I have The Witches tarot deck. I recently got them after I read a recommendation on a thread here.
Here is a sermon from HPs Maxine on the Tarot to help beginners.
***The recommended PDF mentioned here can be found online in an EPUB and MOBI format.
[JoSNewsletter] Sermon 1/July/2014
I had planned to write a pdf on the Tarot, but never got around to it
because there is always so much to do. Satan keeps us busy. At any rate, for
those of you who are interested in the Tarot for divination, I recommend
this book:
Tarot Plain and Simple by Anthony Louis [paperback]
http://www.amazon.com/Tarot-Plain-Simpl ... 1567184006#
This is the best book I have ever come across on the Tarot in the way of
divination.
The Tarot is very ancient and based upon the constellations, going back to
Ancient Egypt.
When you purchase a new Tarot deck, you should feel comfortable with it, as
the cards eventually become a part of you. After you bring your deck home,
the cards should be wrapped in silk, satin, or other fine material to keep
the vibrations in them. You should sleep with the deck under your pillow for
several nights before you use your cards for the first time, as this will
get your energies in the cards. Your cards should then be kept in a special
pouch or card sized box. The silk or satin wrapping and pouch/box should be
kept in a secure area and the materials should only be used for your Tarot.
Others should never read with your cards. The cards are an extension of
ourselves and are highly personal.
Serious students should keep a Tarot journal or use your black book. Reading
for yourself is fine and I encourage this. This is how I learned. A
suggestion is to read your cards once a week with this week in mind when you
do your reading. Keep a record of the cards and after a week, see how
accurate your reading was, how particular cards applied to your situation,
represented the people around you and so forth. You can also practice
reading for friends and family and later inquiring how accurate you were in
your interpretations.
Experienced Tarot readers psychically connect with the cards. Each of the
cards can have many different meanings. The reversed positions are valid and
*very* important! Reversed cards often indicate the opposite of the upright
cards. Reversed cards can also indicate lesser or lighter circumstances
regarding events predicted in the upright position. I have found people
cards (pages, knights, kings and queens) when reversed indicate the
influence of these people in the life of the subject is not right or is
negative in some way.
The cards must be read as a group. Look at the entire layout. You can use
any layout that suits you. Use examples in books or make your own. Most of
us find we stick with a certain layout in reading for ourselves and others.
An overview of the Tarot:
There are 78 cards in the deck, 22 of which are the trump, known as the
“Major Arcana.” There are four suits of pip cards numbering 56, wands ( also
known as rods, staves), swords, cups and pentacles. The tarot has always
been known as “The Devil’s Cards.” 78; 7 + 8 = 15, a number of Satan and the
number of the Devil card. The 22 trump cards correspond to 2 + 2 = 4; the
number of Enki with the 56 pip cards 5 + 6 = 11, another important number of
Satan.
Ø Rods/Wands represent the element of fire and the creative principle.
They represent fair people with light hair and eyes, blondes, those with
fiery outgoing personalities, athletes and athletics, and people with the
personality attributes of the fire element. Many upright rods in a reading
indicate enthusiasm, creativity, new projects, and promising start.
Ø Cups represent the element of water and the
emotional/feeling/psychic principle. They represent people with light brown
hair, hazel eyes, and medium coloring, those of the personality of the water
element, one’s love life, feelings, intuition, psychic people. Cups are the
benefic suit in the Tarot. Many upright cups indicate emotions, the love
life of the subject, psychic influences, partying and enjoyment.
Ø Swords represent the element of air and the intellectual principle.
Swords are the malefic suit of the Tarot and many in a spread indicate
misfortune. Swords can indicate severance, pain, surgery, and actual
cuts/injury. Sword people have dark hair, brown or grey eyes and fair skin.
Swords represent serious personalities that are cold and business-like. Many
upright swords in a reading indicate unfortunate circumstances, severance,
emotional or physical pain, loss, illness, and accidents.
Ø Pentacles represent the earth element and the material principle-
wealth, money, material possessions, sensuality, and security. Pentacles
represent dark skinned people with black hair and brown or black eyes.
People who handle and work with money such as bankers, people who work with
the earth, those of the personality of the earth element and those who are
reliable and trustworthy. Many upright pentacles in a reading indicate
money, security, wealth, and material possessions. Pentacles indicate a
secure and reliable foundation.
Ø Kings represent men over 30 years of age, the father, men in
authority, and leaders. I have found kings also are a strong influence of
their suit. In one reading I did, the subject asked if his material goods
would be returned and the outcome card was the king of pentacles indicating
a safe return of his possessions. This proved true as he did secure his
belongings shortly thereafter. Kings of the pentacle suit can also indicate
money coming to the subject.
Ø Queens represent women over 30 years of age. Queens represent the
female mother principle. Queens, unlike knights and pages are unlikely to
indicate events.
Ø Knights are young men over 18 and under 30 years of age. Knights
indicate new experiences, changes and movement, and comings and goings as
event cards. The events will always be indicated by the suit.
Ø Pages are babies, children, and adolescents. They indicate messages
and communication. The pages represent letters, e-mail, telephone calls, and
written material.
In closing, in regards to meditation- whenever you raise your powers through
yoga, mantra, or anything else, it is important to state affirmations. Never
let the energy go undirected or to waste. Goals are exceptionally important
and give meaning to life. Go over your personal goals. You can also write
your goals in your black book...short term goals, long-term goals; anything
you wish to accomplish. Take one of these goals and state an affirmation
right after your daily meditation. This needn't be long. You can affirm 7-10
times with focus. Visualization also is a great help using the white-gold
light upon what you wish to manifest. This can also be engulfing yourself in
the light of the astral Sun. Always state your affirmations in the present
tense and use as many of your astral senses in the visualization as you can,
such as astral smell, if applicable, astral hearing, touch and most
important- vision. Visualize yourself as if it is already happening along
with your affirmations. Following the affirmations is a good time for void
meditation, even if only for 10-15 minutes.
Goals give a sense of purpose and direction in life and make life
meaningful. Always work to finish what you start. The loser is the one who
quits. A winner is the one who gets back up. The winner finishes what he/she
starts. In life, on the road to accomplishing a goal, oftentimes, especially
in when working on larger more important goals, we encounter obstacles. The
winner will persist in spite of the obstacles. The loser will quit.
Meditation is an excellent help in breaking through and surviving obstacles.
Meditation also can help give us solutions to problems that cannot be
directly dealt with in the material world, such as smoothing over certain
situations, dealing with others and so forth.
High Priestess Maxine Dietrich