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Pocket Guide to the Tarot
As far back as the ancient Egyptian temples of Luxor and Karnak, the Tarot has been a source of wisdom and insight into the human heart and mind. The 78 cards of the Tarot deck help you to open a door to higher consciousness, gain insights on the past and present, and discern future directions. The POCKET GUIDE TO THE TAROT throughly explains each card in the Waite-Rider deck as well as: The cards of the Major Arcana.The nature of the Minor Arcana.The suit of Swords.The suit of Cups.The suit of Pentacles.The suite of Wands.
- GenresTarotNonfiction
152 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 23, 2013
Since I've recently reviewed some other (older) tarot guides, I thought it might be smart to give another look at the others in my collection and expand a bit on my previous reviews. This particular book served as my initial introduction to he Rider-Waite Tarot some 13 years ago, and it is the one I return to most offer for refreshing myself on the meaning of the cards.
Revisiting Oken's opening essay on the history of the cards, I feel pretty confident saying it's the usual mythical garbage. The edition I own is the second, published in 1998, and I can't say whether any recent printings have been updated, but I doubt it. It sounds well enough researched to someone who hasn't studied the history of tarot in much depth, which about describes me in 2000. So I swallowed the unfounded nonsense about Ancient Egypt, the Torah, tarosh, Gypsies, and so on. The tarot is a mystery, we have no idea where it came from blablabla lol. Oken does cite two sources, a book by Paul Case and another by Alfred Douglas, neither of which I've read. Why Oken doesn't choose to cite Waite's own work is beyond me. The reason this stuff annoys me is that I hate myths that get passed off as accurate and misinformation that does nothing to illuminate the meaning or function of the cards, only occludes and distracts. If the goal of esotericism is to arrive at deeper truth, it's worth getting the basic factual truth straight.
So, the history section is garbage. Why am I giving this 4 stars? Because like I said, this is one of the best nuts-and-bolts guides for basic card meanings I've used, and I have used it quite a lot. Oken's introduction to getting acquainted with the cards, working with them on an intuitive level along with memorized meanings, and the multiple angles he offers for doing so are top-notch. For each of the Major Arcana cards, he highlights the primary principle and astrological sign, analyzes and explains the symbolic and imagery on the card, outlines the meaning in context of the reading, meaning for reversals, and finally the exoteric and esoteric meanings. Compared with other guides, these sections can get a little lengthy, but if you want to actually understand the references being made within the Rider-Waite deck, you will be well informed. The explanations and meaning offered are written in plain English and very accessible, not pompous or prolix like good ol' Waite. As fond as I am of Waite's detailed, well-informed approach, he is more often evasive about the symbolism than illuminating. Oken's understanding of the history may be questionable, but his grasp of the symbolism shows real knowledge.
The Minor Arcana is given a simpler approach, with just description, meaning, and reversal, but then the cards are simpler and lacking in the deeper connections inherent in the Major Arcana. Nonetheless, with a few of the cards it can be hard to surmise exactly what's going on, so explanations can be helpful.
If you want a solid basis in the symbolism and reference points in the Rider-Waite tarot and don't want to spend much money or time searching, this is the book to get. Take pretty much every word of Oken's history with a huge grain of salt, or skip it altogether. Otherwise, recommended.
Revisiting Oken's opening essay on the history of the cards, I feel pretty confident saying it's the usual mythical garbage. The edition I own is the second, published in 1998, and I can't say whether any recent printings have been updated, but I doubt it. It sounds well enough researched to someone who hasn't studied the history of tarot in much depth, which about describes me in 2000. So I swallowed the unfounded nonsense about Ancient Egypt, the Torah, tarosh, Gypsies, and so on. The tarot is a mystery, we have no idea where it came from blablabla lol. Oken does cite two sources, a book by Paul Case and another by Alfred Douglas, neither of which I've read. Why Oken doesn't choose to cite Waite's own work is beyond me. The reason this stuff annoys me is that I hate myths that get passed off as accurate and misinformation that does nothing to illuminate the meaning or function of the cards, only occludes and distracts. If the goal of esotericism is to arrive at deeper truth, it's worth getting the basic factual truth straight.
So, the history section is garbage. Why am I giving this 4 stars? Because like I said, this is one of the best nuts-and-bolts guides for basic card meanings I've used, and I have used it quite a lot. Oken's introduction to getting acquainted with the cards, working with them on an intuitive level along with memorized meanings, and the multiple angles he offers for doing so are top-notch. For each of the Major Arcana cards, he highlights the primary principle and astrological sign, analyzes and explains the symbolic and imagery on the card, outlines the meaning in context of the reading, meaning for reversals, and finally the exoteric and esoteric meanings. Compared with other guides, these sections can get a little lengthy, but if you want to actually understand the references being made within the Rider-Waite deck, you will be well informed. The explanations and meaning offered are written in plain English and very accessible, not pompous or prolix like good ol' Waite. As fond as I am of Waite's detailed, well-informed approach, he is more often evasive about the symbolism than illuminating. Oken's understanding of the history may be questionable, but his grasp of the symbolism shows real knowledge.
The Minor Arcana is given a simpler approach, with just description, meaning, and reversal, but then the cards are simpler and lacking in the deeper connections inherent in the Major Arcana. Nonetheless, with a few of the cards it can be hard to surmise exactly what's going on, so explanations can be helpful.
If you want a solid basis in the symbolism and reference points in the Rider-Waite tarot and don't want to spend much money or time searching, this is the book to get. Take pretty much every word of Oken's history with a huge grain of salt, or skip it altogether. Otherwise, recommended.
May 2, 2018
I enjoyed the section that introduces the Minor Arcana, the one-word for cards and often the reverse interpretations, but overall this one didn't quite work for me. I was very surprized at some of the religious (Christian/Catholic) references, I don't think I've ever seen that mixed in with tarot.
I will continue to read through my tarot books to see which ones are the best fit for me!
I will continue to read through my tarot books to see which ones are the best fit for me!
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews