tarot

To begin I'll address the age-old controversy about buying your first deck of cards: although there are some who say you should always be given your first Tarot deck, I actually recommend that you choose your first deck personally if possible; no one knows how your mind works like you do, and your cards should be an extension of it. A gifted or hand-me-down Tarot deck, on the other hand, comes with the experience of every reading the previous keeper gave with it, and some of that knowledge can filter to you-- if you're open to it. Neither is wrong, and you should do what works for you. (If you're like most of us, you'll end up with a sizable collection that is a mix of both, so don't worry too much about it.)

Now, to business: first, always choose a deck that speaks a symbolic language you know. My first deck was full of astrology symbolism, and that really helped me to learn and understand the various cards (for example, what Taurus and V - The Hierophant have in common). Hear me well when I say that it does not matter what the language is, only that you understand it-- whether it's Greek gods, Garfield, or the Golden Girls. Hit Google up for suggestions, and browse the images tab 'til you see something you like. Second, if you can handle it prior to purchase, do so. I don't mean open the box (most places will have a demo copy you can look at if you couldn't Google them first), just hold it. Try to connect intuitively to the cards. Ideally, they'll have pulled you across the room, but not everyone's intuition is that strong at first-- and the immediacy of the connection is not as important as its potency. Finally, the right deck is always going to be not just the one that speaks to you, but the one with which you can have a conversation. I approach a new deck a lot like a new person-- the first few hangouts are casual while we get used to each other, and after I've got to know them I can decide when and how often to see them again.

I use a beautiful deck that I also use to teach tarot -The Morgan Greer Deck.

It's not scary or evil like some decks (Crowley).

I can teach you tarot from what to do when you bring them home to make them your own and how to read them. It takes a lot of work to learn tarot, but it's well worth it.