Rider Waite Smith Deck

When you first learn about something, and they give you a name for it,  you just accept it. So when I came across the Rider Waite deck,  I didn't really wonder who was Rider and who was Waite and were they missing a name,  I just used the reference points given.

However

It turns out that Rider,  William Rider, is the publisher of the deck - the business person,  the money man.

And Waite,  Arthur Edward Waite,  was the psychic who described the deck.

But

The missing name Smith - is Pamela Colman Smith,  is the name of the actual artist who created those iconic images based on Waite's descriptions.  She definitely deserves to be named in the deck title. 

So now we are calling them the Rider Waite Smith Deck,  or sometimes the Smith Rider Waite Deck.  Either way her name is definitely included!   

So interesting to see who is remembered and honored in history,  and who is excised out. And if we don't look for them,  we'll never find them. 

How I do my tarot readings

Every so often I put up a blog piece like this,  explaining how I do my readings.

I've been writing this blog since 2009,  and had been reading tarot cards for many years before then. So I'm very familiar with the cards.

Tarot doesn't so much predict the future as describe the present.  So the cards say,  here's what going on,  and here's what going to happen if you keep doing what you are doing.   I recently said to someone it's pointing out the ingredients before you.  Don't like what it's cooking? Well, you can get different ingredients but that takes time and energy and planning.  And some patterns are very deep and hard to shift.  Sometimes I say to people,  your work energy is very strong,  let's focus on that for the time being,  let the other stuff go.  Or I'll see that your love energy is all consuming,  let's focus on that.  

But first,  you have to shuffle the cards.  For me,  all the magic is in the shuffling.  As I do most of my readings online, that means you need to access a deck.  You can buy or borrow one , but it has to be a proper tarot deck with 78 cards.  You move the cards,  you draw them out,  your fingers decide what's going to happen. If you are buying a deck,  I recommend the Rider Waite Radiant,  as a clear,  easy to read tarot deck.  But there are thousands of decks out there,  get one that speaks to you and I'll work with it. 

After you get your deck I recommend you shuffle every day for 3 or so days,  before the reading,  getting your energy into it.  Then when we skype/zoom/facetime or however we get to see each other,  the cards are warm and ready to be read. 

Firstly we lay out 10 cards,  into a spread called the Celtic Cross - like this picture.  Once we have all 10 cards out,  I do what I call a cold reading,  where I don't know what's going on for you and just tell you what I see.  That takes about 5-10 minutes.  Only after that do we begin discussing what you drew and what feels right,  and what needs more explanation.  We do this in the privacy and quiet of your home,  and I encourage people to record the readings, it's a lot of information and this gives you a chance to listen again and mull over it. 

The reading takes about an hour and costs $150.  Or I can do a shorter reading,  about thirty minutes,  for $80. 

Want to know more?  Explore the blog,  there's a lot to read here!  And then drop me a line - tribecatarotreader@gmail.com and we can set up an appointment. 

First reading

If this is your first reading with me - Welcome!  I'm currently in Sydney Australia.  Most of my clients are in New York City.  I now do most of my readings via Skype or FaceTime.  

For me,  the magic of the cards comes through the energy of you shuffling.  So in order to have a reading with me,  you need your own deck of tarot cards.  Any deck will do,  as long as it is a full 78 cards (some of the more decorative decks have fewer cards,  and that doesn't work for me.)  If you are buying a deck in order to have a reading with me,  I recommend you get the Rider Waite Radiant Deck 

My readings usually cost $120 for about an hour.  If you are getting a deck for a reading with me,  I'll buy it for you,  and the reading will only be $100 

Once you have the cards,  we set up an appointment.  Usually after 6 pm for you,  after 9 am the following day for me. (I find time differences weird!)  

You shuffle the cards we start the reading with the Celtic Cross.  I talk you through it,  but essentially you lay out the cards in this shape:

I start with what I call the cold reading,  knowing as little as possible about your current situation,  I go through what the cards tell me.  It usually takes about 5 - 10 minutes.  

Then you get to tell me if you what you thought of it - if you agree/disagree/have questions/have comments and the reading progresses...

I can usually answer about 3 questions during the reading as well. 

I encourage people to record the readings,  as we go through a lot of information, very quickly.  

If any of the cards are especially significant,  I will encourage you to look them up online but especially on my blog.  There is a wealth of information here and every card is gone through in detail. 

After the reading you pay me via paypal. 

I'm so grateful to my repeat clients who have bought their own decks and keep coming back to me for readings, so that even though I am far away,  we feel close. 

Which Tarot Deck do I use for your reading?

People often ask me which Tarot Decks I prefer.  I own several, but the one I use most consistently for readings is the Rider Waite Deck.  It’s the most popular one, the one that many books are based on – and many other tarot designs play off.  I replace my deck about once a year or sooner if I see they are getting frayed.   I actually use the Rider Waite Radiant, which is identical to the traditional Rider Waite deck but with prettier/brighter colors.

If you are very familiar with the Rider Waite, you might find the New Vision deck by Lo Scarabeo charming – it shows the expected Rider Waite drawings, but from behind, giving them a cheekier perspective.

I love that there are so many variations out there, so many different perspectives to see.  Above is the wonderful Housewives Tarot.  That devil card is perfect!

I have been doing more and more skype readings lately.  I still need you to shuffle the cards, so I encourage people to buy or borrow a deck, then they do the shuffling and lay out and I do the interpretation.  It doesn’t matter to me which deck people use but if you are new to tarot, then the Rider Waite is usually the best place to start.

Looking at the Devil card again

In the Rider Waite version the devil card just looks scary, but it also looks alien. Who here sincerely worries about the devil? I explain that the devil is the repetitive bad patterns, addictive habits that lead us astray, taking us away from where we want to go.

And who understands the true work of the devil better than the housewife’s tarot – that chocolate cake, tempting us to gluttony, sloth and short term gratification, bringing out all our bad habits and vices.  So clear and easy to understand,  I just love it!