When a person starts their journey in the world of tarot, they are naturally filled with a million different questions.
Of course, they wouldn’t be wrong for having those questions. After all, tarot is such a mesmerizing spiritual tool that it can send your curiosity to a whole other level. And it also takes some time to get the hang of it.
Among the many questions that you may have as a beginner, a burning one might relate to the tarot cards’ power. You might wonder how in the world the cards work in the first place! If you’re anything like me, you can’t rest until you get down to the bottom of things.
So, where do tarot cards get their power?
There is some debate regarding this among tarot practitioners. However, a lot of people are in agreement about some of the potential sources of their power. These could be the querent, reader, universe, spirit guides, pictures, collective consciousness, and the elements.
In this article, I am going to talk about these sources of power in more detail and tell you how you can tap into them for better readings.
Where Does The Power Come From?
There are many sources of power for tarot cards.
During a reading, the cards may be drawing energy from multiple sources or just one. It all depends on who the reader is, who the querent is, the type of energy the place has, and the questions involved. Let’s take a look at each source in more detail.
1) The Querent
Let’s begin with the reason any reading occurs in the first place.
Usually, a person has a question regarding certain aspect/s of their life and they want to know the answer. It could also be that they are stuck in a problem and want to figure out a solution. Naturally, the person then goes to a tarot reader for a reading.
But the querent doesn’t realize that their curiosity or their intense need to resolve their situation influences their energetic state in a certain way.
So, when they are with the reader, the cards can pick up on that energy and draw from it to answer their queries. This is how the cards are able to give relevant information to the querent.
Tapping Into The Querent’s Energy
Now, if you are a querent, you can tap into this power of yours to ensure that you get the best guidance possible. You can do the following in this case:
- Before you visit the reader, clear your mind and try to relax as much as possible. You can do meditation or practice mindfulness for a few minutes to achieve this mental and emotional state.
- Once you have a clearer state of mind, try to focus on your question. But don’t be anxious or stressed about it. Even if it is about a pressing issue, try to look at it from a practical lens.
If you are a tarot reader, you can do certain things to ensure that the querent’s energy is in an ideal state.
- When the person visits you, make sure you make them feel comfortable. Especially if they are new to the world of tarot. You can make small talk and help them familiarize themselves with the surroundings.
- Then, when they are settled, you can talk about their question in more detail. That way, the querent will have a chance to be even clearer about what they need.
2) The Reader
Another important piece of the puzzle (obviously) is the reader.
They are the one doing the reading and so, therein lies the magic. A reader may either be a psychic or a non-psychic person. If it’s the former, they are bound to have natural spiritual abilities that help them do the reading. And this serves as the source of power for the cards.
However, even if the reader is non-psychic, the cards can still draw energy from them. The reader’s need to help the querent, their experiences, and their journey as a reader all factor into this.
Tapping Into The Reader’s Energy
If you’re the tarot reader, there are certain things you can do before the reading to enhance the whole process.
- The first thing you would want to do is cleanse your aura. There are various ways you can do this such as meditation, taking a saltwater bath, taking a nap, burning some sage, and so on.
- Next, you can try and connect with your natural spiritual abilities or just your inner self. If you’re still new to tarot reading, you can push yourself to have faith in your reading capabilities. Just stay authentic and prepare mentally for the reading.
If you’re the querent, you can do the following to help the reader achieve a better energetic state:
- Answer their questions honestly and to the best of your ability. You can take your time and help them understand the situation at hand clearly.
- Stay open to any guidance you might receive from the reader. If you have doubts, you can ask to clarify in a polite manner.
3) The Universe
The universe is everything there is.
Literally.
But contrary to how we are usually taught about the universe, there is so much more than meets the eye. In the spiritual world, there is this understanding that everything in the universe is made of the same fundamental energy. In fact, even from a scientific point of view, everything came from one point in the Big Bang.
So, we can infer from the above that everything is one.
Even the physical objects we see are made of energy… it’s just that they are highly condensed forms of energy. So, going by this understanding, it’s easy to see why spiritual people talk so much about their connection with the universe. You are literally a part of it. It’s like the universe is observing itself through you!
Now, the cards can draw from the infinite wisdom and power of the universe during a reading.
To ensure this process happens smoothly and to increase the chances of getting relevant information, here are a few things you can do:
- If you believe in a divine entity or force, you could pray to it right before the reading. You could ask it to help you help the querent and to show you the right way.
- As a practice, you could meditate regularly to strengthen your connection with the universe. You could also practice some yoga which can prepare your body and mind to better receive guidance from the cosmos.
4) The Spirit Guides
Almost everyone in the spiritual world knows about spiritual guides and angels.
They are metaphysical entities that exist in the spiritual plane. There are all sorts of such entities like angels, ascended masters, spirits of ancestors, spirit guides, archangels, and so on.
A lot of these higher beings are tasked with helping humankind in their journey. In fact, it is said that every person has at least one spiritual being helping them at all times. However, they don’t communicate with us like we do among ourselves. So, you need to adopt subtler methods of communication if you want to contact your spirit guides.
As far as your tarot reading is concerned, your angels can give you the required guidance through the cards.
They can make the right cards appear so that you can decode their message. To ensure this happens smoothly, you can also do the following:
- Before the reading, take some time to ask your angels for assistance during the reading. You can call them into the room to act as support. For instance, you could say, “Oh guardian angels, help me with this reading so I can provide the right guidance to [name of the querent]”
- To enhance your communication with the angels, you can remain on the lookout for any hints or signals you might receive from them during your everyday life. For example, you could pay attention to things like angel numbers, weird coincidences, feathers, sweet scents, unexpected calls from a distant friend, etc.
5) The Images On The Cards
I think the best use of the quote, “A picture is worth a thousand words,” is in regard to tarot cards.
If you’ve ever tried to learn tarot reading, you know what I’m talking about. Each card has rich imagery on it that has evolved over centuries. Not only that, the symbolism in the imagery is so deep that you can keep decoding it and still find new meanings every now and then.
The cards obviously draw power from this rich symbolism to say what they want to say. It’s quite staggering how they know exactly which cards to show to answer a querent’s question.
So, if you want to tap into the power of the symbolism in the cards, it’s really important that you go as deep as possible. Here are a few things you can do in that regard:
- Take a good look at each card and try to take in as many details as possible. You don’t have to memorize the card but try to go over every centimeter of the card and try to relate it with the meaning of that card.
- Explore the history of each card and why the imagery used is made that way. You can also take a look at other types of historical tarot decks and see what imagery was used to depict the meaning of the same card. This will give you a better understanding of the symbolism used.
- Try to learn more about signs and symbols (in general). You could study the history of symbolism, its use in ancient cultures, its connection with spirituality, and so on.
6) The Collective Consciousness
Many people believe that consciousness is not a singular phenomenon… it’s rather a collective act.
In other words, the consciousness that you experience individually is actually a part of a bigger hive mind. It’s just that you haven’t trained yourself to see it that way.
In many ways, this is absolutely true.
This is why when a major negative event takes place in one part of the world, it affects almost everyone (in some events, even the animals and plants). This is the magic of collective consciousness.
Now, some tarot readers believe that the cards can tap into the power of this collective force. It can pull the wisdom it needs from other tarot readers and show what needs to be shown. In a way, it’s like the cosmic internet haha !!
If you want to make this power even more available for the cards, here’s what you can do:
- Try to connect with more people on a human level. For example, you can listen to their stories intently and help them whenever you can. In short, try to enhance your empathy.
- Again, at the risk of repeating myself again and again, you should meditate every day. It is really the one-stop solution for everything in the world of spirituality. The more you meditate, the more you feel connected to everything and everyone.
- Try to live in tune with Mother Nature. See everything as one living entity. In fact, think of Earth as a living organism and all the living beings as parts of this giant organism.
7) The Natural Elements
You might have heard of the five natural elements: fire, water, air, earth, and space.
In spirituality, it is believed that the entire universe is made of the interplay of these five elements. And so, they hold a special place in spiritual practices.
It is also believed that different tarot cards are associated with different elements. For example, the Cups suit of the minor arcana is said to be linked to the water element. And so, if a card is linked to a particular element, we can assume that it draws power from that particular element.
To become a better tarot reader, you can do certain things to enhance your connection with the elements and thereby, your cards.
- Spend time with each element as much as possible. Walk barefoot on the ground, take refreshing baths, go in windy places, spend time in front of a fire, and stargaze every now and then.
- You can also make use of different crystals to get close to the elements. For example, using Aquamarine will strengthen the potential of the water element within you, and using Sunstone will help you connect with fire.
