Year of creation

There are several versions.

– The Tarot deck was developed by ancient Egyptian priests. So they supposedly wanted to preserve knowledge, realizing that their civilization was coming to an end. This theory was in vogue in the 18th century in Europe, but there is no evidence of its validity.

– Records in the Italian annals indicate that the Tarot appeared in Europe in 1379.

Below we shall present a few more versions.

Mass media about the teaching

The true history of Tarot cards: from the Games of the Dukes of Milan to the “Golden Dawn” of London Hermeticism — Knife (knife.media) 

Article uses materials from isset.ru

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The first Tarot origin story sounds quite romantic. It says that the Tarot is of Egyptian origin and was passed down to us by the Atlanteans as a teaching tool that helps to gain awareness and the key to spiritual growth.

According to the realistic version, the first mention of Tarot cards in historical information dates back to 1392, when the artist and court jester Jacquemin Gringonneur created a Tarot deck, offering it as playing cards to King Charles VI of France.

The pragmatic version suggests considering the history of the Tarot from the moment they were used as a fortune-telling tool. Here we are talking about a French occultist with the pseudonym Etteilla, who described the Tarot in detail as a divination system in 1875.

There are others:

“In 1379, a card game was brought to Viterbo. In the Saracen lands, where it came from, it was called “naib”. The names of the cards in Spanish – naipes, in Italian – naibi, undoubtedly came from this Arabic word meaning “substitute”. The prototype of the Tarot, Shah writes, was the teaching material that has survived to this day, and “only Sufis know the basic element of the cipher contained in suits and trumps.”

“The card deck we know is only partially correct, due to the distortion in the meaning of some symbolic cards. These errors were the result of incorrect translation of some Arabic words that were formally transferred to another cultural environment. Another reason could be the replacement of some drawings by others.”

Idris Shah, writer and teacher of the Sufi tradition.

According to this version, the Tarot is a tool that was used in Sufi orders to train adepts. With the help of pictures, secret knowledge was transmitted, which cannot be deciphered without knowing the key.

According to another version, the first documentary mention of such a deck was found in the archives of Leonello d’Este, Count of Ferrara, and dates back to 1442.

Currently, the Tarot is quite popular, which is confirmed by a large number of schools and directions offering to study this tool. However, they all develop on the basis of one of the four basic Tarot schools, the founders of which were such famous figures as Dr. Papus (Gerard Encausse), Aleister Crowley, Arthur Edward White and Valentin Tomberg, who described playing cards XV-XVI in the form of the Marseille Tarot.

The meanings of Tarot cards in these schools are somewhat different, so it is important to choose one system and study them at least one at a time, without mixing styles and genres. In order not to get confused in the variety of decks and directions, it is important to know their main distinguishing features. This is described in detail in the article Analysis of the four basic Tarot schools   https://isset.ru/library/taro/analiz_chetyrekh_bazovykh_shkol_taro/

An interesting fact is the presentation of the Tarot deck to King Charles VI. With this clever move of the appearance of Tarot cards at court as an entertaining game, the spiritual descendants of the Templars legalized the Tarot and protected their associates from the dangerous attention of the Inquisition. If you compare a deck of Tarot cards with poker playing cards with a knowledgeable eye, then you can determine the common general principles by which the decks are organized.

The deck contains 4 suits (scepters – clubs, cups – hearts, swords – spades, pentacles – diamonds), cards from two to ten, aces and three court cards-pictures: Jack (Knight), Queen, King. At the same time, the Pages are removed from the deck altogether, and all the senior Arcana, except for the Jester, fit entirely into the second Joker.

Tarot cards, according to fortune-tellers, help to find answers to questions: what specific life task this situation poses in front of me, how and in what way it is better to solve it; what is my responsibility in the situation; what is subject to change, and what needs to be accepted, like the weather. Tarot answers both everyday questions – related to choice, search, promotion at work, relationships with other people, and esoteric ones – should I have a relationship with this person, choose this  profession or move to another country. With the help of Tarot cards, fortune-tellers are looking for a guiding roadmap in any life situation. 

Despite the fact that psychology does not officially recognize esotericism as a science, some psychologists may use Tarot cards as a tool in their practice.

Tarot cards and their occult uses are an interesting phenomenon that has earned attention from historians, esoteric researchers and enthusiasts. 

Any Tarot current develops on the basis of one of the four basic Tarot schools, the founders of which were such famous names as Dr. Papus (Gerard Encos), Aleister Crowley, Arthur Edward White and our compatriot Valentin Tomberg, who described playing cards XV-XVI in the form of the Marseille Tarot.

To be updated

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