Inroduction to Tarot

Brief History of the TarotFool, the trumps, and a set of queens to this system.
 Some time before 1480, the French introduced cards
There are many types of fortune-telling cards, but notwith the now-familiar suits of hearts, clubs, spades, and
all of them are Tarot. Although researchers have trieddiamonds. The earlier suits are still preserved in the
for years to pinpoint the true origin of the Tarot, theytarot and in Italian and Spanish playing cards.
are still unsure who created the first deck.  However 
it is suggested that the tarot originated in Northern ItalyThe Joker originated in the United States around 1857,
in the 15th Century. Written records say the tarot wasused as a wild card in poker and as the highest trump
regularly used to play a card game similar to Bridge.in Euchre. It appears to have no direct relationship to
The game was popular throughout much of Europethe Fool of the tarot.
for centuries and is still played today, particularly in 
France. If you have ever been to Spain and picked up 
a pack of playing cards, you will find a similarWhy use the Tarot?
resemblance to tarot cards.The Tarot are best suited for learning about oneself,
 and one’s reactions to life’s seemingly never
They are primarily meant to be used for enlightenmentending struggles, to increase self awareness, and
and aiding the reader or questioner (this is the personpossibly to obtain a new point of view of life itself. 
asking for advice from the tarot) to raise theirThey can help to clarify past events, understand why
unconscious so as to bring into play the most importantthe events took place, and possibly give some insight
aspects they need to be aware of at the time of theinto how to avoid making the same mistakes again, or
reading/consultation.even how to make the good events happen again. 
 The cards can also predict possible future events. 
 Sometimes, just knowing ahead of time an event may
Relationship between tarot and ordinary playing cardsoccur, is enough to change the person’s path and
 future outcome.
Current Historical Understanding: Playing cards came toThe tarot cards were not meant to be feared or evil;
Europe from Islam, probably via Muslim Spain, about 50but it is human nature to fear the unknown or the
years before the development of tarot. Theyunexplained. Today, tarot readers have made them
appeared quite suddenly in many different Europeanavailable almost everywhere in the world, United
cities between 1375 and 1378. European playing cardsStates as well as other countries.  Tarot readers are
were an adaptation of the Islamic cards. These earlyhelping millions of people everyday to cope with
cards had suits of cups, swords, coins, and polo stickslife’s uncertainties. Who are we to discount
(seen by Europeans as staves), and courts consistingsomething that benefits so many people so often?
of a king and two male underlings. The tarot adds the