Is it possible to read tarot cards for yourself?

Many people who are new to the world of Tarot ask themselves whether they can do a reading themselves. Is it possible?

If you take the time to browse the web, you'll find that many people think self-reading isn't possible, but we'd say they're wrong.

The Tarot for yourself

Anyone who's used the Arcana deck for a while knows that when a decision needs to be made, it's almost instinctive to reach for the Tarot. But is that possible?

Absolutely. Jodorowsky himself has covered the topic extensively and even developed a method for practicing Tarot reading.

"During my many years of studying and practicing tarot, the most difficult thing I've found is reading tarot cards for myself. I think it happens to all tarot readers: it's almost impossible to give objective answers; we have a marked tendency to deceive ourselves.

If the Arcana's answer doesn't suit us, we give ourselves excuses like: "I shuffled the cards distractedly", "I'm not concentrating well today", "These tarot cards are making fun of me!" .

This is how Alejandro Jodorowsky approaches the subject and in a few words he already expresses all the hesitations and insecurities of any tarot reader or fortune teller.

If you've been handling the deck for a long time, you've now got the Tarot cards embedded in your unconscious. You've managed to internalize the entire deck and all the Arcana.

If the answers are confusing, it's because you don't know yourself well, and self-knowledge is the first rule for anyone who wants to approach this world.

Here too, Alejandro Jodorowsky comes to our aid by offering a list of questions related to each card, questions that we should ask ourselves when doing a reading on our own.

“When you receive these questions, try to concentrate and answer with as much sincerity, depth, and courage as possible. Shuffle the Arcana for five minutes, then let the packet rest. Draw a different Arcana each day—the experience will last 22 days—and answer the questions it asks you.”

This is the exercise proposed by the great Chilean tarot reader, director, and writer. It's a practice that will push the person handling the deck toward a broader and deeper awareness of themselves and the deck.

The questions for each card

Let's see below the questions suggested by Jodorowsky, to ask oneself and to answer sincerely and very carefully, for each Arcanum.

The Fool

What is my final destination? What or who do I want to get rid of? What do you really want to be or do? What are you missing?

The Magician

What are my gifts? What can I choose? What am I starting? Who do I want to deceive?

The Popess

What am I hoarding? What am I trying to hide? Is there something pure and intact within me? What is my relationship with my mother?

The Empress

What am I creating? Who loves me and who do I love? Will I be able to dare?

The Emperor

Is my job satisfying? Do I take care of my health? Am I useful to others? Is there anything I care about more than money? What is my relationship with my father?

The Pope

Are the things I learned as a child correct? Do I have a spiritual horizon beyond the material one? Can I be of use to someone?

The Lover

How are my relationships going? Do I have a true partner? Am I happy? What am I missing?

The Chariot

Where am I, where am I going, where do I come from? Am I succeeding or failing? What wisdom or doctrine am I drawing upon to guide me? Who are my allies?

Justice

What do I need to cut out of my life? What ideas do I need to eliminate? Who or what do I need to part with?

The Hermit

What or who do I believe in? What do I know is truest? What or who am I distancing myself from? What must I sacrifice? Why have I isolated myself?

The Wheel of Fortune

What life cycle have I completed? What do I need to change? Am I good enough to accept change as a transition? What's holding me back from the past?

The Force

Emotional, intellectual, material, sexual-creative strength... what kind of strength am I endowed with? Do I feel selfish? Do I feel cowardly? What do I need to tame?

The Hanged Man

What must I sacrifice? Who or what do I hold a grudge against? Who must I distance myself from? What am I hiding?

The Nameless Arcanum (Death)

What must die in me? What is transforming inside me? If I couldn't be punished, who would I make disappear?

Temperance

Who can protect me, and who do I protect? Who do I need to heal? Who or what caused me to lose my faith? What is the emotional wound that burns me the most?

The Devil

What vice or passion is holding me back? To whom have I sold myself? What creative capacity do I possess? What sexual desire am I repressing?

The Tower

From whom or what, after having waged war, am I separating myself? What is crumbling in my life? What energies are being released within me?

The Star

Am I in the right place where I can fulfill myself? Am I capable of accepting and managing success? Am I capable of finishing what I start without destroying it?

The Moon

What receptive capacity is inherent in me? Do I have the modesty to accept my own spiritual value? Do I have the capacity to admire others? Do I see anyone as superior to me?

The Sun

What fills me with energy, joy, and success? Am I always willing to share what I have? Am I able to let go of the past? Do I trust others?

The Judgement

What is being reborn within me? Am I capable of creating a happy family? Do I have the modesty to acknowledge myself as a humble channel of the cosmos? With whom do I collaborate to reach a higher awareness?

The World

What have I achieved with the changes I've made within myself? Am I fulfilled? Do I feel attached to something obsolete? What kind of people do I surround myself with—those who improve my life or destroy it?