The wisdom contained in a tarot deck feels ages old when you hold it in your hands. Tarot cards are one of the most well-known and often utilised divination instruments in use today. However, each tarot card has a unique history, symbolism, and meaning that help you through your most difficult life decisions. Tarot readings for spiritual purposes can seem like an old tradition, but you might be surprised to learn about the short history of tarot as we know it today. Whatever the future holds for the tarot, one thing is certain: its practice will continue to give us guidance for many generations to come. Consult Sarika Bhardwaj, certified Tarot Card Reader in Delhi, Mumbai, Gurugram, Bangalore and Dubai.
Tarot’s Artistic Beginnings
The late 14th century is when the predecessors of the tarot first appeared. There were numerous different sets of cards, but they all served the same purpose. Tarot cards were initially employed for tabletop games. Different suits of playing cards were depicted by numerous European artists for use in a variety of games. Wands, cups, swords, and discs are traditional suits, and they are remarkably similar to the ones that are used in modern tarot decks. For affluent noble families, Trump cards or major arcana cards included ornate illustrations. The individual cards would be the centre of a constantly changing tale of chance. Tarot readers would put cards together to make complex stories for events like banquets and other social gatherings.
Tarot as Divination
Tarot has changed in use over time. As the 16th century came to an end, tarot was used more as a complex spiritual instrument than as a creative pastime. By the 18th century, each card that started to stick had been given increasingly detailed and specific meanings. The spreads and patterns used also started to take on more specific implications.
A French Freemason produced a thorough symbolic explanation of the tarot in the late 18th century that linked its meanings to Egyptian priests and seers. Tarot’s status as a spiritual tool derived from the occult knowledge of the gods was cemented by his manifesto. Tarot cards were soon utilised in seances and other spiritual rites despite the fact that there was no concrete evidence to back up his assertions. This was because people throughout Europe accepted this new information.
The Rider-Waite Deck
You probably think of the Rider-Waite interpretation of tarot when you consider the exquisitely illustrated High Priestess, Wheel of Fortune, and Sun cards. At the start of the 20th century, British magician Arthur Waite — a longtime enemy of Aleister Crowley— created the Rider-Waite deck. The aesthetic and meaning behind this style of tarot, which uses Kabbalistic symbolism, have influenced and continue to influence the hundreds of new decks that are released every year. Tarot became more widely available with the release of the Rider-Waite deck; it was no longer viewed as a toy for the affluent and elite. Tarot evolved into a tool that anybody could learn to use as it entered more homes.
The brief history of tarot as we know it should come as a bit of a surprise to everyone, regardless of whether they are seasoned card readers or casual observers. What do you suppose the tarot will stand for in the future?
Contact Sarika Bhardwaj a Delhi-based Tarot card reader to know what your future upholds for you.
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