The start of a new year is a great time to practice meditation and visualization with tarot cards. Here are some tips from my 2006 book, Tarot Journaling. Try them for themselves in the pages of your tarot journal.
Go Inside the Cards
Sometimes, people who study tarot cards imagine themselves inside the cards, exploring the landscape and meeting personally with the characters inside each card. Typically, they enter each card through meditations and visualizations — two simple, remarkably effective ways to connect personally with each card.
The two techniques work seamlessly to bridge the communication gap between your conscious and subconscious minds. Because the information you glean during a meditation comes directly from your subconscious mind, it is imminently relevant and pertinent to your life. And because your journeys occur when you are fully conscious, meditations are easy to remember when you’re through.
Meditations and visualizations are two effective ways to use your tarot journal as a gateway into the cards. Simply allow your mind to wander, and watch as events unfold on the page.
Preparation. Choose one card from the deck. Sit comfortably in a chair, with your feet firmly on the floor, and breathe deeply. As you breathe, relax, and study the card in front of you. Examine every detail. As you look at the card, imagine it growing larger and larger, until it stands in front of you, like a doorway into another world. Picture yourself walking through that doorway and into the card.
Survey the grounds. Look around, and describe what you see. What do you notice that you couldn’t see from outside the card? What do you hear? What do you smell? What is the weather like? How does it feel to be inside the card?
You will probably be surprised by what you can sense. Many people who try this exercise report hearing background noise like wind, birds, and waves. They can feel the heat of the sun, or a cool breeze, or the grass underneath their feet. They can even smell flowers, and grass, and salty sea air.
You’re not alone. You find yourself face to face with a character from the card. Where do you meet him? What is he wearing? What is the expression on his face? What is the character’s mood? How does he or she react to your presence? Does the character greet you, or must you initiate a conversation? What do they say to you? How do you respond? Does he have a message for you? Does he have a gift for you? What is it? How do you feel about it? What do you say to him? What will you remember most about your encounter?
The safe haven. Imagine that you are on the run from an unseen attacker. Suddenly you find yourself in the scene shown in your card, where you can hide safely. What makes this card a refuge for you? What help can you find here?
Unexpected visitors. You may have gone into the cards during meditation or visualization, in order to explore the world of the tarot from the perspective of the cards. Now, try the process in reverse. Imagine that one of the characters has come out of a card to meet you in your surroundings. Imagine finding the Magician in your kitchen, or the boys from the Five of Wands roughhousing in your living room, or the Hanged Man at your computer.
Visualize yourself walking through your front door, and go through your house until you find your visitor. How do you feel: angry? Alarmed? Amused? What will you say? What will the two of you talk about?
Record your interaction in your journal.
