“What if the cards tell me something bad will happen?” This, or some similarly worded question, is one that every tarot reader has been asked numerous times.
Personally, I don’t believe there is a such as a thing ‘bad’ tarot reading. Tarot, and all forms of divination, are messages and conversations with the divine. Yes, you may discover that there are some tough times ahead, but that is not the same thing as ‘bad’. If anything, these make for some of the most insightful and powerful readings.
Information is power. It empowers by allowing us to make better decisions. Informed decisions.
I believe that this is the key to tarot readings. The magic and power isn’t in its ability to predict the future; rather, it is the reminder to the querent that they have a choice. It presents people with a potential outcome and they can either accept it or make changes. Depending on the situation, their actions may be able to change the outcome.
But even if they can’t, they still have a choice – they can choose the attitude to approach the situation with.
Having that said, while I don’t believe there are bad tarot readings, I most certainly believe that there are bad tarot readers. I’ve heard of many horrors stories, ranging from a teenager being told that his future holds nothing but pain and suffering to a cancer patient being told that she has no hope.
These stories fill me with rage, not because the readers saw hardship and difficult and told their clients so. It enrages me because of what they chose to focus on. A reading should never take away a person’s faith and joy. It should never leave a person with more fear and doubt.
We as readers cannot lie, nor can we take away someone else’s pain. But we can show them the compassion of the universe that is always there if we know where to look. Our job is to help others find it.
Every tarot card has a lesson that is gained through a life experience. If readers foresees difficulties ahead for their querents, they must also emphasize the wisdom embedded in the card. In doing so, the readers offer the querents an option to face their challenges with courage and the wisdom of the ages passed down to us through these cards. This is our sacred duty as diviners.
The Mechanics of Tarot 