How to Bond With a New Tarot Deck: 7 Steps to Build a Deeper Connection

So you have a new deck.  Congratulations!  Whether you purchased it or it was gifted to you doesn’t matter, contrary to some things you might have heard.  What’s important is the energy in the deck, and the energy you invest into it.  And you can start in the very beginning by getting to know your deck.

1. Opening the deck.  Try to engage all of your senses as you do this.  Listen to the sound of the plastic crinkling as you remove it.  Feel the weight of the box in your hands.  See the overall colors, the font, and anything else that strikes you on the box.  Smell the box to see if you can smell the cardstock or the printing inks.  Taste…  Well…  If you want to lick the box, that’s all you.

2. Perusing the book.  Take a look at the book first, before looking at the cards.  Notice if it’s printed in color or black and white, whether the descriptions look interesting and different from other decks, and whether it will help give you an understanding of the cards as the author and artist sees them.

3.  Taking in the cards.  Look through the cards one-by-one, in order.  Take in the art, noticing themes, colors, how the figures are drawn or painted, etc.  Do you like the cardstock?  This is the point where you get an overall feel for the deck.  Take your time with this step.  Also, if any of the cards are stuck together because of the edging, now is the time to break the seal- one of my favorite parts.

4.  Cleansing and ‘waking up’ the deck.  Cleanse and bless your deck using a smoke blend.  (I’ll share my recipe for a card cleansing blend in another post!)  You can choose to hold each individual card over the smoke in turn, or fan the deck out and let the smoke touch all the cards at once.  It all depends on how much time and energy you have. You can then ‘wake up’ the deck by knocking on it 3 times or holding it to your third eye and telling it what you want from it.

5.  (Optional) Sleeping with the deck under or near your pillow.  Let its energy meld with yours as you sleep, and note any interesting dreams you have during this time.  When I first learned tarot, I was told that sleeping with your deck for 3 days was a minimum before you used it.  Decide if that’s something you want to introduce to your practice.

6.  Interviewing the deck.  I’ve included a picture of my deck interview spread below.  This gives you a chance to find out what your deck is all about.  Is it primarily concerned with love?  With self-care?  Or is it concerned with giving you the hard truths that you may not want to face?  This is where you find out.  Take notes!

7.  Reading for a friend.  Carry the deck with you throughout your day and look for an opportunity to bring it out and read for someone else.  This will help you to understand whether or not the deck is a better reader for you, for others, or both.  I have some decks that LOVE reading for other people, but don’t want to read for me.  I also have other decks that only want to read for me.  This is where you start to find that out.

Now do you HAVE to take all these steps? No. Not really. But cracking open a new deck and just starting to read with it doesn’t really help you give the best readings. It’s so much better if you can know a deck backwards and forwards. Get some of your energy into and onto the deck, and your readings will be better for it!

I have a free printable with this information, as well as a one sheet with the deck interview spread.  You can find that at enchantedeverything.com/shop

If you have suggestions for how you like to get to know your deck, please share in the comments!  

Thank you for helping me build this community.  <3