How Many Tarot Decks do You Need?

Collect ALL the cards! (Photo credit: memegenerator and hyperbole and a half)

Buying tarot decks can be a dangerously addicting habit. I might be showing my age here, but when I hear about my friends buying their 10th or 50th deck, I think of my Pokemon craze and having to buy the newest set of cards every time they released expansions. I’m sure you’re all thinking “Pokemon? Magic the Gathering was way better!” and I’m sure you’re right. All my friends felt the same way, too. These friends also grew up to be tarot addicts while I own two decks. And they still obsess over Magic the Gathering.

I’m not trying to start a debate on card games and which is superior, however. While I can understand the excitement of being a part of something fun like trading card games, I inevitably grew out of the phase whereas some are still held tight by it. They’ve even turned from games to using cards for powerful decisions and guidance. They feel that one deck to tap into their own inner power isn’t enough and need to continually buy more, as though each new deck is more up-to-date and more powerful than the last.

There are entire communities of tarot addicts who pick up and compare decks. They absorb everything in the companion guides and then go and use new decks for readings. They set out decks and let their friends pick which one to receive a reading from. I don’t fault people for their hobbies and where they invest their energies, but with the intimacy that is bred between a reader and their deck, I don’t see why you would own more than one or two decks.

The belief in tarot varies on your path. I know that a lot of my peers believe that their cards are living and that they share their feelings with them. It seems like a close relationship to have with your cards, and given that you go through imbuing your energy into your deck, they’re essentially one with you. For me, I would feel like I am disrespecting my connection to a deck by continually adding more to a collection.

Another aspect for reading cards is that with all of the companion guides and differences in the card’s meanings, multiple decks essentially allow you to “choose” your outcome. Every artist has a specific direction that each card guides us to, meaning that most tarot decks won’t read the same way. Knowing each of your decks allows you to direct your outcome if you specifically choose which one to use. That vastly undermines the purpose of doing a reading that will be genuine and natural. Doing readings for other people, already having an idea of what they’re looking for, allows you to tell them either what they want to hear or what you feel that they should do rather than what they need.