Care and Feeding of Your Tarot Deck

There is an old myth circulating in Tarot circles, that a Tarot deck must be gifted to you by another, rather than chosen and purchased yourself.

This myth likely originated from the fact that in the 1400s, when Tarot decks originated, decks were hand painted by commissioned artists, and therefore rare and expensive.

Due to the scarcity of Tarot decks, many times, they could only be obtained by receiving a deck handed down from family, or friend.

Even after Tarot decks began to be printed, they were not produced in large lots, or mass marketed. In the early years of Tarot, its customer base was largely a select group of serious occultists, and amateur dabblers in the occult.

Fortunately, in recent times, the popularity, variety, and availability of Tarot decks has exploded. Today there are a plethora of themed decks to choose from, and decks are easily obtainable from local bookstores, New Age shops, and online retailers.

By all means, choose your own Tarot deck, it’s subjective which deck(s) appeal to each individual Reader. If you are gifted a deck that you don’t care for, pass it on to someone else who will love it.

Clearing Your New Tarot Deck

After you’ve either been gifted, or chosen your own Tarot deck, you will need to clear the energies of others from the deck before you begin to use it for giving readings.

The need for clearing a deck stems from the unique property of Tarot cards to pick up the energies of others, the very thing that makes reading accurately for others possible.

Deep clearing – deep clearing is needed when you have just opened a new pack of cards, and anytime your cards begin to lose their accuracy, or feel icky from taking on too much negative energy. Energy is accumulative, therefore it builds up on your cards (and you!) over time. Since energy follows mind, or intention, all that is needed is a simple ritual with the intention of clearing the energies of others from your cards. Although there are many, I prefer this method; using a brushing motion, first brush all 4 sides of the stacked deck toward the ground, then brush off both the front and back of each individual card, also toward the ground, all the while having the intention that any negative energies be swept to the Earth to be grounded, and transformed into positive energy.
Quick clearing – quick clearing is needed after every reading, and can be quickly accomplished by 3 knocks on your deck using your knuckles, or a wand, with the intention that any energies from the previous reading be cleared from the deck, so it will be fresh and receptive for the next reading. Other quick clearing methods involve sprinkling salt on the cards, passing them through the smoke of burning incense or sage, or placing Clear Quartz, Selenite, or Hematite crystals on, or around the cards.

Seasoning Your New Tarot Deck

Seasoning is the act of permeating a new Tarot deck with your own energy. Professional Tarot Readers keep several seasoned decks, and would never attempt to give a reading with a spanking new unseasoned deck. Below are methods of adequately seasoning a new Tarot deck:

Frequent shuffling and handling your deck
Carrying your deck in a purse, or pocket
Sleeping with your deck under your pillow

Charging Your Tarot Deck

Charging your deck with the energies of the Sun, Moon, or Earth is a beneficial practice to fill your deck with strong Universal energies. Note: if you’ve used the “Deep Clearing” method above on your deck after you have charged it, with any of the below methods, you will need to recharge it again, after every “Deep Clearing”. However, using a “Quick Clearing” Method after charging your deck, should leave your charge intact.

Solar charging – to charge your deck with the dynamic energy of the Sun, place it in a sunny window, or in sunlight outdoors for a few hours, covered with a cloth to prevent their inks from fading by the sunlight. If you are leaving your cards outdoors unattended, keep them safe from wind, insects, and animals.
Lunar charging – to charge your deck with the restorative energy of the Moon, place it in a window, or in the moonlight outdoors, preferably on a full moon evening. If you are leaving your cards outdoors unattended, keep them covered in case the Sun should rise and fade their inks, and also keep them safe from rain, wind, insects, and animals.
Earth charging – to charge your deck with the grounding energy of the Earth, put it in a plastic bag, and place it outdoors in a small hole you’ve dug, and cover it with soil. Be sure to keep it safe from animals, and don’t forget where you buried your precious bundle! Lol.

Dos and Don’ts of Using Your Tarot Deck

Do keep cards out of the sun to prevent their inks from fading.
Do keep cards away from water and dampness.
Do keep cards safe from being blown away by the wind.
Do keep cards away from young children.
Do keep cards away from pets, birds, and wild animals.
Do keep cards safe from fire, and dripping candle wax.
Do Quick Clear your deck after each reading, and Deep Clear when needed.
Do conduct your readings on the top of a wooden table. I use a wooden lap tray.
Do lay your cards out on a cover (altar cloth) when conducting a reading.
Don’t handle cards with damp, sticky, or greasy fingers.
Don’t have your cards near consumption of food, or drinks.
Don’t bend your cards by rifle shuffling.
Don’t peel your card’s edges by forcibly pushing cards into the stack.
Don’t fret when your well used cards begin to look a bit battered, it happens.

Storing Your Tarot Deck

When not is use, Tarot decks traditionally have been recommended to be removed from their packaging, wrapped in a silk, satin, or velvet cloth, and stored in a wooden box.

Silk, Satin, or Velvet Cloth – historically, these specific fabrics have been used to wrap Tarot decks, due to a belief that they protect the cards from outside negative energies. Additionally, the specific colors of gold, blue, and purple in these cloths were recommended to enhance the innate Spiritual energies of Tarot cards. The cloth for wrapping a Tarot deck can be a swath of fabric, an actual scarf, or a nifty drawstring Tarot bag. Tarot bags can be purchased in stores that carry Tarot decks, and on Etsy.com and Amazon.com, as well. Some Tarot bags are even created to match a specific deck, as pictured below. I absolutely love these! Additionally, there are wedding supply websites that carry satin drawstring gift bags in bulk, in a variety of beautiful colors. Wherever you obtain your Tarot bags, I recommend that you purchase bags that measure 6”x 9” to accommodate both large, and small decks. If you should also collect, and read with Oracle decks, you’ll find they tend to run a bit larger than the average Tarot deck.

Wooden Box – wood laden boxes have historically been used to house Tarot decks, due to the belief that they too protect Tarot cards from outside negative energies. Make sure the box you purchase for your deck will accommodate the size of your deck, enclosed in a cloth, or Tarot bag. Decorative wooden boxes are available in large stores like Home Goods, and Tarot specific boxes can be found in New Age stores, and online, as well.

Since, I have a number of Tarot decks that I use regularly, I would need dozens of boxes stacked up, if I were to store each deck in it’s own wooden box. However, to save space, I store all of my decks in the same wooden dresser drawer, each enclosed in its own satin Tarot bag. Every time, and I mean every time, I open this drawer, I’m overcome with delight at the sight of my Tarot decks enclosed in their beautiful Satin bags, lined up like soldiers ready to be called to service.

Should I Not Allow Others to Touch My Tarot Deck?

There is one more old myth circulating about Tarot decks, that you should never ever allow anyone to touch your deck.

There are two camps on this subject. In one camp, the Reader will always shuffle the cards themselves for their reading Client. Coversely, in the other camp, the Reader will ask their Client to shuffle the cards for their own reading.

Therefore, I see this more as a preference, than a hard rule. I waffle back and forth on the two camps, myself. You will need to decide for yourself, which camp you fall into. I do cringe if my Client “rifle shuffles” my cards, for fear they will permanently bend them.

I hope you’ve been inspired here to give your Tarot deck the love and care it needs, in order for it to serve you with a lifetime of Spiritual wisdom and accuracy. Happy Taroting!

Note: To book a professional Tarot reading with Jeannette see our Book a Reading page.