A brief history of Tarot

According to Tarot historian Tom Tadfor Little, traditional playing cards were first seen in Europe in 1375, having been brought over from the Islamic societies where they had been used for centuries before that. These cards were not, however, Tarot cards. At this point, he says, there is no evidence to show that Tarot cards had yet been created, which goes against many claims that ordinary playing cards evolved from the original Tarot deck.

It wasn't until 1440 that the cards that were most likely the origin of Tarot cards were first mentioned. In a letter from the Duke of Milan, there was a request for several decks of "triumph" cards to be used at a special event. The letter differentiated triumph cards from regular "playing" cards. It does appear, however, that the first Tarot decks were created as a game. There were four suits with cards numbered one through 10 and also court cards that included a queen, king, knight and page. The deck also included 22 symbolic picture cards that did not belong to any suit. The decks were used to play a game called triumph that was similar to bridge. In triumph, 21 of the 22 special picture cards were permanent trump cards. The game spread quickly to all parts of Europe. People began referring to as tarocchi, which is an Italian version of the French word tarot, around 1530.

In 1781, in France and England, followers of the occult discovered Tarot cards. They saw the symbolic pictures of the cards as having more meaning than the simple trump cards they were used for at the time. They used the cards as a divination tool, and occult writers wrote about "the Tarot." After this, the Tarot became a part of occult philosophy.

There are also those who believe that Tarot cards originated in Egypt. In some circles, they are thought to be the sole surviving "book" from the great fire that burned the libraries of ancient Egypt. In this theory, the cards are considered to be the hieroglyphical keys to life.

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Sources

• Aeclectic Tarot. "Tarot Decks By Style and Category." 2018 (Aug. 24, 2018) [Only admins are allowed to see this link]
  
• American Tarot Association website. 2018 (Aug. 24, 2018) [Only admins are allowed to see this link]
  
• Bunning, Joan. "Learning the Tarot." 2007 (Aug. 24, 2018) [Only admins are allowed to see this link]
  
• Carroll, Robert Todd. "Tarot Cards." The Skeptic's Dictionary. Dec. 23, 2013 (Aug. 24, 2018) [Only admins are allowed to see this link]
  
• Crystalinks. "Tarot." 2018 (Aug. 24, 2018) [Only admins are allowed to see this link]
  
• The Hermitage: A Tarot History Site. [Only admins are allowed to see this link]
  

mac wrote:On other websites at various times I've asked Tarot practitioners how their 'skill' works and what Tarot can do.  Generally they're unable to answer either question in any depth, often explaining what the 'face value' of the cards is and how they're used but not what help or assistance they provide.

I can remember only one who gave a clear explanation I could relate to.

(ayup, mi duck! Is that a new avatar I've been given? )

mac wrote:On other websites at various times I've asked Tarot practitioners how their 'skill' works and what Tarot can do.  Generally they're unable to answer either question in any depth, often explaining what the 'face value' of the cards is and how they're used but not what help or assistance they provide.

I can remember only one who gave a clear explanation I could relate to.

Candlelight.kk wrote:During my year living and working in Libya, a newly arrived expat turned out to be a spiritual medium, who had brought her own pack of Tarot cards with her.  She explained how there are many different ways and uses with the Tarot, depending on the person using them and also the 'sitter'.  To begin with, she put the full pack down and asked me to pull out whichever card I was drawn to, and whilst doing so that I ask a specific question - in my mind, not out loud, for which she would give only a 'yes' or 'no' answer.  I concentrated hard on that question while choosing my card, and not only did she give the answer as 'yes', but then went on to give a whole load more very specific details relating to the specific question (without knowing what the question was!) - and I mean really specific to that question.  I was flabergasted at the detail.  She then told me that as I held the card my mother (in spirit) had come through to her very clearly to address the question and had brought through those specific extra details - which only she could have known!  We had only just met and apart from all of that information, she would have had no way of knowing that my mother was deceased.  She said herself that she was surprised at how clearly and strongly my mother had come through and how she had insisted upon giving all the extra detail regarding the question.  A plain, simple 'yes' would not be enough, and I needed to know more about the situation. (My mother to a 'T')

mac wrote:ayup, mi duck!  Is that a new avatar I've been given?  

Candlelight.kk wrote:It's the new default avatar which shows before any member allots their own choice (the anonymous ghost).  
You can of course always change it by putting in another one of your choice.  Then, if you decide to delete that, the cute little ghost will automatically come back again to haunt you.

mac wrote:Interesting, too, that the Tarot cards had little - if any - importance other than perhaps to act as a focus for the medium. If that's a fair assessment then I'd hazard a guess it's a similar situation for other practitioners, be they mediums or just psychics.

Candlelight.kk wrote:

mac wrote:Interesting, too, that the Tarot cards had little - if any - importance other than perhaps to act as a focus for the medium.  If that's a fair assessment then I'd hazard a guess it's a similar situation for other practitioners, be they mediums or just psychics.

Yes, but perhaps importantly, a focus not just for the medium or psychic, but for the sitter also.  A focus point creating an interaction.

mac wrote:

Candlelight.kk wrote:

mac wrote:Interesting, too, that the Tarot cards had little - if any - importance other than perhaps to act as a focus for the medium.  If that's a fair assessment then I'd hazard a guess it's a similar situation for other practitioners, be they mediums or just psychics.

Yes, but perhaps importantly, a focus not just for the medium or psychic, but for the sitter also.  A focus point creating an interaction.

Is that actually how it felt for you?  I have to say that's not what I drew from what you'd described.

mac wrote:We might reflect on possible reasons for the different experiences and outcomes.

Do our friends unseen always know what we planned before we came here and then prompt and encourage us to follow the path we've chosen?  Should we try to remain open to such prompting and encouragement? 

Or do we get just their personal opinions about what we should do or avoid?  If we were to feel we were being moved in an unexpected direction should we follow that direction - trusting in 'spirit' - or should we assert personal responsibility for our destiny?

Candlelight.kk wrote:

mac wrote:We might reflect on possible reasons for the different experiences and outcomes.

Do our friends unseen always know what we planned before we came here and then prompt and encourage us to follow the path we've chosen?  Should we try to remain open to such prompting and encouragement? 

Or do we get just their personal opinions about what we should do or avoid?  If we were to feel we were being moved in an unexpected direction should we follow that direction - trusting in 'spirit' - or should we assert personal responsibility for our destiny?

I think possibly Charlie Kelly has given a plausible answer to those questions in his latest video below, where in the video he refers to a quote by medium Gordon Smith in a recent post somewhere, where Gordon was speaking on that very subject: