So, I finally decided to get my hands on a classic Tarot de Marseille deck. I’ve been messing around with the Rider-Waite deck for a while, but I wanted to see what the Marseille was all about. I heard it’s, like, the OG tarot deck, so I was curious.
Finding the Right Deck
First thing I did was look around to find the right deck. I wanted one that looked traditional, you know, not some modern, artsy-fartsy interpretation. So, I looked at a few options and I ended up going with a reproduction of a classic deck. I was so pumped when the package arrived, that I was not expecting it!
Opening the Box and First Impressions
Ripped open the box—yeah, I’m not gentle with packages—and took a look. The cards felt kinda different from my Rider-Waite. The card stock was, well different, and the images were way simpler. You know, those bold lines and primary colors? Totally different vibe.
Shuffle, Shuffle, Shuffle
I gave the deck a good shuffle. It felt a little stiff at first, but I shuffled it a bunch of times to loosen it up and get my energy into the cards. I’m a big believer in that—you gotta make the deck yours, right?
Trying a Simple Spread
I decided to start with a basic three-card spread: past, present, future. Laid them out and, whoa, it took a minute to get my head around the images. With the Rider-Waite, it’s all pretty literal, lots of little details. But the Marseille is more…symbolic, I guess? The pips, in particular those number cards, for instance 5 of cups, are just, like, five cups. No little scene to help you out.
Reading the Cards
- Past: I got the Chariot. Okay, that’s pretty straightforward. Forward movement, victory, getting your act together. Felt right.
- Present: The Two of Cups. Relationships, partnerships, connections. Yep, that resonated.
- Future: The Five of Swords… Hmm, conflict, tension, maybe a bit of a struggle. Not what I wanted to see, but hey, that’s tarot, right? It doesn’t always tell you what you want to hear.
Digging Deeper into the Meanings
After the initial reading, I spent some time just looking at each card. I grabbed my trusty notebook and jotted down some keywords and thoughts. It’s definitely going to take some time to get comfortable with this deck. The court cards, too—they’re all standing there, pretty static, unlike the Rider-Waite where they’re often doing something.
My Overall Take (So Far)
This Marseille deck is a challenge, but in a good way. It’s making me think differently about the cards, paying more attention to the basic symbolism. I’m kind of excited to keep working with it and see how my readings evolve.
So it’s going to be a little bit of a journey, I think. I’m going to try a lot of different spreads, and read the cards many times. I am super curious to see how this deck can be different from others, for the same questions.
