Now that you’ve had a chance to work with your cards a little bit, let’s try some exercises. It might a good idea to record your answers in you Tarot journal. You will be able to look back on your answer that way, and see how far you’ve come.

• Record how you feel overall about the Tarot. Do you think it’s silly? Do you believe that the cards can help you predict the future? Or do you see them as being more for self-discovery? What do you feel about the links to mystical systems ranging from Egypt to the Kabala? Are connections like that important to you?

• What do you plan to use your deck for most often? Meditation, divination, self-discovery, something else?

• Get out your deck and give it a good shuffle while concentrating on the cards. (Yes, it’s time to get it out of order. You’re likely to re-sort it again soon, though.) Once you feel the deck is well shuffled, it’s time to ask it some questions. First, ask the deck what its personality is, and then draw a card out of the deck. Note down which card it is in you journal. You may want to check the deck’s LWB to see what the meaning of the card is. Next, ask it what it will teach you. Again, note the card and look up the meaning. Finally, ask it what your relationship will be, again noting down the ca

  If any card happens to pop out while you are shuffling, that card will give you a good indication of what your deck’s personality is. You can then skip over the first question and ask the other two.

• Explore you cards. Take a good look at all the pictures. Make notes on any symbolism you don’t understand. Make notes if any cards seem to speak to you.

• Take any of the cards you are particularly drawn to, and examine it very well. Think about the emotions present, its mood, what you think the card might mean. You could even try making up a story about it. When you are done, look up the meaning and see how close you were. This is a useful exercise to help you get comfortable with all the cards, and is especially useful with cards that you might not like at first sight.