A Defense of Tarot Gaming

Tarot cards began to appear in 15th century Italy. They were used for card games. The practice of reading tarot cards dates no earlier than the 18th century.
Tarot is the trick taking card game that brought forth the notion of a trump suit in card games. Tarot, like contract bridge and skat, has been called the "chess of card games" for good reason. Tarot has clearly made a valuable contribution to our game playing culture. This contribution is sadly being obscured by those who continue to sell tarot exclusively as a fortune telling or divination tool. . The notion that tarot cards are only used for fortune telling or the occult is completely false.
Not only do tarot games excercise one's thinking and memory skills, they are quite wholesome and suitable for all family members.
Because many Europeans play card games with tarot cards, European tarot cards are frequently more interesting and diverse than American ones.
A wide variety of tarot art would be possible if our narrow view of tarot cards as a divination tool were to be changed.
Tarot cards should be seen as a game playing device because game playing is what they were really made for.
People around the world could have more interesting tarot cards if the psychic tarot industry would get out of the way and allow the tarot to be the card game it was meant to be.
If more people around the world knew that tarot cards could be a game, we could have tarot cards based on Scooby Doo, Loony Tunes, Betty Boop or Star Wars.
Tarot could be like the Monopoly board game with all these different editions based on popular characters.
The perception of tarot as only a divination tool is an obstacle to our progress.
It is time for game players world wide to reclaim the tarot!
Let game playing become the future of tarot!

Links
http://www.i-p-c-s.org/history.html
http://www.pagat.com/tarot/
http://www.tarocchino.com/

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• xtranormal
• tarot
• tarock
• playing
• cards
• card
• games
• skepticism

[GStanton1965]

Tarot is tarot, and you can do what you want with it. Why do you want to limit people's freedom? They can be used for divination or for playing games. Why do you care what other people do? Live and let live.

[Tarockspieler]

@GStanton1965 Card readers limit peoples freedom by not telling people they were made for games. In most tarot literature, game playing is not presented as an option. So we aren't really free to choose, are we?

[GStanton1965]

This argument is absurd. Information is free and comes from a variety of sources. Just because one party tells you only half of the story doesn't mean your freedom is being limited -- you're free to get the other half somewhere else. Most books on tarrochi are written in french or italian. Why don't you write one in English? If you really believe what you are saying, do something positive and start a tarocchi tournament, or club or guild or something. This video isn't helping anyone.

[Tarockspieler]

@GStanton1965 Information is free now because of the internet. There are materials already in English on tarot games. However the media has chosen to give psychics exclusive property over the tarot with no information that people also play games with these cards.

[Tarockspieler]

@Tarockspieler The problem with tarot is that one party is given voice by the media.

[ANIideas]

Great script! Couldn't have said it better.

[Tarockspieler]

Thanks. If you would like to mirror this video and repost it, by all means be my guest!!

[ANIideas]

I shall do that....keep em comming - I love these little guys, they remind me of my lego days :)

[DevilWomanCake]

@Tarockspieler yes you are. Just because some tarot readers don't mention it as a game does not mean you can't still play with them. If was to try and sell vinegar as a food product, am I also obligated to mention that it's supposed to be for cleaning, or vice versa?