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‘Tarot For The Beginner Witch’ is a project I started to shine a positive and inviting light on witchcraft. The topic of witchcraft is something that is often put in a negative light and I would like to debunk some of the misconceptions regarding this subject. 

Why does witchcraft have such a strange, negative stigma around it? Why is it often associated with, for example, satanism? Where do misconceptions like these come from? 

Witchcraft

This tarot will cover the basics of witchcraft and with that also the basics of Wicca. Witchcraft or witchery is the practice of magical skills, spells, and abilities. This can be used as a way to manifest what you want or wish for in life, to honor the sabbaths or in magical rituals, which can be done solitary or within covens. A coven is a group or meeting of witches. Witchcraft is a broad term that is found all over the world and practiced in many cultures. There is no age, gender or religion bound to this practice and is open to anyone who is interested.  

Witchcraft often goes hand in hand with the nature religion of Wicca. The important difference between witchcraft and Wicca is that Wicca is a religion and witchcraft is a practice and lifestyle. So a witch isn’t always a Wiccan. But a Wiccan is almost always a witch. Within Wicca, witchcraft is often used during rituals and religious practices, therefore making wiccans witches. Witchcraft in itself is entirely secular, it has no deities and no religion associated with it. But you can add religion or working with deities into the magical practice of witchcraft. This is entirely up to you and how you want to practice your craft. 

 

Wicca

Within Wicca there are a few important things to know. Wicca is a nature religion which was created by Gerald Gardner in the 50’s. He wrote the book ‘Witchcraft Today’ and in this book he talked about the history of nature-magic and how modern pagans practiced their rituals.

Wiccans use a Book of Shadows, which is a sort of logbook in which they keep track of their rituals and magical practices. These sorts of books have been used for a much longer time than this, but the term ‘Book of Shadows’ comes from Wicca.

A very important guideline wiccans live by is the Law of Three: “Ever mind the Law of Three. Three times your acts return to thee. This lesson well, thou must learn. Thou only gets what thee dots earn.”

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Tarot

Now that I’ve told you a little bit about witchcraft and Wicca, you may be wondering how tarot fits into the picture. According to the official description, tarot is a card game that is used for divination and fortune telling. But that’s not all there is to it.

A tarot reading is meant to give you insight into any aspect of your daily life you wish to have a fresh perspective on. Think of things such as: relationships, school, work or your own (spiritual) development. Your question can be as specific as you wish. Keep in mind that tarot is not a way to predict the future. Our future isn’t set in stone but is ever-changing based on our decisions. Therefore, these tarot cards are open to your own interpretation. They don’t have just one meaning and can be read in multiple ways.

Tarot should also never be a way to tell you what you should or shouldn’t do. You are responsible for your own life and the decisions you make. The cards can help you gain insight in certain matters, but they are never the only guideline you should take. 

Having said that, tarot can be very insightful and help give you a new perspective on all aspects of your life.

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