Stripped to its bones, the Tarot is a picture book. An infinite illustration, full of rich symbolism, deep themes and complex characters.

The plot is full of mystery and intrigue, crashing lows and soaring highs. Romance and heartbreak, failure and success, friendship and betrayal, passion and boredom, hope and despair.

Tarot is the story of the human experience, in the form of a pack of 78 playing cards.

Tarot is timeless; the same characters, archetypes and themes can be reproduced in any age, culture or setting. The only limit is our collective creativity and imagination. If you can think of it, there could be — and possibly is — a tarot deck out there for it.

The Tarot is a cycle. A journey. A loop.

Studying these cards is a way to make sense of life, the world, other people, and most importantly, ourselves.

A person who can interpret the cards is called a reader.

Anyone can learn to read the Tarot; it just takes a bit of time, patience and intuition.

Every reading is completely different. Every reader is different, every querent is different. The questions we ask the cards, the layout or ‘spread’ we use to interpret the answers, and of course the cards we pull. It all comes together in the moment and is a completely unique experience every time. That’s the magic of it!

In a reading with me, the first thing I’ll do is welcome you into the space, or get comfortable in yours. We’ll have a chat about what you’re seeking from the reading. You don’t have to share any more about your circumstances than you feel comfortable with. Anything you do share during your session will be treated with the utmost confidence and respect.

I’ll invite you to examine a selection of tarot decks, and you’ll select the deck which resonates most closely with you. I’ll invite you to shuffle and cut the cards, or I can if you would like. The spread we use and number of cards we pull will depend on the length and complexity of the session.

When we’re ready to begin, I’ll invite you to light a candle to ‘open’ the reading. This is a purely symbolic gesture to set our intentions for the session.

From there, we will interpret the cards, together.

My goal as a reader is to act as more of a guide than a translator. I want to help you interpret the meaning of the cards for yourself. The reading is uniquely specific to your personal situation. No one better understands your situation than you do.

It’s important to be clear that I’m never going to pretend to mysteriously ‘know’ things about you or your situation. I work intuitively with the cards, as all readers do, but I am not psychic or clairvoyant, and in no way claim to be.

Some variation of the question above is the most common preconception people have about the Tarot, and the answer is complex. The short version is: yes and no. It’s your choice.

Tarot’s popular association with ‘fortune telling’ and witchcraft is an integral part of its evolution. Occult symbolism and imagery is woven into the fabric of its historical tapestry. A tarot reading can absolutely be a mystical/magical experience if you want it to be.

However, tarot can also be an entirely secular practice. There is zero requirement to believe in any kind of ‘paranormal force’ behind the cards. In recent years, Tarot has seen increasing popularity as a self-help tool. The cards are powerful prompts for introspection and self-reflection. You do not have to believe in magic to benefit from the wisdom of the cards.

The mathematical probability of any one specific combination of cards in a basic three-card tarot reading is 0.0002% — 1 in 474,552. To put that in perspective, the odds of winning first division Lotto in New Zealand are 1 in 383,838.

Statistically, those eerily accurate, bizarrely specific tarot readings that seem to assess your circumstances and answer your questions with pinpoint precision should be exceptionally rare — but they’re not.

Like many things in life, the answer to this question ultimately comes down to individual belief and personal choice. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter if you’re a hardcore skeptic or a true believer. The cards will reveal their truth either way.

Do you want to believe?

The answer to this question is not complicated: NO. 

There is nothing dark, sinister or demonic about the Tarot. People who fear the ‘occult’ or ‘supernatural’ do so as a result of their own superstition — almost always instilled by organised religion. Certain religions have long claimed anything outside of their belief system is dangerous or bad. There’s nothing to be anxious about spiritually when it comes to tarot readings. It is simply 78 pieces of card stock art prints, shuffled in random order, interpreted by a human being. All human beings are a mix of bad and good, but the cards are just cards.

Nothing can predict the future, because the future is not fixed. What the Tarot does is invite us to examine our inner feelings and subconscious thoughts to explore possibilities of what could happen in the future, and how we might take control of our current circumstances to create the best outcome for ourselves.

There are no definitive outcomes foretold by the cards. A tarot reading may offer you guidance, hope or warnings, but never promises or threats. The future hasn’t happened yet. We determine our own fate with the choices we make. The cards will encourage you to take control of your destiny in an empowering way, to make positive changes.