fortune-telling. The first tarot decks were created in Italy in the 1430s by adding a fifth suit of 21 specially designed cards called trionfi (“triumphs”) and an odd card called il matto to an already existing four-suited pack (“the fool). (The modern joker, which was created in the late 19th century as an unsuited jack in the game of euchre, is not related to the fool.)
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What kind of religion are tarot cards?
Tarot cards are frequently cited as a component of New Age thought and practice along with astrology, aspects of Buddhism, paganism, and First Nations teachings in the eclectic scholarly approach to the New Age.
Did tarot cards come from Egypt?
Tarot cards also include four suits, but they are different depending on the region: French suits are found in Northern Europe, Latin suits are found in Southern Europe, and German suits are found in Central Europe. Each suit contains 14 cards: four face cards (King, Queen, Knight, and Jack/Knave/Page) and ten pip cards, numbered from one (or Ace) to ten. In addition, the tarot features a unique 21-card trump suit and a solitary card known as the Fool; this 22-card group of cards is referred to as the Major Arcana in the world of divination. The Fool may serve as the top trump or alternatively may be played to avoid doing so, depending on the game. In parts of Europe, these tarot cards are still used to play traditional card games without any occult connotations.
Tarot cards are mostly employed for amusement and divination in English-speaking nations where these activities are less popular, typically with the aid of specially created packs. Although academic research has shown that tarot cards were partially invented in northern Italy in the 15th century (16 of the modern 22 Major Arcana cards) and combined with a deck of four suits, “the Mamluk deck,” some people who use tarot for cartomancy believe the cards have esoteric links to ancient Egypt, Iran, the Kabbalah, Indian Tantra, or the I Ching. The Mamluk deck of cards was created in or before the 14th century and arrived in Western Europe after paper was produced in Asia (see Playing Card – Egypt and following sections). By the end of the thirteenth century, Europeans were making the Mamluk deck with customized “court cards” and suit symbols.
Although some people think that tarot cards were not used for divination until the late 18th century, there is evidence of an early tarot deck that was “used in divination to determine the querent’s prospects in love” (Fernando de la Torre’s “Juego de Naypes” deck of Spain, 1450), each card having an image and verse.
Who made the original deck of tarot cards?
The sniper threatening Greater Washington, D.C. placed a taunting tarot card near the shooting scene with the words “Dear Policeman, I am God.” Where are tarot cards made?
In the late 14th or early 15th century, northern Italy is where tarot cards most likely first appeared. The Visconti-Sforza deck, the oldest surviving set, was made for the family of the Duke of Milan sometime around 1440. The cards were used to play tarocchi, a bridge-like game that was then quite popular among nobility and other leisure enthusiasts. The whimsical designs on the cards, from the Fool to Death, were reportedly inspired by the costumed characters that marched in carnival parades, according to tarot historian Gertrude Moakley.
Tarot cards or playing cardswhich came first?
With the surge in popularity of alternative religions, witchcraft, and paganism, tarot reading and tarot cards have grown increasingly popular in recent years. It seems fitting that the Tarot is one of the most obvious and approachable gates to that path as topics like astrology, energy work, and more become more widely known. But how did the Tarot come to be used as a tool for divination and self-examination, and where did it originate?
At first glance, one may think that the Tarot has some kind of ancient history; some have even asserted that the cards represent the remains of an old Egyptian manuscript that was destroyed in the Alexandrian library fire. Were they aliens? the divine? Actually, no. We are aware of no ancient origins for tarot. It was most likely developed much more recently.
Since nobody actually knows who made the original card decks that would later develop into the Tarot as we know it, I suggest “probably.” It turns out that conventional playing cards work the same way. Sometime in the 14th or 15th century, playing cards initially arrived in Europe from, well, somewhere that wasn’t Europe. We don’t know if it was Arabia or China, but considering the lack of connection between Mah Jong and our current card decks, my money is on China. Therefore, it is difficult to say for sure whether Tarot or playing cards emerged first, while either might have happened and it is possible that they both descended from a single, long-lost ancestor.
Is astrology a branch of tarot cards?
These days, almost everyone you know possesses a tarot deck and regularly receives readings. Tarot is no longer simply for the esoteric. Tarot has evolved over time into an intuitive art that may assist you in planning for both the best and worst scenarios. Tarot cards are filled with symbolism, but you might not be aware of how closely it is related to astrology. For instance: In the Major Arcana, a card corresponds to each sign of the zodiac.
Spirituality: Is it a religion?
Religion and spirituality might be difficult to distinguish from one another, but there are some rather clear differences between the two. A community or group usually shares a particular set of organized beliefs and behaviors that make up religion. It has to do with finding serenity and meaning in life and is more of an individual discipline.
Do tarot cards have an Indian origin?
Tarot cards are thought to have its origins in Egypt, China, India, and the Islamic World (Farley 2014; Levine 2004; Decker 2013). While some authors include facts to back up their arguments, others depend solely on conjecture. For instance, those who assert that the tarot cards originated in India often mention the Indian card game Ganjifa, which has ten suits and twelve cards in each of them (Farley 2014). Others, like French Protestant Pastor Court de Gebelin in the eighteenth century, believed that tarot cards originated in Egypt since their visuals reminded him of that country (Levine 2004). There is some evidence to imply that tarot cards were at least utilized in Egypt, even if they did not originate there, despite the fact that mere supposition is not a good foundation for an argument.
A 56-card deck from the Egyptian Mamluk Empire dating to the fifteenth century was discovered in Istanbul and contains playing cards in the four suits of coins, polo sticks, cups, and swords (Farley 2014; Wintle 2015). The King, Lieutenant, Second Lieutenant, and Assistant are the four court cards in each suit, together with cards for the numbers 1 through 10. (Wintle 2015). This deck is devoid of queens, just like all other non-French or non-English tarot decks are as well (Farley 2014). Additionally, each card has an Arabic inscription, which is frequently whimsical, prophetic, or odd. The design of this deck and the Italian Brambilla and Visconti di Modrone tarot cards share commonalities, in addition to the obvious connections between the suits of the Mamluk deck and modern decks (Farley 2014).
The idea for the Mamluk cards is said to have originated in Persia, where polo was created and was the national game of the nobles (Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame 2017). In addition, the Persian language work Dabistan-ul-mazahab (The School of Manners) recounts the adventures of Mahabad, the first prophet and human, who divided society into four classes: Magi (priests), Kings and warriors, farmers and artisans, and Sudin (workers). Therefore, the four suits of the Mamluk deck can stand in for the four social strata in ancient Persia. It is probable that the polo stick suit was altered to wands because polo was not a popular sport in Italy at the time. This is because there is some consensus that tarot cards arrived in Europe through Italy (particularly through the important port city of Venice) (Farley 2014).
We may now focus on the names of these cards because we’ve covered the history of the tarot cards. Sadly, we are unaware of the name of the Mamluk deck. What is known is that these cards are known as “tarot” in French and taro, tarok, or tarocco in other European nations (Giles 1994). According to some authors, the term “taro” is an anagram of the Latin word “rota,” which means “wheel,” and that it refers to the wheel of fate and the ability to utilize the tarot cards to predict one’s future (Decker 2013; Giles 1994). Others contend that the name “tarot” has its roots in the Italian tarocco cards, which were originally known as cartes de trionfi, or “cards with trumps.” This is related to the theory that tarot cards entered Europe through Italy, and one of the first reports of trump cards that we have comes from Umbria, Italy.
There is documentation of a Franciscan friar in Umbria preaching on “the use of games” as early as 1450 AD. He categorizes all games into three categories: trumps, cards, and dice. He continues by stating that the trumps deck contains 21 cards, including the Pope, the Emperor, angels, and virtues (Giles 1994). The number zero was not counted at this time, thus it’s likely that a pack of trumps actually had 22 cards, which would be exactly the same as the Major Arcana cards in a tarot deck.
This leads us to think that trump cards and playing cards were formerly distinct entities that were later united.
Given that a complete Mamluk deck had 56 cards and a modern tarot deck has 22 trump cardsa total of 78 cardswhich is exactly how many cards are in a modern tarot deckthere is some evidence to corroborate this. This view is further supported by the absence of Queens in the Mamluk court and the earliest tarot decks. As a result, it appears that trump cards and Persian Mamluk playing cards were combined to create modern tarot decks (most likely from Italy). Tarot cards were created by combining these two games at some point, and given the mysterious writings on the Mamluk cards, it is not hard to see how playing cards came to be used for divination.
The controversy over whether playing cards or tarot cards came earlier is also answered by the fact that Mamluk playing cards may be traced back to ancient Persia. The oldest evidence of playing cards in Europe dates to at least 1371 AD in Aragon (current-day Spain), while the first mention of trump cards dates to 1442 in Ferrara, Italy. Given that the Arab invasion of Persia began in the seventh century and that the Moorish colonization of Spain began in 711 AD, it seems logical to conclude that playing cards, which originated in Persia, were brought to Europe by the Moors. Tarot cards were allegedly first created in Spain and then transported to Italy (Decker 2013).
Now there is a bit less mystery surrounding the tarot cards. The majority of it is a blend of two distinct card games, one most likely from Italy and the other probably from Persia. It is simple to picture how the writing on the Mamluk cards become fortunes for the seeker through games of chance like “choose a card.” Each card’s names, designs, and meanings have evolved over time to fit its particular period and location. Tarot decks are widely accessible now and come in a variety of styles and levels of difficulty, all of which contribute to the story told by the cards.
References
A History of the Occult Tarot, by Decker and Dummett, Duckworth Overlook, London, 2013.
Farley, H. 2014, “Cultural History of Tarot: Entertainment to Esotericism,” I.B. Tauris, London, accessed September 21 via ProQuest EBook Central.
The Tarot: History, Mystery, and Lore, by C. Giles, Simon & Schuster, Cammeray, New South Wales, 1994.
The Beltane Papers, vol. 33, p. 42, Levine, N. 2004, “The Diving Arts: Wisdom from the Land of Isis,” accessed September 21, 2017, through ProQuest.
Wintle, A. (2016). Mamluk playing cards. World of Playing Cards. Accessed 23 September 2017.
Where is the Thoth book?
The piece of writing, which the editors refer to as the “More than 40 Graeco-Roman Period papyri from Berlin, Copenhagen, Florence, New Haven, Paris, and Vienna’s collections contain the Book of Thoth. A papyrus with fifteen columns, located in the Berlin Museum, serves as the main witness. The Book of Thoth, which is nearly fully written in the Demotic script, was likely created by scribes of the “Scriptorium of the Temple, House of Life. It mostly consists of a conversation between the divinity He-who-praises-knowledge (probably Thoth himself) and the mortal He-who-loves-knowledge. The book covers subjects including the scribal art, sacred geography, the afterlife, knowledge of animals, temple ritual, and wisdom. One section (the) stands out as particularly noteworthy “Vulture Text), in which a vulture is used to represent each of Egypt’s 42 nomes. The language is poetic, and the lines are frequently arranged into verses in a clear manner. Many scholarly issues are raised by the subject, dialogue structure, and striking phraseology; particularly intriguing are the potential connections between this Egyptian work, in which Thoth is called “Hermes Trismegistos plays a significant role in both the classical Hermetic Corpus and the thrice-great. Interpretative articles and discussions of certain topics, including the manuscript tradition, script, and language, are included in the first book. The transliteration, translation, and discussion of the Demotic text make up the bulk of the publication. The first volume is concluded with a consecutive translation, glossary, bibliography, and indexes. Nearly all of the papyri’s photos in the second book are of their original size.
What are the tarot cards supposed to mean?
What do tarot cards generally stand for? As shamans like to say, “medicine around what is happening in your particular orbit: love, money, work, aspirations, and general life path” is what tarot cards are there for.