The very first time I handled a tarot deck, I somehow knew that while the cards were pieces of paper with pictures on them, I also knew that they were much more. I knew that
through the cards secrets could be revealed and entire worlds could be discovered.

Despite being comprised of a finite number of cards, seventy-eight to be exact, tarot opens us to an infinite universe, both within and without. A newcomer can be overwhelmed by
the vastness of the tarot landscape. In addition to the general "bigness" of it all, there is that delightful, freeing aspect of tarot that can also be the bane of a beginner's experience: there are
very few hand and fast rules with tarot.

A Few Simple Questions

This truth shapes the first phase of learning tarot. The tarot is a mirror, and a tarot reading is a reflection of one's worldview, a glimpse of a belief system. Before you
progress very far in your tarot studies, it helps to know what you believe in. Let me explain.

What you believe in will help you answer or decide many of those things for which there are no hard and fast rules. For example:

1. Should you let other people touch your cards?

The answer depends on what you believe about energy, its transference in the physical realm, ...