9 Gleanings from 18 years of being a Professional Tarot Card Reader

I completed 18 years of Professional Tarot Card Reading this May (2022).

Tarot Card Reading has not only been my Profession but it has taught me a lot. It has smoothened out my rough edges, sandpapered me to a shine, and remolded me into the person I am now – a constant work in progress.

18 years of being a Tarot Card Reader has given me insight into the minds of people of all ages and all walks of life. Their problems have humbled me and their joy has given me hope. Their perseverance has made me learn to keep the faith and their mistakes have taught me to how to avoid making mine.

Yes, these 18 years of Professional Tarot Card Reading have been rich with learning. The lessons have been innumerable, but there are a few that keep recurring. Here I pick 9, which I think could be relevant to almost everyone.

1. We don’t know ourselves: We forge so many connections in our lifetime, make an effort to get to know people, and adjust to varied temperaments. How many of us can claim to know ourselves, and I mean truly know ourselves? Are you honest with yourself? Have you identified your strengths and weaknesses, and triggers? Do you know how far you can push yourself, and when to hold back? You are the only constant in your life. Get to know yourself, befriend yourself and enjoy your own company. Knowing yourself well is the best relationship you can have.

2. We are either bemoaning the past or planning for the future: Most people are either looking back at the past or craning their necks to see what the future holds. What about your present though? It’s called a ‘present’ for a reason. When will you learn to live in the now and unwrap this beautiful present? You can’t change the past, but how you live your present can certainly change the future. Living mindfully is the best habit you can cultivate.3

3. We don’t recognize happiness: Happiness is more often than not a variable for most. I’ll be happy if, I have x amount of money/I’ll get married/I’ll buy a house/have a baby/buy a car. This list is endless. If you attach your happiness to people and things you will never be completely happy. Create happiness within, with small things. A good night’s sleep, a cup of tea, great weather, you getting all greens at traffic signals, happiness can be found everywhere. Once you learn to create happiness, you will never run out of it. Happiness attracts happiness. And the bigger things, that you wish for, will find their way to you.

4. We don’t differentiate between want and need: A need is a necessity, food on the table, a roof over your head, good health. A want is something that improves the quality of your life, designer clothes, luxury items, and the like. Most of us are confused between the two. If you are brave enough to make a fair assessment of your life you will realize that we have all that we need. It is the wants that cause us anxiety and grief.

  5. We always have someone to blame: We rarely take responsibility for our actions. We are always looking for something or someone to blame. Our parents, our upbringing, the lack of opportunities, the unfairness of the world and people. How long are we going to piggyback on all this? When we have learned to groom ourselves, be politically correct, and learned to behave right in public, what is stopping us from learning, rather than unlearning, what isn’t working for us. Growing up means taking responsibility for your life and actions, and realizing that there will be no one to blame.

6. We want to get married but do not want to work on the marriage: The quest to get married is universal. We obsess about marriage, go to great lengths to ensure that it happens, plan for it, save for it, and in some cases even manipulate it to happen. Once you are married, then what? That is when the real work starts. Unfortunately, this realization comes too late for many. You have to work on your marriage every day, individually and as a couple. You have to understand each other and your relationship. You have to understand that marriage is never a 50-50 partnership, sometime it is 70-30 and at other times it is 90-10. You have to understand that marriage is about fairness, respect, loyalty, and kindness. It is about biting back harsh words and always being generous with kind words. And these are the qualities that create love.

7. We want but rarely give: We want everyone to help us. Right from God, the Universe, and our colleagues to friends and family. How many times do we pause to see how many are we helping? I have heard all the excuses, from lack of time/lack of money to something absurd as ‘I am useless’ when it comes to reasons for not helping others. The thumb rule of life should be ‘I shouldn’t expect what I can’t give’. That is what keeps the balance of the Universe intact. You don’t need deep pockets, time, or some superior degree of intelligence to help anyone out. All you need is the intention to do so. Lending a listening ear, helping out with a chore, being patient and empathetic, cooking up a meal, sometimes that is all the help it takes, to make someone feel better.

8. We are entitled beings: We think the world owes us. It doesn’t. No one does. You may have hit a rough patch in life, but so many others have too. At the end of the day, we are all human beings made of flesh, blood, bone, and mass. We have the same set of feelings, and fears, just that the proportion varies. Each individual goes through highs lows and struggles, how they overcome the lows and celebrate the highs is what differentiates us from each other.

9. We believe everyone, but ourselves: Why is it that it is easy for us to believe others, even those we don’t like or trust, but so difficult to believe in ourselves? Why do we spend a lifetime cocooned in self-doubt, even self-loathing, looking for validation? Self-belief is your superpower, discover it and watch how everything around you changes when you do. There is only one you and you have only 1 life. It’s never too late to start loving yourself and living it.