By Greyhound

What deck should I buy if I'm just starting out? This is such a good question and I wish I'd known more before I bought my first deck. When I decided to get into Tarot, it was a sudden, impetuous decision. I was poking around in the local Barnes & Noble in the New Age section and until that day, had absolutely no idea that they sold Tarot decks at the local bookstore. All those little boxes lined up and I knew I wanted one... but which to choose? Big boxes, small boxes... I didn't want to spend a lot and I wasn't sure which would be a good choice. Did I want to buy just a deck? Or a deck and book set? And in my Gemini, impatient, gotta have it now way... Which will help me learn the fastest?

I thought it would be cheaper in the long run to buy a deck and book set and I settled on "The Renaissance Tarot" by Jane Lyle & Helen Jones. (LOL. Silly me to think I would be satisfied with just ONE deck... ) Those of you that knew me back then probably remember how I struggled learning with that deck. Is it a bad deck? There are some things I might have done differently, but I did learn an awful lot with it. It will always be a precious friend and I did some fine readings with it as well. But in the end, I realized there was only so much I would learn from that deck as a beginner. Most books after all, are written about Rider Waite and its many clones. The best books on Tarot available generally address the Rider Waite system. At the time, I was a student at the Barnes & Noble online Tarot for Beginners class and I could see other students going farther and faster than I was.

Even so, I was reluctant to buy a Rider Waite deck. The artwork didn't appeal to me, I said. It didn't speak to me at all. Why should I buy a deck that doesn't move me? (And I am one stubborn lady...) I never did get around to buying a Rider deck for myself. Something prompted my husband to buy me the Universal Waite deck as a Christmas gift. I don't know why he did it, but I am so glad he did. Once I had that deck in my hot little hands, the lessons started coming hard and fast. The Rider Waite deck was somewhat unique when it was first produced, in that there was a scene on each and every card (although Sola- Busca is reputed to be the first). I found this allowed me to let intuition flow much more easily than if I had to remember a number and what it meant and try to put that together with the suit and its qualities... The richness in symbology, the wealth of research materials available... it made all the difference in the world.

Now I know there are many of you that are groaning right now... You have decks that are completely different and that speak to you just dandy. What I'm really talking about here is the importance of starting out with the traditional, classic symbology that has inspired artists and readers alike for years. In fact, the modern deck you rely on so much was probably inspired by one of two decks... the Rider Waite or the Crowley Thoth. I found that once I learned the Rider deck, those skills translated into so many other wonderful decks. It might be important to say here also, that I have the Crowley Thoth... I love it... But there is a steeper learning curve involved and much less reading material available. So here is my basic recommendation: Buy Rider Waite or whatever Rider clone appeals to you. Learn it... make it part of you... THEN go out and buy a deck based on the artistic appeal, or find what moves you. Perhaps a Thoth or Thoth-like deck will be something you wish to explore next. You'll find yourself with a good foundation in Tarot study, a set of skills that will enable you to read comfortably with a great many tarot decks and the journey of a lifetime opening up to you... Blessings on the journey...

To see a list of recommended beginner decks, click here.