Image via Wikipedia

Tarot cards have been in use for hundreds of years all over Europe and are steadily gaining popularity throughout the world, as many people turn away from main-steam religion and look elsewhere for spiritual guidance. Most of us probably recognise them as a fortune-telling device, and they can be used as such with some success (always remembering that we have free-will and can change our circumstances or life path at any time, with a single decision). However, they do have other profound and perhaps more worthy uses, and can be effectively employed to bring about a change in consciousness or to represent a particular energy in magical workings, performed to achieve a desired outcome.

(It’s not necessary to believe in spirits, angels, gods or demons – or to be a witch or magician – in order to use magic or the Tarot to your advantage: your unconscious mind works with your will (power) to create the desired outcome; the images on the cards contain powerful archetypal symbols that stimulate your unconscious mind and get it to work achieving your goal, whether your intention is to become more psychic, to drop the guilt that’s eating you up and ruining your life, to attract prosperity and abundance into your life, to be less selfish, to increase your mental faculties, to give up an addiction, or to attract a new lover [Note: conducting a spell to achieve an impossible goal is, well... silly, and a total waste of your time. You have to believe it could work or it almost certainly wouldn't. Also, it's my personal belief that spells shouldn't be used to coerce a particular person into falling in love or returning to an unhappy relationship - or into doing anything else for that matter - unless you have their explicit consent. They can, however, be used to set up the right circumstances to attract a suitable and willing partner into your life.)

Image via Wikipedia

Some occultists and magicians use the Tarot for path-working on the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. This is an abstract concept which I won't explain here, but I will say they can be an extremely powerful tool in the art of personal transformation and spiritual growth. It might shock some to hear they are also used by some Christians for the same reasons, and an amazing book was written about the profound spiritual powers contained within the Tarot by an eminent Catholic monk, who died the day before being inaugurated by the Pope as a cardinal. It's called Meditations on The Tarot and comes highly recommended to Christians and non-Christians alike.

The cards themselves - described very simply here because that's another article in itself - are symbolic representations of certain energies, emotions, situations, or types of people. They're like a map of the universe and simultaneously the individual soul (based on the Hermetic principle "As Above, So Below" - the idea of the macrocosm and the microcosm). The major cards tell a story, beginning with the Fool and ending with the Universe, and represent major stages in development or important periods of life; they are therefore powerful tools to initiate change or attract a particular type of energy (situation, opportunity, etc) into your life. The court cards represent different personalities or characters, so can be used to symbolise people. The minor cards are more useful for representing more mundane or trivial matters and the specific of a situation. All three can be used simultaneously in one ritual or spell if they are relevant to the desired outcome.

Image by BitchBuzz via Flickr

There's actually no real need to perform a full ritual or spell - the cards can work just as effectively on their own if you simply meditate on them with the correct intent. However, it can be useful, especially for beginners, to conduct a ritualistic ceremony. Performing such a rite not only prepares the mind (in the same way ploughing a field prepares it for seeds to grow) by focusing your awareness and producing a light trance-state, but being ceremonial and using magical tools and props can also strengthen the will and help you achieve a better outcome.

A ritual will usually involve some sort of action (inscribing words on and/or lighting a candle, for example), an invocation (you can simply invoke the elements, or, depending on your beliefs, a relevant God or Goddess from any given pantheon [if you know nothing about mythology it's probably best to stick to using the elements: invoking a God of war when your intent is to get a better job is unlikely to be fruitful!]), an affirmation (a positive statement confirming your intent, stated in the present tense – NOT future: use “I am” or “I have” rather than “I will be” or “I will have”), and perhaps a small offering to your chosen God or Goddess, or to the earth.

It’s best to take a ritual shower or bath before you begin, and to imagine you’re cleansing not only your body, but your soul/spirit/essence – or whatever you think of as your deepest level of being. Playing soft, relaxing music and lighting incense or burning essential oils (preferably with properties relevant to your desired outcome) is also helpful, and some people like to dress up in something special, set up an altar, and use a magic wand or other magical apparatus. All this pomp and circumstance helps to build atmosphere, alter your level of consciousness, and fire your will.

Source

The actual use of the Tarot cards within the ritual can be as simple as meditating upon and opening yourself up to the qualities symbolised by a particular card, or the bringing together or separation of two cards – one representing a person (you, or whoever the spell is being cast for) and the other a situation, habit, or outcome, to symbolise the goal you desire. Alternatively, it can be as complicated as you wish and needn’t make sense to anyone other than you, but it’s definitely better to keep it simple if you have little experience with magic or the Tarot. The unconscious mind is a powerful tool and should be used carefully and respectfully.

It’s not too important which deck you use, as long as the images on the cards speak to you, but beginners shouldn’t go for the Thoth deck or any other where names, suits or placements have been changed because you simply won’t understand why the creator has done so and any spells you follow from books will be based on the original deck.

For absolute beginners to magic and the Tarot I would advise the purchase of a book called Tarot Spells by Janina Renee, or something similar. This book will guide you through spells and rituals for just about any outcome. It also explains the workings of magic and the Tarot in a simple, easy to digest manner – but I must stress it really is for absolute beginners. If you have a reasonable understanding of both systems already you’ll be able to create your own rituals without a problem.

Source