How To Read Tarot Cards And Spreads For Beginners
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How To Read Tarot Cards and Spreads for Beginners
Tarot cards are a special deck of 78 illustrated cards, each holding their own meaning rich with history. There are 22 unnumbered Major Arcana cards which display the larger themes of life and follow “The Fool’s Journey” from card number 1 or 0 in some decks, starting with The Fool leading all the way up to card number 21 or 22, The World.
Then there are 56 Minor Arcana cards split into four suits, similar to playing cards, numbered 1-10 with four Court Cards each- The Page, Knight, Queen, and King (for a total of 14 cards in each suit). The four suits are: WANDS, CUPS, SWORDS, PENTACLES. They may also be called similar names such as Discs instead of Pentacles. Each of these cards tells a tale of the trials and tribulations of what it means to be human living on this Earth.
Tarot cards have been developed since the first “official” deck created in Italy in roughly the 1430s and have since been built upon by mystics and occultists to be ripe with layerings of esoteric knowledge. They hold correspondences with Astrology, Kabbalah, Numerology, and mythology, and can paint a unique picture of your journey and situations in life. Through them, we can access our internal wisdom and intuition, tapping into a higher knowing and ability to see things more clearly or from a different perspective, thus going on to make easier decisions and actions.
Read our post on the full list of Tarot card meanings for more information on them individually, otherwise scroll down to see how to do a reading for yourself and some beginner’s spreads to try!
How To Do A Tarot Reading
1. First of all, there is no right or wrong way to do a Tarot reading- only what works best for you. Having said that, as with any spiritual or divination tool, it is always best to take a moment to centre and ground yourself first so you can come from a place of balance. You can do this by setting the scene with candles, incense, or essential oils, taking a few big deep breaths, meditating for a moment, calling in the assistance of your Spirit Guides/Ancestors/Higher Self, visualising a grounding cord rooting you to the centre of the Earth, visualising a bright white light filling you up and cleansing the cards, or anything else that resonates.
2. It is also recommended to clear your deck before you begin. You can do this by knocking on it three times, blowing on it, wafting it through smoke, leaving it in the sun or moonlight, or burying it in salt for 24 hours.
3. When you are ready, clear your mind and begin to shuffle. You can do this by picking half up in one hand and letting them fall back into the other hand like an overhand method in poker, for example, or by spreading them all out on a surface and mixing them up randomly before recollecting them. This way is especially easy to get reversals if you’d like to read them (even though it’s generally not advised until you have a firm grasp on the upright meaning of the cards first). You can also split them in half and riffle them back together, again like poker, but I wouldn’t personally recommend this way as they could get damaged. As with anything of this nature, it warrants respect- treat them well and they’ll treat you well.
4. After you have shuffled for a while and feel like the cards are ready, you can muse upon your question, if you have one, or ask it out loud as you begin to pull your cards- being clear in your mind which question each card will answer before you pull them (so you need to have already decided on a spread). You can pull your cards straight from the top of the deck (face down), or fan them out and pick the ones that speak to you.
5. Once you have laid out all your cards in your spread (you can place them face down and turn them over after or face up as you go along), take in your reading as a whole. What immediately jumps out to you? How does it make you feel? How many Major Arcana vs Minor Arcana are there? How many of each suit? Are there many of the same number or in a sequence? Then you can begin to look at the individual meaning of each card in relation to its position in the spread, how do the cards interact with each other and influence their meaning and answer to the question? Soak it all up and muse upon the imagery for a while, if you are stuck you can simply begin by describing what you see in the cards- there is great meaning to be found in this alone!
6. After you have gone through the spread you can then go and look up any specific meanings if you need to, but refrain from reading too many descriptions as this can be confusing! The best interpretation is your own. The stronger the bond you can form with your cards, the stronger your interpretation of them will be- and the faster and more confidently you will be able to do so! Of course, in the beginning it is recommended to study a variety of material relating to the cards but if you can go with your first instinct while you are actually doing a Tarot reading, your inner voice will get stronger!
7. If you like, once you are done taking it all in, you can record your reading in a journal to come back to. Tarot readers often write down their readings so they can study patterns over time and connect associations with real-life situations. It’s also really beneficial to do this if a reading didn’t make much sense to you at first glance because you might find that when you come back to it the next day, week, or month it has suddenly become illuminated! It’s also useful to do this to simply track your journey with the cards, like a diary.
And that’s it! Reading Tarot cards is really an intuitive art and whatever feels best and most natural to you is what you should go with. Above all, the strongest bond will form when you practice consistently and develop your own practice you can keep returning back to, that way you will strengthen your intuitive muscle and flex your inner wisdom with ease. Read on below for some beginner’s spreads to get you started:
Beginner Tarot Spreads
There are an infinite number of Tarot card spreads out there, and for a spread to really be effective for you it is important to formulate effective questions. Generally, these are in the form of simple, open-ended questions that allow for nuance and interpretation relative to your situation. For example, instead of asking- will I get this job? Which can be reductive and disempowering (especially if it comes up with a negative card as there is a lesson to be found in each of the cards!) you can ask- what do I need to know about applying for this job? By making sure the questions are not in a yes/no format, we can allow the cards to show us the full array of potential available to us, putting the power and agency back into our own hands.
For beginner’s it is also recommended to familiarise yourself with the classic Rider Waite Smith Tarot deck first before moving onto others as this generally forms the base for most other decks. Then you can also try the Thoth deck which strongly incorporates Kabbalah, or the True Heart Tarot for a more modern version (which I love)! There are many, many varieties available and, again, whichever calls to you the most will be the best one for you- it’s important that you connect to the imagery.
Here are some popular beginner’s spreads:
One Card Pull
A basic 1-card pull is often done daily to get a feel for the day, it’s also a really good way to form a personal relationship with each of the cards. Simply ground yourself and shuffle the cards however you like and ask the cards your question, such as- what do I need to know about the energy of today? Or, what advice do you have to give me today? Pull a card however you like and muse upon it throughout the day. Before you go to bed, you can come back to it and see which elements played out in your life.
Another option for a one card draw is to get some quick insight into a specific situation, like an overall gist of the circumstance, you can ask what do I need to know about…?
Three Card Spread
This is a really popular spread because of its simplicity but also degree of detail available. There are many options out there but some commonly used examples of the three cards pulled include:
Past - Present - Future
Mind - Body - Spirit
Situation - Advice - Outcome
Embrace - Accept - Let Go Of
Action - Outcome 1 - Outcome 2
The list of options available with three card spreads is really endless, let yourself go wild! As with any of the spreads, you can freely amend and change each of the positions and layout options to suit your needs- the more you customise them, the more personal they’ll be. An easy way is to use the first card as your anchor, the main focus of your question, and then the other two cards represent aspects that you’d like to expand upon based on your current circumstances.
Five Card Spread
When at the very beginning of your Tarot journey, it is probably best to stop at most with a 5-card spread, and only then after you are comfortable with the three card tarot spread, so as to not get overwhelmed. Then, when you feel ready, you can begin to move onto multiple card Tarot spreads, all the way up to the famous 10-card Celtic Cross! In the meantime, here are a couple of 5-card options:
OPTION 1:
Past Influences
Current Influences
Future Influences
Conscious
Unconscious
OPTION 2:
Current Situation
Challenge
Opportunity
Advice
Final Outcome
Again, as mentioned, the options are really endless- have fun with them and see what you come up with! Before you know it you’ll be comfortable with them and doing a reading for a friend in no time.
If you’d like me to channel their wisdom for you directly to help get some answers, clarity, and faith in your life- book yourself in for a personalised Tarot Reading now!
In summary, a Tarot reading is performed in whichever way you feel comfortable- which can be by grounding yourself, clearing your mind, shuffling the deck, formulating your question, and pulling the cards anyway you feel comfortable, laying them out into your predetermined spread. After taking stock of your initial gut reaction of the reading, work your way through the individual meanings in their positions and take the reading together as a whole with the relationship between the cards.
If you want to delve deeper into the mystical world of Tarot, check out our comprehensive Tarot Guidebook For Beginners!
To learn more about the world of Tarot, enrol in my Intuitive Tarot Course!
