The Antifragile Tarot Podcast: Recent Episodes
Antifragile Tarot
Join your resident card-slinger, Susannah, in twice monthly (ish) rambling sessions and the occasional interview all about witchy stuff, tarot, the occult, practical magic, deck reviews... you get the idea.
The last episode, definitely for now, probably forever.
Don't be a stranger. You can still reach me at antifragiletarot@gmail.com with any questions or just to say hi.
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Your resident cardslinger, Susannah, discovers a whole new way to read cards that revolutionizes her practice.
Happy 2022 friends! In this episode, your resident cardslinger talks about what Mercury in retrograde means (if you're under a rock/new to this stuff and don't know) and what you can do to avoid the pitfalls usually associated with it.
Nefertiti Rising Apothecary was gracious enough to do an interview with your resident cardslinger! We chat about mental health, spirituality, emotional vampires, artistic creation and more. This was recorded a few months ago so some of the timing mentions are a little outdated now (forgive baby noises in the background). Follow Nefertiti Rising here: www.nefertitirisingapothecary.com IG: @nefertitirisingapothecary Twitter: @nefertitirisetribe FB: Tarot Readings by Brittany Kennedy
Your resident cardslinger is back with some thoughts on the concept of inner spiritual gifts: how to nurture them if you do, and how to navigate magical growth even if this is not part of your paradigm. There's room for all of us under this big ol umbrella.
Welcome! In this episode, your resident cardslinger Susannah discusses randomly chosen tarot cards as opposed to intentionally picked ones for meditation, ritual, and learning.
What I have learned about healthcare as a nurse has shocked me so much that I have decided it is time to take the control back, using my intuition and the power of tarot cards to guide me and you through all of your pressing health needs. Please tune in for some revelations and a new direction I've been working on.
You asked for deck reviews, you get deck reviews! Today's review is of the new Nightmare Before Christmas deck! It's an officially-licensed deck and in this episode I dig into it as a fan and as a tarot reader.
Happy 2021! In this episode, your resident cardslinger pushes back against "good vibes only" and gets a little passionate about why we shouldn't separate our politics from our practice.
Hello there! How do you handle reading for friends and loved ones, whether you're a professional reader or an amateur? Listen in for your resident cardslinger Susannah's thoughts on this, as well as some life updates.
Each suit in tarot tells its own story, but there is an overlay that provides a common structure in each one. In this episode, your resident cardslinger gets back to some basics to discuss the stories of each card and how it is expressed in each suit, with differences and similarities.
When tarot tells you one thing but astrology tells you another, or your knowledge of the situation doesn't match the signs you're getting, what do you go with? What's telling you the truth? Well, it's complicated. Listen in for more on that.
Are we back? I think we're back. Your resident cardslinger, Susannah, discusses who your ancestors are (spoiler alert: not always your relatives), how to honor them, and some tangents about Jewish honoring of the dead and cultural appropriation. Thoughts? Hit me up!
Have you ever considered the ethics of doing magical work or getting a reading on someone else? I certainly have! Here's some thoughts on it.
Welcome back to the Antifragile Tarot podcast! Your resident cardslinger Susannah discusses a current buzzword in the witchy web: spiritual bypassing. What is it, why should you avoid doing it, and what can you do instead? Listen in for more info!
Holy cow, 60 episodes? In this episode, your resident cardslinger, Susannah, runs down some housekeeping about the state of her current affairs before diving into how you can best protect yourself when practicing magick and some ideas about how to ground and protect your space. Stay safe, wash your hands, keep your distance, take care of yourself.
As your resident cardslinger takes on ever increasing responsibilities, it's time to hand over the reins to someone who can handle it. As such, Antifragile Tarot is becoming ProDurable Tarot. Listen in for what that means for you.
I wish this podcast was more about tarot and less about the pandemic but here we are. Please don't hesitate to email me at if you have questions and need some help navigating what's fake news and what's real in this time. I can't give you medical advice but I can try to help you out regardless with common sense and a nursing background. Be safe.
I've finally got Itai Gal of Itai and the Ophanim on my podcast!!! They traveled to NJ so we got to hang out and chat about Jewish spirituality, music, and other things both tangible and ineffable. You can find them and their music at and on Bandcamp, Spotify, iTunes, and wherever else you stream and buy music! A link to something Itai mentions in the video:
On this episode of the podcast, your resident cardslinger Susannah discusses how to deliver bad news with tarot, and some general thoughts on reading the room before you do a tarot card reading. Thanks for listening! Happy 2020!
Hello! As we approach the end of the year, I touched base on a topic I care deeply about in my work: cultural appropriation and ethics in witchcraft and practice. I am definitely speaking from a conditionally white perspective so please seek out other sources, but I'm using the platform I have. I'm sure I didn't cover everything, but I hope it will be useful and provide some food for thought. You can email me at and suggest things to me here:
Ahoy hoy! After an unintentional hiatus, your prodigal resident cardslinger Susannah has returned with a Patron-request episode chatting about doing readings online versus in person and the benefits and drawbacks of both. Feel free to chat with me about it via email at or however you can find me on the Internets!
In this episode, your resident cardslinger rambles about the depiction of tarot in the media, mainstream representation, and the intersection of fandom and tarot. Please consider supporting by finding me on Patreon, ordering a reading on Etsy, or following/interacting with me on social media! Thanks!
Hello! In the spirit of broadening my personal horizons, I have interviewed a friend who is into the use of essential oils as supplementary accessories to more widely accepted treatments. I trust Lisa to use her considerable brainpower to research and investigate the best use of essential oils, and I hope you enjoy our interview. She's also one of my dearest friends and we had a great time chatting. I hope you enjoy listening to us!
Hello hello! In this episode, your resident cardslinger discusses oracle decks, a subset of cartomancy divination that is connected to tarot despite having nothing to do with it in terms of structure. Listen to the episode to learn more! I am also announcing my own project, the Antifragile Oracle. There will be updates, especially for my Patreon patrons! I appreciate your listens and support, and even if you can't afford to contribute financially, my email is always open to chat. Emails from listeners mean just as much to me as dollars. I'm Antifragile Tarot everywhere you can think of except for Twitter, where I'm antifragilecard, and my email is
It's my 50th episode! Time flies whether or not you're having fun. I finally get to interview Rorie Kelly of Sassafras Tarot, who is also a ladybeast musician: check her out on and on all streaming sites!
This episode is about the intersection of faith and practice, and what it means to have faith in yourself and your work.
What do you do when a spiritual path isn't working for you and it's time to say goodbye? This episode goes into that. Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere! This episode also features a shoutout to Edmund, a patron who is creating
In this episode, your resident cardslinger discusses how to manage your internal and external environment to optimize your tarot readings.
Hello! Hi! Thanks for your patience, this is a one-episode month this month. Finally, a longer episode on the tarot court, as requested by many. I highly recommend Understanding the Tarot Court by Mary K. Greer and Tom Little to further your understanding.
Hello! Finally, this episode is here! I secured an interview with the lovely and amazing Margaret Trauth/Peggy/Egypt Urnash. We discuss her weird, wild deck and magick and all that good stuff. Pardon my sick voice in the intro and outro! You can reach her at or any of the other ways she lists! and you can reach me at . Thanks for listening!
Hello folks! Today, Susannah discusses some changes in her reading style and takes on some questions from patrons and for others who need to receive messages.
This episode is a ramble about all sorts of "harmful" magick and my own thoughts on it. It is not meant to be comprehensive or pushy, but I hope it helps you examine your own beliefs on such a divisive subject.
In this episode, your resident cardslinger discusses what she means by woo: spiritual stuff, sometimes good, sometimes extra, always difficult for her to fit in with. Thanks for listening! If you like what I do and wanna support, please follow me on IG at antifragiletarot, pick up a reading on my etsy ( or become a patron ( don't forget to email me with comments or suggestions: antifragiletarot@gmail.com
Hello there! This episode focuses on jumper cards, reversals, and significators. If you don't know what those are, tune in and find out! Please email me at and follow me as AntifragileTarot on Instagram (where I'll be posting a LOT MORE) with ideas, comments, and questions!
heads up a CONTENT WARNING for adult but not explicit content this episode! it's february, the month of Valentine's Day, so I wanted to discuss love and magick but instead chatted about the Lovers in tarot decks, a long discourse on the ethics of sex magick, and a diversion into self-love and self-care (and not just bubble bath self care). again, the adult content is not explicit, but perhaps not boss-friendly. but be forewarned!
Have you thought about making some money from your readings? Teaching? This is an episode for you, but there will be more as well! This is an episode about how I got started reading for money and some very basic framework of where I think you should be before you take that plunge as well.
Hello! Thanks for tuning into the Antifragile Tarot podcast. In this episode I talk about setting intentions for the year, including a word of the year as inspired by my friend Rorie from Sassafras Tarot. Mine is "mastery," what's yours?
Hello there! In this episode, your resident cardslinger, Susannah, finally gets around to talking about Lenormand cards. This 36-card cartomancy/fortune telling deck has been experiencing a resurgence as of late, and this has been a requested episode for quite some time now. Have a happy and safe end of the year, and feel free to email me at with episode ideas or other comments!
Hello! As suggested by one of my lovely Patreon patrons, Jade, this episode is a short collection of anecdotes about my experiences as a tarot card reader, mostly as a professional but a few other musings. Thanks for listening and feel free to email me at with any suggestions or to inquire about booking me!
In this episode, I discuss impostor syndrome in the magickal community and within our own heads. In antifragile fashion, Iaddresses ways to work with and around it. $1 a month on Patreon gets you access to my discord, and $5+ gets you monthly personalized readings in your inbox! https://www.patreon.com/antifragiletarot If you can't donate, I appreciate emails with questions, comments, and ideas on what to chat about next. Always hit me up at antifragiletarot@gmail.com and I'll get back to you!
In this episode, your resident cardslinger rambles about Halloween, Samhain, the new year, all new years, death, rebirth, and ancestors. It's a doozy!
In this episode, your resident cardslinger, Susannah, discusses varying ways to alter your consciousness for divination, witchcraft, and ritual. Please exercise good judgment and act in accordance with your doctor's recommendations, the law, and your mental health before trying things out!
A brief discussion about what pop culture magic is, why you might use it, and how you can incorporate it into your practice if you so choose.
Ahoy hoy! In this episode, your resident cardslinger reviews the Halloween Tarot by Kipling West, just in time for spoopy season. If you'd like me to review your deck (or another deck), get in touch! I'd love to do more deck reviews, especially of diverse decks and indie decks.
You asked, your resident cardslinger, Susannah, tried to deliver! This episode is as clear as I can get about how to get started reading tarot. If you're in the Jersey City area and interested in a small meetup to try and learn more, or you have any episode suggestions or any other comments, email me at and I'll get back to you. Some resources I talk about in this episode:
This episode is a two for one deck review of the popular Kim Krans deck, The Wild Unknown, and its somewhat companion Animal Spirit oracle deck.
In this episode, your resident cardslinger discusses magickal and mundane home protection methods.
It's my birthday, but you get the gifts! A 20% off discount on my Etsy through 7/24 and a short podcast episode from your reident cardslinger reflecting on birthdays. After this episode, new podcasts are up on the 1st and the 15th!
Your resident cardslinger, Susannah, is super into sigils and wants to share the love with you. I mention this article on sigils a few times, so you should check it out: Thanks for listening! My Patreon prices are going up soon, so if you'd like to be grandfathered in to the current prices, consider being a patron and get monthly readings for as little as $5 per month: https://www.patreon.com/antifragiletarot
Hello! In this episode, your resident cardslinger discusses healing both yourself and others through magick, healing the world through mundane things, and the pitfalls and caveats. If you'd like to help fund me doing this kind of thing in person, please visit the fundraiser for the Jersey City Oddities Storefront! Please feel free to email me with any questions, comments, or feedback!
Hi friends! In this episode, your resident cardslinger, Susannah, reveals some big news about Antifragile Tarot and JC Oddities: a store to call our own. The first half talks about the store and our efforts to fundraise but the second half is about the new moon in Gemini. Thanks again for listening!
This episode, your resident cardslinger, Susannah, tackles gatekeeping within the magickal community. Remember that you have been where others are now. Stay tuned next episode for big, exciting Antifragile Tarot news! Feel free to email me at
Your resident cardslinger, Susannah, goes over The Forty Servants, a divination deck and magick system created by Tommie Kelly (www.adventuresinwoowoo.com). And it's episode 23- fnord!
In this episode, your resident cardslinger, Susannah, talks about how to escape a magickal rut, tarot or otherwise. Whether you're bored with what you currently do and want to ease back in or start something new, there's a lot of discussion about that in this week's episode. Plus, a decent amount of air time is devoted to Jason Miller's "The Elements of Spellcrafting," an excellent book. Feel free to email me at and consider becoming a patron of mine on my Patreon: Thanks for listening!
On the suggestion of a Patreon patron, I've cobbled together an episode going over some tarot card spreads, especially the good old semi-standard Celtic Cross. Feel free to email me suggestions about what you'd like to hear covered in this podcast at and find me on IG and FB at antifragiletarot or book a reading on my Etsy:
This episode is the (sort of) last in my series of going over the tarot deck section by section, suit by suit. This episode is an overview of the Pentacles/Coins/Disks, and your resident cardslinger Susannah goes over its patterns and some personal connotations. Thanks for listening! Feel free to hit me up at with any questions or comments. If you like this podcast and want to help keep it going, please consider subscribing to my Patreon:
This episode is devoted to the suit of the Cups. Your resident cardslinger, Susannah, runs through the suit and delves into some of the symbology in the Centennial Smith-Waite cards. Feel free to email me with any comments or feedback! Hit me up at antifragiletarot@gmail.com If you enjoy this podcast, please consider becoming a patron on Patreon: You can also book a reading on my Etsy:
This week's episode is on another difficult suit: the suit of swords. This suit represents air, but also mental difficulties and obsessive thoughts and communication snafus. This episode focuses on the Smith-Waite Centennial cards, but the general meanings will apply to many decks and RWS-based ones. If you have any questions or comments, please email me at and jf you enjoy this podcast, please consider becoming a patron on my Patreon!
Hi there! Thanks so much for being a listener. Here's a short update with a suggested tarot spread for the end of this year and beginning of next year, and a ramble about why I like New Year's Eve so much. If you'd like to help this podcast continue, please consider becoming my patron on Patreon (I'm Antifragile Tarot over there, too), or at least spreading the word about this podcast! Thank you again for helping my 2017 be great.
Wands: what are they good for? Passion, inspiration, and motivation! This week's episode is all about a minor arcana suit that is sometimes glossed over or misunderstood. This episode mainly discusses the Smith-Waite Centennial cards, but the general meanings should apply to any RWS-based deck. If you have any questions or comments, please email me at and if you enjoy this podcast, please consider becoming a patron at
This episode is the first in a series that serves as an overview of the tarot, divided up into the major arcana and the minors. In this episode, your resident cardslinger Susannah talks for almost an hour about the cards that make up the major arcana of tarot, the big cards like Death and the Lovers.
Hi there! It's your resident cardslinger Susannah again, with a slight correction about lunar new years thanks to a listener and a ramble about the importance of self-care as it related to your spiritual practice. Due to life circumstances, this podcast will be monthly for a couple of months, but hopefully back up to weekly or bi-weekly by the end of the year. Have a suggestion for a topic? Want a reading? Email me at to let me know!
This episode is even more rambly than most. Your resident cardslinger Susannah ruminates on Rosh Hashanah and the Jewish New Year 5778, as well as the anniversary of the death of her father and the importance of ritual, heritage, and new year celebrations of several denominations.
This episode is a brief foray into diverse decks, especially those featuring LGBTQ representation. By no means is this a comprehensive overview! So many of us with intersectional identities are drawn to tarot but often don't see ourselves reflected in it... and that goes even more so for people of color. Hit me up to discuss your favorite diverse decks at and if you're enjoying this podcast, check me out on Patreon as AntifragileTarot to help me continue to run it!
In this episode, your resident cardslinger Susannah discusses purposely adding more magick into your days or what daily practice might look like... of course, with a detour into how not to culturally appropriate your practice. It wouldn't be an episode of this podcast without a five minute tangent, huh? Check out my Patreon if you'd like to help support this podcast: Email me with suggestions or questions, or if you'd like to book a reading! antifragiletarot@gmail.com
Greetings! This most special tenth episode is both a little short and a little silly. In it, your resident cardslinger Susannah suggests that you use your tarot cards to pick your lunch, as well as goes into a brief overview of Discordianism. Have a little fun with your magick, and stop taking it (and yourself) so seriously!
Today we go over ethics of card reading and what to do about fraudulent readers. I also offer tips on how to best make sure you're not offering something you're not delivering.
Hello! Welcome to the Antifragile Tarot Podcast. In this episode, your resident cardslinger Susannah discusses how to be a good tarot client, even if (or especially if) you're a reader yourself. This doesn't just apply to paying clients either, so you'll find something in here that applies. If you'd like to make suggestions for future podcasts (or follow the advice of this episode and book a reading~) please email antifragiletarot@gmail.com
Sorry for the unintentional hiatus! This week's episode is about differences in tarot decks and how to approach cards with differing symbolism, as well as ways you can connect with a deck both physically and mentally. This topic was suggested by Rorie Kelly of Sassafras Tarot, although I get nothing for plugging her except her love. Don't hesitate to shoot me a comment or email at with your comments and suggestions for future podcasts!
Due to a technical snafu (I hit publish before allowing the file to upload), this episode is a bit late. Oops. Join your intrepid tarot card reader as I discuss different kinds of decks and how to choose your next one, whether you're a noob or a professional.
This week's episode is an overview of how to practice tarot and other witchery when you have to be a little secretive about it, or you just don't have a lot of support. Practical magic, online groups, and the nuclear option of moving to a more tolerant area are all explored!
Hello! This episode is a little off balance because we got a new kitten! Please pardon some of the random noise. Here I talk about doing readings for other people, setting boundaries, and a couple tips for reading in a group setting. Transcript: Hello, and welcome to the Antifragile Tarot podcast. I am your resident cardslinger, Susannah, here on another witchy Wednesday to talk your ear off. This week, I am going to be talking about reading tarot cards for other people. I do want to issue a brief apology in advance; last week my husband and I adopted a new kitten, so she's a little rowdy and there might be a little bit more background noise than normal, since I'm recording this in my living room and there's nobody else home so I can't just lock her up. I spent last weekend reading as Antifragile Tarot at the JC Oddities Market in Jersey City, which is where I'm based. I've been reading professionally for about a year now and I've been reading tarot cards for about 15, but one thing that a lot of new readers struggle with is whether or not they should read their cards for other people. I personally think there is really no wrong way to be a tarot card reader. I think that you are just as valid if you only read for yourself, or if you won't take money for tarot card readings, or if you only read for other people, or if you only read with Spirit guides, or if you never read with Spirit guides... I don't think that any of this makes you any less legit or anything like that. Some people have strong opinions about this kind of thing, but I try not to-- but one thing that new tarot card readers often come up against is when they should start reading for other people, if you are of a mind to do so. Now, if you read cards and you don't keep this a secret, people will start asking you for readings. It's just what happens. And if you are not a professional reader, you'll definitely want to give some thought to how you're going to go about this, and if you want to go pro that's also something I'll be covering today. So, when you start reading cards... if you're just reading for yourself and your friends, and you're keeping it very casual and you're not claiming to be an exper,t I would have no problem giving tarot card readings as soon as you get your deck. I don't care if you're still reading the meanings off of Biddy Tarot or using the little book that came with your cards, if one came with your cards, I don't think that's a problem. I don't think it's a bad idea-- in fact, I think it's some of the best practice you're ever going to get. I gave pretty good readings right off the bat even though I wouldn't have considered myself a professional reader in high school. And I look back at readings I did and they were pretty spot-on, so I was very happy with that and I don't see why anyone else wouldn't have that same experience. But you definitely don't want to start offering pro readings if you're still relying heavily on books. Again, I don't think that pros should never look at meanings; when I'm doing ab reading for somebody, especially some some of my more in depth readings like my 12-spoked wheel reading, I sometimes look at resources because the cards have so many different meanings and sometimes I'll get a sense of something that doesn't make any sense to me, and I will start poking around about what this means and I will realize that this makes perfect sense knowing some more context about the card. But I definitely would not recommend that you start charging people money if you are not yet feeling like you can look at any card in the deck and know exactly what it means. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't read for other people. It can be really fun to sit with your friends and go over cards and talk about what they mean to you. So definitely don't be too intimidated to do that. You can also join lots of groups or tarot card reading exchanges... littleredtarot.com, which is one of my favorite resources, has a lot of-- they just opened up reading exchanges for their alternative tarot community. You do have to wait for sign-ups, they're monthly sign ups, but it's a free community. So it's definitely something to consider. You just have to join their mailing list, I think. I haven't participated myself but it's a really good idea. You can also doing some Facebook groups, and work from there. One thing I have learned is that when you're reading for other people, you do need to figure out some way to let them know that you're done. It's a lot easier when you charge money, because you can tell your friends "listen, I do a lot of free readings for you, but this is a job for me, so, you know, if you really want to book a reading with me, go ahead." I often do readings for my friends for free and I cut people discounts all the time. I also do readings for barter. But it is important that you establish some kind of boundary, because people kind of do take advantage. If you're at a point where you're feeling comfortable reading for other people and you're ready to start going pro, there's a lot of things you want to consider. I'm doing this as a very, you know, quick and easy side business. It's not a main source of income for me. I go to school, I have a full-time job; I mostly do this as an Etsy business and something I can do on weekends when I'm free. But you want to consider how you want to conduct your business. Are you someone who only believes in face-to-face readings? If so, running your business on Etsy will not work very well for you at all. Are you someone who thinks that you can only work with Spirit guides? That's something you want to be very upfront about, because a lot of people want to know where you're coming from. It's very important that when you start reading for other people, you let them know what you are and aren't comfortable with, what you do and don't read on, what you do and don't believe that tarot cards can do. I sometimes have that experience when I'm explaining my views on tarot to other people; you know, they go, "oh, you're the psychic." No, no, I'm not psychic. And they wonder why I would market myself as a tarot card reader if I don't consider myself psychic. Why would I not just lie to them and tell them "why yes, I am a psychic! I can tell you everything." I don't do that because it's not ethical to promise things that I can't deliver on, and I would rather have people who want what I have to offer instead of people who think they're getting something from me and they're not. That would be fraudulent. And it's also important to figure out what you will and won't do readings on, whether you're doing them for your friends or you're doing them professionally. Most people who are taking money for card readings will not do readings on health issues, especially fertility, and we also don't tend to do readings on whether or not a court case will go through. You know, I always tell people that my advice does not replace a medical professional, it does not replace a lawyer, and that being said, there are times when I will do readings for people as long as I can tell that we're on the same page about it. I have clients who say "you know, I've been trying for a child, I recently had a miscarriage, I'd just like some guidance on the situation." And I tell them, "you know, I'm not a fertility expert, you need to consult fertility experts, but I will do a reading on the emotional aspects of it for you." And if I really, truly don't feel comfortable with a reading, I won't do it. And you should not feel bad if someone wants you to do a reading that you're not comfortable with. Let's say you have a friend who is cheating on their spouse, and they ant a reading on how thins are going with the new person. If you're really not comfortable with that, you are not at all obligated to do that reading. Please establish those boundaries for yourself. And if you are seeking a tarot card reading, I think it's very important to make sure that you and the tarot card reader are on the same page. Make sure that you understand what they're offering. If you are seeking someone who, you know, will be able to talk to you about soulmates, or perhaps feels comfortable being a medium, connecting wyou with a deceased relative, that's something that you want to make very clear up front so that you can make sure that you're getting somebody who aligns with your beliefs and who aligns with what you think is reasonable. In my experience with reading for other people, especially if, say, you're reading at a friend's party, or even if you go to a bar and do readings for other people, I think it's important to keep two things in mind. Number one, you don't want to bring your most prized deck to be handled by a bunch of strangers. I made that mistake. I had a Centennial Smith-Waite deck that belonged to my mother, who passed away, and I read professionally with that deck for about six months until I realized that other people shuffling it made it kind of grimy, and the cards were very bent and I had to stop reading with it and get a replacement as soon as possible so that I didn't destroy this deck, which is meaningful to me. And I don't-- I read with it sometimes, now, mostly for my own personal things. Um, so if you're reading for your friends, you know, that's one thing, but sometimes you might wanna... one thing I liked to do, right before I went pro, was take my deck to bars. And I got a little mini deck to bring, it's a Rider Waite deck, it was like ten bucks and I bring it with me to bars; I've gotten beer spilled all over it, and god knows what else, but I don't mind, because it gives the deck some character, and it's easy to replace for me. Um, if you are goingto be sitting in one place for a while, make sure that you bring water and snacks-- snacks are really important. If it's gonna be cold, you should bring something, like an extra blanket or sweater. I made that mistake; I did one market where the heat wasn't on, and... I mean, I was cold. Also, if you're doing an outdoor festival reading, really make sure that you bring sunscreen, and a hat, because I and my friend who helps me set up have gotten sooo sunburned, so it's really important that you protect yourself. Um, other things to keep in mind when reading for other people, especially in big groups, you want to figure out if there's something that you like to do to begin and end readings. For me, that's a little difficult, because I don't do them very ritualistically, as a profession; I will do tarot readings ritualistically or utilize tarot in ritual in my personal practice, but when I am reading tarot for other people, that's not really what I do. So, one thing I've settled on, I like to use the phrase, you know, "is there anything in particular that you'd like to know about today?" It doesn't sound like much, but maybe it's how I say it, or the attention I'm giving the person who's sitting across from me, but that usually starts getting us in a place where we are ready to discuss things and get down to business to defeat the Huns- no, okay, not that. Um, another thing that I like to do is that.. I shuffle the deck. If it's a close friend or I feel really comfortable with the person, I'll let them shuffle the deck, but, as I mentioned, letting random people shuffle your deck is the quickest way to wear it out. So, I shuffle the deck and then I let them cut it however many times they want. You may wish to experiment with having people deal out the cards themselves, wherever you tell them to put them, but a lot of people like it if you do that because, remember, when you're doing a tarot card reading, you are the expert for someone else. You are their guide. And you have to make sure that you feel comfortable with that. You have to make sure that you feel like you are in a position where you can be honest about what the cards say and that you're also willing to say, "listen, this is what the tarot cards say, but my personal advice is..." blah blah blah. That really only applies if you're reading for a friend; if you're reading for a stranger, unless they're asking you for your personal opinion, you should pretty much stick to what the cards are saying. The thing with being a tarot card reader is also that there are images that people expect; you know, I have a black tablecloth and I have crystals all over it, but I don't necessarily dress like a stereotypical tarot card reader. For one thing, that's a really inaccurate and stereotypical caricature of Romanis; I don't use the g-word because it's a slur, unless someone who is Romani is using it themselves, but people expect a lot of that. And you know, I just look like a typical goth girl, I'm usually wearing some kind of black, a black skirt, and I have piercings and tattoos, and I do still try to give off a vibe. My vibe is interesting, a little offbeat, and when you're reading for other people, you want to set up that vibe for yourself. Is it important to you that you have candles around you? Although you want to be careful, because tarot card readers-- tarot cards are made of paper, tarot cards readers are hopefully not made of paper, if you are made of paper I am surprised that you're able to listen to this podcast. You may want to wear a specific piece of jewelry; my husband once got me a big crystal on a rope. I also know someone who makes these really great wrapped crystals, you can look her up on NilsasElementalArt on Etsy and Instagram, and she makes really cool wire-wrapped things and can tell you all about the stones and her process. So, wearing something like that can really get you in the mood. You may also have a robe you like to wear, or music you like to put on. This is something you want to do even if you are doing a remote reading; let's say, like me, you offer readings over email, you may want to get yourself into a space. When I do readings over email, I lay out the cards, I set them up, and I take a photo of them; I take them in the kitchen because I have the best natural light in there. And I used to use a tarot cloth but I managed to shrink it in the wash, oops, right now I just do it on wood and I have different crystals around and different things that help kind of connect me. I'm not someone who believes that crystals have inherent energy, I don't do crystal healing, but crystals provide a nice thing for me to focus on. And something I like to tell people is that the placebo effect can have physical consequences, so I think it is naive to dismiss the power of ritual, or tarot cards for that matter, as a placebo or confirmation bias, because it can really affect change in your life, for good or for bad. So, these are things that you want to think about when you decide to read for other people. Um, you also want to start thinking about pricing. You can look up what other people are pricing. Some popular ways of pricing are a certain amount per card, you can price for a time slot... doing it per card is more useful if you are at party kind of events, or doing it online, over the phone... if you're doing it at a festival, I've done a bunch of festivals, I personally charge per reading. I do three cards for five dollars, I do five cards for ten, and if it's a really slow day or if I have arranged with the person from the event to offer it, I do offer Celtic Cross readings, for between $15 and $20 depending on if I'm trying to run a special that day. I normally charge $20 for a Celtic Cross. [NOTE: these prices were current at the time of the podcast but are subject to change and do not reflect the current price model]. Um, these prices may change, by the way, if you're listening to this podcast years from when I publish it, I can't guarantee that my prices will always be the same, but you want to figure out what's worth it to you. You may also decide that, let's say, you are doing readings... a friend of mine has done readings at music festivals that she's worked at and she doesn't do them for money necessarily, um, it's kind of a pay what you want, please donate to me, here's a tip jar kind of thing. I also, personally, have a tip jar. I find that's useful, especially becuse I'm the kind of reader who frequently throws in extra readings for people; let's say someone says "well, I want to know about my love life and about money," I'm like, "alright, we'll do a five card reading and we'll see what comes up." And usually it becomes pretty clear that it's about their career or about their live life, one way or the other, and I usualy throw in an extra three-card reading about the other thing that they wanted to know about, if it really didn't seem to cover both bases. If you are reading for friends, uh, you can kind of have more fun with it. I would like to start offering bigger spreads, bigger life arc things, also just reading that incorporate more cards that are in the deck. So, I think the most I do right now is about twelve, but I would love to do a reading that incorporates almost the whole deck. Or maybe even the whole deck! But I'm gonna be practicing with that so I'm gonna reach out to a few friends and say "hey, you wanna be a guinea pig for me?" And that's a great way to dip your toe into reading for other people. But if you start doing readings for others, and you start to realize that it's not for you, don't worry about it. There's nothing that is making you continue. I've seen plenty of people who felt that they'd really enjoy reading professionally and they realized "you know, this isn't for me," and they just closed up shop. And other people can have whatever feelings they want about it but you are not obligated to read for anybody. Ever. On the flip side, you might be like me, and love reading for other people and kind of really enjoy doing that, but have a lot of trouble reading for yourself. I often draw unpleasant cards when I read for myself; unpleasant cards doesn't mean Death. In fact, I would like to see the Death card more, maybe? I guess I've had a lot of changes in my life, maybe I don't want to see the Death card more. But by unpleasant cards I mean The Tower, or the Nine of Swords, the Three of Swords, pretty much all the swords... also, the Emperor likes to come out to play, and the Emperor can be a really nice card, it's kind of a father figure, but when the Emperor comes out to play in my cards, it usually means the patriarchy is keeping me down. It came up once when a friend did a reading for me about getting my tubes tied, and it turned out that I haven't been able to schedule that procedure even though I still want to do it. But when the Emperor was crossing me, it was the patriarchy, and it's like, "well yes, yes I do want to get my tubes tied, cos of the current political situation, funny that the cards should catch that." So, you know, when I'm reading for myself, I find I often read very critically. I am my own worst enemy and I always have been, and I feel like I have a stumbling block when I do that. But, at the point I'm at now in my reading, I also think that I'm doing other people a disservice by not reading for myself more regularly, so I'm trying to incorporate readings for myself around the new moon, and the full moon, and sometimes as needed. I had a surgical procedure done recently so I read before that, and I actually did catch that it wouldn't fix my issue, and it didn't! I still have kidney stones! So, it can be really valuable to explore reading for yourself and reading for others. Just don't feel like you're locked in one way or the other to your readings. And don't feel like you're not enough of a reader if you aren't doing it professionally. There's no particular reason that you should be doing it professionally. So don't think that you have to do that. I decided that enough people were asking me for readings that I might as well try to make some money from it, and I also still give away readings all the time. I do them for friends, no problem. I also get to try out more fun things or decks that I'm not as comfortable with when I'm reading for free. So there's definitely cons to being a professional reader. But have some fun with it, and see how you feel, uh, feel free to hit me up in the comments, or shoot me an email at antifragiletarot@gmail.com to discuss your experiences with reading for other people. As a reminder, I mentioned a few things throughout this podcast that, uh, you might want spend money on, like my friend Nilsa's art (again, that's NilsasElementalArt, N I L S A apostrophe S, or no apostrophe on instagram, elemental art) and Little Red Tarot, the Alternative Tarot Course, um, I recommend these things because I think they're worth recommending. I don't get any money from them, I'm not getting sponsored to do this, I am telling you about them out of the hopes that you will appreciate them as much as I do. So, I hope you have enjoyed this week's podcast. I'm sorry it was a little all over the place, I was wrestling a kitten for most of it, and I will catch you next week. If you have any ideas of what you'd like to hear me go over in one of these podcasts, again, shoot me an email, leave a comment, I am all ears. Or all mouth. I guess all voice, for you. Alright, have a witchy and/or wonderful week. Bye!
Welcome to the Antifragile Tarot Podcast! It is I, Susannah, your resident cardslinger who loves to ramble on. This episode explores the intersection of technology and tarot, as well as occult practice in general. This just in: people have a lot of feelings about tarot cards and whether or not tarot card apps are fraud. Spoiler alert: they're not.
Hey there! It's another witchy Wednesday and your resident cardslinger, Susannah, is here to ramble on at you about the full moon. No howling included. Tune in for a discussion of ritual, timing, and Susannah managing to both sound completely out there and very boring. Too witchy for the Muggles, too scientific for the witches... transcript: Hey there! Welcome to the Antifragile Tarot Podcast. It's another Witchy Wednesday and I am your resident cardslinger, Susannah. So, I had recorded an entire episode of this podcast and I had decided to type it up and read it off of a script, because it's a pain in the butt to transcribe the entire thing and I thought maybe it would be a little more cohesive if I went off of a script. Turned out, I really didn't like it. I sounded kind of robot. One of my coworkers tells me that I sound like the Microsoft Word paperclip if it was personified, which would come from years and years of doing customer service and phone-based work, but I really don't want this to be like that. You know, I want it to be like you're siting across from me, and we're chatting about tarot, or witchy stuff, and I would love to be able to do that more often, but it's hard with schedules and the stupid time-space continuum, as my husband likes to say, so instead, we've got podcasts. And, I realized that Wednesday, the day that you are listening to this, or not the day that you are listening to this but the day that it is released, is a full moon, and it gave me a really good excuse to re-record everything, so here we are. And I would like to talk to you today about timing. This isn't precisely tarot-related, this is more of the miscellaneous occult stuff that I said I was going to go over, but there are tarot things involved, so sit tight. Before we get started, I do want to issue a slight correction. Last week I was talking about the Rider-Waite tarot system, and I got so excited in referring to it as the Smith-Waite that I stumbled over Pamela Coleman Smith's name. I called her Pamela Smith, for some reason. It's actually Pamela Coleman Smith. She is the artist who drew each of the 78 cards in the system that most people refer to as the Rider-Waite system. But there is a deck, that is actually one of the decks that I inherited from my mom, that is probably the catalyst for me starting Antifragile Tarot, and it is the Centennial Smith-Waite, which I like because it's recolored to fit the artist's original vision, and the name, instead of using the, uh, person who commissioned it and the publisher's name, it uses the artist's name and the person who commissioned it, in that order, which I think is pretty cool. And I'm a feminist, so it pleases me the lady's getting her due. But we're not really here to ramble on about that. We had enough of that ramble last week. What I do want to talk to you today, about, are moons and timing in general. So, even the most mundane people I know who have no interest in the occult, or who are like super Christian and want nothing to do with witches, and freak out when they see my pentagram, will, you know, make jokes about the full moon. I work in a hospital as my full-time gig and people are always joking about whether it's a full moon. And you will have medical professionals who swear up down back and forth that the full moon is a crazy time. Personally, in the emergency room, it's always a crazy time. But I was going to do a paper for my Psych 101 class about whether or not there was any real correlation between working... like, hospital admissions, particularly psych admissions, and full moons, because even if there's no occult explanation, I think that the power of suggestion is super-powerful, ha ha, but Idid some preliminary research and I realized that the answer is really gonna be no, even though experience does count for something, and as I mentioned in my last episode, I think it's important that we don't take anything as totally settled. And one thing that comes up a lot in magic is timing. What day of the week to do a spell, or set an intention, if you don't want to call it a spell; when you should be doing readings, what you can do with the full moon... you know, there's a lot of what I call hedge witchcraft revolving around setting out crystals to, you know, charge energetically in the full moonlight. I'm going to sound really, really woo during this podcast, and I promise you that I take myself with a grain of salt, but whether or not you think that there's actually a magickal force behind all of this, going through the steps of ritual is important. It's why we do things like have graduation ceremonies-- those are rites of passage, just because we're not out in the woods with a drum howling doesn't mean that it's not a rite of passage ceremony at its core. So, I would like you to consider the idea that ritual is a lot more than just getting dressed up in spooky robes and going out in the middle of the night, but a ritual is something that you do with intention. It has defined steps, it has a defined purpose, and a lot of that is used to get you in the right mindset to be able to affect changes. That's kind of a more psychological view of this, though. We see it in in people who are told to visualize their outcomes, especially athletes, there have been studies about this. Visualizing the outcome that they want is going to make them more likely to do so. You can't tell me that there's a lot of difference between a visualization and a spell, if you break it down to its core elements. So, you know, there's people who have very different schools of thought than me. I am a hedge witch, ugh, if you've read Lev Grossman's The Magicians, there's a TV show about it right now which I have very mixed opinions on, but a lot of my friends love it so I'm not trying to hate, but in The Magicians, which I think is one of the best depictions of the modern magical community I have ever read that's not, you know, a nonfiction book, uh, The Magicians is often called grown-up Hogwarts and in it, there is-- magic is super real. And there is a school, or a few magical schools that you go to. One of them is called Brakebills and it is in upstate New York, and you learn theory, very specific, tricky magic, where you move your hands in different positions, mudras, for those of you who are familair with Eastern philosophies, but they don't call them mudras. They call them positions. And you learn to deal with the circumstances, so whether you're a man or a woman or a child or you're on the North Pole or on the South Pole ot it's raining, those are all the times and circumstances where you have to learn how to work your magic. Well, there's also hedge witches. They don't go through Brakebills, for whatever reason, they don't pop up on the radar, and they learn their power in a very different way. But it's still power. So, I definitely consider myself a hedge witch in that kind of tradition. I'm not a ceremonial magician; I do dabble in a realm of magic called chaos magick, which is- ask ten chaos magicians what the definition is, and you're gonna get ten different definitions. It's not like Wicca where there's, you know, an actual religion and some rules, although I guess Wicca has kind of been bastardized over the years. But, regardless, I come from a very make it up as you go, almost, pass it doen from folk traditions, make do with what you have kind of school of thought. So, a lot of what I'm going to say in this podcast, a lot of people will say that I'm absolutely wrong and there's no way I can get results with it, and buh buh buh buh buh, and that's cool, the magical community has room for all of us. So, back to our moon situation. You know, you're gonna get people who say that there's certain things you can only do on a full moon, you can never do on a new moon, and I don't agree with that at all. I often think that magick or whatever you want to call this, to do this kind of thing effectively, you kind of have to treat it like you would getting healthy, or a diet or exercise plan. It's really great to know the best way to do things. I think it's relaly important to know the best way to do things, even with language. Getting a good grasp on grammar and spelling and rules and formatting, it's really important to know the rules so that a) you can break them effectively, and not sound like an idiot while doing it, and b) so that you can learn what works for you. You know, with a diet, it's great if you think that- you know, broccoli is a super healthy food, but if you absolutely hate broccoli and never eat it, it's better if you go eat a salad of iceberg lettuce, even if that's not as nutritionally complete, than to just say screw it, I'm gonna go eat French fries because I hate broccoli and if I can't have the world's healthiest thing, I can't have anything healthy at all. That sounds a little silly, right? That's how I feel about magic a lot of the time. Uh, full moons are, as I see them, a time to tap into the energy of the world around you. I like looking at the moon. It's pretty~! I like thinking about the cyclical nature of things, and a lot of the work that I do, a full moon is a really great time to focus on something that you want to let go in the next month or so, because you can kind of tie it energetically or symbolically to how the moon appears to wane. Now, we all know that the moon isn't actuallty getting smaller. This is something that I tell people about something else you might have heard a lot about, Mercury in Retrograde, where, you know, it looks like Mercury is going backwards to us, even though it's not-- the planets only move in their directions, but everything is a matter of perspective, everything that we do is viewed through whatever lenses we're looking at it through, so why is it more or less valid to focus on the planets? I think it's a perfectly fine thing to work with. So, when I do my markets, I often sell little candle kits, and I include one of my business cards and I have five different backingsa to my business cards, which are tarot cards, and I include one of them to focus on. And I have a few different sets. I have candles for love and relationships, I have candles for communication, I have candles for letting stuff go, I have candles for getting a new job, and I often suggest to people, when they ask me when they should light them, you know, "when should I light this candle?" and I tell them, "well, you can either light it right now if you really need to and you're feeling super pumped about it, like, go and do that." Because I think it's best to do things when you're feeling like it's the right time, regardless of what a calendar has to say. As I'm doing this podcast, I'm actually looking at my magical Llewellyn's calendar that has all these colors of the day and the moon phases and when the planets are moving in whatever direction, and a friend got that for me for the holidays and I love it. But honestly, you can tear it off the wall and never pay attention to it and still be extremely effective. But, what I do tell people is that the full moon is a good time to light a candle, set an intention, whatever, for things that you want to be letting go of. Let's say you can't get over your ex, or you're dealing with a grief cycle, um, I lost both of my parents within two years. So, I've had some experience with grief recently, and learning how to let go and move on, and I also tell people that if they want to grow something, the new moon is a good time for that because you can't see the moon, and then it starts to wax, or grow bigger. And that's a good time if you're trying to, let's say you're not communicating well with your partner and you're kind of giving each other the silent treatment, you know, I suggest lighting a candle to increase communication, or to- if you're looking for jobs, that's a good time to do it, because you're trying to get more opportunities drawn to you. And I think that the moon stuff is something to really think about. Whether or not it's true, objectively, you know, as I said in the last podcast, I don't know if I think the cards are "true" objectively, I think they give you a lot to think about. And I think that full moons are a really good time to reflect on the things that are full in your life, and a friend of mine last night was saying that, contrary to what I was just saying, you know, she always heard that new moons are good for planting and full moons are good for harvesting, and in a way, that sounds contrary to what I was saying, you know, you let go at the ful moon, but you do, because when you harvest, the fiels doesn't have anything in it anymore. It's empty again. And you also, when you're planting, usually you can't plant one after the other, right? You're supposed to let the soil regenerate some and be able to provide more nutrients. So there's a season for planting, there's a season for harvesting, and there's a season for rest. So that's kind of the thing with the moon. And I uh, encourage you to think about what the full moon means to you. Does it mean that things go crazy? For me, I actually like the full moon. I don't feel like people are acting any weirder. I feel very calm during full moons. In fact, for me, I find that new moons are when I start having communication breakdowns with people, and I just feel kind of off-kilter, but I also think that might have something to do with me being a Cancerian. My birthday's in July, mid July, so that might be part of it. I am only just starting my work on an astrology course by esteemed occult awesome lady Benebell Wen, so I am not an astrology master or mistress yet, but, you know, going by the very surface area, sun sign thing, I'm a Cancer, and the moon often makes me feel comforted. So, when other might be howling at the moon, I feel like I'm basking in its light. So, at this point, if you are, you know, super secular, or not at all into woo, you're probably turned this podcast off at this point, let's be real. But, if you haven't, kudos to you for still being here, and again, I encourage you to consider that this is not just a woo thing. It's a good time to set your intentions. I personally don't really think I'm doing anything cosmically. I think a lot of it has to do with my attitude, I think a lot of it has to do with my perspective, and it's also just fun to be that witchy person who knows the moon signs and feels more in tune with this stuff. There's nothing wrong with having some fun, you know? I think one thing that both some occultists and some- ha, I'm going to call them muggles- some muggles, you know, think is that a lot of witches take things very seriously. And we do. You know, I definitely take a tarot card reading seriously, if the client wants that. But I also have no problem with, you know, the very raunchy deck that I got at Spencer's with people, you know, doing improbable sexual positions on the tarot cards, and having a laugh while doing a tarot card reading. Or, you know, running outside and collecting a bunch of snow during a blizzard, which also happens to be on a full moon, and and keeping that water. I have jars labeled "full moon blizzard water." And I think that there's a misconception that we take all this stuff very seriously, and we do, but a lot of us are also just doing it cos it feels like the right thing to do. Don't we all do things that are kind of silly and don't really have any meaning or purpose? Don't we all have favorite colors or lucky numbers, or even just numbers that we like? And, or other rituals that we do. Taco Tuesday is a ritual, I hate to tell you. But there's nothing wrong with that. I think we would all do well to make some things more ritualistic. A lot of productivity and study guide things recommend that you have a particular place and time or even outfits that you use to take tests in. What is that, if not preparing for a ritual? What is that, if not setting an intention? Doing a spell? And that's what I'd like you to think about during this full moon witchy Wednesday. Um, a full moon is also-- or a new moon, for that matter- but full moons in particular are also really popular times to do tarot card readings. I know a lot of people who- if you go online looking for tarot card spreads, there's a billion of them, and a lot of people will do readings during the full moon. For me, personally, I don't read for myself that often, for a lot of reasons. I am my own worst enemy, I am my own harshest critic, and I'm much more likely to see something negative in the cards about myself, and I talk negatively to myself all the time. I don't need more of that in my life. But I have been making an effort lately to do more readings for myself, and I find that the full moon, and sometimes the new moon, is a good excuse to do that, so that's what I'll be doing. I'll be doing a tarot card reading for myself with one of my tarot decks that I haven't played with in a while, my vampire deck; my husband's been telling me that he thinks it's time for me to use that deck. I swear, sometimes that man is more of a witch than I am. So, I hope that you have enjoyed this podcast, um, I hope that you are doing something fun or meaningful for yourself on this witchy Wednesday, and if you would like to experiment with some full moon magic, I heartily suggest that you do. Think about something that you've been wanting to let go of. Maybe it's negative self-talk. Maybe it's a relationship or grief or, you know, even if you're trying to lose some weight, it's not a bad idea. Or, losing some negative body image, because I am super body positive and not everyone should be trying to lose weight. But, it's a good time to start thinking about that, and if lighting a candle or formally making wish while having a cigarette or whatever is your preferred way to do this, I don't think it's a bad thing. I think it might be very effective for you. And whether or not you're freaked out by the effectiveness or disappointed at the lack thereof, it can just be a thing to do, to pass the time. But one final thought that I'll be leaving you with is: it doesn't matter what day of the week, what moon phase, how many fancy, hard to find ingredients you have that are supposed to ensure your success. I don't necessarily believe-- well, I guess that's not true. I do believe that life, and magick in real life, is kind of like in the Magicians novels. I was about to say you actually have to work for it, but everyone there does work at magic. But almost any magician worth their salt, particularly in chaos magick, which is kind of my area, will tell you that whatever magick you do is worth jack-all if you don't actually do the work in the real world for it. If you set a new moon or set a full moon intention to let go of your ex, but then you start Facebook stalking them the same night, that's really not going to be helpful. Instead, you need to, as part of your intention, block them on social media, if possible. Or make an effort to change the subject if you find yourself talking about them. If your intention is to stop talking to yourself negatively, maybe book a therapy appointment or put up some self-affirming notes on your mirror. It sounds silly, it doesn't really work for me but I have friends who swear by it and I think that's a great thing if it works for you. You have to actually put in some work. Magic is there as a boost, so don't think that you can just light a candle and wave some incense and poof, it's going to be done. You need to be putting in your work both energetically and in whatever concrete ways that you can. I have things in my life that I am trying to let go of, and I will certainly be thinking of them, and I will be doing a tarot card reading. I'm not sure if I'm going to be doing some full moon spread I found online or just a standard celtic cross, but I'll be doing one of those to see what I should be focusing on in this moon cycle. And I hope that you do something worthwhile. You can always book a reading with me, if you want, at my Etsy, Antifragile Tarot, you can book it today and I'll do it tomorrow or you can make sure you mark your calendars for the next full or new moon if you really want to time it that way, uh, you can also find me on Instagram at antifragiletarot and Facebook at Antifragile Tarot as well. You can also email me at antifragiletarot@gmail.com if you have any suggestions or things you'd like to hear about on this podcast, or any questions about anything I've talked about today. So, I hope you have a wonderful and/or witchy week, and I will talk to y'all next week. Bye!
A brief introduction to me, Susannah, and a ramble about what tarot cards are and are not. Don't forget to email me suggestions of what you'd like to hear in this podcast! Hit me up at with your questions and ideas. Transcript: Hey there! This is the Antifragile Tarot Podcast and I am your resident cardslinger, Susannah. This going to be a pretty short episode because I want to introduce myself to you and explain why I decided to do a podcast on top of the other things I do with my little tarot card reading business, Antifragile Tarot. Mostly I make appearances at local markets, such as the JC Oddities market and the Pacific Flea and pretty much whatever I can manage around my day job, which is really a night job. This podcast is supposed to be a good resource for beginners, intermediate and advanced practitioners alike. I personally have been reading tarot cards since I was 13; my mom got me my first deck. Although something I will go into soon—is it is completely not necessary for someone else to get you your first deck. But my mother was a tarot card reader herself, semi-professionally, and she got me a vampire deck when I was 13. So, I've been reading on and off, I took a pause in my late teens because you know how some people find the occult when they become a teenager to rebel against their parents? For me, rebellion was not paying attention to it, so I dropped it. I had a bunch friends who were super, you know, atheists who looked down on anything remotely like tarot or horoscopes or whatever, and I kind of gave it up, but I never fully ignored it, and a few years ago I decided that I was much happier reading tarot than not, so I went back to it. And it’s just kinda grown from here. So I now read semi-professionally, it's not my full-time job but I work at markets, I have an Esty-- --and now I'm offering a podcast. Why a podcast? Well I can’t always be there in person to hang out with you, and Instagram only offers so much in the way of letting me write to you, so I figured this might be a fun way for me to interact with you and I don't have to set up my messy apartment for a video. I think it's a win-win all around. This episode is going to be more geared towards a beginner, for now, I’dlike to discuss what tarot is and what tarot is not. Tarot is not tarrot, it is not--well I think there are different pronunciations, but tarot cards are a 78-card system. There are two major systems, there is the Smith-Waite, normally referred to as Rider-Waite but I call it Smith-Waite for feminist reasons and the Thoth system. Everyone has a different way of pronouncing Thoth. There’s Th-oth, there’s Tut, I say Tah-th, it’s easier for me, that's what we’re going to go with. The Rider-Waite system is one that I primarily use and it’s the one that you're most likely to be familiar with. If you’ve watched TV shows like Carnivàle or I know it has popped up on Supernatural, although it was totally not realistic but still kind of cool and even on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Tarot cards like Death and Lovers and maybe you even seen Judgement or some of the cup cards or sword cards, those cards are from the Rider-Waite system. The Thoth system also has those cards but there are some key differences. So in a 78-card tarot deck, you've got 22 cards called the major arcana. It starts off with the Fool and ends with the World, and all of those cards in between are major archetypes a la Jung, and different important milestones. The 22 major arcana is often called the Fool's journey because it starts off with this figure, the Fool, who either becomes or meets different people on the way depending on what interpretation you're going with and ends at the completion of the cycle which is the World. And then the rest of the cards after the 22 are divided into four suits. Now those suits are analogous to a regular playing card deck which some people also use for cartomancy, or the art of telling the future with cards. Those suits, which the names vary in different decks, but those suits are Pentacles, Swords, Cups and Wands. Those 4 suits correspond to different elements, so Pentacles are Earth, Cups are Water, Swords are Air and Wands are Fire. They also have different stories being told within them. The suit of Pentacles is kinda about setting foundations and growing things. The Pentacle suit tends to deal with the material world, sometimes your job, your home, your physical appearance. But a pentacle card can just as easily be about your relationships. Tarot card reading is extremely contextual. Cups are an emotional journey, a lot of water imagery to suggest the flow of emotions. Swords are a really tricky one, they’re often called the suit of sorrows because there are a lot of really difficult cards and sad cards. In fact, one card which is way more distressing than the Death card, in my opinion, is the Ten of Swords, which in a typical tarot deck is a person being stabbed in the back with ten swords, really unpleasant. But the suit of Swords primarily deals with communication and intellect, so a lot of swords might come up if you're doing a reading about your school or even your spiritual studies. I've certainly gotten Swords when I’ve done readings about my business because it’s such an intellectual endeavor, I’m always researching and learning more about tarot. Finally, Wands are kind of the suit of go-getting and fiery feelings. There’s a lot real conflict and all systems go. There’s a lot of chameleons or geckos in it, which I think is a really--maybe salamanders-- it’s strange way to indicate fire, but hey it works for a reason, right? So those cards comprise tarot. There are some other systems like I said, some people read with playing cards, some people read with, like, the Cardcaptor Sakura clow cards. I actually have a friend who does that and her readings are pretty good. And there’s Lenormand which is usually considered a little more straight up fortune telling. But tarot is popular for a bunch of reasons, number one, it's just the most highly publicized. There are a lot of resources on it. Number two, it really lends itself to a variety of situations. You can divine with it although a lot of tarot card readers like myself don’t really consider us to be people who read the future like that. It’s also really, really good for introspection and using the framework of the Smith-Waite or Rider-Waite can really provide for a lot of cool interpretations which is why if you go to a website like Aeclectic (aec) you may find a lot of different decks. You may find a baseball themed deck or a cat themed deck--I have one of those, it’s super cute. And then you’ll even find decks where they rename the suits. Sometimes they're just named after the elements and sometimes they’re named something completely different. I have a Halloween deck where the suits are like, bats and ghosts, but the images correspond so directly to the Rider-Waite cards that you can read with it. So, I really like tarot and I primarily read with the Rider-Waite system because it's what I'm comfortable with and I find that it's really useful for going into almost any issue. In the time that I’ve been doing readings for other people, I have read on so many different things. Whether or not someone is going to get their house, a lot of relationship or job readings, you know, just general “What’s going on in my life?” readings. Are tarot card readings always accurate? Absolutely not, at the of the day they are pieces of paper with ink on them. There is nothing inherently mystical in the way that I read tarot cards. You will get tarot card readers who think that their tarot cards connected them to the divine, that they are psychics, or empaths or mediums. I urge you to trust your instincts and use your discretion with any reader who is claiming to be any of these things. Personally, I don't claim to be any of these things. I like to use tarot as a psychological tool. I like to use tarot as a fun conversation point and I'm not gonna lie, sometimes the cards kind of freak me out a little when I draw a very appropriate card. But you know, I leave room--my skepticism is including being skeptical of my skepticism. I would definitely make sure that if someone is claiming to be directly psychic, I would exercise your critical thinking skills and if you trust them and you want to get readings from them, then by all means. I definitely think that there are some people who have abilities that I personally don’t have experience with and that's fine, it doesn't necessarily make them any less valid than me. I don’t claim to be the be-all, end-all expert, I just been doing this for a while and a lot of people like my readings, so I go with it. And if you want to start reading tarot cards yourself instead of relying on someone else to do it, there is nothing wrong with you going out and buying your own deck. It is not something that has to be passed down through the generations. Although it does help--it helps me having grown up around tarot cards. My mom read, and apparently, my grandmother read, which isn't something that I found out until after my father died and I was going through his things and I found tarot card decks that belonged to my grandmother on his side. She and I didn't really have a relationship so I would have never had known, but it kinda makes sense; she was an artist in the 70s and tarot cards were definitely all the rage. But you can go out and buy yourself your own deck. I do recommend that you get either a traditional Rider-Waite deck or my personal favorite, the Centennial Smith-Waite, which has the exact same artwork, but I like the color a lot better and I also like that give the actual artist Pamela Smith-Waite her do, instead of naming the deck after the publisher Rider and the guy who commissioned the deck, Arthur E Waite. A lot of people have trouble with the imagery in the Rider-Waite deck and I don't blame them. It's very white, it's very straight, it’s very heteronormative. It’s kind of old fashioned/old school in a way that doesn't always connect with people. However, I think it's really important to get a solid foundation in a system before branching out. If you really really don't like the Rider-Waite cards I'm not saying you must start with them, I just think it's going to be really helpful because most of the resources that you'll find online are going to be geared towards Rider-Waite style decks. Even a deck I personally think it's slightly overrated but is really popular right now, the Wild Unknown tarot by Kim Krans, that deck is--it has no people in it. It’s all animals and pretty pictures and nature based stuff, even that deck is based on the Rider-Waite. It has a couple of differences but overall, it's the same system so I really think it helps to have a background in that, but if you really don’t like it, don’t go for it. I'm all in favor of supporting indie deck creators. The Golden Thread tarot is one of my favorite indie decks, you can also look on the GameCrafter and find decks by people. The Sweeney Tarot is one deck, I don't have it yet, but it's specifically gender and race-diverse which is something that’s a problem in a lot of tarot card decks. So, if you want a deck, you know, look around on the internet for a while see if there's a deck that you like and don't be afraid to buy it for yourself. That's one of those myths about tarot that I want to bust right off the bat. If you have any other myths about tarot that you want me to answer for you, feel free to email me at AntifragileTarot@gmail.com and I'll be happy to bust those myths in another episode. Another thing about tarot is what's said in the cards is not set in stone. You know, you can shuffle the deck and ask the same question 5 different times and you’ll get 5 different answers. I like to use it as a framework for discovering how you feel about a situation. It’s kinda like when you're talking to a counselor and they ask you how you feel about it or what if this happened, how would that go for you--that’s how I view tarot personally. However, it's important to note that if you feel like what's going to happen in a tarot reading is what's going to happen, you may be more likely to subconsciously choose things that are going to make that more likely to happen. So don't necessarily go and get a tarot reading if you're not ready to discuss everything that’s going on. I did a tarot card course called the Alternative Tarot course on LittleRedTarot.com and there was an exercise that had us put different cards to different points in our life and I actually had a pause and come back because I've had a rough life and thinking about it that way kind of really upset me and made me want to take a step back, and that’s totally fine. You know if you are a tarot card reader and you find yourself getting stressed out by doing readings for yourself, you don't have to read for yourself--I don't read for myself very often because it stresses me out. You also don't have read for other people, if other people are bugging you to give them a tarot card reading, you can tell them no--you just want to read for yourself. And the last bit of advice I'm going to leave you with for today is whether you're starting out or you’ve been reading for 10, 15, 20 years don't be afraid to bust out a book or go to Biddy Tarot once in a while. It's ok to blank out on a card, it's ok to not understand how a card might be interacting with the other cards in the spread. It doesn’t make you less of a tarot card reader to study more, if anything, it makes you more invested in your craft. Some readers are completely intuitive and don't want to know what the textbook definition is and if their readings are accurate that's great for them. But for a lot of us, it's really helpful to lean back on our resources. I’ve also wanted to mention that over the course of this podcast, I've given shout-outs to a bunch of different things like Aeclectic or Biddy Tarot or the Golden Thread tarot. I’m not sponsored in any way, I'm not making any money from this. I'm just having fun, so I'm definitely going to be giving shout outs every episode to different resources, or decks or other things that I think are really cool and might be useful. I have friends who make jewelry who I’m going to be shouting out to when I go over different ways to get yourself in the mood for a tarot reading or what to do if you want to read professionally. Those are podcast topics for another week, but if I am giving a shout-out to something on here it's because I either use it myself and really like it or other people have really recommended it. If it's something I don't have experience with myself I'm definitely going to let you know, like with the Sweeney Tarot, which is on my deck wish list and I really want it. But I am a tarot card hoarder and I have 20 decks and counting, so maybe I need to slow my roll a little. So, I hope that you have enjoyed this little intro into what tarot is and some common myths about tarot that I wanted to debunk and I hope that you will tune in next week for the next one, and again, if you have suggestions and things that you'd like to hear please don't hesitate to email me one more time that is AntifragileTarot@gmail.com. You can also find me on Instagram, my tag there is AntifragileTarot--one word--and you can find me on Facebook, Antifragile Tarot. And I hope you have a wonderful week, and a witchy one if that's what you're into. Bye now.