Learning Tarot is like learning a language. In phonetic languages such as English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, etc. it is necessary to first learn the alphabet. Only after the alphabet is memorised can words and sentences be constructed. The cards are Tarot’s alphabet. Therefore, the first step in learning to conduct a Tarot reading is to memorise the cards.
However, each card is associated with multiple layers of meaning:
- Core concepts in the form of keywords,
- Contextual concepts depending on the nature of the question,
- Astrological correspondences,
- Qabalistic correspondences.
The importance of memorising card meanings is not to master the deck, but to aquire just enough in order to conduct readings. It is by the saturation of reading practice where learning really begins. Long-lasting memory occurs by the attachment of many sensations, so it is with card reading that these long-term memories can develop. After being able to read the cards fluently, the practitioner will develop such an intimate relationship with the deck that further correspondences can be attached to all the experiences attached to each card, making the acquisition process much easier, and more natural. Therefore, its suitable to learn only the core concept of each card initially. It happens that the core concepts are more than enough to conduct rich, dynamic, and contextual readings.
EFFECTIVE MEMORISATION
The reason this method is so effective, is that it uses all the most power memorisation strategies built-in:
- Chunking – learning the keywords as a group.
- Mnemonics – using the visual elements of the card’s artwork to represent the keywords,
- Recollection – exercises the brain to recollect the meanings,
- Spaced repetition – systematically testing oneself of all prior cards after learning 3 new cards,
- and Mind Mapping – tracing a path across the card’s art provides a spacial association with the meanings.
With effort, an average student using this technique should be able to complete the memorisation of the entire deck within only a few days.
MEMORISING the CORE MEANINGS
With the right technique, it is surprisingly easy to memorise the deck along with 3 keywords for an average person if they commit to the project. Unlike the abstract glyphs of an alphabet, the Tarot cards are art pieces themselves, composed of various elements which can be used to anchor the meanings to. It is especially easy when the cards have a more literal association with their underlying meaning, although this is not always the case. The order of memorising can be done in the following order:
- The Major Arcana
- The Courts
- The Wand Pips
- The Pentacle Pips
- The Sword Pips
- The Cup Pips
The METHOD
- Pick the first (or next) 3 cards of the set.
- For each of the 3 cards, assign each keyword meanings to a corresponding element on the card’s illustration as a mnemonic device.
- Say the keywords aloud and use a finger to track a path along the card.
- When confident the student is to their memory, by going through each card and verbally recollecting the meanings. The test must include the 3 new cards as well as the entirety of the deck studied so far.
- If any errors are made, or if the student isn’t sure about the answer to a card, the student must put aside the card to recommit them to memory, and test again.
- If all card meanings can be recalled from memory with 100% accuracy, the student can proceed to repeat the process until the entire deck’s core meanings are completely memorised.