of these myths and hopefully help newcomers to the art to put aside these distractions that will be a hindrance in learning the Tarot.
Some of the language used here may be unfamiliar to someone new to Tarot, a full glossary of terms used can be found in this link: Tarot Glossary
Myth #1 – Tarot Cards are “Evil”
The first, and biggest myth is that they are daemonic, possessed of dark powers or evil. To debunk it let us take a quick look at a deck of Tarot cards. In a Tarot deck we have 78 pieces of stiffened paper, they are usually beautifully decorated and printed on a printing press. Oddly, if this myth has any truth to it, these may well be the same printing presses that print Bibles or other religious works, could these books also be daemonic, possessed of dark powers or evil in themselves?
This myth seems to have its origins in the medieval Christian practice of branding anything not specifically approved of by the Church as heretical, evil and having something to do with worshiping the devil. Some people may feel that the inclusion of a Death (XIII) card and The Devil (XV) card, two words that have serious religious connotations, paint the whole deck is evil. However, as both of these cards connect to their namesake only via allegory (see the major arcana section for details), this is a ridiculous assertion to make. People may well be good or evil, however, a Tarot deck is merely inanimate paper.
Myth #2 – Tarot is a Scam
Tarot reading is an art that has been practiced for many centuries, over the centuries some people have indeed used the art as a scam to separate the unwary from their cash. The same could be said for email or the Internet (aside from the fact that they are separated by centuries) and yet the whole Internet is not labeled as a scam; only the criminals who use it as a tool to rob and defraud are blamed.
The premise on which this myth is based requires that all Tarot readers are intent on stealing from their clients by knowingly giving false advice. A simple statement that not all Tarot readers take money for their services stops this myth dead in its tracks. Tarot itself is no more a scam than any other art form, albeit that some criminals will use it (and any other method they can think of) as a medium for their criminal activities.
Myth #3 – Tarot Cards are Magic
Tarot cards are not magical, as I mentioned in my answer to the first myth, they are mostly thin cardboard. Any magic that is involved in Tarot comes from the incredible human capacity to see beyond the immediate. Intuition and empathy are our true magical powers.
Myth #4 – Tarot Readers are Witches
Anyone can read Tarot; some people may identify with the label of Witch, many will not, there is definitely no requirement for pointy hats, long noses or black cats. While some Wiccans may read Tarot cards so do some Christians and Jews, atheists and agnostics or any other brand of religion or non-religion that you care to mention; Tarot is for anyone and everyone, without limit or prejudice. There are many available Tarot decks which have a theme based on one religion or another, the artwork of these decks features the recognisable symbols and features of that particular religious tradition and use those illustrations, combined with the Tarot symbology, to create a deck that is in harmony with the reader’s beliefs, in order to create a deeper personal connection to the deck.
Myth #5 – You have to be psychic to read Tarot Cards
There are several points in answer to this myth, the first one being the scientists still have no better understanding of the capacity of the human mind than they have the dark side of the moon; who is to say that humans are not naturally psychic? To deal with this myth, we need a useful definition of psychic, if we are talking about people demonstrating those titanic powers most often seen in a comic book, then that is simply ridiculous and yet, what are the limits of the human mind?
Anyone can read Tarot cards! Either we all have an innate psychic ability that science is, as yet, ignorant of, or psychic ability is simply not a factor in the reading of Tarot cards. Some readers use the label “Psychic” and I’m not willing to argue the point until somebody can demonstrate to me what is, and is not, psychic ability. I do not use the term or make the claim myself, this is mostly because I don’t feel the need to.
Myth #6 – You must be given your deck as a gift
I see this myth in several forms, most frequently stating that you must be given your first deck as a gift. Receiving a Tarot deck as a gift will always be great, however a Tarot deck that is selected by one person is unlikely to be the ideal deck for the another person. As I will expand upon later (when I talk about selecting decks), a personal connection is one of the most vital things when reading Tarot cards, a randomly selected deck may not allow you to have this connection. It is always going to be best for the reader to select their own deck, who pays for the deck, or whether it is a gift or not is immaterial.
Myth #7 – Drawing the Death card means somebody is going to die
No, the Death (XV) card talks about natural change and casting off the past, this myth is generally put about to frighten people. Remember that facts counter fear; when you are faced by someone saying that this card means this and so Tarot is evil, check it out; generally the person making the claim is wildly ignorant of the meaning of the card and is for some strange reason trying to spread their ignorance as fact.
Myth #8 – Only the owner may touch a deck
Some readers, myself included, actually prefer the Querent to hold and cut the deck, whilst others prefer to retain an air of mystique and avoid having anybody apart from themselves touch the cards. I have never found the Querent cutting the cards for me to be detrimental to the quality of my reading, likewise giving a reading over the Internet or telephone has made no difference to how I perceived the quality of my work. In my experience it makes no difference provided that the deck is treated with care and respect.
Myth #9 – You must store your deck in a special type of container/cloth
I have often seen it written that Tarot cards should be wrapped in velvet or silk or stored in some special container or other. While it is important to remember to always store your Tarot deck carefully and treat your tools with respect, how you go about this process is neither here nor there; personal preference is all.
Myth #10 – You can’t do a reading for yourself
This one is complete and utter rubbish. In my opinion, in the early stages of working with the Tarot, the best way to learn is by doing readings for yourself (as explained later in this book). There are some problems with doing readings for yourself, things like the possible tendency to twist the interpretations to fit their desired result rather than gaining the insight and knowledge that the Tarot offers, but these are challenges that have to be faced by the reader.
There you have 10 Tarot myths answered, this is by no means the limit of strange and inaccurate things said about the Tarot, a quick trawl of the Internet will no doubt produce a great many more, some of which may be highly entertaining. From these answers however, you should be able to debunk most strange things that are said about Tarot with a little thought.