THE IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING A TAROT JOURNAL

Welcome to The Divination Nation blog!

 We are Pleasant Gehman and Crystal Ravenwolf, a duo of divination divas, “spiritual sisters from another mister”. We’re life-long Tarotistas, obsessed with all things esoteric and paranormal. Look for our forthcoming book, “Walking The Tarot Path” in April 2016.

 We’ve created this blog to share our knowledge and to connect with the vibrant worldwide metaphysical  and paranormal community. We hope it’s as fun for you to read as it is for us to write…Enjoy!

There are several reasons to keep a Tarot journal…but the most significant one is that it will make you a better reader.  No matter what level you’re on, the process of journaling is illuminating. If you’re a student, it helps you become acquainted with the cards. For longtime practitioners and professionals, the connection to each card deepens. Keeping written notes will assist you in tracking your own progress. A written record of your readings- whether for yourself, friends or clients- allows you to look back, seeing how the various situations the cards showed you played out. 

 Another benefit of keeping a journal is expedited learning through your own personal experiences. If you’ve been devouring every book on Tarot you can get your hot little hands on, undoubtedly your mind has absorbed the key words and phases for each card. However, those interpretations – no matter how academic or correct- are the opinions of others. Keeping a journal practically forces you to formulate your own ideas. You’re our feelings and intuition provides guidance-and ultimately, knowledge- while you handle, relate to and write about the cards… and that is precisely where you will grow as a reader.

We always advise our students to keep a workbook or journal; as far as we’re concerned, it’s mandatory! It doesn’t matter how to keep your journal- some prefer an old-school style- they keep a special book and make notes by hand, including photos of their spreads with notes on the positions of the cards, photocopies of individual cards, or images that remind them of certain cards. Others keep their journal electronically. The preference is yours. Remember, this is for you.

 Often, newer readers or even those who haven’t studied this way previously are unsure of what to include in their Tarot journals.  Really, there are no hard and fast rules. Remember, this is for you.

 Here are  some Tarot journal ideas we like:

Explore Each Card Fully

 Shuffle your deck and randomly pull a card, same as you would for a one-card reading. Instead of applying key words and phrases- and without looking up the card’s meaning if you’re not sure of it, - simply observe the card.  Explore everything- notice every little detail, and your emotional responses to it.   Every card has correlations with numerology, astrology and the Kabbalah.   The suits of the Minor Arcana each relate to an element.  Explore all of these connections.

What catches your eye first- is it the imagery, the colors used, the numeral on the card face? How does the card make you feel? Can you relate to it? Do you like or dislike it? Why?

If you own a few decks, draw the same card from a different and compare the images. What makes them similar or different?   Do you relate to the image in the same way as you did the first version of the same card? If you only own a single deck, you can still contrast cards- download some images from the Internet and do your comparisons that way. Take notes on everything you’ve noticed about each particular card in your journal. Remember, each card has it’s own correlations with numerology, astrology and the Kabbalah, too. The suits of the Minor Arcana each relate to an element.  Explore all of these connections.

 With seventy-eight cards, there’s no way you’re going to get bored, because this exercise on it’s own could practically fill an entire book!

 Keep Records Of Your Readings…And Your Thoughts   

It doesn’t matter if you’ve pulled a single card pull or done an elaborate layout, jot down some notes on the reading itself. Begin with date and time, the name of the person you read for, and the cards that turned up.  If you keep a journal on your phone or computer, snap a photo and label it with pertinent info. For a hard copy diary, just write down the cards and their positions or if you want to get fancy, draw a little picture of the layout.

 It’s important to mention the way felt about the reading. Write about your own feelings, or the client’s. Take note if the reading went well, or if it was tricky- maybe some of the cards pulled didn’t seem to make sense, or your sitter didn’t react to them well. You can also “rate” yourself on the way you delivered the reading verbally, if all the questions asked were answered, or if you (or the person you read for) has certain cards showing up over and over.

 For spreads that involve a number of cards, such as the Celtic Cross, another good thing to make notations on is the number of Major Arcana cards, and the dominant suit- both of those are important for future reference.

 Write About Your Most-And Least-Favorite Cards

 Do certain cards really resonate with you? Does The Star feel like it’s “your” card, do you emulate The High Priestess or get the Warm Fuzzies every time you see the Six Of Cups?  Write about the cards you love…and why you love them.

It’s also important to explore the cards you don’t like as much. There are certain cards that may be a bit off-putting to the general public, like Death Or The Devil. As readers, we understand early on that essentially, there is no “good” or “bad” cards- they all have both qualities…and we spend ages trying to educate our students and clients on that, too!

 However, there probably are some cards that you personally don’t like as much as the others, for whatever reason. For example, both of us are not really down with The Hierophant, he just…kinda works our nerves. Somebody else might dislike the Three Of Swords, the Five Of Pentacles or one of the Knights. It’s all subjective. If you aren’t “that into” a card, all the more reason to explore the reasons why. By journaling about it, you might feel a new connection to it…or realize that the qualities the card hit a little close to home.  It could be that the card signifies something that’s lacking-or needed- in your life.

 Write About Cards That Represent People In Your Life

 Go through your deck and pick out a few cards that most represent the significant people you know, such as family members, a best friend, your boss, and so on.  If your first crush was like The Magician, your sister is a total Queen Of Wands, you have a pal who’s really Eight Of Swords-like or the Two Of Cups describes your relationship with your cat, write about it!

  Review A Reading You Get From A Professional

 It’s always a good idea to get readings from others- no matter what level they’re at.  Other readers can often pick up on things you can’t; they’re also able to be a bit more objective than you are when you read for yourself.

But getting a reading from a seasoned professional, someone you respect is always illuminating. It will be a good experience for you’re personally, but it can also inform you intellectually, and help you to grow as a reader. If you can make a recording of the reading, definitely do that. But even if you can’t, there are several things to appreciate.

Watch (and write about) the way the reader handles the cards, what spread is used, and how much time they take to absorb the card’s meanings before they start speaking. Listen to the tone and delivery  of the reader’s voice- is it soothing? How do they discuss “tricky” cards with you? Does the reader offer counsel or do they just tell you bluntly what each card means?  Did they answer any questions you had? How would you rate your overall experience?  Would you get another reading from this person?

 By dissecting your reading, you can learn a lot about yourself, but also about speaking to and relating  to a sitter during a reading that you do.

 Trust us: you don’t need to work with your cards and write in your journal every day… but if you want to master the Tarot, you will.

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Crystal and Pleasant: Photo by E.A. Kohan

We’d LOVE to connect with you!
Visit our website to book Tarot readings,  metaphysical  and occult workshops, a  healing session  or  to have us come out for a paranormal investigation:  www.thedivinationnation.com
 
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To find out more about Pleasant or request a reading or healing session, click here: http://www.pleasantgehman.com/
 
For more on Crystal’s background, or request a reading or healing session, click here: http://crystalravenwolf.com