"Soft and fluffy" tarot

[WinterTraditions]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

I have found that the people that gravitate to the kinder, gentler tarot cards are often the people that need some kindness and gentleness in their lives. It may because they are in a hard position, or it may be because that is their natural inclination...either way, I don't begrudge the creators of the cards for making them that way or the people that use them for preferring them. There are enough tarot cards in the world that I can pick the deck for me, and they can pick the deck for them.

I own a few Doreen Virtue decks simply for this. I don't pick a deck based on what has the coolest pictures, or is the most 'accurate'... I choose based on circumstances. If I'm doing a reading for a distressed/depressed friend, I generally reach for the angel cards to give them a more gentle message. For the more hard-headed and stubborn, I use the most blunt deck I have.

[LizardMind]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

I've sen the same thing with my tarot. Recently I picked up the Shaman's Tarot and found them to be very.. vague and soft. I'm not even sure how to take them half the time.

[Corvus]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

I usually interpret death to mean a passing from one matter to another, a change, the "death" of one part of life and the beginning of another; an inevitable change. I've rarely met people that consider death to actually be an ill omen. I've been using my rider-waite deck for years and I love it, it's easy and accurate enough for me. Anyone who considers the tower to not be a bad sign I would think is delusional. However I've never met anyone that looks at tarot in a fluffy way. Usually the opposite; people thinking theres dark omens everywhere. I admit that I dont read many tarot books (or witchy/pagany books in general)

[Ophidia]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

Anyone who considers the tower to not be a bad sign I would think is delusional.

The Tower isn't always a bad sign - my nickname for it is 'Shaken Foundations'. It's another one of those situational cards.

Usually, when I see it come up, it's an indication that someone is about to have a profound truth revealed to them. In some cases, it's an epiphany, a deeply spiritual revelation that changes someone's entire world view. My best friend's 'Tower' moment was the realization that she not only really enjoyed pastry baking, but she's damned good at it - and another friend paid her tuition to cooking school as a surprise gift.

Other times, though - in one reading I did for a man, The Tower came up in relation to his kids and wife. Within a week or two, he found out that his kids weren't his kids, and his wife was leaving him for their biological father.

It's all about the context.

[Willow]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

The Tower isn't always a bad sign - my nickname for it is 'Shaken Foundations'. It's another one of those situational cards.

Other times, though - in one reading I did for a man, The Tower came up in relation to his kids and wife. Within a week or two, he found out that his kids weren't his kids, and his wife was leaving him for their biological father.

It's all about the context.

I've had a couple similar experiences like this one with the Tower.

[Tylluan Penry]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

There is nothing wrong with kindness. Sometimes it's the easiest way to break bad news.

In my own experiences with divination (and I've used palmistry, tarot, crystal ball and the runes - the latter being my favourite) I always sought out patterns rather than relying on an individual card. And I always bore in mind a quote from a book (Moonfleet by J Meade Faulkner, in case anyone is interested ) "As with life, so with a game of chance. Skill will make something of the worst of throws."

[Corvus]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

The Tower isn't always a bad sign - my nickname for it is 'Shaken Foundations'. It's another one of those situational cards.
It's all about the context.

I've never had a reading where it wasn't something catastrophic or horrible so my views are probably skewed

[thalassa]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

The Tower isn't always a bad sign - my nickname for it is 'Shaken Foundations'. It's another one of those situational cards.

I love this!

I usually interpret the Tower as more of a house of cards sort of thing...which is pretty much the same idea.

[QuercusRobur]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

I frikkin' hate those cards. Hate hate hate. Those cards that pop up every single frikkin' time and poke you in the eye. I've been using a Goddess oracle deck as kind of a daily touchstone. Keep pulling 'Pele', which in this deck symbolizes Passion. 'What do I need to do today?' - Cards: 'Find your Passion!' 'What do I need to help my husband deal w/his anxiety?' - Cards: 'Find your Passion!' 'What is my goal for 2013?' - Cards: 'Find your Passion!' 'What's for dinner tonight?' - Cards: 'How 'bout serving up some nice, juicy Passion!' I'm going to find someone named Passion, kidnap them, take them to Hawaii, and throw them in a damned volcano.

LOL! I asked about this sort of thing on another group and they said that if cards kept coming up it was something in my life that needed to be dealt with. I did a reading today about a meeting I'm going to have with my boss tomorrow and in the immediate future position The High Priestess came up. I immediately thought **** no - he's got plans for me! Checking the book, it said guidance. So either way, I'm in for a rough meeting. The High Priestess isn't thought of as a bad card, it only is in conjuction with this person...

[Willow]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

Let us know how it goes so we can see how the High Priestess comes into play. :P

[QuercusRobur]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

Let us know how it goes so we can see how the High Priestess comes into play. :P

The boss wasn't happy as inspectors had been in, he'd looked at a database I take care which is in spreadsheet format (we don't have a license for databases) and couldn't find things, which I suspect was because he'd never looked at it before and he took this out on me. I ended up with a long list of things to do. I did get some guidance with things I asked for, but since work practice what I call "Harry Potter management" (waving a wand in the air, saying a few words and expecting things to happen while ignoring reality) it was as much use to me as a chocolate teapot.

[gwynwas]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

. . . I don't feel like I'm actively seeking out the bad. I would love to have a time or two where something bad DOESN'T happen.. . .

this. too true for me also.

My advice, if you're getting good readings and it accurately reflects your life, just go with it. Eventually pain and grief and suffering will come around, but there is no need to seek it out. Trust me.

- - - Updated - - -

The boss wasn't happy as inspectors had been in, he'd looked at a database I take care which is in spreadsheet format (we don't have a license for databases) and couldn't find things, which I suspect was because he'd never looked at it before and he took this out on me. I ended up with a long list of things to do. I did get some guidance with things I asked for, but since work practice what I call "Harry Potter management" (waving a wand in the air, saying a few words and expecting things to happen while ignoring reality) it was as much use to me as a chocolate teapot.

Ah, a teaching moment in the Buddhist sense (there's another case of glass half full language).

So, did having the forewarning from the cards help or not I wonder?

[RainbowDemonic]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

I learned the foundations of my Tarot from this book, this website, and the in-depth symbology on this website because it also ties into Tarot. It has also helped me to delve a little bit into alchemy and a few other things, and it's how I learned to read the stars of course.

If ever there was anything I have learned from divination, it's that you can tell people anything they could possibly want to know about their future - but most people don't actually want to know their future. They seek divination because they seek hope, because they want someone to say "It will all be okay". Fluffy Tarot decks are for the squeamish among us, and I am a firm believer that true power/spirituality/metaphysics/whatever is not for the faint of heart, period.

I am old school with my readings. I do not sugar coat. I may put it politely, or nicely, or gently, but I will never lie to the person I am reading, even if it means speaking hard truths. My deck has never let me or anybody else down. People have known for a long time that if nothing else I am reliable; if they turn to me requesting a reading, they know very well that they will hear no BS from me. If they don't know, I gently explain it to them, and I tell them that if they need hope, I am happy to listen to them and encourage them as the beautiful individuals they are and I don't need a deck for that; if they want mysteries revealed, I can whip out the deck, but knowledge can be sobering, they may not always like what they hear, and in this beautiful life it is always up to us to persevere and learn and grow through our hardships. For those who agree and receive a reading, I try to be uplifting where possible, but do not ever shy away from telling the truth plainly. I would not be worthy of my tools or gifts otherwise.

[Nerá]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

You have a point, but I think this is kind of two-sided...

I believe that the reason tarot readers try to turn the negative cards into something positive is because the seeker wants to only hear something good. Telling them that they are going to experience some sort of hardship, be it financial, romantic, spiritual, etc. isnt good for business. People that read for themselves have a tendency to do this too because they don't want to accept that something bad might actually happen or that they might have to make a hard decision. It's not just in the tarot community either....that's just how it is with life in general.

On the other hand, cards like the Tower aren't necessarily bad. And interpreting this cards as having a "silver lining" isn't something I would consider fluffy or soft. For example....the Tower, to me, represents destruction of something or an unstable foundation. To destroy an unstable foundation gives one the opportunity to learn from mistakes and build another STRONGER structure. Is it easy? No. It's going to be hard as hell. But it's going to make your life better in the long run. That's the silver lining.

Another thing to remember is that divination isn't about predicting a future that is set in stone. Divination is a window to see possible outcomes and gives us an opportunity to change them if necessary.

[gwynwas]

Re: "Soft and fluffy" tarot

And people have a tendency to "shoot the messenger." I work in mental health and I see the same thing there. One of the biggest mistakes therapists make is to avoid pointing out a client's distortions, letting them make the same mistakes over and over, or even worse, validating their distortions. Therapists do this because they don't want to make the client angry.

But then why does someone go to a therapist to begin with? Same question for Tarot, why does someone go to a tarot reader? Do they want it laid out bad along with good? Maybe some are prepared for that, but I think a lot of times people are looking for assurance from the reader the same way some people go to therapists expecting to be validated.