The Mythic Tarot: A New Approach to the Tarot Cards [Paperback]

Liz Greene (Author), Juliet Sharman-Burke (Author), Tricia Newell (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 1986

For centuries people have attempted to unlock the mysteries of the Tarot and its relationship to their lives. Until now, however, this ancient system of divination has remained an obscure "occult" pursuit.

The Mythic Tarot sweeps the medieval dust off the Tarot and brings it into the twentieth century in a form accessible to everyone. Now even the layperson can explore the secrets of the unconscious to find its bearing on his or her personal life and growth.

This package contains everything the beginning card user needs: a newly designed Tarot deck based on the Greek myths; an illustrated, 224-page book explaining how to use the cards; and a silky cloth on which to lay them out.

THE CARDS: Elegant, full color, the design of these cards is based on the Greek myths. These familiar, evocative images make it easy to remember the specific meaning and nuances of each card.

THE BOOK: Clearly and simply presented from a Western point of view, this illustrated book explains the origins of the Tarot, how the Tarot works, the meaning of each card, and how to read the cards.

THE CLOTH: Made of a silky, wrinkle-proof material and imprinted with card outlines for the Celtic Cross spread, the black cloth shows you where to lay out the cards and serves as a protective wrapping for the cards when not in use.

Used intelligently and sensitively, The Mythic Tarot will stimulate an innate curiosity about yourself as well as provide the first step toward developing intuition -- the hallmark of the regular Tarot reader.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Juliet Sharman-Burke is an analytic psychotherapist, and has been practising tarot and astrology for twenty years. She is well-known as a teacher of tarot, and brings her teaching experience and knowledge of students to The Mythic Tarot. She has written 7 books, including Understanding the Tarot, and Mastering the Tarot. Liz Greene is a Jungian analyst and an astrologer of international reputation. She is the author of 19 books which have been translated into 10 languages. She gives seminars, workshops and lectures throughout Europe. Tricia Newell is a prolific illustrator of both adult and children's books. Her naive, detailed and decorative style is the perfect medium to convey the symbolism of the tarot with great impact and clarity. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Introduction

This Workbook is intended to help Tarot students to deepen and widen their knowledge of the cards. I have had the good fortune to teach many Beginners' Workshops in Tarot which often ended with the cry: 'Now that we know what the cards mean how do we work with them?' In answer to that cry I set up Advanced Workshops. This Workbook is intended to act as a substitute for work shops. It is a sequel to The Mythic Tarot, which provided background history for all forms of Tarot cards, and outlined the basic meanings in a mythological, psychological and divinatory sense.

Although the Workbook is designed with The Mythic Tarot cards in mind, it can be used equally well with any other Tarot deck with which readers may be more familiar. The mythic pictorial imagery differs from many traditional Tarot decks but the divinatory meanings of the cards remain the same. The exercises are therefore appropriate for use with any Tarot deck. The Workbook aims to help students to structure and increase their knowledge in using the Tarot more effectively in practice. So it concentrates on the two aspects essential to all effective Tarot readings: that readers come to know themselves better via the Tarot, and that they in turn use their knowledge to help interpreting it for other people.

The Workbook comprises four parts. The first deals with the Major Arcana and concentrates on developing a richer and deeper relationship with the mysterious twenty-two Major Trumps. Guided fantasy and therapeutic colouring exercises are demonstrated in order to enable you to establish a closer relationship with the images. Particular attention is paid to the cards' uses and their value in the search for self-awareness. The second section focuses on the Court Cards and their correlation with Astrology, in particular with zodiacal sun signs through the Knight, Queen and King. The third section offers a closer understanding of the everyday meanings of the Minor Arcana, and space is provided for exercises to help fix their message clearly in the reader's understanding. The fourth section looks at various aspects of Tarot reading, layouts and use of the Tarot therapeutically; whether professionally, for friends, or for personal self-improvement.

It is important to remember that your proficiency in Tarot readings will be directly linked with the amount of effort put into study. For this reason I have devised various exercises to help you to develop a greater understanding of interpretation. Methodical performance of these exercises will produce a deeper appreciation of the breadth and depth of this fascinating subject. The exercises are structured and set out in a form that encourages you to fill in the blanks and note pages. Keeping a conscientious record of your work over weeks, months and years will develop a continuity in study, as well as charting your progress. In attempting the colouring exercises it is a good idea to record the date and your mood at the time, so that in weeks or months ahead you can look back over your notes and see how your views have changed and developed. Similarly, keeping a record of the readings you perform on the blanks provided, will act as a reminder of the outcome of your own interpretations and those made for friends or clients. I recommend that you open a file to contain photocopies of the blank spreads to facilitate this.

The style and manner of your approach to reading Tarot will naturally be unique to you. Within the generally accepted principles and symbolism of Tarot, a spread of cards is capable of interpretation in many ways, depending upon one's personal experience. I can offer an insight into my own approach to interpretation, but it will not necessarily be the same as your own. Tarot reading is a deeply personal act which can only develop with time and effort and practice. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Fireside (October 15, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671618636
• ISBN-13: 978-0671618636
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (63 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #325,232 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Have for the Accomplished Tarot Reader or the Newbie., September 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Mythic Tarot Workbook (Paperback)

This book has been an incredible tool for myself in learning the Tarot. It's packed with spreads, worksheets, and study pages for EVERY card in the deck. It starts off with a page on each one of the cards in the Major Arcana in the Mythic Tarot and lets you color them in. This exercise in itself was a great visualization tool and has helped me connect with each one of the cards. If you're new to Tarot or if you are wanting to learn more, I strongly reccomend this workbook.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you're serious about tarot, it's a must have!, July 28, 2004

By 

Jasmine (Grand Prairie, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mythic Tarot (Paperback)

I'd like to address some of the primary complaints I've heard about this deck before I get to why I use this deck all of the time.

Personally, the only issues I've had with anything breaking for falling apart was with the front cover of the book - that was my fault; in a fit of rage I'd cut the cover of the book off. I found that it was a very sturdy material myself.

Possibly, it's because I handle the cards more gently than the other people do. I've had them for years, and they're still in great shape.

As for anyone feeling limited by the spread printed on the cloth, if it's that big of an issue, don't use it. Or, even better, do what I do - flip the cloth over. It's one sided print.

The interpretations are sometimes very vague in this book, which would not make it the ideal deck for a beginner. However, I felt the reason the book was lacking in interpretation detail as opposed to the backstory, symbolism, and descriptions was because these things, along with your inutition, is what should be used to find the meaning of the card, rather then relying on the book as a crutch.

That's possibly one of my favourite things about this deck. It pushes you from being a beginner to something more advanced, by using your own inuition to truly read these cards.

The beautiful images open up a story, revealing what the card means, if you pay attention to the symbolism found in the book. The book itself is not one of those paper booklets inserted into a normal deck, it is a full fledged book in its own right. Definitely not something that one may easily lose, as opposed to other products.

I wouldn't call this deck "dark". Some cards (ie: Three of Swords) just don't mean "happy" things, and that's simply the way it is. Ultimately though, even what one may perceive as dark can begin a period of something better.

If you're serious about tarot, I'd suggest this deck for you. If you're more into parlor games, perhaps you'd be more interested in another product.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A good beginners tarot with a psychological twist, March 22, 2001

By 

"buffy0001" (Adelaide, South Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mythic Tarot: A New Approach to the Tarot Cards (Paperback)

The Mythic Tarot was the first deck I gained, and I have been working with it for the past 7 years. The deck is beautifully illustrated in the tradition of Greek Mythology, with each of the suits telling a classic mythical tale (eg Jason and the Argonauts as the suit of wands).

The Mythic Tarot book describes interpretations that differ substantially from those of classic decks such as the Rider-Waite, as the focus is not on good-bad/upright-reveresed cards, but rather on the fact that every event or situation has both positive and negative aspects (a very psychological concept). I have found this to be a very good thing, particularly in situations where you are reading for people that are a little scared of what the future may hold for them ("and you can take that death card of of the deck before you do my reading!" is a common comment!). While Death is still seen as a monumental change and a difficult ending, it is also stressed that there will be a new beginning and rebirth. This is one big reason why I like this interpretation for beginners in particular.

This deck was excellent to learn with, as the mythical stories portrayed by the suits are easy to remember and well explained in the book, therefore making divination something anybody can learn (even me)!