Tarot Exercises (Found on random blogs through the internet):
DAILY DRAW
Shuffle and cut the deck however you please. Draw one card to represent the day or your present self. Meditate with the card and examine the imagery on the card. Without looking at the LWB or any tarot card meanings websites, stretch your mind and develop your own personal interpretation. Really challenge yourself when interpreting. Are there people in this card? What are they doing? How would you imagine their interaction? Is the person lonely/isolated? What’s going on in the setting? You can even research color meanings to round out your interpretation.
SAME CARDS DIFFERENT DECKS
If you have two or more tarot decks, you can decide on a card you want to compare and then examine how the different artists/tarot deck creators portray the essence of the card. Are there similarities? Differences? I personally believe that each deck has a slightly nuanced interpretation that is unique to it, rather than simply one universal meaning for all 78 cards. This exercise really helps you connect with specific decks and develops your new or existing relationship with it.
THE FOOL’S JOURNEY
The Major Arcana are not only Jungian archetypes, but also a parallel for the classic hero’s journey, a path to spiritual enlightenment. Journey with the Fool as s/he sets out into the world and write the story that unfolds.
OR
Examine your personal journey thus far and align the Major Arcana cards with major events that mark your life. (Optional: You can fill out the details of each event with Minor Arcana cards to delve deep into a trump’s meaning).
Meditate on each card to develop a personal connection with your deck.
TWO-CARD COMBOS
A good strategy for learning to interpret multiple cards in a spread, and their relationship to one another and the querent, is to pick two and practice. For this exercise, shuffle your cards, split them into two piles and flip the ones on top. Interpret the first card and then the second card separately. Then, tell the meanings between the two cards. What do they share or oppose in one another? How do the elements in the cards interact with each other? Tell the story.
SOUL MIRROR METHOD
This is a way to get to know yourself through the Major Arcana. Pick the card you resonate with the most, the one that is most appealing of the Major Arcana. Then pick the card that resonates the least with you, the least appealing. Lastly, pick the card that integrates both of them together and place it between the cards. Examine why you have chosen these cards.
This was intended for the Major Arcana, but the Minor Arcana can be used as well.
BAD CARDS, GOOD CARDS
Look through your deck and pull out all the cards that put you on edge. These are cards that you’d be nervous to draw in a reading. Stack them in a pile and then go through them one by one, thinking of how they might actually signal good energy for a reading. How can you reimagine their meaning?
Now, try the reverse. Pull out all the ‘good’ cards and meditate on how you can reinterpret them.
SPREAD LOCATION
Look at your favorite spread (or really any spread) and pick a card (any card). Place this card in each of the spread positions and interpret them accordingly.
REVERSAL READINGS
Randomly select a card from your deck and apply each reversal method reading to generate a variety of meanings for that card. (I will post different methods for reading reversals later this week). Synthesize your notes to form a concise interpretation of the reversed card.
Then, come up with three different scenarios that may relate to the reversed card and add these scenarios to your interpretation.
Meditate on the energy of your selected reversed card and identify real-life scenarios that occur throughout a week that relate to your meaning.
SYMBOLISM THEMES
Lay out all your cards on a table or the floor and look for common denominators, repeated symbolism that the artist deemed important. For instance, I have the Starchild Tarot by Danielle Noel and she uses a lot of moon imagery. I looked up the meanings of different phases of the moon and started interpreting the cards based off of whether the moon was waxing or waning, full or new.
MUSICAL TAROT
Pick a card, any card and think about its meaning. Think of a song that might best represent and interpret the card for you. If you are musically inclined, write your own musical interpretation of the card!
CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE!
Many authors use tarot for inspiration and to overcome writers’ block. Shuffle and cut the deck. Draw a card. This is the beginning of your story. Start writing or telling your story out loud. Maybe pull some court cards for characters! Draw another card and continue the story.
CREATE A CARD
Think of your favorite card. How would you create your own version of it? Use whatever artistic medium you feel comfortable with and get inspired! You can even make a collage out of snippets of magazines and books!