Over the next few months, we'll look at some books created for beginners. We'll see some tips, ideas, and interpretations that may also be of interest to more seasoned readers. Almost every teacher or author has something to share that we haven't heard before. In Tarot for Beginners, in addition to exploring the traditional Rider Waite Smith meanings, we look at three other decks that follow the RWS tradition. We see how they are similar to and different from the RWS image. We hope that seeing these examples helps you interpret your own RWS-style decks with more confidence while recognizing the unique voices of these decks. Let's take a look at a card that is often a

Today tarot reader Hilary Parry of  www.tarotbyhilary.com shares her two favorites...a book and a deck! 1) What is your favorite Llewellyn tarot book or deck? Deck: Legacy of the Divine by Ciro Marchetti Book: Psychic Tarot by Nancy Antenucci and Melanie Howard 2) What do you love most about it? Deck: I was absolutely struck by the beauty of Ciro's work from the first time I laid eyes on it. The imagery was immediately both personal and mysterious to me, and I simply knew I had to have it. Also, there are certain cards in a tarot deck that I must love the imagery on, or I don't connect with the deck well enough to read with it. These cards are the High Priestess, the

On the second day of December, Tarot gave to me: The 2 of Swords from the Legacy of the Divine Tarot by Ciro Marchetti A quiet moment, the calm before the storm, the moment before a decision is made...very dramatic. This may be the moment before you decide what gift to give a loved one, what invitations to accept, or how to allocate your charitable giving. Some decisions are harder than others, the pros and cons being close to even. For these, you quiet your reasoning mind and still your emotions...your clarity will come from some other source, perhaps.

This card has changed a lot throughout history. It originally meant a traitor; someone who had betrayed someone or something. Later, it meant sacrifice, and some still read it as that. But more commonly, now, people read it as being in a kind of comfortable limbo waiting for a revelation or realization of some sort. In this image in particular, there is a sense of balance. Many tarot cards suggest balance: Lovers, Chariot, Justice, Temperance. Even the cards with pillars, such as the High Priestess, or the Moon with its two towers. Examining all the different flavors of balance in the tarot...now that would be an interesting study. I usually read it as a kind of time out, a