Using the Tarot in Wicca

Every witch needs a form of divination. Tarot is an excellent one because you can use it in many different ways—from a predictor of the future to a decision-making aid to a tool of spiritual growth.

Many witches use the tarot to help them predict what will happen in the future. One way to do this is to ask the cards, “What will happen if I remain on the same course?” Then lay the cards out in the spread of your choosing. The tarot can also be used to help you make decisions. Say, for instance, you have a ew boss and you don’t know how to deal with her. Separate out the 22 cards of the Major Arcana, and set the Minor Arcana cards aside. Ask the Major Arcana cards how you should behave. Then pick three Major Arcana cards.

Let’s say you drew The Fool, The High Priestess, and The Hermit. The Fool tells you that you may want to look at having a new boss as a new learning experience, that you need to approach the situation with innocence and an open mind. In your first meetings with this new boss, you should make sure that you don’t come off as a know-it-all. And you’ll want to make sure that you listen and learn from this new person in your life. The High Priestess tells you to take your intuition with you and listen to it. Allow your intuition to guide you to say the right thing and demonstrate your competence at your job. The Hermit also suggests that staying within yourself, listening and not talking a lot, is the best plan. If you were to bring a new member into your coven, you might want to use the cards in the same manner to determine how best to get to know the new member.

To use the tarot as a tool of spiritual growth, again you must separate out and use the 22 cards of the Major Arcana. Each card represents a step on the path toward spiritual enlightenment. You can choose a card at random and meditate on it. Examine the image on the card carefully and see what you can learn from it. You can also read all about the meaning of the card, but it is nice to really look at it first and see what the card means to you. If you prefer, you can start with The Fool card because we all start off as fools. Work with that card for a while, then when you feel you have learned the lesson of The Fool, move on to The magickian. You may get to a point where you feel that your growth has stopped. That is only natural. You can always repeat steps that you have gone through before. Few of us actually make it to the enlightenment of The World in this lifetime.

Another way that you can use the tarot as a witch is to develop spells around certain cards. For instance, you could build a spell around The Empress and use her wisdom and sense of control. Or you could pull on The Hermit if you want to develop your more reflective and inward nature.