Top 5 Tips for Choosing a Beginner Tarot Deck

Thinking about getting into tarot? It can be intimidating knowing where to start. There's so many different decks on the market now, which can make one feel overwhelmed trying to pick one. Just a few decades ago you would go to a metaphysical store and there might be a small handful of decks to choose from. Now you can walk into any major retail chain bookstore and find dozens of different tarot decks on the shelves in a wide variety of themes. So where does one start? How do you choose the right deck to begin reading the tarot? Picking the right deck to start with is important because if you pick the wrong one and get frustrated, you won't stick with learning how to read them. Below are some tips for picking the perfect deck for you to start your tarot journey with.

The Rider Waite Smith Tarot

1. Find a Deck With an Art Style or Theme You Like
   It only makes sense that if you don't like the art, you are less likely to work with the deck. With so many decks out there these days, there really is something for everyone. You can find decks with themes from unicorns to panda bears, from fairies to aliens. There's also pop culture themed decks like Disney Villains and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. For beginners I recommend staying away from the pop culture themed ones as they can be a little too much on the collector's side and less on the practical side of actually reading a deck. Look for an art style that you like or a theme that you resonate with. Something that sparks your imagination and makes you want to pick it up even to just look at the cards. The deck should be something that inspires you and gets you excited to read cards.

2. Stay Away From "Pip" Decks
   A "Pip" deck is one where the cards in the minor arcana (the suit cards) do not have fully illustrated scenes on them. Instead, if say the card is the 5 of Cups, the card depicts just 5 cups. Or if it is the 7 of Swords, the card has 7 swords on it and little or nothing else. While there is nothing inherently wrong with this kind of deck, they are not beginner friendly. Look for a deck where all the cards are fully illustrated. You want a deck where the images clearly depict the cards meaning. This way the images tell you a story and will help you to remember the card's meaning so you can interpret it accordingly. On the other end, stay away from decks that appear esoteric or are overly mysterious in their symbolism. When starting to read you want clarity not confusion. You can always move on to pip decks or esoteric decks later, if that's what you are interested in.
   
   
3. Look for Decks With Key Words
   One of the easiest ways to start reading tarot is to find a deck you like that has key words or phrases on the cards. This gives one the ability to read the cards right away, rather than struggling to memorize the meanings of each card before reading for yourself or others. This can also help you with memorizing the meanings as the more frequently you read with them, the less and less you will find yourself relying on the key words and then you can make the jump to a tarot deck without them.
   
   
4. Get a Deck With a Good Guidebook
   Back when I started reading cards in the mid 90s, most decks came in a little box with a small flimsy guidebook. The LWBs (little white books) had tiny print and only a few pages of information. Most were next to useless for learning to read the cards. These days there are loads of tarot decks that come in big sturdy boxes with full colour large guidebooks included. Most include not only the card meanings, but also basic tarot info like shuffling and caring for your cards, along with spreads for laying out the cards and reading them. These kinds are great for getting started with learning tarot. If you have your heart set on a deck that doesn't come with a good guidebook, fret not, as there are lots of books on the market now with information on how to read the cards.
   
   
5. When in Doubt, Stick With the Classics
   With the variety of decks on the market, it can be overwhelming knowing where to start. If you are unsure, you can't go wrong with a classic deck, especially the Rider Wait Smith (also known as the RWS for short). This is the most common deck you will see referred to in beginner tarot books and is the stye of tarot deck that most modern decks are based on.  Once you know how to read the RWS, you can read almost any other tarot deck on the market. Other good options are the Morgan Greer Tarot and the Aquarian Tarot. They have both been around since the late 1970s and are other decks commonly referred to in tarot books. For beginners I advise staying away from the Thoth deck and Marseille style decks. Both are classics but are not very beginner friendly.

In short, you want a deck with artwork you enjoy, where the pictures clearly show the meaning and/or have key words or phrases. Having a great guidebook or stand along tarot instructional book is also a must. Another option for learning the tarot is to take a beginner tarot course. There are lots of great courses out there both online and in person. If you like in person courses a great place to start is your local metaphysical shop. They may have courses they are running themselves or know who is teaching one locally. There are also lots of courses online, but make sure to do your research to find an instructor whose approach you like and who is knowledgeable about the tarot, and is in your budget.

If you would like to learn tarot with me, I am currently teaching beginner tarot on my Patreon, in the Academy level. My approach is to use keywords to get your reading the tarot quickly. We'll start with the Majors and reading with them alone before moving on to each of the four suits one by one, and finally the court cards. I also offer monthly personal readings on my Patreon in the Grove and Temple levels, or you can purchase individual readings on my Etsy shop.

Neptune in Aries - Top 5 Themes for a New Vision of the World

 On Monday March 31 Neptune, the planet of the collective subconscious, spirituality, oneness, the ocean and fantasy, delusion and addiction moves from the sign of Pisces to Aries. This is one of the major headlines of the year as Neptune only changes sign every 14 years. The complete cycle of Neptune around the zodiac is 165 years, so we will never see a complete cycle of Neptune in our lifetime. Neptune will be in Aries until October 22, 2025 when it will briefly retrograde back into Pisces. He will then move into Aries again on January 26, 2026 where he will remain for the next 14 years. Being one of the slower moving outer planets, like Pluto and Uranus, Neptune tends to affect things on a worldwide and collective scale, more than the personal. When an outer planet does touch a planet or sensitive point in one's chart, the transit will be a slow moving one that evolves over time, rather than a quick event.

Astro Code Oracle

 

Neptune is all about the collective dream, our fantasies and ideals. When Neptune changes signs it marks a change in the dream, in the ideals and desires that we are working towards. Neptune has been in Pisces since 2012, and this era was marked by the rise of social media, the smart phone and the ideals of "woke" culture. Pisces is a sign that is about empathy, romanticism, a sense of oneness, imagination but also delusion and misinformation. The social media and smart phone era held the promise of us all being able to connect instantly with anyone anywhere in the world. It offered us the dream of world wide connection. However, by the end of this era we saw how this new technology that promised more connection actually made people feel lonelier and more disconnected than ever. It has also led to an increase in misinformation and conspiracy theories. This era also saw the rise of "wokeness", which brought much needed attention to inequalities and to social justice. However, this also led to the rise of cancel culture and ideological extremism.

Neptune now moves from watery and romantic Pisces to the fiery and individualistic sign of Aries. Aries is a sign that is about taking the lead, pioneering, the warrior, and focused on the self as an individual, rather than on the collective like Pisces. It is also a sign of action and risk taking, of daring boldness, but also anger, aggression, and even war. Below are my top five predictions for themes that will emerge during the Neptune in Aries era we are headed into.

1. Idealism of the Warrior, Pioneer and Cowboy archetypes.
   The last time Neptune was in Aries, was in the 1860s, the era of the Civil War in the US. This Neptune era may see echoes of this former period in history. Hopefully we will not see another civil war, however there is obviously conflict between two vastly different visions and values in the US at this time. How it all plays out, remains to be seen. Neptune in Aries time periods tend to idealize the warrior archetype and glorify war and conflict. The positive aspect can be people fighting for what is right and resisting oppression. The negative is when it is expressed through violence and war. The 1860s also saw expansion westward of the US and glorified the idea of the pioneer and the cowboy, along with the myth of rugged individualism. This era may see expansionist ambitions, and also a desire to explore previously uncharted territory such as the ocean or outer space.
    
2. A Focus on the Self and Individuality
   Neptune in Pisces was all about the collective and a sense of spiritual and emotional oneness with others. On the good side this was about empathy and bringing people together, but negative aspects included a focus on helplessness, victim-hood and lack of personal accountability. There was also an emphasis on the fluidity of identity and lack of boundaries. Neptune in Aries will see a larger focus on the self as an individual and on clear distinctions and boundaries. We may see more individualism in fashion and art and a desire for more authentic self-expression. Instead of passively consuming, we will want to act and be the makers of art and our destiny. There will be an emphasis on individual responsibility and taking action to assert oneself. The danger is when this goes to an extreme and there is a denial of inequality and barriers, or that you do not recognize that you had help from others to get to your goals.
    
3. Looking for a Hero
   Aries is a sign that asks us to be the hero in our own life. It is the first sign in the zodiac and represents the start of our journey. It's the individual starting out on the hero's quest, the main character at the beginning of the story. Neptune in Aries asks us to see ourselves as the hero in our own lives. It asks us to act with agency and to assert our dreams and desires. The danger of this is when we idealize others or lift others up on a pedestal as if they have all the answers. This ea may lead to the rise of cult leaders, spiritual gurus and the abuse of this power. Remember that the power resides within you, rather than giving away your agency to someone else.
    
4. Global Warming and the Ocean
   Neptune is associated with the oceans and this era may be one where the oceans begin to warm and polar ice melts at a more rapid rate. Aries is a fire sign, so it is not a stretch to imagine that with Neptune moving into this sign that these issues will be more prominent. Neptune in Aries also has associations with oil and chemistry, as the last time Neptune was here saw major oil field discoveries and developments in the science of chemistry. We may see more drilling for oil in the ocean, or hopefully, scientific discoveries being used to help alleviate the climate crisis.
    
5. Naval Warfare
   Aries has been associated with warfare as it is a sign ruled by the planet Mars, god of war. Again, looking back to the 1860s, when Neptune was last in this sign, we saw the development of the first iron battleships. Hopefully this does not mean that there will be naval war during this era, but more of a development of naval military capabilities and technology. However with the US threatening Panama to take control of its canal, along with threats to the island of Greenland and to Canadian arctic sovereignty, it's hard not to think that this may be an issue.

While issues like global warming and naval warfare are not the most cheery topics, I bring them up as they are an issue we may be facing during this Neptune in Aries era. I believe its important to talk about these potential issues so that we can look at them honestly, rather than pretending they don't exist. It's only then that we can come up with solutions and options for how we will deal with it. On the bright side, Aries is a very hopeful and optimistic sign. It's one that encourages us to act with bravery and positivity. While the movements of these outer planets tend to bring changes on a larger global scale, the heroic energy of Neptune in Aries can help us to manage the changes with courage and creativity.

 

 

If you would like more astrology, you can sign up for my free newsletter on my website. I also have detailed weekly astrology reports on my Patreon and you can book a personal reading on my Etsy shop

 

Solar Eclipse in Aries - Learning From the Past

On Saturday March 29, we have a New Moon at 9 degrees sign of Aries, that is also a Solar Eclipse.  Eclipses occur in pairs (a lunar and a solar, two weeks apart), twice a year. The next pair will occur in the fall, in September and October. Eclipses bring big starts and endings to the area of our lives that the signs they are in rule. If we have been off course, then the eclipses will bring change that is more dramatic. If we have been doing what we need to do, then the endings and new beginnings will feel more natural. Each of the two eclipses in a pair occur in the signs opposite each other. For example, Aries/Libra, Taurus/Scorpio, Gemini/Sagittarius etc. They will occur in the same pairs for about a year and a half, with some cross over before the eclipses move to the next pair. This what is happening this spring as we just had a Lunar Eclipse in the sign of Virgo, but this coming eclipse is in Aries. We are crossing over from the Aries/Libra axis to the Virgo/Pisces one. As this will be the last eclipse in Aries for the next 8 years, this is a time when changes that started during the fall of 2023 will be coming to completion.

Moonology Oracle

 

New Moons are a great time to set goals for the coming lunar cycle. Eclipses however can bring a volatile energy to the New Moon, so some people avoid setting intentions during eclipse season (the period a week before the first eclipse in a pair until the week after the last one). If you do decide to set intentions or do magical workings, keep in mind that the outcome can come about in highly unexpected ways. As this eclipse is in Aries, it is about our sense of individualism, our identity and can be a time when we are feeling brave and open to risk taking. This is also a North Node eclipse, so is a time when we are being pushed forward to move beyond our comfort zone.

This eclipse is conjunct both Venus and Mercury retrograde by sign, so there is an element of something from the past coming up for review. Mercury conjoins with Neptune on this day before slipping back into the sign of Pisces, so there may be a sense of confusion around some piece of information. Keep your skepticism about any news you may hear today, especially if it sounds either outrageous or too good to be true.

This eclipse is being helped by a sextile to both Jupiter in Gemini and Pluto in Aquarius. Jupiter brings a sense of optimism and an opportunity to grow through the changes that this eclipse brings. Pluto supports this as well, bringing a desire to change things on a deeper level. We don't want the changes to be superficial, but long lasting. In fact any changes made now, even small ones, may have a more profound impact on us over time than we may realize now.

The Sabian Symbol for this Solar Eclipse is "A Man Teaching New Forms from Old Symbols". This is about gathering new understandings from lessons we have learned in the past. This shows that the retrogrades of both Mercury and Venus are bringing their lessons to us to help us move forward in new ways this eclipse. Any changes and new experiences we encounter now, we can use the lessons from the past to help us to navigate things. While in the past we may have understood things on a superficial or intellectual level, now we see things in a new light, with the understanding of wisdom and experience. We have reached a deeper and more profound level of understanding and can now help to teach and be an example of others.

 

 

If you would like more astrology, you can sign up for my free newsletter on my website. I also have detailed weekly astrology reports on my Patreon and you can book a personal reading on my Etsy shop