A Study of the Visconti-Sforza Tarot Cards

Carl Jung on tarot: “They are psychological images, symbols with which one plays, as the unconscious seems to play with its contents. They combine in certain ways, and the different combinations correspond to the playful development of events in the history of mankind.” [source: Carl Jung and Tarot by Mary K. Greer]

I take a similar view to Jung in the sense that I believe tarot cards represent an intriguing way of understanding the subconscious, and more. The subconscious operates beneath the conscious—what our senses capture, how we act, what we think. The subconscious communicates in a different language, in the sense that it doesn’t need interpretation, just recognition. When we become aware of it, we have the choice of acknowledging its value, or deeming it untrustworthy. When we respect the subconscious and speak to it, from a place of humbleness, it shares its pointers generously.

The subconscious traverses beyond time, and it is nonlinear—which is why a tarot reading can be effective at predicting the future. This mystic power can be mishandled. There is danger in believing that a higher power is responsible for creating our future. In doing so, we shed the responsibilities that we should take on, and as a result, our lives become passive.