I have been researching and writing a lot for my upcoming book, “Unbelievable.” When in search of the real supernatural a look at the occult arts is necessary. The occult arts are prominent in every culture. Whether it is a deck of tarot cards, a crystal ball, an Ouija board, a palm being read or a séance, even non-religious people often think there is something supernatural about the occult. I wanted to share my findings about tarot cards:
This form of fortune telling heavily relies on cold-reading and Barnum statements (see “My Take On Psychics“). There is nothing supernatural about tarot cards and an honest look into them should quickly disprove other claims.
When you want to use tarot cards the first thing to decide is what type of deck you would like to use. All tarot decks have the same make up, seventy-eight cards consisting of four different suits: pentacles, wands, chalice and swords. Choosing a deck is a completely subjective decision depending on what type of art you prefer. If you are drawn to more Christian type imagery then get a deck with art that depicts that, if you are drawn more to pagan imagery get a deck with pagan pictures, if you really like baseball you can get a deck with baseball imagery. When picking out a deck, most would advise to simply go with what makes you feel good.
How it makes you feel and what you want the cards to say is completely up to you. For example, the three of swords, usually depicted as a heart with three swords in it, can mean either extreme heart ache or extreme union or camaraderie, depending on how the reader wants to take it.
How can something supernatural be going on if the cards used, the imagery on the cards and even the meaning of what the cards mean vary that much? In my opinion, a tarot card reader is simply a good storyteller, not someone working supernaturally.
Though I believe all of these occult practices to be based on natural means, I highly discourage anyone from engaging in them. All of them encourage you to open yourself up to the spiritual world in an all-encompassing way. Spiritual enlightenment is a noble goal, but when you open yourself to every spirit, often the evil ones respond to the invitation as well. Though these practices do not have supernatural forces themselves, they are a gateway into spiritual bondage. I am not saying that Bloody Mary will appear in the mirror, or even that your dead grandmother will be contacted at a séance. What I am saying is that evil spirits will respond to any invitation, and only seek to destroy any real chance of spiritual awakening.