How I Bond And Connect With My Tarot Decks
Connecting and bonding with a Tarot deck or oracle deck is such a fun and rewarding practice for me. There is something so special about sharing time and energy with a tool like Tarot and imbuing it with parts of yourself. While I do understand that not everyone bonds with their decks or finds the need to, throughout my Tarot journey I have come across decks that I instantly connected to and some that I needed to spend some time bonding with first. It is my greatest hope that some of my practices within this post can aid or inspire you to try something new with your own Tarot deck.
While I do believe that bonding with a deck can be a lifelong process, whenever I set the intention to connect with a new Tarot deck, I like to give myself a small timeline of how long I want to initially spend bonding. Sometimes this can take anywhere from a few days to upwards of a month. Though the bonding doesn’t stop after the initial exercises, I usually give myself some time specifically devoted to connecting with that deck. There isn’t really a right or wrong way to go about this.
I love to shuffle my decks. Whenever I am connecting with a deck, that I want to use or get to know better I do a technique I call waking it up. I shuffle, focusing on the tactile experience of the card stock in my hands. I shuffle and cut the deck creating a flow of energy as the deck passes its way through my hands.
Being someone who appreciates the art of the written word, I enjoy drafting and writing short stories for either the deck itself or the cards within the deck. This helps me connect creatively with the cards and gives me my own personal back story for each of the cards in my deck.
I like naming my decks. I think it is a fun way to honor the deck’s unique personality and character while distinguishing it from other decks in my collection. I have two of the same Tarot decks with two contrasting energies. One’s named Jacob and the other is Miley. Miley is a feisty deck and tells it like it is while Jacob always has such a calm tone about him.
There are times when I can sense that a deck is ‘off’, tired or just heavy with external energies. I sometimes like to take the time to shuffle the deck and ask how it is feeling. This simple connection helps me assess how to move forward with the deck.
I am a huge fan of creating musical playlists for my decks or individual cards within a deck. It helps me musically connect to the cards and has helped me add a new layer to my readings.
I like to use my Tarot cards to decipher deeper or hidden meanings within the music that I am listening to or the music that I am personally writing. This also helps me associate specific card sets with specific chords, melodies or even a chorus from a song.
One of my favorite bloggers and friends @nicstoirm creates cheat sheets for each of their decks and I think it is such an ingenious way to bond and connect with the cards. I have since adapted their methods in my own practice and found great success!
I am a very visual person. I like to create mood boards with royalty free stock photography for Tarot decks or specific cards to get a better understanding of the aesthetics and symbolism that I associate with each.
Whenever I have a new deck, I like to give it its own special power word or phrase. This helps to create a special link between me and the deck. If the deck is ever lost or stolen, I can render the deck free of any and all previous energies or attempt to locate it energetically with another deck.
I’m a huge fan of Tarot deck modification. While I have only edged a few decks and trimmed one, the bond I created, sitting with each card as I modified it to my own needs is something I wouldn’t ever trade for the world. It is such a personal process but I love it. I am also a fan of doodling and writing on my cards, especially ones that have chopped borders. :)
Card Of The Day And Night
One of the first bonding techniques I ever learned was to pull a card for myself every day. I like to pull a card in the morning to set my intentions for the day and one card at night to read about my day retrospectively.
If you have been on my blog for any length of time you know that I love photographing my cards. It helps me analyze the cards from a photographers lens while giving me the chance to showcase the different moods in what I am trying to share with the cards within a stylized setup.
I love writing poetry and prose pieces with my cards. There is something so visceral about relaying my words with the messages and images of the cards in a creative way. It is my most “at home” and most used bonding technique.
I am a huge fan of creating custom incense and oil blends for each of my decks. Delving deep into the feeling and the essence of the deck and creating a scent for it, is such a magical process that I thoroughly enjoy.
I don’t usually do deck interview spreads to bond with a new deck. I do them after I have been using a Tarot deck for a while and have grown accustomed to the deck and how it likes to work with me. I found that trying to do an interview spread that could either positively or negatively set the tone for my relationship and usage with the deck was counterintuitive to how I work as a reader and not something I was interested in. I prefer for the deck and I to warm up to each other beforehand. I now do deck interviews after I have interacted with the deck and want to check up on how our bonding is going.
I love letter writing. I like to write letters to my decks and discuss how much they mean to me, how I have grown as a reader and person from its use and where I see our deck relationship going. It is a very beautiful process.
Each of my decks has its own custom sigil that I mark on the deck in a hidden area. This helps to fuse my energy to the deck and keep it protected from any wayward energies.
I like to create custom spreads based on the deck itself. For example, I have a Bright And Airy spread for my Vivid Journey Tarot because it is such a high-intensity deck for me. Creating a spread that is deck specific is a really cool way to tap into the deck’s strength when performing a reading.
I love deck bags and boxes. I think they are such cool ways to show your style as a reader and also keep your deck in something really pretty. If you create your own deck bags, I think this would be an awesome way to bond with your deck. Whenever I get a new deck, I like to shop around for the perfect vessel to put it in. I am always excited when I find the perfect match.
I like to energetically connect and mark my decks as I use them. To me, this creates a connection to my energy and a hub of power I can tap into when I am doing readings. Marking my decks also protects my deck from anyone else trying to use my deck without my permission or trying to tap into my energies without my permission.
I love to sing to my decks. I am known to put some Beyonce on full volume and just have a music session with my cards. On days when I am feeling chatty, I like to have conversations with my cards and have the deck respond to me with the symbols in the cards.
Creating your own keywords and associations to your cards is such a vital part of Tarot learning but is also a great way of bonding with your decks. Whenever I create my own word associations for each of the cards in my deck, I give myself permission to read how I want to read, without apology.
I love when decks come with guidebooks that were written by the artist. There is something so special when reading through the artists own interpretations and reasoning behind the symbolism found in a deck. Whenever I find interesting symbology from a guidebook, it helps me bond deeper to the meaning of the card.
I am one of those people that enjoys meditating with my Tarot cards as a bonding exercise. There is something so rewarding about being able to step into a card, look around and interact with its energies. One of my favorite decks that I meditate with is the Mary-El Tarot. I meditated with all 78 cards and the bond that that deck and I share is remarkable.
I like to create Tarot inspired outfits with the help of my cards. It is both fun and interesting using my deck and coming up with new outfit combinations based on the suggestions of the cards.
I love Tarot date night. Sometimes I will go to a bar or coffee shop that I recently had permission to read at and give free readings. Other times I will invite some friends over and we gossip with the cards over some wine. Then there are those days where I am on Amazon in my bed with some ice cream and I am using my decks to help me pick out more decks. The date night ideas are endless.
I love associating some of my favorite quotes or song lyrics with a card in my Tarot deck. I also like to find other cards that mirror or amplify that quotes meaning and then go through my deck and find cards that are opposite or conflict the meaning to compare and contrast ideas. I first learned about this method in high school when we would write persuasive essays and adapted it to my deck bonding repertoire. This helps give a duality to the meanings of the quote or lyric I associated with a card and provides me with a well-rounded sense of what the card means to me.
I like to take two or more decks and compare and contrast the different art styles and symbolism for each of the cards. It is so interesting seeing how different artists interpret the cards and what symbols each respective deck shares and where they are vastly different.
I like to make it a habit to take a Tarot deck with me wherever I go. I find that when I am particularly bonding with a specific deck, having it accessible to me throughout the day helps me reach for it more and use it, furthering the bonding process.
Bullet Journals And Planners
My friend @rosaofswords has such unique and creative bullet journals that she incorporates her Tarot use and study into. Seeing how she works, helped me to adapt a daily plan to bond with my decks in an organized fashion. While I am still new to bullet journaling, I find that utilizing this method for bonding has helped me so much in keeping track of things like deck usage and cards of the day which help in my connecting to a deck process.
I find it funny that when I first mentioned this technique in one of the Tarot groups I was in, I was told that using a deck right away would be counter-intuitive to bonding with it. I find the exact opposite to be true for me. By doing practice readings with a deck for myself and others, I get to know the vibe of the deck and how it responds to certain questions and its personality all throughout the process of doing readings.
I am a firm believer that Divination Challenges are invaluable resources to Tarot learners and seasoned readers alike. There is something so wonderful about coming together with a group of like-minded people and using your cards in creative ways throughout a specific period of time. This would have to be one of my top favorite ways of bonding with a Tarot deck.
Scope Of Life Experiences
Something that I am doing more frequently in my deck bonding process is relating each card in a deck to a personal meaning, philosophy or ideology I have. I have also started finding correlations between certain cards and people I know in my life. Utilizing those facets of my life helps pull in what I personally know and believe into the cards themselves.
Being someone with chronic illnesses, I like to keep comfort items at my disposal whenever I need them. One cool way that I bond with my decks is to associate a card or the whole deck’s energy with one of my comfort items.
I like to look at a single card or set of cards and create an emoji series that corresponds with them. It is a fun and accessible way for me to use modern technology in my deck bonding process.
Heartfelt Energy Exchange
I have Tarot decks that are more motherly and nurturing in nature and for those types of decks I usually put the deck close to my heart and feel the energy exchange between us both. It is a slow and emotional process for me but it is almost always one of the most rewarding.
While I don’t personally subscribe to the belief in deck spirits or card spirits, I know that some people do and that is perfectly okay. I do however believe that each deck in my collection has its own unique energy. To bond with that energy, I provide it with a suitable offering. Sometimes the offerings are crystals, coins, jewelry, secrets, etc. When I received my Dreaming Way Tarot deck in the mail, I had also ordered a rose quartz crystal that arrived at the same time. For some reason, I knew that that deck and crystal were meant to be together. I offered the Rose Quartz crystal as an offering to my deck and keep it near it at all times.
I am a huge fan of using Deck Combinations and using multiple decks within a single reading. For those who are unfamiliar, deck combinations are two or more separate decks that compliment each other well or contrast each other but work well together. I like to find deck combinations for each of my decks. As I compare the two or more decks, I begin to obtain a better grasp of the deck as a whole and the cards as standalone energies.
Similarly to deck partners, I like to go through my deck and find card siblings or cards that have a similar meaning, feel or symbolism within that particular deck itself. I also like to find cards that deeply contrast that meaning, feeling or symbolism because no two siblings are ever truly alike and it is those differences that causes this bonding method to be so worthwhile.
Although sleeping with my deck has never worked for me because I move around too much in my sleep, I do however create a nighttime ritual of keeping my deck on my nightside table, on top of a clear glass with some crystals inside. This helps me to connect with my deck in the dream realm and also act as a filter of its energies.
I like time travel, what can I say? I do this two ways. The first method is I take out my family photos and find cards that remind me or match to the cards meaning or energy. The second method is I research a past event and find cards that tell a story of that event.
I look around my room, city, school etc and find places, events, people that remind me of tarot. I also look at the news or a current event that has recently happened that day and relay it to my Tarot cards.
I go to my phone’s calendar, pick a date in the future and create a story of what might happen on said day with my Tarot cards.
I use bibliomancy with my Bible and use my tarot cards to recreate the message provided. I also use my decks to create a visual of my prayers but in Tarot card form.
I’ve mentioned before that I utilize one of my decks to talk to God. I find that one way to bond with a deck is by dedicating it to a purpose, deity, a specific area of your life, etc. I don’t do this for all my decks but I still find this process super beneficial when I do use it.
Whenever I bring home a new deck of cards, I like to go through the cards face up and admire the artwork of the deck. While doing this, I take note of the cards that create a stimulating reaction for me be it positively or negatively. I also like to relay each card to an emotion, scene or memory. This helps me tap into the energy that the deck gives me in its first impressions.
I know. I know. I’m a weird person that smells their cards but there is something so oddly satisfying about a new deck smell. I find that each deck has its own unique scent signature which I tap into.
I had such a big struggle starting and keeping a Tarot journal when I first started my divination journey. I never could keep up with it. I later created what I call my “catch all” Tarot journal. In it I put my favorite quotes or symbols within cards and my thoughts on specific readings. It isn’t your traditional tarot journal by any means but it works for me and that’s all that matters. You can use your journal for so many things like recording readings, writing down predictions, your deck inventory, etc.
I would be lying if I said that I had wonderful connections with all my Tarot decks. That isn’t the case at all. I have decks that I love but some of them do not read well for me and that is perfectly okay. You do not need to force a connection if one is not there. You also do not have to feel bad about not having a connection with a deck even if you tried bonding with it several times. Sometimes there are certain decks that we understand and can use instantly, and some that we can’t use at all. What I like to do is take some time away from that particular deck and try again. If it still doesn’t connect with me, I bring it out at a different point in the year and try again.
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Title: How I Bond And Connect With My Tarot Decks
Copyright: © Ivan Ambrose 2017
Disclaimer: This post is comprised of what helps me and I wanted to share it with others. As with all of my posts and content, this post in no way, shape, or form is intended to tell you how you must go about this topic. The intention of this post is to share my experiences. This isn’t the only way, the absolute right way or the way that you “should” approach this topic. I encourage you to use what you find useful and tweak or dismiss what you do not find useful. I am sure there are various other people in the world who choose to do things differently regarding this topic and that is perfectly okay. I can only speak from personal experience and what has worked for me. I encourage you to do your own research, to do what you are comfortable with and to tailor any advice provided henceforth to your specific needs and individual situation.
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