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When you first start getting serious about the tarot, you want to read the best tarot books for beginners.
That means you want to skip the fluff, avoid the bad advice, and get to the real information.
There are a lot of bad tarot books out there.
Some of them claim to hold the One, True Tarot Interpretation System. Which is nonsense.
Others give weird advice, or focus only on their interpretation of the cards while ignoring tradition.
Some of those books might be worth reading, but not when you are just trying to learn tarot.
A beginner needs good guides with a firm basis in tradition.
The 5 tarot books for beginners below are the perfect starting point.
How To Learn Tarot Meanings
Many beginners make the mistake of trying to learn tarot through just the booklet that came with their tarot deck.
Or, they rely only on online sources to learn tarot meanings.
Those are both great for a quick reference, but they won’t teach you everything you need to know.
The tarot books I have listed below cover everything a beginner tarot reader needs to know.
They will teach you the right tarot spread to use for your question.
They’ll help you to choose the right questions to ask your cards.
And they will help you to learn tarot meanings.
Books by authors like Rachel Pollack and Mary K. Greer guide you through historical, traditional methods of interpreting tarot cards.
At the same time, they give you a framework for interpreting cards in a way that makes sense to you.
Having both of these methods of interpretation helps you to hone your intuition.
A stronger intuition means better tarot card readings.
What Is Tarot Used For?
The standard 78 card tarot deck comes packed with symbolism and myth.
These cards can be used for fortune telling, of course.
But they can also be used to write your own fiction, or to interpret your inner emotions and thoughts.
Tarot cards tap into many things all at once.
From the mythic underpinnings of our lives, to our inner lives, all the way to the energies and influences of the universes and all spirits within it.
Sure, some people say that tarot cards are just ink on cardboard. And if you take the materialist’s view, they’re right.
But we know that life is more than just the material world.
Tarot cards can be our spiritual guides, or at least a way for our spiritual guides to contact us.
They teach us the lessons we need to learn the most. They guide us through our journey through life.
And they are an excellent tool for self improvement and self reflection.
Tarot cards make it easier to make choices and manifest our desires and goals.
They can also help us to help others when they are struggling or need advice.
Think of your tarot cards like an old friend. They want you to come to them with questions and when you’re looking for help or advice.
All you need to do is ask the question and pull the cards.
The Best Tarot Books For Beginners
5 Best Tarot Books For Beginners
These 5 best tarot books for beginners will give you a firm grasp of the basics of the tarot.
From basic tarot meanings to other methods of interpreting the tarot, you will be given a full set of tools for divination.
Learn tarot from well loved authors like Rachel Pollack and Mary K. Greer with the books on this list.
Interpreting tarot meanings can be confusing, especially for beginners.
There are so many different schools of interpretation, and all of them are useful.
But how do you decide which one to use?
Reach for these books when you need a firmer grasp of the basics.
A good foundation will make you a better reader, so let's get started!
Beloved by nearly half a million Tarot enthusiasts, Rachel Pollack's Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom forever transformed the study of Tarot.
This much-anticipated follow-up to Pollack's classic guidebook will inspire Tarot aficionados and inform a new generation of Tarot students.
Enhanced by the author's personal stories and insights gained over the past three decades, this book on tarot invites you on a fascinating and fun adventure.
Offering an abundant array of new ideas mixed in with enlightening discussions about Tarot's checkered past, this tarot guidebook features innovative ways to interpret and use Tarot, and a wealth of original spreads to try for yourself—including spreads for predictive, psychological, magical, and spiritual readings.
All seventy-eight cards are explored from fresh angles: history, art, psychology, and a variety of spiritual and occult traditions, using cards from seven diverse decks so you can easily contrast and compare.
No matter where your starting point on the path of personal discovery, this tarot book will prove a trusted companion for your journey.
Drawing on nearly forty years of tarot experience, Mary K. Greer has developed a new energizing approach-made up of twenty-one stimulating techniques to interpret or deepen your understanding of each card.
Just as the twenty-six letters of the alphabet can be combined to form billions of words, Greer's twenty-one methods can be used in any combination for gaining amazing new insights and perspectives.
Emphasizing both traditional and personal methods of interpretation, Greer's techniques involve storytelling, sketching, symbols, metaphors, dialogues, acting, and other imaginative exercises.
Designed to bring about interaction, transformation, and empowerment, this twenty-one-pronged approach to tarot can help readers expand standard interpretations and evolve new ways of connecting to the cards.
This friendly tarot guidebook features a wealth of creative exercises that are compatible with any deck, plus sample readings, spreads, and compelling firsthand accounts from a seasoned reader and teacher to start you on the path to trusting your intuition in reading the cards.
Along the way, you'll learn a variety of original intuitive exercises designed to awaken your psychic abilities, such as Light and Shadow, Turning Point, and Hidden Question.
Also included are simple techniques for doing energy readings, plus instructions on keeping a synchronicity journal and using tarot as a tool to communicate with spirit guides or loved ones on the other side.
Learn to read with your own voice and get the answers to all of your questions.
For years, Melissa Cynova has been sitting down with friends and neighbors who are curious about the tarot.
She's heard all the questions and misconceptions that can confuse newcomers (and sometimes more experienced readers, too).
Kitchen Table Tarot was written as a guide for anyone looking for no-nonsense lessons with a warm, friendly, and knowledgeable teacher.
Join Melissa as she shares straightforward guidance on decks, spreads, card meanings, and symbols.
Filled with real-life examples and personal explanations of what it's like to read the cards, this book tells it like it is and provides the information you need to read with confidence.
Move beyond reading "card by card" and learn to provide powerful readings with a nuanced, flowing narrative like that of a story or poem.
Designed for both beginners and advanced students, Tarot Interactions shows how to interact with the cards in a synergistic way, leading to more dynamic readings with any deck or oracle.
Join author Deborah Lipp as she reveals a unique approach to the tarot, with accessible lessons on patterns and layouts, card pairs, using language and storytelling to deepen a reading, techniques for interacting with querents, and developing or utilizing psychic ability.
Explore simple yet effective exercises on topics from pathworking to meditation, as well as tarot experiments and games. Take your reading and intuition skills from wherever they are now to wherever you want them to be with this indispensable guide.
By the way, if anyone ever told you that you need to be gifted your first tarot deck, they were lying to you.
You can buy your own first deck without any issues.
That’s just one of many tarot myths that are actually just used by would-be gatekeepers to control beginner tarot readers.
Don’t be afraid to choose the deck that’s right for you.
You don’t have to wait for someone else to intuit that you want tarot cards!
You might even get a cute deck if you try one of those cool witch subscription boxes.
During the full moon, we call upon Hekate to assist us in clearing our past, releasing our fears, and opening ourselves to new possibilities. We ask her to help us gain clarity in our lives, to help us transform our inner worlds, and to allow us to move forward with courage and confidence.
It is said that Hekate helps us to overcome obstacles and challenges that stand in our way, and to achieve our goals. In addition to being a benevolent Goddess, she is also a fierce warrior. When we summon her, we invite her to help us take charge of our lives, to lead us into battle, and to fight for justice.
I am an eclectic witch - I've been practicing since 1974. As a student of the occult, working with astrology, tarot cards, runes, and numerology, I found that this was a very comprehensive and well written text on working with Hekate during the full moon. Highly recommended. - Gail Sager
Great read - a must have for anyone interested in working with the Goddess during the full moon! Highly recommended! - Luis Meyer
